Neil Maccormick’s theory of legal argumentation: normatime dimension, practical reasoning and justification of law decisions

Abstract

From Neil MacCormick’s theory of law, this study seeks to explain “what is law?”. In this context, he discusses specific categories that characterize the particularity of legal and practical reasoning. Moreover, this paper explores the concepts of validity and invalidity of rules and principles of law and examines their connection to an argumentative justification model. From this, this study examines the interconnectedness of production and interpretation of institutional rules. Furthermore, the relationship between morality and law is a central aspect to his approach, because there are many inadequacies in the positivist school of thought. Sequentially, this article explores the various methods of norm interpretation and investigates the concrete evaluation factors – both of which are justified in judicial decisions. Finally, this paper concludes that judicial decisions are important sources of law. This is because decisions in individual cases determine specific meaning to legal rules; thusly, setting universal standards for future and similar legal rules and norms.