Syllabus LC 0802 Jurisprudence

 LC 0802 Jurisprudence :

 

Objectives of the Course : The course aims at developing an analytical approach to understand the nature of law and the development of legal system. Jurisprudence seeks to answer fundamental questions about law. The concerns of jurisprudence are an inescapable feature of the law and legal system. Jurisprudence has generous frontiers. It accommodates copious subjects of intellectual enquiry. This course identifies and elucidates several of the major preoccupations of legal theory. This course also create an understanding of basic legal concepts like Rights, Person, Property, Title, Possession, Ownership, Liability, Obligation which are basic to the study of Law.

 

Module 01	Introduction to Jurisprudence : 1.     Jurisprudence  – Meaning, Nature, and Utility 2.     Meaning, Characteristics, Purposes and Classification of Law 3.     Relationship between Law and Morality
Module 02	Sources of Law : 1.     Legislation – Meaning, nature, kinds, merits and demerits, relation with other sources 2.     Precedent - Meaning, nature, theories of Precedent, Doctrine of Stare Decisis, article 141 of the Constitution of India, kinds, ratio decidendi and obiter dicta, doctrine of prospective overruling, significance and

 

	circumstances destroying binding force, relation with other sources 3.     Custom - Meaning, nature, essential conditions, kinds, concept of Volkgeist 4.     Juristic Writings - Meaning, nature and significance
Module 03	Natural Law Theories : 1.     Classical Natural Law theory: Plato and Aristotle, St. Augustine, St. Thomas Acquinas 2.     Natural law and Social Contract Theory : Hugo Grotius and International Law, Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau 3.     Revival of Natural Law : Lon Fuller and the Morality of Law, H.L.A. Hart on Natural Law, John Finnis and the Restatement of Natural Law
Module 04	Legal Positivism :        1.   Bentham and John Austin's theory of positivism 2.   Hart's concept of law 3.   Kelsen's Theory of law
Module 05	Sociological, Realist and Historical Schools  of Law : 1.     Sociological school of law - Roscoe Pound  2.     Realist school of law - a)     American Realism: W Holmes, Karl Llewellyn, Jerome Frank b)    Scandinavian Realism: Axel Hagerstrom, Alf Ross, Karl Olivercrona 3.     Historical school of jurisprudence - Savigny and Maine. - Comparison of Historical and Analytical School of Law
Module 06	Critical Legal Studies : 1.     Critical Feminist Jurisprudence - a)     Feminist Legal Theory b)    Origins of Feminism c)     Legal Feminisms -  Liberal Feminism, Radical Feminism, Postmodern Feminism 2.     Critical Race Theory - a)     Critical Race Theory’s critique of Liberalism b)    Critical Race Theory’s racial critique of Civil Rights Scholarship c)     Critical Race Theory as Reconstruction Jurisprudence
Module 07	Rights and Duties : 1.     Meaning of Wrong, Duty and Right 2.     Characteristics of Legal Rights 3.     Kinds of Legal Rights 4.     Theories of Legal Rights 5.     Hohfeldian Classification of Legal Rights
Module 08	Concept of Property and Obligations : 1.     Meaning of Property 2.     Kinds of Properties 3.     Theories of Property 4.     Modes of acquisition Property 5.     Definition of Obligation
	6.     Solitary Obligations 7.     Sources of Obligations
Module 09	Concepts of  Ownership and Possession : 1.     Meaning of Ownership 2.     Characteristic of Ownership 3.     Subject-matter of Ownership 4.     Kinds of Ownership 5.     Modes of acquiring Ownership 6.     Meaning of Possession  7.     Kinds of Possession 8.     Modes of acquiring Possession  9.     Possessory Remedies 10.  Comparison between Ownership and Possession
Module 10	Concept of Person : 1.     Nature of Personality - Natural and Legal 2.     Legal Status of Lower Animals, Dead persons, Unborn Persons 3.     Kinds of Legal Persons 4.     Uses and Purposes of Incorporation 5.     Theories of Legal Personality
Module 11	Concept of Title : 1.     Definition and Nature of Title 2.     Classification of Titles 3.     Importance of Agreements 4.     Kinds of Agreements 5.     Validity of Agreements
Module 12	Concept of Liability : 1.     Definition and Nature of Liability 2.     Kinds of Liability 3.     General Conditions of Liability 4.     Measure of Penal Liability 5.     Measure of Civil Liability 6.     Theory of Strict and Absolute Liability 7.     Vicarious Liability in Civil and Criminal Law 8.     Liability of Corporations

 

Recommended Readings :

1.     Bodenheimer Jurisprudence – The Philosophy and Methods of Law, Universal Law Publishing, 1996.

2.     Fitzgerald, (ed.) Salmond on Jurisprudence, Sweet & Maxwell, 1999.

3.     W. Friedman, Legal Theory, Universal Law Publishing, New Delhi, 1999.

4.     H.L.A. Hart, The Concept of Law, Oxford University Press, ELBS, 1970.

5.     Hilaire McCoubreyand Nigel D. White, Textbook on Jurisprudence, Oxford University Press, 1999.

6.     M.D.A. Freeman (ed.), Lloyd’s Introduction to Jurisprudence, Sweet and Maxwell, 1994.

7.     Mark Kelman, A Guide to Critical Legal Studies, Universal Law Publishing Co., 2010.

8.     N.Y. Jayakumar, Lectures in Jurisprudence, 2nd Ed., LexisNexis.

9.     P.S. Atchthew Pillai, Jurisprudence and Legal Theory, Eastern Book Company.

10.  Paton G. W. Jurisprudence, Oxford University Press, ELBS, 1972.

11.  Raymond Wacks, Understanding Jurisprudence, Oxford University Press, 2012.

12.  Roscoe Pound, Introduction to the Philosophy of Law, 1998 Re-print, Universal Publication, Delhi.

13.  Suri Ratnapala, Jurisprudence, Cambridge University Press, 2009.

14.  V. D. Mahajan, Jurisprudence and Legal Theory, 1996 Re-print, Eastern Books, Luknow.

15.  Vijay Ghormade, Lectures on Jurisprudence & Legal Theory, Hind Law House, Pune.