Books in the Law, State, and Practical Reason series

This is a controversial work of applied legal theory, addressing urgent contemporary questions about law and the State, about the character of the UK as a state, and about the juridical character of the European Union in its relationship with the member states of the Union.

Discusses theories of legal reasoning and provides an overall view of the rhetoric of legal justification. This book shows how and why lawyers arguments can be rationally persuasive even though rarely, if ever, logically conclusive or compelling. It examines the role of "legal syllogism" and universality of legal reasoning.

Offers an account of the nature of law and legal systems in the contemporary world. This book is written with a view to elucidating law, legal concepts and legal institutions in a manner that takes account of controversies but does not get bogged down in them. It takes account of developments in the sociology of law, particularly 'system theory'.

This book offers a clear account of the philosophy of practical reason in ethics and legal theory. It explains how reasons relate to actions, the nature of values and their relation to reasons, and the relation of morality to legal reasoning. It provides an ideal introduction to these issues for students of moral philosophy and jurisprudence.