Legal semiotics emphasizes the contingency and fluidity of legal
concepts and stresses the existence of overlapping, competing and
coexisting legal discourses. In response to new problems, changing
power structures, changing societal norms and new faces of
injustice established doctrines are reconsidered, reformulated and
partly replaced by competing doctrines and hypotheses. Given the
relative indeterminacy of law, it is no surprise that the problem
of interpretation has always been one of the focal points of
attention for legal semiotics. Who has the power to define words
and concepts? Who can successfully assume the power to speak on
behalf of the legal community? Which methods are used to justify
the power to define?
This book discusses the questions mentioned above from three,
related perspectives:
- Legal theory (Part I). This part discusses how more traditional
approaches have dealt with the problem of legal interpretation and
indeterminacy, questions the methods applied in traditional legal
theory and offers new theoretical tools to understand the problem
of legal interpretation.
- Judicial reasoning (Part II). The insights discussed in Part I
are refined using legal semiotics, speech act theory and rhetorics
and applied to the legal reasoning of courts and tribunals either
in common law and civil law traditions.
- Application of law in politics and diplomatic practice (Part
III). Traditionally, the study of legal reasoning has focussed on
the application of law by courts and tribunals. However, legal
reasoning also takes place outside the courtroom and takes up in
the politicaland diplomatic arena. Who is included and excluded by
particular conceptions of law? How does law deal with the
phenomenon of interculturality?
"Combining theoretical inspiration with a keen interest in case
law, this volume will appeal to scholars and students of legal
theory, jurisprudence, legal anthropology, postcolonial studies,
indeed to anyone whoa (TM)s interested in problems of
interpretation in legal and political theory and practice. It
should also come in very handy in the classroom." Ronnie Lippens,
Professor of Criminology, Keele University
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