LaN Session 1

Question 1

Retributivism

Answer 1

Punishes for the sake of it, should be deserved and proportional to the wrongdoing.

Challenged by neurolaw, which questions free will and moral responsibility.

Question 2

Utilitarianism/Consequentialism

Answer 2

Supports punishment if it results in greater good or less harm to society.
Punishment as deterrence, rehabilitative and reductive of re-offences.

Neurolaw can enhance by providing insights on effective treatments and allowing prevention of crime.

Question 3

Restorative Justice

Answer 3

Focuses on repairing the harm caused by the criminal behaviour.

Neurolaw can enhance by providing understanding of empathy, remorse and social cognition.

Question 4

Ethical considerations on neurolaw

Answer 4

Risk of stigmatising individuals with brain abnormalities and of reducing complex human behaviours to biological explanations.

Question 5

Morse’s critique

Answer 5

While neuroscientific data can be valid and informative, it doesn’t automatically answer legal questions, e.g. one’s impulses may be enhanced by mental abnormalities, but doesn’t mean one lacks self-control or rational capacities.