Pavčnik's Theory of Legal Decisionmaking: An Introduction

Professor Pavčnik is one of the most prolific and interesting of those academics from the formerly communist states of Central and Eastern Europe who are currently writing on topics germane to legal philosophy. I had the privilege of co-teaching two classes with him at the University of Ljubljana in the fall of 1996-one on legal theory and the other on the philosophy of law-and in the course of our collaboration I acquired a great deal of respect for both the man and his work. The editors of the Washington Law Review, having had the excellent judgment to want to publish his essay, have asked me to furnish this introduction for the benefit of those who may find themselves feeling uncertain about the import of Professor Pavčnik's ideas, or the context in which they were developed.