Jurisprudence Crucial Definitions

Prudential Reason

Acting out of self-interest or fear of consequences (e.g., slowing down to avoid a fine).

Moral Reason

Acting because it is the "right thing" to do, regardless of the law.

Content-Independent Reason

Obeying a command because of who said it (Authority), not what they said (Merit).

Ratio Decidendi

The binding legal reasoning or rule in a case (The "Why").

Obiter Dicta

Non-binding side comments or hypotheticals made by a judge.

Stare Decisis

The legal principle that courts are obligated to follow binding precedent.

Social Sources Thesis

The Positivist belief that law is identified by social facts (what officials do/say), not by moral merit.

Separation Thesis

The Positivist belief that there is no necessary connection between law and morality; a valid law can be wicked.

Literal Interpretation

Reading the statute exactly as written, word-for-word (e.g., R (O) v Home Secretary).

Purposive Interpretation

Reading the statute to find the "aim" or "spirit" of the law (e.g., RBS v Wilson).

GOSBTHO (Austin)

General Orders of a Sovereign, Backed by Threats, Habitually Obeyed.

"Being Obliged" (Austin)

Acting due to force or threat (e.g., giving a gunman your wallet).

"Having an Obligation" (Hart)

Acting due to a sense of duty and acceptance of the rule (e.g., paying taxes because it's the law).

Internal Point of View

The perspective of a participant (official/citizen) who accepts the rules as a standard of conduct.

Rule of Recognition

Hart's ultimate secondary rule that provides the criteria for identifying valid law (e.g., "What Parliament enacts is law").

Primary Rules

Rules that impose duties on people (e.g., "Do not steal").

Secondary Rules

Rules that confer powers to create, change, or adjudicate Primary Rules.

Rules vs. Principles (Dworkin)

Rules apply "all-or-nothing" (Positivism); Principles have "weight" and moral dimension (Interpretivism).

Riggs v Palmer

The case (Grandson kills grandfather) Dworkin used to prove that moral Principles override written rules.

Law as Integrity

Dworkin's theory that interpretation must fit legal history (Fit) and be morally best (Justification).

Philosophical Anarchism

The view that there is no general moral duty to obey the law just because it is law.

Inner Morality of Law (Fuller)

The 8 procedural requirements (e.g., Clarity, Non-retroactivity) a system must meet to be considered "Law."

King Rex

Fuller's parable of a King who failed to make law because he violated the 8 procedural rules.

Inclusive (Soft) Positivism

Morality can be a condition of validity, but only if the social rule says so (e.g., US Constitution).

Exclusive (Hard) Positivism

Morality cannot be a condition of validity; if law uses moral terms, it is purely judicial discretion.