LAW 211

FUNDAMENTAL CONCEPTS OF LAW
BILKENT UNIVERSITY
SPRING 2024
What is Law ?
Step on a bus. e law is there. You have almost ce ainly entered into a
contract to pay the fare to your destination. Alight before you have paid
and the long arm of the criminal law may be expected to pursue you.
T he bus is involved in an accident. T he law is ready to determine who is
responsible for the injur yyou sustained. Your job, your home, your
relationships, your ver ylife – and your death, all are managed,
controlled, and directed by the law.
What is Law ?
T he legal system lies at the hear tof any society, protecting rights,
imposing duties, and establishing a framework for the conduct of
almost eve activity.
Punishing of fe nders, compensating the injured, and enforcing
agreements are common tasks of a modern legal system.
In addition, it endeavours to achieve justice, promote freedom, uphold
the rule of law, and protect security.
 Layman’s view
e law often seems mysterious with its unique jargon:
•statues
•subordinate legislation
•cou judgments
 Layman’s view
•Law is rarely uncontroversial
Few would deny that law has become a signi cant instrument for progress and
improvement in our social, political, moral, and economic life.
ink of the transformation that legal rules have wrought in respect of numerous
aspects of our lives that were once considered personal: the promotion of sexual and
racial equality, safety at work and play, healthier food. Laws to protect human rights,
the environment, and our personal security have mushroomed. Nothing seems
beyond the reach of the long arm of the law.
is boom in the law-making business renders it impractical both for citizens to
become acquainted with its myriad rules, and for the authorities to enforce them.
 Layman’s view
•Law is always news
Murders, mergers, marriages, misfor tunes, and mendacity
are daily media fodder, especially when the misbehavior is
played out in cour t. Sensationalist trials concerning
celebrities are only the tip of a large iceberg. Lawsuits are a
negligible pa of the law.
What is law ?
Two principal answers have been given to this simple
question.
[Link] to so-called natural lawyers, law consists of
a set of universal moral principles in accordance with
nature. T his view has a long histor ydating back to
ancient Greece.
[Link] so-called legal positivists, law is nothing more than
a collection of valid rules, commands, or norms that
may lack any moral content.
What is Law ?
e law is multifaceted. What is possible is to mention a few
characteristics of it. e majority of legal phenomena share most of
these characteristics, but not all legal phenomena share all of them.
A substantial pa of law exists in the form of rules. ese rules do not
only specify how people should behave («Do not steal», «Eve body
with an income must pay income tax»), but they also contain de nitions
of terms, create competencies, and much more.
What is Law ?
Society is governed not only by legal rules but also by other types of
rules.
• Moral rules
• Religion (e.g., the Ten Commandments)
• Etiquette (e.g., «Eat with a knife and fork»)
• Special organizations such as student associations (e.g., «Eve
member must pe orm bar se ice twice a month»)
What is Law ?
Legal rules are enforced by collective means and in pa icular by organs
of the State, while other rules typically are not.
Moreover, legal rules have ve speci c sanctions, such as nes,
compensation for damage, etc., while the sanctions of non-legal rules
are less speci c.
 Someone who has committed a crime and broken a legal rule is liable to be
punished by State organs such as the police and the prosecution se ice.
 From a moral point of view, it is wrong to lie. While liars may be liable to
informal sanctions such as reproach and avoidance, they will seldom be
sanctioned by collective means.
What is Law ?
At present, most laws are explicitly created by means of legislation or
judicial decisions. ese laws are called «positive law».
• e word «positive» in this connection is derived from the Latin
positus, which literally means «laid down».
• e idea that law is explicitly created seems so obvious that the
expression «positive law» has almost become synonymous with «the
law that is valid here and now».
positive law of fers legal cer tainty
Legal ce ainty has at least three aspects:
1. Ce ainty about the content of the law
2. Ce ainty that the law will be enforced
3. Ce ainty that the law will be applied consistently
positive law of fers legal cer tainty (1)
e pa ies in a case can predict what the judge’s decision
would be, and in that way save both them and society at
large, time and money. People often disagree about what is
right or wrong. Often it is better to have no con icts or fast
solutions for con icts, than to have a «right» solution.
erefore, law often prefers the ce ainty of a clear result
over the unce ainty of the «best» solution for a problem.
positive law of fers legal cer tainty (2)
o Positive law o ers legal ce ainty by providing collective
suppo for the enforcement of legal duties.
◦ If people are left to their own devices when it comes to
enforcing their rights, this decreases the ce ainty that
their rights will be respected.
positive law of fers legal cer tainty (3)
o Another aspect of legal ce ainty is that similar cases are
treated in a similar fashion or that the law will be applied
consistently.
◦ For instance, if one citizen is granted a building permit,
legal ce ainty requires that another citizen in the same
position should also be granted a building permit.