1.For any theory of law, justice or rights to be worthy of our Essay

1.For any theory of law, justice or rights to be worthy of our support, it must involve a necessary connection with morality. To what extent, if at all, do you agree with this view - Essay Example But before this issue can be explored, many other aspects come into play so that the main question can be fully understood. Firstly, what is a connection between law and morality? What is this moral basis which we speak of? Ultimately I will argue that the contention that our acceptance of laws is based on its necessary connection with morality presupposes the existence of universal moral standards. I argue that this is not possible; that there does not and cannot exist a universal, or even societal moral basis, for ultimately the topic is subjective. By dismantling the conception that there exist these morals as a basis for our acceptance of law, I will then proceed to provide examples, and thus explain why we accept laws. The topic is rich in content, and brings into play many contentions and side analyses, and it goes without saying that this will be a brief, albeit suitable expression of the argument. However, the main basis of my argument will be to show that when a connection b etween law and morality is found – and I do not consider this impossible – it allows arbitrary decisions to be made, based on the subjective outlook of he who is applying the law. What is a moral connection between law and morality? Let us observe it in play in the courtroom, through the dicta of judge Ormrod in the case of Corbett v Corbett.1 His statement that the criteria for determining the sex of a spouse to be â€Å"the biological sexual constitution† and the â€Å"essential role† of a woman in a marriage2 is commonly accepted to be fraught with personal moral considerations.3 In such cases, some argue that a connection between law and morality is proven, where the legislation involved in the case was vague and did not define the criteria under which the sex of a spouse should be determined. So, a moral connection between law and morality in the courtroom is an interpretation of the law in accordance with what the judge considers to be

The Role of the Individual in the Legal Process Essay

The Role of the Individual in the Legal Process - Essay Example One weakness of jury trial is that decisions of a jury may be influenced by facts that not in issue and irrelevant to the trial. Sadly, personal issues, prejudices, and emotions play a role in deciding critical matters such as the right to liberty of murder suspects. Juror 7 best demonstrates this. He votes depending on how the result will affect the baseball game he has bought a ticket to. He is impatient, wants the trial to end quickly and doesn’t care whether the defendant is found guilty or not. He starts by guilty then changes to not guilty to quickly bring the trial to a conclusion. Jurors 3 and 5 are used to show prejudice. Juror 5 is accused by Juror 3 of voting out of sympathy for the suspect having grown up in a slum like him. In addition, Juror 3 is used to demonstrate how emotions influence jury decisions. He simply wants someone to be punished and opts for the boy to be found guilty and punished. He just says that the boy has got to burn and is slipping through th eir fingers. No profound analysis of evidence presented. Finally, Juror 10 demonstrates the role of prejudice. He simply believes that people raised in slums like the suspect have a propensity to commit crimes and on that basis, would have found the suspect guilty. In some juries, members do not have opinions of their own and only vote according to the reasoning of their friends. For example, Jurors 4, 10, and 12 alter votes according to Juror 8’s logic that the old woman would not have had her glasses on in bed and did not have sufficient time to wear them in order to see the suspect clearly. Some opinions are skewed as they bear no relationship with the facts in issue. It is revealed that juror three remained as the only juror with a guilty verdict due to a bad relationship with his son and nothing to do with the evidence in consideration. Apart from the weaknesses of a jury discussed above, a jury is capable of delivering a