LEGAL SCIENCE: HISTORY, SYSTEMS, CONCEPTS, METHODOLOGY - ARTE - 2025

The legal science or science of law refers to the discipline that relates to the law, its interpretation and systematization to give a fair application. It emphasizes all laws capable of being enacted through legislation. When a law is promulgated, it becomes an element whose application is real within a system of law.

Much of the theoretical knowledge of law is that which is linked to science, which establishes the principles that come from philosophy and natural law. Legal science, on the other hand, is a social science since law is classified as a product generated from the social and not naturally.

Legal science emphasizes the law to give it a fair application

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The term "legal science" tends to suffer from a certain ambiguity within the field of law. It may vary depending on how it is used in certain circumstances. In some cases, it is used to refer to the process of studying the law or the result of it. It can also be used to talk about any discipline that has the law as an object of study or any approach that can be qualified as "science".

Legal science can evaluate the law and determine its operation based on the social phenomena that are generated after its application. The application of science within the legal field suggests the identification of the true aspects linked to the investigation of what is considered as fair.

Origin and history of legal science

Old age

The origins of the legal sciences may not be related to a scientific approach in principle. Part of modern systems of law come from Roman legal technique. From here systems such as Romano-French are derived.

Roman law refers to the legal system in the times of ancient Rome and is widely used today as part of continental law and within a variety of civil codes in the world.

One of the most important contributions of law is the compilation made by Emperor Justinian I. This compendium called Corpus Juris Civilis comes from the Renaissance and has lasted to this day. It became throughout history, the most influential text in relation to the science of law.

Middle Ages onwards

During the Middle Ages, any advance on the law was overshadowed by religious norms to which the legal element had to be tied. It was not until the twelfth century when Roman law began to be retaken and later it began to appear as a systematized aspect, especially within the Italian universities of the time.

During the Enlightenment, new forms were given to the legal principles of antiquity such as equality, equity and justice. The material for constitutionalism was also strengthened, which gave way to the constitutional rights declarations and even the declaration of human rights itself.

Some forms of the state, such as socialism, influenced the field of legal science as the issue of class predominance resonated within political rights.

Object of study

Although the law cannot be established as an exact science, the study of legal science can generate a type of objective and true knowledge. The union of the philosophical and scientific perspectives in relation to the law has the possibility of envisioning the way towards what is fair and what is objective.

Actually the dynamics of legal sciences is also subject to a kind of relativity since there is no exact formula in law that can work universally.

The law dynamics of companies change as they differ from one area to another. For this reason, it is not possible to apply a single formula and obtain the same results in any part of the world, since the science of law is particular within each area.

Laws and regulations do not appear in the same way in two totally different countries, be it due to social, political or cultural factors.

Featured legal systems

From the Roman legal technique arises the Romano-French system and the Anglo-Saxon system.

Romano-French legal system or continental law

It is derived from the system that originates in continental Europe and has Roman, German and canon law as its roots. Usually, this type of legal system is the most used by European countries and in turn by those that were colonized by them.

One of the fundamental characteristics of this system is that it revolves around the law as the main source and with a meaning that goes above jurisprudence.

The rules within continental law are established within codes. The codes of laws contain a systematized set of articles that have a relationship between them. These explain the functioning of the legal mechanisms and also the principles, rights and benefits related to the law.

Continental law, for the most part, is inspired by Roman law and uses as a very important reference the particular work of Emperor Justinian I.

It was also influenced by the religious canon during the Middle Ages. It gives priority to the legislative and executive power, along with the rules that may emanate from them. On the other hand, the area of ​​jurisprudence is limited to the analysis and interpretation of current regulations.

The origin of the expression "continental law" comes from the separation from the geographical point of view between Great Britain and the European continent. In this way, another system known as "Common Law" was developed in the British territory.

Anglo-Saxon legal system or

It is a legal system originating in England and applied in most of the countries that have had strong Anglo-Saxon influence. Within this system all legal decisions are based on the courts, unlike continental law where the main reference is the civil code or the law.

This type of application of the law is linked to jurisprudence. Its origin comes from the Middle Ages in the Court of the Kings, located in Westminster, near London, and which influenced almost the entire country.

Other elements that make up the law within Common Law are: legislation, which can include parliamentary laws, local or regional laws, regulations, municipal ordinances or ministerial-type orders. It is also linked to customs, such as commercial laws and, finally, Common Law is associated with some authority references such as doctrine.

The methodology in legal science

Within this scope, the methodology seeks to study the methods of legal science that can be applied to law within the teleological and axiological framework. For this there are several general methods applied to law, some of them are:

Scientific method

It has a particular relevance since it allows to establish meeting points from all the existing methods. As a fundamental method of science, it is aimed at carrying out a systematic process based on reason to obtain scientific truth. It is responsible for generating hypotheses and then carrying out their verification.

Intuitive method

It is characterized by being a first observation. The object of study is captured from an intuitive perspective that will then use scientific methods for its verification, so that hypotheses or theories can be generated.

Discursive method

Applicable when the object of study is complex or lacks immediate answers. It consists of covering the object indirectly through contemplation from different points of view, discovering step by step its possible layers and then tying it to a concept. Most of the techniques within this method use desk research.

Deductive method

Take knowledge or general principles to generate conclusions. Within the legal field, general legal norms are usually used to be applied to specific cases.

Inductive method

It is responsible for considering a variety of particular phenomena to draw conclusions. Study various cases or specific objectives that allow you to establish a general conclusion. It can be complemented with the deductive method.

Concepts related to legal science

Philosophy of law

It is a branch of philosophy that deals with the study of the nature of law. It is based on human values, customs, attitudes and political communities. It also focuses on the analysis of the relationship that may exist between the law and other sets of norms such as morality or ethics.

Positive law

It refers to an obligation that is owed to the person who has a right. These obligations can be legal or moral. Positive law refers to actions that must be carried out according to the law. This is born from the consensus of man and is granted by the State and society.

Jurisprudence

In the Common Law legal system, decisions are made in correspondence with jurisprudence

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It is widely related to the science of law, often being seen as the same thing. From a philosophical point of view, it refers to the study of the just and the unjust.

However, in a broader sense, jurisprudence deals with the interpretation of the law for prudent application as appropriate in a given situation. Among other definitions, it is also known as the set of principles within the law that are followed in each country in a particular way.

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