Law and Morality: Readings in Legal Philosophy

This anthology has filled a long-standing need for a contemporary Canadian textbook in the philosophy of law. It includes articles, readings, and cases in legal philosophy that give students the conceptual tools necessary to consider the general problems of jurisprudence.

The collection begins with general questions about morality and law, drawing on both traditional literature on legal positivism and contemporary debates about the role of law as a tool in pursuit of equality. It explores the tensions between law as a protector of individual liberty and as a tool of democratic self-rule. The second part deals with these philosophical questions as they apply to contemporary issues. Included is an extensive sampling of the feminist writings that have been influential in both legal theory and Canadian law. Transcripts of judicial decisions are presented throughout to give students an appropriate sense of the complexity of legal reasoning.

This book strikes a balance between practical problems and the more analytic, philosophical frameworks. Its treatment of the philosophy of law as a branch of political philosophy enables students to understand law in its function as a social institution. This important resource book is a valuable text in both departments of philosophy and faculties of law.