Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of audiobooks, ebooks, and so much more with a free trial

    From $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    The Causes of Law
    The Causes of Law
    The Causes of Law
    Ebook47 pages59 minutesPhilosophy of Law

    The Causes of Law

    By James Constant

    3.5/5

    ()

    Read preview

    About this ebook

    Jurisprudence. Philosophy of Law. Uncertainty of Law and Constitutional Government. This book looks at the causes of law: law as an artifact; the efficient, material, formal and final causes of law; and the errors of positivism

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherJames Constant
    Release dateOct 6, 2013
    ISBN9781301248858
    The Causes of Law
    Author

    James Constant

    writes on law, government, mathematics and science, as they are and as they should be

    Read more from James Constant

    Related to The Causes of Law

    Titles in the series (9)

    View More
    View More

    Related ebooks

    Jurisprudence For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related categories

    Reviews for The Causes of Law

    3.5/5

    2 ratings0 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

      Book preview

      The Causes of Law - James Constant

      The Causes of Law

      By James Constant

      Smashwords Edition

      Copyright © 1993,2013 by James Constant

      Smashwords Edition, License Notes

      This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

      Table of Contents

      Law as an Artifact

      The Efficient Cause Of Law

      The Material Cause Of Law

      The Formal Cause Of Law

      The Final Cause Of Law

      The Errors of Positivism

      THE CAUSES OF LAW

      The law of faith, the Natural Law tradition, and its variants ask how a law can be known to be good. The law of reason, the Positivist tradition, and its variants simply replace faith by reason and ask the same question. The law of observation, the Realism tradition, and its variants starts by asking how a law can be recognized at all. [19] As generally understood, the term good means sufficient or satisfactory for its purpose; perfect means complete, sound, flawless of every part or quality; and just means meriting reward or punishment. Here, I seek to find the causes of law and to better define the concepts of goodness, perfection, and justice as they may apply to the law. Finding causes of law are questions of observation.

      The legal writers, while touching upon parts, do not address the causes of law as a whole.

      LAW AS AN ARTIFACT

      Since the premise is that law is nothing but a human artifact, there is no doubt that causes operate in law as they do in human artistic production. Aristotle's famous theory of four causes applies particularly well to artifacts, here the law. The ruler who makes the law is not only its efficient cause, as the legislators, judges, courts, laws, rules and decisions which make up the law are its material cause, but the ruler also has in mind a formal cause, the design of the law to be made, and the ruler has in mind a purpose for which the law, when made, will be used, a final cause. Likewise, the carpenter who makes a chair is not only its efficient cause, as the wood out of which it is made is its material cause, but the carpenter also has in mind a formal cause, the design of the chair to be made, and the carpenter has in mind a purpose for which the chair, when made, will be used, a final cause. Thus, the law is an artistic production whose operation is necessitated by the design and purpose imposed upon it by its human artificer.

      One difference between a chair and the law is that between one carpenter and many lawmakers. This holds particularly in a democracy, less so in an oligarchy, and least so in a monarchy or dictatorship. Even Plato's philosopher king [20] would need to appoint many minds to craft the law. A chair therefore is more likely to have a fully worked out design and purpose in the mind of the carpenter. It is more difficult for many lawmakers to reach a consensus on the design and purpose of the law.

      Another difference is that the law is not like a chair, or clock, or picture for that matter. While

      Enjoying the preview?
      Page 1 of 1