LEG 254 Jurisprudence

This upper-level course will introduce the students into philosophical thinking on law. The course is designed to convey a body of knowledge about the jurisprudence and to train the students to use that knowledge to frame and advance arguments relevant to the world today. It will discuss general themes of legal positivism and natural law theories. It opens particular questions, such as: Why do we obey law at all? Where does "legality" end and "revolution" begin? Why isn't law the same thing as justice? Is civil disobedience ever justified in a liberal democracy? Are war crimes tribunals "legal" proceedings or "revenge" proceedings? How can you tell a just and legal war from an unjust and illegal one? Why is an individual's "choice" - as in the case of abortion - considered a positive, Constitutional good? Why does the Anglo-American system of justice make legal resolution into a game while the Civil-Law Tradition stresses the inquisitorial approach?