The Rule of Recognition

Essential background info from The Concept of Law:    • Hart - Concept of Law - Ch 5 (Primary...   and    • Hart - Concept of Law - Ch 6 (The Rul...  

This is a lecture video about a selection of Scott Shapiro's essay "What is the Rule of Recognition (and Does it Exist)?" The essay concerns HLA Hart's fundamental, secondary rule, the rule of recognition. Shapiro argues that although it is natural to think of the rule of recognition as power-conferring, it is instead duty-imposing. Specifically, it imposes a duty on legal officials, i.e. courts, to apply rules that meat certain criteria of legal validity, and those criteria constitute the test of validity for that legal system. Justicability is also discussed. This lecture is part of a Philosophy of Law course.