The Tax Reform Act of 1986 did have a consensus principle behind it.

FORBES: I Grew Up With The Internal Revenue Code of 1986 - Will We Retire Together ?

Although it also upholds the consensus principle, it is more top down, with Mr Berners-Lee acting as a benevolent dictator.

ECONOMIST: The consensus machine

Google and Verizon made their announcement after the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) ended closed-door talks with service providers and internet companies to find a consensus on the principle of net neutrality.

BBC: Protesters denounce Google plan for 'two-tier internet'

We can also work together to build a framework, put together a proposal that should have bipartisan consensus built around the principle of balance, as we tackle our long-term and medium-term deficit and debt challenges.

WHITEHOUSE: Press Briefing by Press Secretary Jay Carney,

The religious scholars eventually came to a sensible consensus that coffee was, in principle, permissible.

BBC: Coffee and qahwa: How a drink for Arab mystics went global