LAW4130

Law and social theory 406

Not offered in 1998

6 points
* Two 2-hour lectures per week
* Clayton

Objectives Students will acquire or develop (1) an awareness of the nature of socio-legal scholarship and the different theoretical and methodological assumptions that distinguish research and scholarship in law from that done in the social sciences and humanities; (2) a familiarity with a number of classical and contemporary social theoretical approaches with implications for the study of legal topics; (3) a knowledge of a range of empirical social scientific studies of legal phenomena showing the `law in action'; (4) the capacity to undertake independent research on a socio-legal topic and to engage in sustained critical analysis in written assessment work and (5) an understanding of the practical significance of socio-legal scholarship, especially in terms of legal professional roles and access to justice.

Synopsis The notion of `social theory' and its relevance to legal research and practice; the focal concerns of socio-legal scholarhsip; interdisciplinarity and obstacles to collaboration between different disciplines; law and social solidarity (Durkheim); law as behaviour (Black); law and modernity (Weber); marxist critiques of law; critical legal studies; feminist analysis of law; anthropology of law; interpretive social science and law; post-structuralism and law (Foucault); the limits of legal rules as instruments of regulation; lawyers as agents of social change; litigation and access to justice.

Assessment Research essay (4000 words): 40%
* Examination (2.5 hours): 60%

Texts

Cotterell R The sociology of law: An introduction Butterworths, 1992
Hunter R, Ingleby R and Johnstone R (eds) Thinking about law: Perspectives on the history philosophy and sociology of law Allen and Unwin, 1995