Legal Philosophy

• Natural law


  -fundamental rules of fairness and justice that are always morally correct

  -we are born with these laws

  -general moral compass of what is right and just
• Legal positivism


  contrast to natural law

  -law does not need to be a moral law

  -established to maintain social order and secure the best possible life conditions

  -values are not universal or natural, why different countries have different laws about the same behaviours
• Legal positivism


  Argues:

  -systemically written down

  -decided by formal institutions, government officials and reinforced by the government
• Critical legal theory


  -form of a strong critique of law in society

  -laws reflect individual values and can contain biases of social groups

  -law can maintain social inequality by advancing the interests of more powerful groups over marginalized groups

  -focused on bias and discrimination in the law respect of gender, race, ethnicity, religion, economic class, sexuality
• Legal realism


  contrast to legal positivism

  -holds that values are variable, not universal

  -what's true, moral and fair depends on the perspective of the individual

  -ex: judges interpretations of any law is influenced by their own experiences and by the prevailing values of their communities