Introduction

Recent debate about theory in legal scholarship' has raised more questions about theory and law than it has answered. For example, just what is meant by "theory" in the context of law? Is there a form of theory that is uniquely "legal" theory, or is legal theory merely moral theory applied to law? If there is such a thing as legal theory, does the body of positive law, and particularly the decisions of judges, inform legal theory, or does theory inform law?

What, if any, are the justifications for constructing theories of law?