Pure Theory of Law

Pure Theory of Law PDF Author: Hans Kelsen
Publisher: The Lawbook Exchange, Ltd.
ISBN: 1584775785
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 366

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Book Description
Reprint of the second revised and enlarged edition, a complete revision of the first edition published in 1934. A landmark in the development of modern jurisprudence, the pure theory of law defines law as a system of coercive norms created by the state that rests on the validity of a generally accepted Grundnorm, or basic norm, such as the supremacy of the Constitution. Entirely self-supporting, it rejects any concept derived from metaphysics, politics, ethics, sociology, or the natural sciences. Beginning with the medieval reception of Roman law, traditional jurisprudence has maintained a dual system of "subjective" law (the rights of a person) and "objective" law (the system of norms). Throughout history this dualism has been a useful tool for putting the law in the service of politics, especially by rulers or dominant political parties. The pure theory of law destroys this dualism by replacing it with a unitary system of objective positive law that is insulated from political manipulation. Possibly the most influential jurisprudent of the twentieth century, Hans Kelsen [1881-1973] was legal adviser to Austria's last emperor and its first republican government, the founder and permanent advisor of the Supreme Constitutional Court of Austria, and the author of Austria's Constitution, which was enacted in 1920, abolished during the Anschluss, and restored in 1945. The author of more than forty books on law and legal philosophy, he is best known for this work and General Theory of Law and State. Also active as a teacher in Europe and the United States, he was Dean of the Law Faculty of the University of Vienna and taught at the universities of Cologne and Prague, the Institute of International Studies in Geneva, Harvard, Wellesley, the University of California at Berkeley, and the Naval War College. Also available in cloth.

Pure Theory of Law

Pure Theory of Law PDF Author: Hans Kelsen
Publisher: The Lawbook Exchange, Ltd.
ISBN: 1584775785
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 366

Get Book

Book Description
Reprint of the second revised and enlarged edition, a complete revision of the first edition published in 1934. A landmark in the development of modern jurisprudence, the pure theory of law defines law as a system of coercive norms created by the state that rests on the validity of a generally accepted Grundnorm, or basic norm, such as the supremacy of the Constitution. Entirely self-supporting, it rejects any concept derived from metaphysics, politics, ethics, sociology, or the natural sciences. Beginning with the medieval reception of Roman law, traditional jurisprudence has maintained a dual system of "subjective" law (the rights of a person) and "objective" law (the system of norms). Throughout history this dualism has been a useful tool for putting the law in the service of politics, especially by rulers or dominant political parties. The pure theory of law destroys this dualism by replacing it with a unitary system of objective positive law that is insulated from political manipulation. Possibly the most influential jurisprudent of the twentieth century, Hans Kelsen [1881-1973] was legal adviser to Austria's last emperor and its first republican government, the founder and permanent advisor of the Supreme Constitutional Court of Austria, and the author of Austria's Constitution, which was enacted in 1920, abolished during the Anschluss, and restored in 1945. The author of more than forty books on law and legal philosophy, he is best known for this work and General Theory of Law and State. Also active as a teacher in Europe and the United States, he was Dean of the Law Faculty of the University of Vienna and taught at the universities of Cologne and Prague, the Institute of International Studies in Geneva, Harvard, Wellesley, the University of California at Berkeley, and the Naval War College. Also available in cloth.

Hans Kelsen's Pure Theory of Law

Hans Kelsen's Pure Theory of Law PDF Author: Lars Vinx
Publisher: Oxford University Press on Demand
ISBN: 0199227950
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 241

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Book Description
By showing how Kelsen's theory of law works alongside his political philosophy, the book shows the Pure Theory to be part of a wider attempt to understand how political power can be legitimately exercised in pluralist societies.

Kelsen Revisited

Kelsen Revisited PDF Author: Luís Duarte d'Almeida
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1782252479
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 281

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Book Description
Forty years after his death, Hans Kelsen (1881-1973) remains one of the most discussed and influential legal philosophers of our time. This collection of new essays takes Kelsen's Pure Theory of Law as a stimulus, aiming to move forward the debate on several central issues in contemporary jurisprudence. The essays in Part I address legal validity, the normativity of law, and Kelsen's famous but puzzling idea of a legal system's 'basic norm'. Part II engages with the difficult issues raised by the social realities of law and the actual practices of legal officials. Part III focuses on conceptual features of legal systems and the logical structure of legal norms. All the essays were written for this volume by internationally renowned scholars from seven countries. Also included, in English translation, is an important polemical essay by Kelsen himself.

General Theory of Law and State

General Theory of Law and State PDF Author: Hans Kelsen
Publisher: The Lawbook Exchange, Ltd.
ISBN: 1584777176
Category : International law
Languages : en
Pages : 544

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Book Description
Reprint of the first edition. This classic work by the important Austrian jurist is the fullest exposition of his enormously influential pure theory of law, which includes a theory of the state. It also has an extensive appendix that discusses the pure theory in comparison with the law of nature, positivism, historical natural law, metaphysical dualism and scientific-critical philosophy. "The scope of the work is truly universal. It never loses itself in vague generalities or in unconnected fragments of thought. On the contrary, precision in the formulation of details and rigorous system are characteristic features of the exposition: only a mind fully concentrated upon that logical structure can possibly follow Kelsen's penetrating analysis. Such a mind will not shrink from the effort necessary for acquainting itself with...the pure theory of law in its more general aspects, and will then pass over to the theory of the state which ends up with a carefully worked out theory of international law." Julius Kraft, American Journal of International Law 40 (1946):496.

Essays on Kelsen

Essays on Kelsen PDF Author: Richard Tur
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
ISBN:
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 368

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Book Description
"A very important collection of esays on the legal philosophy of Hans Kelsen....The collection has a pleasant unity and includes a superb introduction by the editors that provides a framework for the essays and a perspective from which to evaluate Kelsen's contributions to legal theory." --Choice

Hans Kelsen's Pure Theory of Law

Hans Kelsen's Pure Theory of Law PDF Author: Lars Vinx
Publisher: OUP Oxford
ISBN: 0191566497
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 240

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Book Description
Hans Kelsen is commonly considered to be among the founding fathers of modern legal philosophy. Despite Kelsen's prominence as a legal theorist, his political theory has so far been mostly overlooked. This book argues that Kelsen's legal theory, the Pure Theory of Law, needs to be read in the context of Kelsen's political theory. It offers the first comprehensive interpretation of the Pure Theory that makes systematic use of Kelsen's conception of the rule of law, of his theory of democracy, his defense of constitutional review, and his views on international law. Once it is read in the context of Kelsen's political works, Kelsen's analysis of legal normativity provides us with a notion of political legitimacy that is distinct from any comprehensive and contestable theory of justice. It shows how members of pluralist societies can reasonably acknowledge the binding nature of law, even where its content does not fully accord with their own substantive views of the requirements of justice, provided it is created in accordance with an ideal of fair arbitration amongst social groups. This result leads to a fundamental re-evaluation of the Pure Theory of Law. The theory is best understood as an attempt to find a middle ground between natural law and legal positivism. Later positivist legal theorists inspired by Kelsen's work failed to appreciate the political-theoretical context of the Pure Theory and turned to a narrow instrumentalism about the functions of law. The perspective on Kelsen offered in this book aims to reconnect positivist legal thought with normative political theory.

The Public International Law Theory of Hans Kelsen

The Public International Law Theory of Hans Kelsen PDF Author: Jochen von Bernstorff
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1139488589
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 343

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Book Description
This analysis of Hans Kelsen's international law theory takes into account the context of the German international legal discourse in the first half of the twentieth century, including the reactions of Carl Schmitt and other Weimar opponents of Kelsen. The relationship between his Pure Theory of Law and his international law writings is examined, enabling the reader to understand how Kelsen tried to square his own liberal cosmopolitan project with his methodological convictions as laid out in his Pure Theory of Law. Finally, Jochen von Bernstorff discusses the limits and continuing relevance of Kelsenian formalism for international law under the term of 'reflexive formalism', and offers a reflection on Kelsen's theory of international law against the background of current debates over constitutionalisation, institutionalisation and fragmentation of international law. The book also includes biographical sketches of Hans Kelsen and his main students Alfred Verdross and Joseph L. Kunz.

General Theory of Law and State

General Theory of Law and State PDF Author: Hans Kelsen
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1351517988
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 790

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Book Description
Widely regarded as the most important legal theorist of the twentieth century, Hans Kelsen is best known for his formulation of the "pure theory of law", - within which the study of international law was his special field of work. The present volume, "General Theory of Law and State", first published in 1945, allowed Kelsen to adjust his pure theory of law to American circumstances after World War II. It also afforded him the opportunity to present to English-speaking readers his latest ideas on the supremacy of international law. The volume is divided into two parts: the first devoted to law, the second to the state. Together these topics constitute the most systematic and comprehensive exposition of Kelsen's jurisprudence. The volume is not only a compendium of Kelsen's lifework up to that time; it is also an extension of his theories, "to embrace the problems and institutions of English and American law as well as those of the Civil Law countries". Indeed, references to Continental European law are minimal compared with examples, scattered throughout the text, taken from the U.S. Constitution and several American court cases. This is more than a concession to American readers; it signifies that Kelsen's legal theory is truly general in that it accounts for the Common Law as well as the Civil Law. A systematic treatise on jurisprudence, "General Theory of Law and State" is a substantial reformulation of Kelsen's ideas articulated in several of his previous books, written in German. The juridical principles put forth by the most important legal theorist of the twentieth century remain of great value. This volume will be read by legal scholars, political scientists, and intellectual historians.

Legality and Legitimacy in Hans Kelsen's Pure Theory of Law

Legality and Legitimacy in Hans Kelsen's Pure Theory of Law PDF Author: Lars Vinx
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780494160329
Category : Legal positivism
Languages : en
Pages : 376

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Book Description
Positivist legal theorists inspired by Kelsen's work failed to appreciate the political-theoretical potential of the Pure Theory of Law and thus turned to a narrow agnosticism about the functions of law. The Pure Theory of Law, I conclude, may offer a paradigm of jurisprudential thought that could reconnect jurisprudence with political theory as it was traditionally understood: namely as a reflection on the best constitution and on the contribution that different legal actors and institutions can make to its realization.

Introduction to the Problems of Legal Theory

Introduction to the Problems of Legal Theory PDF Author: Hans Kelsen
Publisher: Oxford University Press on Demand
ISBN: 9780198265658
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 171

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Book Description
Hans Kelsen is considered to be one of the foremost legal theorists and philosophers of the twentieth century. His writing made an important contribution to many areas, especially those of legal theory and international law. Over a number of decades, he developed an important legal theorywhich found its first complete exposition in Reine Rechtslehre, or Pure Theory of Law, the first edition of which was published in Vienna in 1934. This is the first English translation of that work. It covers such topics as law and morality, the legal system and its hierarchical structure, theidentity of law and state, and international law.