Jurisprudence For a Free Society

Jurisprudence For a Free Society is a remarkable contribution to legal theory. In its comprehensiveness and systematic elaboration, it stands among the major theories. It is also the most important jurisprudential statement to emerge in the post-war period. The pioneering work of Lasswell and McDougal on law and policy is already legendary. Most of the work produced by these scholars together and in collaboration with their students represent applications of their basic theory to a wide assortment of international and national legal and policy problems. Now, for the first time, the authoritative statement of their legal philosophy appears as a single volume. Part III explores the intellectual tasks of policy thinking, from clarification of values, through description of trend, the scientific examination of conditions, projection of future developments and the invention of alternatives. Part IV examines the structure of decision in a free society, a society in which the achievement of human dignity is confirmed in both word and deed. Six appendices bring together monographs by the authors over a period of forty years which deal, in more detail, with particular matters treated in the body of the book. The print edition is available as a set of two volumes (9780792309895).