The Blackwell Guide to the Philosophy of Law and Legal Theory is a handy guide to the state of play in contemporary philosophy of law and legal theory.

Comprises 23 essays critical essays on the central themes and issues of the philosophy of law today, written by an international assembly of distinguished philosophers and legal theoristsEach essay incorporates essential background material on the history and logic of the topic, as well as advancing the argumentsRepresents a wide variety of perspectives on current legal theory

Martin P. Golding is Professor of Philosophy and Professor of Law at Duke University, where he directs the joint law-philosophy program. His books includePhilosophy of Law (1975),Legal Reasoning (1984), andFree Speech on Campus (2000). He is also editor ofJewish Law and Legal Theory (1994).

William A. Edmundson is Professor of Law and of Philosophy at Georgia State University. He is author ofThree Anarchical Fallacies (1998) andAn Introduction to Rights (2004), and editor ofThe Duty to Obey the Law (1999). He is General Editor of the book series, Cambridge Introductions to Law and Philosophy.

Notes on Contributors.

Introduction: William A. Edmundson (Georgia State University).

Part I: Contending Schools of Thought:.

1. Legal Positivism: Brian H. Bix (University of Minnesota).

2. Natural Law Theory: Mark C. Murphy (Georgetown University.

3. American Legal Realism: Brian Leiter (University of Texas at Austin).

4. Economic Rationality in the Analysis of Legal Rules and Institutions: Lewis A. Kornhauser (New York University).

5. Critical Legal Theory: Mark V. Tushnet (Georgetown University).

6. Four Themes in Feminist Legal Theory: Difference, Dominance, Domesticity, and Denial: Patricia Smith (Baruch College and the Graduate Center, City University of New York).

Part II: Doctrinal Domains and Their Philosophical Foundations:.

7. Criminal Law Theory: Douglas Husak (Rutgers University).

8. Philosophy of Tort Law: Between the Banal and the Esoteric: Benjamin C. Zipursky (Fordham University).

9. Contract Theory: Eric Posner (University of Chicago).

10. The Commons and the Anticommons in the Law and Theory of Property: Stephen R. Munzer (University of California, Los Angeles).

11. Legal Evidence: Alvin I. Goldman (Rutgers University).

Part III: Perennial Topics:.

12. Obligation: Matthew H. Kramer (Cambridge University).

13. Theories of Rights: Alon Harel (University of Jerusalem).

14. A Contractarian Approach to Punishment: Claire Finklestein (University of Pennsylavania).

15. Responsibility: Martin P. Golding (Duke University).

16. Legislation: Jeremy J. Waldron (Columbia University).

17. Constitutionalism: Larry A. Alexander (University of San Diego).

18. Adjudication and Legal Reasoning: Richard Warner (Illinois Institute of Technology).

19. Privacy: William A. Edmundson (Georgia State University).

Part IV: Continental Perspectives:.

20. On Legal Positivism and Natural Law Theory: Jes Bjarup (Stockholm University).

21. Some Contemporary Trends in Continental Philosophy of Law: Guy Haarscher (Free University of Brussels).

Part V: Methodological Concerns:.

22. Objectivity: Nicos Stavropoulos (Oxford University).

23. Can There Be a Theory of Law?: Joseph Raz (Oxford University).

Index