Legal Philosophy

Research in the field of legal philosophy usually observes two of the following paths:

The first is closer to philosophy as an academic discipline and focuses on the nature of law and its relation to morality. It is closely intertwined with understanding the political and the authority of the state.

The other grows out of various fields of law, as scholars grapple with making sense of their basic principles. Private law, for example, embraces the principle of “private autonomy”. But what is autonomy? And what does it take to facilitate its existence? Public law, by contrast, recognises the sovereignty of the state. But what does that mean today?

Along the second path, any field of legal study is, in principle, capable of growing into legal philosophy. Whether such growth actually happens depends on the level of intellectual penetration.