jurisprudence
Meaning. The study of the nature, sources and concepts of law; legal theory.
Jurisprudence (from Latin juris prudentia, knowledge of law) asks what law is, why it binds, how it relates to morality and justice, and what basic legal concepts such as rights, duties, ownership, possession and personality mean. It is studied through schools of thought: natural law, analytical positivism, historical, sociological and realist schools.
In Indian usage the word has a second sense: the body of case law on a subject, as in “Article 21 jurisprudence” or “the jurisprudence on bail”. Keep the two senses apart in an exam answer.
Example
Salmond described jurisprudence as the science of the first principles of the civil law.
See also
natural law · legal positivism · sociological school · historical school
Read more in the study notes
- Ancient and medieval writings, environmental jurisprudence and national environmental policy (Environmental Law)
- Articles 23 and 24: right against exploitation (Constitutional Law I)
- Legal words and their usage: Accused to Juvenile (English)
- Environmental impact assessment and the Coastal Regulation Zone (Environmental Law)
- Sources of Muslim law (Family Law II - Mohammedan Law)
- Human rights: meaning, nature and kinds (Human Rights Law and Practice)