Theories of Jurisprudence

Question 1

Jurisprudence

Answer 1

Branch of philosophy concerned with how laws are created, applied and enforced + their social impact

Question 2

Identify different theories of law

Answer 2

Natural law theory
Legal positivism
Feminist Jurisprudence
Law and Economics
Critical legal theory

Question 3

Natural law theory

Answer 3

Laws are an extension of human nature and align with ideas of morality.
Hence, natural laws are universal, unchanging (as human nature is believed to be constant) and apply to everyone.

Question 4

Legal positivism

Answer 4

Law is a human creation, created through established procedure, based on the will of a sovereign and supported by consequence.
Generality.
View of the law “as it is, not as it ought to be”.

Question 5

Feminist Jurisprudence

Answer 5

Focuses on how male dominance is embodied in law; argues that patriarchal influence is embedded within the law and examines issues of inequality

Question 6

What is sameness feminism?

Answer 6

Where differences between men and women are used to discriminate against either of the sexes.
False differences need to be discredited.

Question 7

What is cultural feminism?

Answer 7

Where differences between men and women are emphasised to call for the just recognition of these differences where need be e.g. female perspective to be reflected in legal system

Question 8

Law and Economics

Answer 8

Laws should maximise satisfaction and economic efficiency

Question 9

Critical legal theory

Answer 9

Law and politics is mutually intertwined.
Legal material alone doesn’t determine the outcome of a case, as the material is itself limited by political constraints. Thus, “what the law says it does differs from what it actually does”.
Questions autonomy of the individual.