Towards the Ideal: Coherence Theories of Judicial Adjudication and the Ideal Law in Hard Cases

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dc.contributor.advisorHabib, Allen
dc.contributor.authorFreno, Nigel Kane
dc.contributor.committeememberHagen, Gregory R.
dc.contributor.committeememberLevey, Ann
dc.date2020-11
dc.date.accessioned2020-09-17T21:25:46Z
dc.date.available2020-09-17T21:25:46Z
dc.date.issued2020-09-17
dc.description.abstractIt will be argued that that methodology developed in this thesis, known as ‘ideal law methodology’, provides a better alternative to coherence theories of judicial adjudication in adjudicating hard cases. After framing the discussion within the context of Angelo-American legal theory, hard cases, and stare decisis, coherence theories of judicial adjudication will be presented and shown to suffer from conservatism. This will be argued to create problems both in unjust and just societies. The ideal law methodology, which is adapted from arguments from Robert Alexy, will be then be presented. The ideal law methodology uses narrow reflective equilibrium to determine principles of a political community, and then determines and chooses the decision with the largest weighted aggregate realization of principles. It will be argued that the ideal law methodology presents a better method for determining hard cases than coherence theories of judicial adjudication by being adaptive to the community’s political beliefs and thus avoiding conservatism. A number of objections to the ideal law methodology will then be addressed, both from coherence theories of judicial adjudication and elsewhere.en_US
dc.identifier.citationFreno, N. K. (2020). Towards the Ideal: Coherence Theories of Judicial Adjudication and the Ideal Law in Hard Cases (Master's thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca.en_US
dc.identifier.doihttp://dx.doi.org/10.11575/PRISM/38215
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/1880/112550
dc.language.isoengen_US
dc.publisher.facultyArtsen_US
dc.publisher.institutionUniversity of Calgaryen
dc.rightsUniversity of Calgary graduate students retain copyright ownership and moral rights for their thesis. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission.en_US
dc.subjectlawen_US
dc.subjectjudicial adjudicationen_US
dc.subjecthard casesen_US
dc.subjectRonald Dworkinen_US
dc.subjectcoherenceen_US
dc.subjectconservatismen_US
dc.subjectRobert Alexyen_US
dc.subjectreflective equilibriumen_US
dc.subject.classificationPhilosophyen_US
dc.titleTowards the Ideal: Coherence Theories of Judicial Adjudication and the Ideal Law in Hard Casesen_US
dc.typemaster thesisen_US
thesis.degree.disciplinePhilosophyen_US
thesis.degree.grantorUniversity of Calgaryen_US
thesis.degree.nameMaster of Arts (MA)en_US
ucalgary.item.requestcopytrueen_US
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