HIDAYATULLAH NATIONAL LAW UNIVERSITY, NEW RAIPUR

JURISPRUDENCE– I

Semester V

Course Teachers:

Dr Challa , Ms. Anukriti Mishra

Course Outline

Law is considered not merely as a trade to be learnt, but as an intellectual pursuit which is to be

understood, questioned, criticized and applied in a pragmatic manner. Therefore, there is a need

to think about the nature and function of law, the legal system and the legal profession. In this

context, the study of jurisprudence is of utmost importance for a good lawyer because it helps to

develop an understanding of law, improves the questioning ability and the capacity to think

independently.

The term jurisprudence is derived from the Latin phrase Jurisprudentia which means the study of

law or the knowledge or science of law. It deals with the basic question, “what is law” which is

not only interesting but is also a challenging question to the scholars and academicians alike and

is in fact the central question of the whole discipline of law. This paper of Jurisprudence-I

attempts to explain “what is law” with the help of various legal theories and their practical

application.

The objective of this course is to introduce important ideas of selected jurists so as to help the

students or budding lawyers to think critically and creatively about law and its role in the

contemporary society. This course introduces the four main Schools of Jurisprudence i.e. the

Natural Law School, Analytical Positivist School, Historical School and Sociological School. It

also deals with certain central issues like law and justice, law and morality and realist movement

in order to acquaint the students with the nature of law and its role in society.

Unit – I:Introduction

Jurisprudence: Nature, Scope, Definition and Significance

- Jurisprudence and Legal Theory

- Relation between Law and Justice –HLA Hart , Amartya Sen , John Rawl, Aristotle

- Relation between Law and Morals: Hart - Devlin Debate

Unit – II:Natural Law School

Introduction and features of natural school-Early Greek Period - Medieval - Renaissance -

Reformist Phase – Thomas Acquinas -Social Contract – Grotius, Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau -

Modern Natural Law - Fuller, Finnis& Hart - Hart-Fuller Debate- Natural Law and its

Application in India

Unit – III: Analytical Positivism

Introduction and central claims of Analytical Positivism - Jeremy Bentham - John Austin - Hans

Kelsen - H L A Hart - Hart-Dworkin Debate- Analytical Positivism and Application in India

Unit – IV:Historical School of Law

Introduction and features of Historical School - Karl Von Savigny - Henry Maine

Unit – V: Sociological School of Law

Introduction and features of Sociological School : Ihering – Ehrlich – Duguit- Roscoe Pound-

Social Engineering under Indian Constitution

Unit – VI: Realist Movement

American Realism- Oliver Homes, Jerome Frank ,Karl Llewellyn

Scandinavian Realism- Hagerstorm, Olivercrona, Alf Ross

Suggested Readings:

1) Friedman W. -Legal Theory. (Fifth Edition), Universal Law Publishing Co-Pvt. Ltd.

2) Wayne Morrison - Jurisprudence from the Greek to Post - Modernism (1997).

3) Holand Sir R.W.M. - Thomas Erskine Holland The Elements of Jurisprudence

2001, Universal law Publishing Co Pvt. Ltd.

4) Freeman M.D.A. Lloyd’s, Introduction to Jurisprudence, Sweet and Maxwell

Jurisprudence (7th Edition).

5) Dias Jurisprudence (Fifth Edition), Aditya Books, Butterworths.

6) P.J. Fitzgerald, Salmond on Jurisprudence (12th Edition) Universal Law Publishers

7) Bodenheimer, Edgar Jurisprudence ‘The Philosophy and Method of the Law’,

(Revised Edition) 1996 Universal Book Traders, New Delhi.

8) H.L.A. Hart, The Concept of Law, (2nd Edn.), OxfordUniversity Press, (2007)

9) John Austin, Lectures on Jurisprudence, (5th Edn.), R. Campbell (ed.)