Books in the Cambridge Studies in Philosophy and Law series

This book offers an original theory of adjudication focused on the ethics of judging in courts of law, and proposes two main theses - the good faith thesis and the permissible discretion thesis. Together these two theses oppose both conservative theories and leftist critical theories.

When does a woman give valid consent to sexual relations? When does her consent render it morally or legally permissible for a man to have sexual relations with her? Why is sexual consent generally regarded as an issue about female consent? And what is the moral significance of consent? These are some of the questions discussed in this important book, which will appeal to a wide readership in philosophy, law, and the social sciences. Alan Wertheimer develops a theory of consent to sexual relations that applies to both law and morality in the light of the psychology of sexual relations, the psychology of perpetrators, and the psychology of the victims. He considers a wide variety of difficult cases such as coercion, fraud, retardation, and intoxication. We can all agree that 'no' means 'no'. This book suggests that the difficult question is whether 'yes' means 'yes'.

This book exposes fallacies inspired by the idea that coercion seems inseparable from government and in doing so shows that living in a just state remains a worthy ideal.

Brings together some of the most distinguished legal scholars from the United States and Canada to examine competing understandings of The Path of the Law, a seminal work in American legal theory, and its implications for contemporary American jurisprudence.

Robert F. Schopp examines the role that psychological impairment should play in a theory of criminal liability.

Natural Law and Practical Rationality is a defence of a contemporary natural law theory of practical rationality, demonstrating its inherent plausibility and engaging systematically with rival egoist, consequentialist, Kantian and virtue accounts.

Drawing on reflections about the nature of law, constitutions, the common law, and what it is to be a democratic representative, Waluchow urges a different theory of bills of rights that is flexible and adaptable.

Beginning with the premise that the principal function of a criminal trial is to find out the truth about a crime, Larry Laudan examines the rules of evidence and procedure that would be appropriate if the discovery of the truth were, as higher courts routinely claim, the overriding aim of the criminal justice system. Laudan mounts a systematic critique of existing rules and procedures that are obstacles to that quest. He also examines issues of error distribution by offering the first integrated analysis of the various mechanisms - the standard of proof, the benefit of the doubt, the presumption of innocence and the burden of proof - for implementing society's view about the relative importance of the errors that can occur in a trial.

Natural law is a perennial though poorly represented and understood issue in political philosophy and the philosophy of law. In this 2006 book, Mark C. Murphy argues that the central thesis of natural law jurisprudence - that law is backed by decisive reasons for compliance - sets the agenda for natural law political philosophy.

In this provocative book, Alexander offers a sceptical appraisal of the claim that freedom of expression is a human right. He examines the various contexts in which a right to freedom of expression might be asserted and concludes that such a right cannot be supported in any of these contexts. He argues that some legal protection of freedom of expression is surely valuable, though the form such protection will take will vary with historical and cultural circumstances and is not a matter of human right. Written in a clear and accessible style, this book will appeal to students and professionals in political philosophy, law, political science, and human rights.

This collection of six full-length essays, written by some of the most eminent scholars in the field, explores the general theory of contract law from a variety of theoretical perspectives. The volume addresses a wide range of issues, both methodological and substantive, in the theory and practice of contract law.

This collection of essays written by some of the most eminent scholars in the field, examines the most central issues of property theory from a variety of perspectives. The essays discuss the nature of property and property rights, transmission of property after death and intellectual and cultural property.

This book examines the relationship between collective responsibility and individual guilt. It presents a rigorous philosophical account of the nature of our relations to the social groups in which we participate, and uses that account in a discussion of contemporary moral theory.

This book, first published in 2000, is a collection of essays by prominent scholars writing in commercial law theory. The essays address the foundations of efficiency analysis as the dominant theoretical paradigm in contemporary corporate and commercial law scholarship. The volume reflects the most exciting work being done in contemporary legal theory.

This volume, first published in 2000, considers the intersection between objectivity in ethics and the objectivity in law. It presents a survey of live issues in metaethics, and examines their relevance to theorizing about law and adjudication.

Using informal game theory in the analysis of norms and customs, Hetcher applies his theory of norms to tort law and Internet privacy laws. This book will appeal to students and professionals in law, philosophy, and political and social theory.

This book examines responsibility and luck as these issues arise in tort law, criminal law, and distributive justice. This is a challenging and provocative book that will be of special interest to moral and political philosophers, legal theorists, and political scientists.

Five legal theorists tackle a range of fundamental questions on the nature of the philosophy of criminal law. The essays discuss some of the principles by which a system of law should be structured, and they ask whether our own systems are genuinely principled or riven by basic contradictions, reflecting deeper political and social conflicts.

This study of discrimination focuses not on differences between men and women but on what women need to lead successful lives. This work promises to be a milestone in the debate about gender equality and will interest students and professionals in the areas of legal theory and gender studies.

This book is an interdisciplinary study of the fundamental normative issues underpinning immigration policy. A distinguished group of economists, political scientists and philosophers offer a stimulating and provocative discussion of this complex topic.

Explores the thesis that legal roles force people to engage in moral combat. Heidi Hurd advances the surprising argument that the law cannot require us to do what morality forbids.

For several decades the work of Joel Feinberg has been the most influential in legal, political and social philosophy in the English-speaking world. This 1994 volume honours that body of work by presenting fifteen essays, many of them by leading legal and political philosophers, that explore the problems that have engaged Feinberg over the years.

This major study advances an interpretation of criminal justification defences that views them as an integral component of the structure of the criminal law. The book integrates philosophical analysis with a consideration of contemporary applications and shows how these defences are key components of criminal law.

Do individuals have a positive right of self-defence? And if so, what are the limits of this right? These are two of the questions explored by Suzanne Uniacke in this comprehensive 1994 philosophical discussion of the principles relevant to self-defence as a moral and legal justification of homicide.

This book is both a work of intellectual history and a contribution to legal philosophy. It represents a serious and philosophically sophisticated guide to modern American legal theory, demonstrating that legal positivism has been a misunderstood and underappreciated perspective through most of twentieth-century American legal thought.

Schultz argues that markets are not moral-free zones, and that achieving the economic common good does indeed require morality. He demonstrates that efficient outcomes of market interaction cannot be achieved without moral normative constraints and then goes on to specify a set of normative conditions which make these outcomes possible.

This book was the first booklength treatment of the philosophical foundations of international criminal law. The focus is on the moral, legal, and political questions that arise when individuals who commit collective crimes, such as crimes against humanity, are held accountable by international criminal tribunals.

This collection not only presents some of the most challenging work in legal philosophy, but it also demonstrates the interdisciplinary character of the field of philosophy of law, with contributors taking into account developments in economics, political science and rational choice theory.

This book represents a major new statement on the issue of property rights. It argues for the justification of some rights of private property, while showing why unequal distributions of private property are indefensible. It offers a new pluralist theory of justification and integrates the analysis of Aristotle, Locke, Hegel and Marx with contemporary philosophers such as Nozick and Rawls.

This book provides a comprehensive, systematic theory of moral responsibility. The authors explore the conditions under which individuals are morally responsible for actions, omissions, consequences, and emotions. The leading idea in the book is that moral responsibility is based on 'guidance control'. This control has two components: the mechanism that issues in the relevant behavior must be the agent's own mechanism, and it must be appropriately responsive to reasons. The book develops an account of both components. The authors go on to offer a sustained defense of the thesis that moral responsibility is compatible with causal determinism.