The Authority Of Law Essays On Law And Morality

Positivism is from the Latin root positus, which means to posit, postulate, or firmly affix the existence of something.Legal positivism is a school of jurisprudence whose advocates believe that the only legitimate sources of law are those written rules, regulations, and principles that have been expressly enacted, adopted, or recognized by a governmental entity or political institution, including administrative, executive, legislative, and judicial bodies. Legal positivism is a theory which answers these questions.There are many versions or interpretations of legal positivism.

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The basic question to be asked when talking about this theory is “What is law? Legal positivism is the legal philosophy which argues that any and all laws are nothing more and nothing less than simply the expression of the will of whatever authority created them.

Thus, no laws can be regarded as expressions of higher morality or higher principles to which people can appeal when they disagree with the laws. The creation of laws is simply an exercise in brute force and an expression of power, not an attempt to realize any loftier moral or social goals.

Therefore, from a positivist perspective, it can be said that “legal rules or laws are valid not because they are rooted in moral or natural law, but because they are enacted by legitimate authority and are accepted by the society as such”. Christians believe that the Ten Commandments have sacred and pre-eminent value in part because they were inscribed in stone by God, and delivered to Moses on Mount Sinai.

When the ancient Greeks intended for a new law to have permanent validity, they inscribed it on stone or wood and displayed it in a public place for all to see. D.) developed an elaborate system of law that was contained in a detailed and voluminous written code.

According to him, “before the names of just and unjust can take place, there must be some coercive power to compel men equally to the performance of their covenants …

and such power there is none before the creation of the commonwealth”.According to John Austin, “the existence of the law is one thing its merit or demerit is another.Whether it be or be not is one enquiry; whether it be or be not conformable to an assumed standard, is another enquiry.” The positivists do not say that the law’s merits are unintelligible, unimportant, or peripheral to the philosophy of law.Holmes made a description of what positive law is in the realm of the courts.In making this statement, Holmes was suggesting that the meaning of any written law is determined by the individual judges interpreting them, and until a judge has weighed in on a legal issue, the law is ultimately little more than an exercise in trying to guess the way a judge will rule in a case.Additionally, he was known individually for his “dogma” of legal positivism which states that: The existence of law is one thing; its merit or demerit is another.Whether it be or be not is one enquiry; whether it be or be not conformable to an assumed standard, is a different enquiry.Disclaimer: This work has been submitted by a student.This is not an example of the work produced by our Law Essay Writing Service.Austin thought that all independent political societies, by their nature, have a sovereign.Positive law should also be contrasted with “laws by a close analogy” (which includes positive morality, laws of honor, international law, customary law, and constitutional law) and “laws by remote analogy” (e.g., the laws of physics).