Philosophy of Society

Philosophy of Law

The Essence of Law

The philosophy of law is a discipline situated at the intersection of philosophy and jurisprudence, examining fundamental questions related to law. It aims to provide a reasoned answer to questions such as what law is and its essence, the foundations of legal systems, the areas of human life regulated by law, and the relationships between law and legislation, law and morality, and law and the state. The diversity of answers to these questions has given rise to philosophical debates, various legal theories, and attempts to understand different legal systems.

To the question "What is law?", as with any significant question, philosophy has developed several answers, with proponents debating among themselves. The most ancient and widespread answer to the nature of law is the theory of natural law. This concept has been used to explain the nature of law in all cultures and eras, from the earliest attempts at its understanding. Any good law or custom has its foundation in natural law (ius naturale), an eternal and immutable law inherent in the nature of all things, independent of human creation or state authority. For example, the value of human life and the prohibition of murder belong to the realm of natural law and are not established by any earthly power. Even if some authority (such as Soviet or Nazi) issues a decree to kill a person, such an act remains a crime, even if it follows from the authority's command. The task of humans or human institutions is to correctly interpret natural law and reflect it in human laws, also known as positive law. Positive law includes state laws, customs, and all prescriptions to which people adhere. Accordingly, a just authority is one that accurately reflects natural law in its legislation. According to the theory of natural law, the state does not have the right to create fundamental legal principles but is only responsible for legislating, i.e., enacting laws.

The theoretical justification for natural law theory was provided by ancient philosophy. The earliest known ancient philosophers, such as those from the Milesian school (Thales, Anaximander, Anaximenes), posited that everything is composed of a single primal substance (archē) and sought to identify it. This primal substance is both alive and rational. Therefore, if everything shares a common nature and everything is governed by a rational principle, then everything is subject to a single rational law. Heraclitus argued that everything is in constant flux, yet these changes do not signify chaos in the world. They are governed by an eternal rational law, which Heraclitus called the Logos. Since the changes in the world are governed by the Logos, they are logical and can be understood, thus making science possible. The Logos is also natural law, as it regulates all aspects of behavior both for individuals and for society. Plato believed that everything existing in the world is a reflection of eternal and perfect forms. Consequently, human behavior and social institutions should also express these eternal ideals. Plato distinguished between natural law (φύσις) and human law (νομός). Human law is good if it reflects natural law. Aristotle asserted that humans are social beings, meaning that it is in human nature to live within society. From Aristotle’s view of natural law, human nature implies that it is good for people to live in society, and therefore the law regulating human relationships derives from human nature.

The Stoics, one of the most influential schools of Late Antiquity philosophy, devoted much attention to the problem of natural law. They adopted from Heraclitus the concept of the Divine Logos governing all existence. The Stoics identified the foundation of law with the "eternal law" (lex aeterna), considered a synonym for natural law. Even in antiquity, questions arose about the origins of natural law: if natural law is not created by any human institution, who established it? Lycurgus, the legendary founder of Sparta, claimed to have received his laws from Apollo. Thus, ancient thinkers and legislators considered God as the source of natural law. This concept was inherited by Roman jurists and philosophers, who saw their task as reflecting natural law in human laws.

During the Middle Ages, Christian thinkers continued the ancient tradition of natural law. The world is ordered, not chaotic: everything occurs according to a certain order rather than arbitrarily. This is because the world is governed by natural law, which regulates everything from seasonal changes and the motion of material bodies to individual behavior and the organization of social institutions. This natural law is fully realized through the forces of nature and material things, as they do not possess the freedom to act otherwise. Humans, however, have free will and can choose how to act. Possessing reason, humans are capable of interpreting natural law and embodying it in their laws, but being free, they may also act contrary to natural law. The aim of moral education is to encourage people to realize natural law in their personal lives and social organizations. Thus, the theory of natural law in Antiquity and the Middle Ages posited that God, in creating the world, instilled principles by which the world exists—natural law. People, in forming social organizations, should interpret natural law and reflect it in human laws; only in this way will social institutions be good, and people happy. In other words, natural law consists of the laws and principles that God embedded in the nature of existence.

During the Renaissance, the understanding of natural law changed. The spirit of this period in European culture is commonly called humanism, as the focus of philosophers, scientists, artists, and jurists shifted to human beings. In this cultural milieu, natural law came to be understood not as a law derived from the nature of all existence, but as a law derived from human nature. God created humans and embedded in their nature a divine law that is natural for them. Thus, "human rights" were declared as natural law—what a person is entitled to. The late medieval philosopher William of Ockham understood natural rights to include the right to life, liberty, and property.

In the 16th and 17th centuries, European countries underwent profound transformations, driven by numerous political crises, the Reformation, and significant geographical discoveries. All of these factors prompted a reevaluation of the foundations of law and governance, thereby introducing new interpretations of natural law. The Dutch jurist and philosopher Hugo Grotius (1583-1645) emerged as one of the foremost legal theorists of his time, providing a profound justification for the concept of natural law. Natural law, he posited, is embedded within human nature, with its source being the divine will: God established such laws simply because He willed it. By understanding natural law, humans create civil laws that should reflect the principles of natural law. However, not everyone grasps the importance of adhering to the law. The stimulus capable of compelling such individuals to comply with the law is coercive force. Grotius believed that humans organized the state to enforce adherence to laws through coercion. Thus, the state is a collective of individuals founded on a social contract aimed at ensuring the observance of the law. Human laws should regulate not only interpersonal relations within the state but also relations between states (international law). Another Dutch resident, the Jewish philosopher Benedict Spinoza (1632-1677), also contributed to the development of natural law theory. Spinoza was convinced that there exists only one substance—God—which manifests in two modes: mind and matter. Thus, all spiritual realities and material things are not separate entities of existence but expressions of the singular divine being. If the world is but one monad, then there is only one law in the world, derived from the nature of being. To implement natural law in human statutes, a state is necessary. Spinoza believed that the state is founded on a social contract made among individuals to end chaos in interpersonal relations and to ensure the centralized application of natural law in human affairs.

During the same period, England experienced political transformations akin to those in the Netherlands: the Reformation, civil war, the overthrow and restoration of the monarchy, land exploration in the New World, and the development of the navy and economy, among others. These changes compelled philosophers and jurists to reevaluate the nature of law. The most influential ideologue of the English legal system was the philosopher John Locke (1632-1704). Locke contended that humans are inherently good and enjoyed the exercise of their natural rights in a pre-state period. However, under these conditions, they lacked guarantees for the protection of their natural rights. To safeguard their natural rights, people established a state to act as a guarantor of human rights. Since the state’s task is to uphold natural human rights, it itself must not infringe upon them. Rights such as life, property, and liberty are natural rights and cannot be alienated from individuals. As the state exists to ensure natural human rights, it must itself adhere strictly to the law. If the state exceeds the bounds of the law, it devolves into tyranny. A significant advance in the development of natural law theory was made by the French philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778), who asserted that people unite in society to preserve and protect their natural rights. Freedom and social equality are, for Rousseau, the primary human rights that must be defended. These ideas became the ideological banner of the French Revolution of 1789, encapsulated in the motto "Liberty, Equality, Fraternity."

Today, the concept of natural law predominates in Western legal philosophy. This theory rests on the belief that there exist certain legal norms that are immutable and inviolable, not established by humans or any human institution, and thus cannot be repealed or altered. Any human legislation is an attempt to correctly interpret natural law and express it in the norms of social coexistence. In Antiquity and the Middle Ages, natural law was understood as legislation embedded by God in the nature of all existence. In the Modern Era, natural law began to be understood as rights bestowed by God within human nature, thereby interpreting natural law as human rights. This interpretation of natural law remains popular today. A notable merit of natural law theory is its assertion of the absolute value and inviolability of law, protecting nations from dictatorship, defining the role of state authority as the enforcer of natural law principles, and preventing anyone from monopolizing the power of law-making. In this understanding of the nature of law, the state is only to implement the law, not to claim the role of its creator.