Law Philosophy - Classic Common Law Theory

  Provide a short response or argument to the below:- The subject is Philosophy of Law relating to the Classic Common Law Theory Is Killing People Wrong? Statute outlines that taking the life of another, whether intentional or not, is an offence. However Classic Common Law Theory relies on other sources to determine whether something is right or wrong. The common law is a set of rules accumulated and sustained over time to reflect the customs of society. Common law is an overarching authority of social behaviour. Classic common law theory believes It is distinguished from legislation as its origins do not come from one single author, but rather a collective of customs in immemorial usage, which give it such strength in argument (p45). Classical theorists believe that the judicial systems role at common law is to apply pre-existing law to a fact situation (p69). In this sense judges merely declare pre-existing law rather than establish new ones. Thus, whether killing people is wrong is pronounced by a justice in a court room on the reflected acceptable values of society at common law, the history of decisions made over time in similar cases. Although the law provides that killing someone is an offence, the interpretation of this law along with the application of common law precedent creates an individually tailored response based off the specific circumstances of the case. Matthew Hale made clear that, “the use of natural reason, in the absence of any legal education, would only lead to a multiplicity of conflicting views about what the appropriate laws should be” (p 49/50). Hale also prescribed in his view that the test of long experience should ordinarily be preferred to new theories (p53). This viewpoint of artificial reason, which is shared by Edward Coke, provides that the only people of significant legal knowledge and a profound understanding of the law through extensive study should draw a conclusion to a question such as this. Statute may provide that killing people is wrong but in any one given factual situation classical theorists believe only these described judges, lawyers of barristers should draw such conclusions.