Legal Theory and the Social Sciences

Legal Theory and the Social Sciences
Author: MaksymilianDel Mar
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 530
Release: 2017-07-05
Genre: History
ISBN: 1351560476

Ever since H.L.A. Hart's self-description of The Concept of Law as an 'exercise in descriptive sociology', contemporary legal theorists have been debating the relationship between legal theory and sociology, and between legal theory and social science more generally. There have been some who have insisted on a clear divide between legal theory and the social sciences, citing fundamental methodological differences. Others have attempted to bridge gaps, revealing common challenges and similar objects of inquiry. Collecting the work of authors such as Martin Krygier, David Nelken, Brian Tamanaha, Lewis Kornhauser, Gunther Teubner and Nicola Lacey, this volume - the second in a three volume series - provides an overview of the major developments in the last thirty years. The volume is divided into three sections, each discussing an aspect of the relationship of legal theory and the social sciences: 1) methodological disputes and collaboration; 2) common problems, especially as they concern different modes of explanation of social behaviour; and 3) common objects, including, most prominently, the study of language in its social context and normative pluralism.

Law and the Social Sciences

Law and the Social Sciences
Author: Stanton Wheeler
Publisher:
Total Pages: 748
Release: 1986
Genre: Law
ISBN: 9781610448833

The notion of law as a social phenomenon would have surprised educators and scholars a century ago. For them, law was a science and the library was the ultimate source of all legal knowledge. Our contemporary willingness to see law in a social context--reflecting social relations, for example, or precipitating social changes--is a relatively recent development, spurred during the last quarter century by the work of a generation of scholars (mostly social scientists and law professors) who believe the perspectives of the social sciences are essential to a better understanding of the law. Law and the Social Sciences provides a unique and authoritative assessment of modern sociolegal research. Its impressive range and depth, the centrality of its concerns, and the stature of its contributors all attest to the vitality of the law-and-society movement and the importance of interdisciplinary work in this field. Each chapter is both an exposition of its author's point of view and a survey of the pertinent literature. In treating such topics as law and the economic order, legal systems of the world, the deterrence doctrine, and access to justice, the authors explore overlapping themes--the tension between public and private domains, between diffused and concentrated power, between the goals of uniformity and flexibility, between costs and benefits--that are significant to observers not only of our legal institutions but of other social systems as well.

Routledge Handbook of Socio-Legal Theory and Methods

Routledge Handbook of Socio-Legal Theory and Methods
Author: Naomi Creutzfeldt
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 566
Release: 2019-08-13
Genre: Law
ISBN: 0429489749

Drawing on a range of approaches from the social sciences and humanities, this handbook explores theoretical and empirical perspectives that address the articulation of law in society, and the social character of the rule of law. The vast field of socio-legal studies provides multiple lenses through which law can be considered. Rather than seeking to define the field of socio-legal studies, this book takes up the experiences of researchers within the field. First-hand accounts of socio-legal research projects allow the reader to engage with diverse theoretical and methodological approaches within this fluid interdisciplinary area. The book provides a rich resource for those interested in deepening their understanding of the variety of theories and methods available when law is studied in its broadest social context, as well as setting those within the history of the socio-legal movement. The chapters consider multiple disciplinary lenses – including feminism, anthropology and sociology – as well as a variety of methodologies, including: narrative, visual and spatial, psychological, economic and epidemiological approaches. Moreover, these are applied in a range of substantive contexts such as online hate speech, environmental law, biotechnology, research in post-conflict situations, race and LGBT+ lawyers. The handbook brings together younger contributors and some of the best-known names in the socio-legal field. It offers a fresh perspective on the past, present and future of sociolegal studies that will appeal to students and scholars with relevant interests in a range of subjects, including law, sociology and politics. Chapter 7 of this book is freely available as a downloadable Open Access PDF at http://www.taylorfrancis.com under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives (CC-BY-NC-ND) 4.0 license.

Theory of Legal Science

Theory of Legal Science
Author: Aleksander Peczenik
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 698
Release: 2012-12-06
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 9400964811

Proceedings of the Conference on Legal Theory and Philosophy of Science, Lund, Sweden, December 11-14, 1983

Law and Social Theory

Law and Social Theory
Author: Reza Banakar
Publisher: A&C Black
Total Pages: 694
Release: 2014-07-18
Genre: Law
ISBN: 1782252045

There is a growing interest within law schools in the intersections between law and different areas of social theory. The second edition of this popular text introduces a wide range of traditions in sociology and the humanities that offer provocative, contextual views on law and legal institutions. The book is organised into six sections, each with an introduction by the editors, on classical sociology of law, systems theory, critical approaches, law in action, postmodernism, and law in global society. Each chapter is written by a specialist who reviews the literature, and discusses how the approach can be used in researching different topics. New chapters include authoritative reviews of actor network theory, new legal realism, critical race theory, post-colonial theories of law, and the sociology of the legal profession. Over half the chapters are new, and the rest are revised in order to include discussion of recent literature.

Frontiers of Legal Theory

Frontiers of Legal Theory
Author: Richard A. Posner
Publisher: Harvard University Press
Total Pages: 474
Release: 2004-03
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 9780674013605

The most exciting development in legal thinking since World War II has been the growth of interdisciplinary legal studies. Judge Richard Posner has been a leader in this movement, and his new book explores its rapidly expanding frontier.

Concepts of Law

Concepts of Law
Author: Dr Lukas Heckendorn Urscheler
Publisher: Ashgate Publishing, Ltd.
Total Pages: 422
Release: 2014-10-28
Genre: Law
ISBN: 1472401549

Debates surrounding the concept of law are not new. For a wide variety of reasons and in a wide variety of ways, the meaning of 'law' has long been an important part of Western thought, both within legal scholarship and beyond. The contributors to Concepts of Law are international experts from the fields of comparative law, legal philosophy, and the social sciences. Combining theoretical analyses with case studies, they explore various legal concepts and contexts from diverse national and disciplinary perspectives. Legal and normative pluralism is a theme throughout. Some chapters discuss the development of state law and legal systems. Others wrestle with law’s rhetoric and the potential utility of alternative vocabularies, e.g., 'governance' and ‘governmentality’. Others reveal the rich polyjurality of the present, from the local to the global. The result is a rich picture of both present scholarship on laws and norms and the state of contemporary legal complexity, each crossing traditional boundaries.

Realistic Socio-legal Theory

Realistic Socio-legal Theory
Author: Brian Z. Tamanaha
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 304
Release: 1997
Genre: Law
ISBN: 9780198265603

Combining philosophical pargmatism with a methodological foundation, Tamanaha formulates a framework for a realistic approach to socio-legal theory. The strengths of this approach are contrasted with that of the major schools of socio-legal theory by application to core issues in this area.Thus Tamanaha explores the problematic state of socio-legal studies, the relationship between behaviour and meaning, the notion of legal ideology, the problem of indeterminacy in rule following and application, and the structure of judicial decision making. These issues are tackled in a clear andconcise fashion while articulating a social theory of law which draws equally from legal theory and socio-legal theory.

Law's Community

Law's Community
Author: Roger Cotterrell
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 404
Release: 1995
Genre: Law
ISBN: 9780198264903

These essays seek to re-locate the relationship between the traditional concerns of legal theory and the sociology of law by establishing a consistent theoretical approach to the analysis of law in contemporary Western societies.

A History and Theory of the Social Sciences

A History and Theory of the Social Sciences
Author: Peter Wagner
Publisher: SAGE
Total Pages: 209
Release: 2001-07-17
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1446264513

Divided into two parts, this book examines the train of social theory from the 19th century, through to the ′organization of modernity′, in relation to ideas of social planning, and as contributors to the ′rationalistic revolution′ of the ′golden age′ of capitalism in the 1950s and 60s. Part two examines key concepts in the social sciences. It begins with some of the broadest concepts used by social scientists: choice, decision, action and institution and moves on to examine the ′collectivist alternative′: the concepts of society, culture and polity, which are often dismissed as untenable by postmodernists today. This is a major contribution to contemporary social theory and provides a host of essential insights into the task of social science today.