Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Legal Realism

I can kind of see where this type of thinking is coming from. It would be nice if our justice system could be as simple as judges and police following what is written by the laws and regulations, but it just doesn't work that way. Our society still faces issues such as racial profiling and other inconsistencies in the justice system, which goes along with the idea that the real issue behind legal realism is how to avoid being a victim and using the law to ones advantage. Like it was said in class, legal professionals interpret facts and laws through their own lens. I think because of such things, legal realism is valid in the fact that we need to examine the decisions that judges and other law officials are making, rather than looking at the specific laws and moral issues behind them. The way the justice system works goes far beyond what is actually written on paper and intended by the lawmakers. So, I think the "prediction" approach would be the most appropriate for today's society.
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2 comments:

  1. Dan RotaSeptember 16, 2009 at 10:57 PM

    I agree with your post. Instead of looking at specific laws and interpretations behind them, judicial discretion should be used to fill in the holes. There are certainly cases where the facts are very straightforward and the crime clearly violates the law, allowing for little use of discretion. In most cases, however, some sort of discretion must be used in order to ensure proper justice.

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  2. LorneSeptember 16, 2009 at 11:32 PM

    The laws are interpreted by Judges and it is impossible for any human being to make a decision without bias. Unfortunately, sometimes racial profiling and discrimination do play a role in legal sanctions but the Constitution and the Court of Appeals is active in checking biased court decisions. I agree, we do need to check the decisions that are made in courtrooms because bigotry still exists. People should ensure that they are not made victims by the law, but I believe a premature distrust of the law, will only set you up to fail. I am not naïve enough to believe the law is perfect, but it is the best and only option we have, at this time.

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