Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in
Book cover

Constitutionalism and Legal Reasoning

  • Book
  • © 2007

Overview

Authors:
  1. Massimo La Torre

    1. University of Catanzaro, Italy

    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

  • An original connection between theories of legal reasoning and concepts of constitutional state
  • Establishing a stimulating relationship and a fruitful interaction between advocacy and the fundamentals constitutionalism
  • A book for advocates who intend to make justice to their role and responsibility in a democratic polity
  • Assessing how much "lawyers" (Juristen) are still "bad Christians" (böse Christen)

Part of the book series: Law and Philosophy Library (LAPS, volume 79)

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this book

Log in via an institution
eBook USD 129.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book USD 169.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book USD 169.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Other ways to access

Licence this eBook for your library

Institutional subscriptions

Table of contents (3 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages I-XIV
    Download chapter PDF

  2. Law as Constitution

    Pages 1-41

  3. Legal Argumentation and Concepts of Law

    Pages 43-89

  4. The Practice of Law and Legal Ethics

    Pages 91-129

  5. Back Matter

    Pages 131-189
    Download chapter PDF
Back to top

Keywords

About this book

This book, which consist of three chapters and two appendices, is intended to connect subjects that have usually been considered as detached or not strongly connected: constitutionalism, legal argumen- tion and legal ethics. Its main contention is that contemporary consti- tionalism pushes towards a new style of legal reasoning, which needs to take into account moral criteria and principles and that eventually the interpretative and moralist approach will lead to a somewhat unort- dox and less authoritarian concept of law. A constitution to be taken seriously and as a distinct and superior source of law, will end up referring to some sort of constitutional justice or judicial review. And constitutional reasoning and justice need to make recourse to principles but principles to be given an operative content should be elaborated through some form of moral reasoning. This r- soning however, if it does not want to betray the spirit of constitutional democracy and the very idea of a constitution as a special moment of self-determination, could not be just Platonism, a cognitivism without roots in the practice of public discourse and deliberation. So that cons- tutionalism will not really do without a public sphere and some activism of the latter. But if this is so, the traditional concept of law based on hi- archy, commands, prescription, sanction, and in the last instance violence, becomes obsolete. A law which is a command cannot be congruent with a practice ruled by discourse, that is, I argue, with constitution.

Authors and Affiliations

  • University of Catanzaro, Italy

    Massimo La Torre

Bibliographic Information

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Back to top

Search

Navigation