Law as a Moral Idea

ISBN-13: 9780199276462 / Angielski / Twarda / 2007 / 220 str.

N. E. Simmonds

Opis

This book argues that the institutions of law and the structures of legal thought are best understood by referencing the moral ideals of freedom and independence from the power of others.
In making this claim, the author rejects the viewpoint of much contemporary legal theory, and seeks to move jurisprudence closer to an older tradition of philosophical reflection upon law, exemplified by Hobbes and Kant. According to most contemporary legal theorists, the understanding and analysis of existing institutions is quite distinct from any enterprise of moral reflection, but Nigel Simmonds suggests that the relationship between ideals and practices is much more intimate than this approach would suggest. In Law as a Moral Ideal he posits that some institutions can be properly understood only when they are viewed as imperfect attempts to realize moral or political ideals, and some ideals can be conceived only by reference to their expression in institutions.

Recenzje

(A) fertile springboard of ideas, the kind of book that matures in your mind with time, and ... helps you see a familiar theoretical heritage from a different, fascinating angle. .. A prime instance of agile, knowledgeable, thought-provoking jurisprudence

O autorze

Nigel Simmonds is Reader in Jurisprudence at the University of Cambridge, where he is also Director of Studies in Law, and Dean of College at Corpus Christi College.