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Mar 20, 2026
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PH 305 - Philosophy of Law
Credit(s): 3
In the first part of the course, we will examine various theories concerning the nature of law. Of particular interest will be the issue of how these theories view the connection between law and morality. Is there a connection between law and morality? If there is such a connection, is it a necessary connection? Theories of law to be examined include legal positivism, natural law, and legal realism (critical legal studies). We will employ Peter Suber’s fictional work, The Case of the Speluncean Explorers, to examine how these theoretical issues intersect with legal adjudication. In the second part of the course, we will focus on issues surrounding theories of judicial interpretation. Of particular interest will be constitutional interpretation. Questions to be considered include the following: How should judges interpret the constitution? What role (if any) should moral principles play in their adjudication? What is the role of judges in relation to democratically elected legislatures? In hard cases, do judges create law (legislate from the bench) or do they work to discover the correct answer (apply the law to the case before them)? Interspersed with these more theoretical readings will be excerpts from actual legal cases. We will be interested in seeing how the theoretical issues identified above get played out in actual legal decisions.
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