'Sociology of Law:' One View from the Lawyer's Side of the Fence

26 Pages Posted: 17 Dec 2010

See all articles by F. Patrick Hubbard

F. Patrick Hubbard

University of South Carolina School of Law

Date Written: 1976

Abstract

An important addition to the literature of sociological jurisprudence/sociology of law has been provided by an anthology assembled by sociologists Donald Black and Maureen Mileski. They examine law from the perspective of a strict "positivistic" sociology of law and use this perspective to organize the readings in terms of basic theoretical propositions. Black and Mileski believe that such propositions can be used to order the complex area of "law and society" and make predictions about the role of law in society. This Article critically examines the Black and Mileski position relating to its "positivistic" definitions of law and the "scientific" study of law and its theoretical propositions concerning law and their relation to various aspects of social life. This analysis examines the strengths and weaknesses of the Black and Mileski approach, and the problems inherent in developing a "scientific" study of law and society. This Article, therefore, attempts to go beyond Black and Mileski in the development of a more general perspective concerning scientific approaches to jurisprudence.

Keywords: Hart, H.L.A. Hart, Dworkin, Ronald Dworkin, Fuller, Lon Fuller, jurisprudence, legal theory, concept of law

Suggested Citation

Hubbard, F. Patrick, 'Sociology of Law:' One View from the Lawyer's Side of the Fence (1976). Rutgers Law Journal, Vol. 7, p. 458, 1976, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1726086

F. Patrick Hubbard (Contact Author)

University of South Carolina School of Law ( email )

1525 Senate Street
Columbia, SC 29208
United States

HOME PAGE: http://sc.edu/study/colleges_schools/law/faculty_and_staff/directory/hubbard_patrick.php

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