On The Realism Of Law And Its Contribution

American legal realism is regarded as the most significant development in twentieth-century American jurisprudence. In the remarkably short span of the two decades between the world, it had once became known as the predominant orthodoxy of American jurisprudence. American leagle system had been inflenced by natural law principles from eighteenth century to nineteenth century.Only those human laws consistent with higher law principles were entitled to compliance. American leagal realism come into being on the base of formlism jurisprudence. Realism was eager to grips with life experience process and function, attacking deficienciens of traditional leagal theory. Both sociological jurisprudence and American leagal realism object to formalism. Although adherents of sociological jurisprudence tended to view realism as antagonistic, sociological jurisprudence was clearly generative of realist thinking. The development of leagal realism in America is organized into three stages.Early leagal realism came into being from the late eighteenth century to the early nineteenth century. Holmes and Gray were the representatives of this stage, Holmes objected to the traditional theory of judicial and introduced the theary of judicial making law.The middle stage was relatively short,Cardozo and Bingham developed the theory of judicial process in 1910's and 1920's.American leagal realism became distinguished in 1930's and 1940's.Llewellyn and Frank were the famous representatives of this stage. Realism was to expose the impermanence artificiality and uncertainty of legal rules and traditional doctrine, realism shattered the dependence of traditional leagal theory upon structure and form. Rejecting doctrinal approaches that attempted to define what law "is", realism, focusing on what law "does", They rejected traditional methods and traditional conclusions. They borrowed the techniques and methodologies of behavioral sciences and adopted a relativist view to observe human nature and morality.The realists were far less concerned with responsible government than with effective government. They were prepared to grant government officals, especially judges, tremendous discretionary power, hi short, Realists believed that a society undergoing rapid social change demanded dynamic leagal system.This study of American realism is organized into four chapters. Chapter one explores...