Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
Sociological theory of law
Sociology of law and sociological jurisprudence
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Law is a tool in society as it helps to maintain social control, promoting social justice. The way law functions in society and its social institution provide a mechanism for solutions. There are many different theories of the function of law in relation to society in considering the insight they bring to different socio-legal and criminological problems. In the discussion of law’s role in social theory, Leon Petrażycki and Eugen Ehrlich share similar beliefs in the jurisprudence of society. They focused their work on the experience of individuals in establishing meaning in their legal relations with others based on the question of what it means to be a participant in law. Jürgen Habermas presents a relationship between law and morality. From a certain standpoint, law is a key steering mechanism in society as it plays an educational role in promoting conducts, a mean of communication and it and the theories of Petrazycki, Ehrlich and Habermas prescribes law as an important mean in the structuring of society. Leon Petrażycki’s idea of ‘intuitive law’, For Petrażycki, “All the existing theories on the nature of the properties of law ere essentially wrong because they ignored the nature of its reality.” He saw law as occupying a particular place, and law beyond state law as state law only focuses on violations of the law and not what holds people together. Law is stronger than morality, which is stronger than the state and his intuitive law depicts those legal experiences that contain no references to outside authorities. More so, Petrażycki expresses the law as a form of ethical experience and between official and unofficial laws, there is a mutual relationship.. Similar to Petrazycki’s intuitive law, Eugen Ehrlich emphasize on... ... middle of paper ... ...and connections between state law and non-state law. - They refuted natural law theories and argue the claims of legal positivism that a norm became a legal rule only if it was posited by the state. CONCLUSION: 160 words - Jürgen Habermas focused on law, as the integrative mechanism in modern society and that it has become a central position in society. - Leon Petrażycki and Eugen Ehrlich had independent work but their theories corresponded with one another in at least one respect (33). Both theorists believe that the law is found in institutions that are outside authority. - The most effective laws are those laws that are able to coincide with what people do. - - Law is the foundation of central structures of social life on which society’s integrity depends, which is why Petrazycki, Ehrlich and Habermas perceive it to be a key steering mechanism in society,
Carl et al. (2011, p. 119) suggests that there are two primary models as to how laws were created (i) the consensus (ii) conflict models. While the consensus model of law suggests that laws arise when people witness behaviours that they do not approve of, therefore agreeing to make that behaviour illegal (Carl et al., 2011, p. 119). The conflict model
Law has no existence for itself; rather its essence lies, from a certain perspective, in the very life of men.
Morality is the principles and standards set by society for evaluating between right and wrong. “One has not only a legal but a moral responsibility to obey just laws” (A Natural Law Approach 284). Unreasonable laws created by a democratic legislature can very e...
Law is a very important aspect of our lives which lays down the principles of our day to day activities. There is not a right or wrong definition of law, however it can be defined in various ways such as a set of rules and regulations created by the Parliament enforced through institutions that plays an important role in the creation and maintenance of social order and which regulates every aspect of our lives, another definition is provided by Sir John Salmond who defines law “as being the body of principles recognised and applied by the state in the administration of justice”.
law as a creation of the rich, who, because of their wealth, own and control most of the property
MacCormick’s institutional theory advances from Kelsen’s pure theory of law which considers politics and morality to be impurities. Whilst politics involves the process of law-making, MacCormick dismisses it from the institutional theory as it concerns the exercise of power to act in a certain way rather than according to the normative order. It is argued that the law is not coercive but normative in power as legislation has the power to alter practice without the need to provide direct orders to agencies. Nevertheless, this argument has limitations as the law can also be deemed as coercive due to the sanctions that the judiciary can impose on individuals. Furthermore, legal positivists argue that moral norms are distinct from legal norms and therefore prefer to exclude it from the institutional law theory. MacCormick argues that not all legal rules contain a moral element. This is a limitation of the theory as the law can only maintain the normative order in the “legal sense.” Different people have different views on what is morally correct and if this is not embodied in the law then it is difficult for the normative order to be upheld as there would be a conflict in the decision of what ought to be done in the circumstances. Moreover, this theory is based on democratic law which is not universal and therefore rejects the
Often, we fail to see the distinction between morality and law. Many times, we indecorously allow one to guide the other. What society morally deems right, or wrong, can simply be a reflection of the law. At times, they serve to channel our conducts. But unfortunately, the law does not always serve morality justice, and moral principles are not always consistent across society. Hence, we must not...
Both legal and moral rules have certain characteristics which help us identify them and to distinguish them from each other. One characteristic is their
As the outset, there are numerous reasons why the law can change human behaviour, but the most conspicuous one stems from the fact by keeping following the
Religion vs. Politics, human law vs. divine law, and good government vs. bad government, are all things that hold strong influence over the people in society, and determines their behavior towards one another. Whether it be good or bad. To maintain order amongst the people, laws must be created, and therefore, should be reflective to everyone as a whole, is one widely held popular view. Another is that those who cause trouble should only be subjected to the law. And lastly, law is suppose to protect the good people from those who do badly. Law holds so much power, yet many people still break it. In this paper, I will explore the religious, philosophical, and political views of St. Thomas Aquinas in relation to the law in society, through his following works: The Doctrine of Necessary Being, the Halfway State of Being, the Weakness of
The importance of legal positivism for legal practitioners is undoubted. The legal system, originating from two version being both English and Continental-European, has indeed undergone a process of evolution. Today, the existence of a separate legal view in society with its legal norms and a strict separation of law and morality is witnessed. An autonomous order has emerged in our modern society and law is now seen to be separate and self-sustaining with a normative function. There was no longer an external view of the legal system, as all law is man-made by the Parliament and thus a new theory was needed to understand and replace natural law. This was coherently put together as the ‘Pure Theory of Law’ by Hans Kelsen (1967), who has argued for the existence of a system of norms that binds judges. Thus, the fundamental assumption of legal positivism is that there is no room for the interpretation of law and judges are law-bound. Nevertheless, this notion of legal positivism has and is still being argued. The importance lies with the epistemological views that underpin these theories. Legal positivism therefore relies heavily on logical decisions and rationality; hence a judge’s subjective opinion, morality and interpretation has no room in legal practice. Yet, this view has been criticised on the grounds that legal positivism seems to be a theory of law and not really one of legal practice, as it often ignores what happens in courts. This is therefore a question of importance within a social theory of law that examines law from a very different dimension.
Throughout centuries we as a society have always had an unhealthy devotion to law, whether it be how it has been brought out, what is seen as being applicable as law, and how it provides a broad understanding of the law and kinship that is required to fully understand the different concepts and rituals that law provides. Many different sociologists and anthropologist have developed their own theories regarding how law is defined to them and more importantly how it’s power is distributed towards other members of society. The contribution of sociologist and anthropologist to the formation of law can help trace the development of international human rights law from a perspective of the development in meaning and scope of international norms. Three
Durkheim sees the role of law and punishment to be important for the solidarity of society as a whole. (Ibid., p81) Here, society has a...
Firstly in this report, I will be giving the different definitions of rule of law by different philosophers; secondly, I will be applying the rule of law to the English Legal system and thirdly I will be explaining separation of powers with a focus on the impartial judiciary. Finally, I will be using cases to support every detailed point given.
Law is one of the most important elements that transform humans from mere beasts into intelligent and special beings. Law tells us what is right and wrong and how we, humans, should act to achieve a peaceful society while enjoying individual freedoms. The key to a successful nation is a firm, strong, and fair code of high laws that provides equal and just freedom to all citizens of the country. A strong government is as important as a firm code of law as a government is a backbone of a country and of the laws. A government is a system that executes and determines its laws. As much as fair laws are important, a capable government that will not go corrupt and provide fair services holds a vital role in building and maintaining a strong country.