The Legal Relation: Legal Theory after Legal Positivism

223 Pages·2017·0.93 MB·English

by  Alexander Somek

Alexander Somek, at the height of his powers, has already enjoyed a long and
distinguished career. He is, unlike most of us, altogether at home in both worlds –
theAnglophoneworldwithitsmyopiaandtheContinentalEuropeanworldwithits
vastperspectivesbut,alltoooften,withanalysisthatfallsshortofthemark.Alexander
Somekbringsthebestofbothworldstogether,andhismanuscriptisawelcomeeffortto
redressthebalanceinfavorof,asheputsit,apost-legalpositivisttheoryoflaw.
StanleyL.Paulson,WashingtonUniversityinSt.Louis
AmaturemasterpieceequalingHart’sConceptofLawor Dworkin’sLaw’s Empirein
jurisprudentialambition,originality,andsophistication,TheLegalRelationisthemost
importantcontinentalEuropeancontributiontojurisprudenceinthenewmillennium.
MattiasKumm,IngeRennertProfessorofLawatthe
NewYorkUniversitySchoolofLawandProfessorofGlobal
PublicLawintheBerlinSocialScienceCenter
With this bold and provocative book, Somek brilliantly reimagines legal positivism.
Everylegalphilosophermustreadthisbook.Theargumentisimaginative,penetrating,
andultimatelyconvincing.
DennisPatterson,BoardofGovernorsProfessorofLaw,
RutgersLawSchool,Camden,NewJersey

the legal relation
Whatislaw?Theusualansweristhatthelawisasystemofnorms.Butthisanswer
givesusatbesthalfofthestory.Thelawisawayofrelatingtooneanother.Wedo
notdothisasloversorfriendsandnotaspeoplewhoareinterestedinobtaining
guidancefrommoralinsight.Inalegalcontext,wearecastas“charactermasks”
(Marx),forexample,as“buyer”and“seller”or“landlord”and“tenant.”Weexpect
tohaveourclaimsrespectedsimplybecausethelawhasgivenusrights.Wedonot
wanttogiveanyotherreasonforourbehaviorthanthefactthatwehavealegal
right.Backingrightsupwithcoercivethreatsindicatesthatwearewillingtoaccept
legalobligationsunwillingly.Thisbookoffersaconceptualreconstructionofthe
legalrelationonthebasisofacritiqueoflegalpositivism.
AlexanderSomekisProfessorofLegalPhilosophyattheUniversityofViennaand
GlobalAffiliatedProfessorofLawattheUniversityofIowa,wherehepreviously
heldthepositionoftheCharlesE.FloeteChairinLaw.HehasbeenaFellowof
theInstituteforAdvancedStudyinBerlin,aLAPAfellow,andvisitingprofessorat
PrincetonUniversityandattheLondonSchoolofEconomics.Heistheauthorof
elevenbooks.
CAMBRIDGEINTRODUCTIONSTOPHILOSOPHYANDLAW
SeriesEditors
BrianH.Bix
UniversityofMinnesota
WilliamA.Edmundson
GeorgiaStateUniversity
This introductory series of books provides concise studies of the philosophical
foundationsoflaw,ofperennialtopicsinthephilosophyoflaw,andofimportant
and opposing schools of thought. The series is aimed principally at students in
philosophy,law,andpoliticalscience.
MatthewKramer,ObjectivityandtheRuleofLaw(2007)
LarryAlexanderandEmilySherwin,DemystifyingLegalReasoning(2008)
LarryAlexander,KimberlyKesslerFerzan,andStephenJ.Morse,Crime
andCulpability(2009)
RobinWest,NormativeJurisprudence(2011)
WilliamA.Edmundson,AnIntroductiontoRights,2ndedition(2012)
GregoryS.AlexanderandEduardoS.Pen˜alver,AnIntroduction
toPropertyTheory(2012)
BrianH.Bix,ContractLaw(2013)
LiamMurphy,WhatMakesLaw(2014)
PabloE.NavarroandJorgeL.Rodrı´guez,DeonticLogic
andLegalSystems(2014)
AlexanderSomek,TheLegalRelation:LegalTheoryafter
LegalPositivism(2017)
The Legal Relation
legal theory after legal positivism
ALEXANDER SOMEK
UniversityofViennaandUniversityofIowa
UniversityPrintingHouse,Cambridgecb28bs,UnitedKingdom
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ItfurtherstheUniversity’smissionbydisseminatingknowledgeinthepursuitof
education,learning,andresearchatthehighestinternationallevelsofexcellence.
www.cambridge.org
Informationonthistitle:www.cambridge.org/9781107198012
doi:10.1017/9781108182096
©AlexanderSomek2017
Thispublicationisincopyright.Subjecttostatutoryexception
andtotheprovisionsofrelevantcollectivelicensingagreements,
noreproductionofanypartmaytakeplacewithoutthewritten
permissionofCambridgeUniversityPress.
Firstpublished2017
PrintedintheUnitedStatesofAmericabySheridanBooks,Inc.
AcataloguerecordforthispublicationisavailablefromtheBritishLibrary.
LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData
names:Somek,Alexander,1961–author.
title:Thelegalrelation:legaltheoryafterlegalpositivism/AlexanderSomek.
description:Cambridge[UK];NewYork:CambridgeUniversityPress,2017.|
Series:Cambridgeintroductionstophilosophyandlaw
identifiers:LCCN2017020501|ISBN9781107198012(hardback)
subjects:LCSH:Law–Philosophy.|Legalpositivism.|Law–Political
aspects.|BISAC:LAW/Jurisprudence.
classification:LCCK235.S6252017|DDC340/.1–dc23
lcrecordavailableathttps://lccn.loc.gov/2017020501
isbn978-1-107-19801-2Hardback
isbn978-1-316-64800-1Paperback
CambridgeUniversityPresshasnoresponsibilityforthepersistenceoraccuracyof
URLsforexternalorthird-partyinternetwebsitesreferredtointhispublication
anddoesnotguaranteethatanycontentonsuchwebsitesis,orwillremain,
accurateorappropriate.
Contents
Preface pagexi
Acknowledgments xiii
Introduction:ThePursuitofTheory 1
KnowledgeandExistence 1
TheReversal 1
Objectivity 2
LegalPositivismandNaturalLawTheory 2
ThePost-PositivistSituation 4
Salome 5
SuspendingJudgment 5
TheQuestionofLegalTheory 6
SourcesandtheLegalRelation 7
Explicability 8
FromBelieftotheFactofBelief 10
AReasonablyUnreasonableWorld 11
IndividualRightsandGeneralSources 11
Veranderung 13
DecisionsandPolitics 13
LegalScholarship 14
OverviewoftheChaptersThatFollow 16
ConceptualAnalysis 19
Conclusion 20
1 LateLegalPositivism 22
Separability 22
DescriptionandConstruction 24
TheDistinctionBetweenLawApplicationandLawCreation 27
vii
viii Contents
NormativeBeliefsInformingApplication 28
FromInterpretationtoSources 31
DroppingOneandSalvagingtheOther 32
Conventionalism 35
TwoDifferentCriticalReflectiveAttitudes 39
BoyhoodandGoingwiththeCrowd 41
AdditionandQuaddition 42
Idealization 43
NegativityandSpirit 44
TheEmbraceofMorality 47
TheMoralAuthorityofLaw 49
Status-BasedAuthority 52
BeyondAbsurdity 54
Conclusion 56
2 LegalityandIrony 57
ReiningintheBadMan 57
DetachedStatements 59
Kelsen’sObjectiveRenderingoftheDetachedAttitude 62
TheGreatUndoing 64
TheRevenantoftheMoralMan 67
Playacting 69
SymbolicVictories 72
TamingtheInternalPerspective 74
Conclusion 76
3 LegalScienceandtheCommonLaw 79
Introduction 79
LegalScience 84
TheCommonLaw 100
Conclusion 106
4 TheLegalRelation 108
Puchta’sPuzzle 108
ThreeWaysOut 109
TheUnaskedQuestion 112
Hegel’sPuzzle 114
TheBasicandtheReflectiveLevel 118
TheTransmutationofReasonsintoChoices 119
TheEmergenceoftheLegalRelation 121
Contents ix
Authority 123
TechnocracyorPolity 124
ARelationBearingtheFormofCoercion 127
SereneIrony 128
5 Equality,Freedom,andDignity 133
Introduction 133
WhatIsWrongwithDiscrimination? 135
HegelianPersons 137
HegelianPersonsinaHayekianSetting 138
MereIrrationality 138
ValuableOptionsfortheValuedSelf 139
ThePlayofChoices 140
FreetoBeWhoYouAre 141
AnsweringanObjection 142
TradingOffFreedomandEquality 143
AnotherObjection 144
AgilityandAdaptability 146
ImmutableCharacteristics 146
FromtheBurdenonIndividualitytoIndividualityasaBurden 147
Tragedy 149
MoralEstrangementandStoicism 150
Immutability,TakeTwo 151
Protodiscrimination 152
Conclusion 153
6 TheQuestforAgency 156
Introduction 156
AnOutdatedTopic? 157
TheDeadAmongtheLiving 159
EconomicPower 161
AnAsideonHale 162
HardEconomicPower 163
DemeaningthePerson 164
TheEyeoftheBeholder 165
Moneymaking 167
Self-AlienationandAlienationfromOthers 169
TheCommunityinAlienatedForm 170
Essentialism? 172
FromAlienationtoDespair 174