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• Bob the builder: How that video helps us identity how law operates within society

• Law infuses all aspects of society, shaping, framing our actions 

• In that way, law shapes our relationships, one another and the state

• Law is about shaping relationships. 

• The Kardashians and the law: all about relationships

• The way in how law shapes relationships

• The way that law works in terms of understanding law and the basics of the Canadian legal system, theories, constitution, role in society and how laws protect rights.

What is Law?

Hoebel:

• A legal antapaligist (1950’s or so).

• To seek a definition of the legal is like a quest for the Holy Grail” What it means is that it’s merely impossible. 

• Jesus shared wine before he was arrested. 

• Impossible to find the definition of law.  

Oliver Wendell Homes:

• Really important judge of supreme court of United States (legal realism): 

• “The prophecies of what the courts will do in fact, and nothing more pretentious are what I mean by law”: There’s so much discretion in judge decision making that we can’t know what they are going to do, what they are going to decide, what the courts will do in fact is that. We can’t know the law unless the courts tell us what it is. So before we understand what the law is we need to know what the court’s say about it. Interested in the power of judges in this system, because they tell us what the law is.   

Benjamin Nathan Cardozo:

• “a principle or rule of conduct so established as to justify a prediction with reasonable certainty that it will be enforced by the courts if its authority is challenged”: Idea of a rule of conduct (a rule), so established (level of certainty about this rule), ability to predict with certainty that it is going to be enforced by the courts so you have to follow it especially if authority is challenged. Much more formal in its description, we got a rule, it’s established so we can say with certainty it’s going to be established. The rule becomes so certain that we can predict it’s going to be enforced. 

Donald Black: 

• Law is “the normative life of a state and its citizens, such as legislation, litigation and adjudication: process of going to court to enforce a rule, a process by which a dispute gets resolved in court or another way. He says no no no let's take a much larger rule of what law does and says its normative life (values of the state), if we wanna understand what law is its the values of the state and understood though legislative, litigation and adjudication. Broader understanding of values in state and how they shape behaviour though legislative, litigation and adjudication. 

Max Weber:

• “An order will be called law if it is externally guaranteed by the probability that coercion (physical or psychological), to bring about conformity or avenge violation, will be applied by a staff of people holding themselves specially ready for that purpose”: external force applied, to make people follow it or punish them if they don’t follow it. There’s a group of people who specially have the power and authority to do that work. He applies to modern societies. A set of externally guaranteed rules, enforced by a staff of people. A set of Certainty that is going to happen. 

Working Definition of Law:

Based on Weber’s notion of law:

• Know there’s going to be sanctions to enforce, authorized personnel to enforce them and distinguish law from customs and inventions. 

• Law as a formal system

Law of defamation:

• If you are untruthful (lie)  about someone else and it causes harm you can be sued.  

What does Law Do?:

• My definition: Define and guide relationships between people to achieve specific purposes. Achieve justice in doing all of these things, bring order etc…

Functions of Law in Society:

• Fulfilled in order for society to be functional, these law jobs have to be fulfilled 

• Social Control: Define Relationships: Determining Good Behaviour and what is bad Behaviour (

• Allocation of Authority to Coerce: Tell or establish certain group of people be given people to enforce force

• Dispute Settlement 

• Social Change/Redefine Relationships: The way we behave has been changed, redefinition of those relationships. 

Exerting Social Control/Defining Relations: 

• Rules about what we can and can’t do and those rules because they became certain allow us to predict how we can behave and what happens if we don’t behave in that way and how others should behave and what would happen if they don’t behave in that way. We can’t say for sure if people follow laws but have a certain amount of certainty but if they do that there will be consequences so it allows us to shape our relationships, and what they state can do towards it. (Protection of people who are more vulnerable) (Example: Prof hitting TA). 

Exerting Social Control/Defining Relations:

• Law is used to define the boundaries of our relationships and to set our expectations for how we are treated 

• By other individuals and groups

•  By government/the state and institutions

• Example: Prof is in the Carleton dorm and spreads rumors about one of my roommates and how would they deal with that in a residence?: Reputation might get affected (a lot of people won’t trust you, spread rumors about you. Idea is that there are different ways you can control this in a small community and you have close relationships with these people. Use your own voice and opinion against that person in a small group.

• What if you spread hate online? The impact of those social control mechanisms that are informal disiplates because you aren’t in the same geo practical place. The fact that we don't live in the same place, share the same values and have the same friends so it requires us to stay away from informal and go towards formal.

Law as Method of Allocating Authority to Coerce:

• Explicit rules, sanctions for enforcement, Group of people that make the rules and enforce them (authorize them to enforce them).

Law as a Method of Dispute Settlement

• Law helps us to settle everyday disputes

• If we can’t come to the agreement of someone dissing us in public they can sue for defamation and the courts will dissolve that dispute.

• Example: Buy computer from someone and they never pay you then you can go to small claims court

• Using the court to solve disputes is one method but outside of court how can you do it outside formal dispute mechanism? How can it be resolved? Through violence and discussions. Discussions may not work if they are in a situation of power and violence may not work if someone is stronger. So we have to look for different ways! 

• Benefit: The law promotes Authoritative allocation of legal rights and obligations: If courts get involved and say you assaulted Kenneth and owe him $20 since he’s right and you're wrong then he gets $20. He has a legal right to not hit him or the computer case then the prof has to buy a computer since he agreed to it and courts say he has to give it.   

• Detriment: Provides a legal resolution, but not always a satisfactory resolution: Good legal resolution but doesn’t help in terms of relationship. Ongoing relationship with the person that you are in dispute with so it may not be satisfactory. 

Laws as a method of Social Change:

• How can law help us move and transition in society as a new way of doing things: Establishes idea of protecting values that may change overtime 

• We would all agree that it’s not a good thing to kill other people, concept in law that protects the life of people in society but there was a change overtime of how we understand that value for example, changes in law; MAID change, some ability for people who are facing death and severe pain to be able to end their lives even if they cannot do it themselves. The right thing to do for them, change the way in which they address this type of behavior. 

Courts can also shape the law to keep it in tune with social change: We have moderned our approach to possession of marijuana. It used to be against the law and illegal but overtime police really stopped enforcing this for small amounts since they didn’t really care and it was not always fair of who gets arrested so Truedea government says we will treat this as a health issue and legalize it. Social Change in legal legislation. Instrumental in social change since it can trigger it or be a response to it. Law works to