Define: Legal Theory

Legal theory encompasses a broad range of interdisciplinary approaches to understanding the nature, purpose, and function of law. It involves the critical examination of legal concepts, principles, and institutions to develop theories and frameworks for analysing and interpreting the law. Legal theorists explore questions about the foundations of law, the relationship between law and morality, the role of judges and legal institutions, and the implications of legal decisions on society. Legal theory draws on various disciplines, including philosophy, sociology, political science, economics, and history, to provide insights into the nature of law and its impact on individuals and communities. By engaging in theoretical inquiry, legal scholars seek to deepen our understanding of the law and contribute to the development of more just, effective, and equitable legal systems.

The primary purpose of legal theory is to define the law. There have been several theories of law. These different theories often look at the law from various points of view.

According to the natural law theory, there are objective principles that depend on the essential nature of the universe and can be discovered by natural reason. From the point of view of the ordinary human being, law is only true law so far as it conforms to these fundamental rights. According to this theory, there are certain objective and absolute principles of morality and justice that are the basis of law. These principles can be ascertained by humans, which are the basis of law. These principles can be ascertained by human reason and common sense. Positive law, or man-made law, has to conform to these fundamental principles. To the extent that positive law is inconsistent with the principles of natural law, it does not claim obedience.

The roots of this theory are to be found in the philosophies of the ancient Greek philosophers. This theory is also responsible for much of the legal and political thinking of the Middle Ages. As Bodenheim rightly remarks, no other philosophy moulded and shaped American thinking and American institutions to such an extent as did the philosophy of natural law in the form given to it in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.

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This glossary post was last updated: 11th April, 2024.