Contents: Preface Introduction: A Discipline in Crisis? 1. Legal Science: A Typology 2. The Homo Juridicus: Towards a Redefinition of Normative Legal Science 3. Methodology of Normative Legal Science 4. Organization of the Legal-academic Discourse Synopsis References Index
Jan M. Smits, Professor of Private Law, Faculty of Law, Maastricht University, Netherlands
‘Jan Smits has long been one of the most interesting and original
authors on European private law theory. Now he offers his views on
legal scholarship, and they are as original as they are
thought-provoking. His plea for a legal scholarship that maintains
its identity vis-à-vis neighboring disciplines without collapsing
into doctrinairism is bound to yield lively discussions - and
hopefully will help re-establish a proper place for legal
scholarship, in Europe and beyond.’
*Ralf Michaels, Duke University, US*
‘The Mind and Method of the Legal Academic is a valuable
contribution to the discussion on legal methodology and legal
theory, which offers an acute insight in contemporary academic
discussions. Smits provides us with fresh ideas as to the
(non)importance of social sciences for law, comparative law and
what makes an academic discipline. He does so in a clear style and
barely hundred pages text. It therefore can be highly recommended
to all students of jurisprudence.’
*Ewoud Hondius, University of Utrecht, The Netherlands*
‘A wonderful little book which explains to newcomers and old hands
alike what legal academics are doing, how they are doing it, how
they ought to be doing it, what kind of research environment they
would need, and how all this should affect their teaching. Smits
brings comparative and interdisciplinary approaches home to the
core of scholarly legal work.’
*Gerhard Dannemann, Centre for British Studies, Berlin,
Germany*
‘This book is a wide-ranging and bold exploration of the nature of
legal scholarship. Lucid and learned, Smits draws upon a variety of
sources to recommend a multi-faceted approach to the normative
dimension of law. As such, it provides a theoretical base for
comparative law but also for any inquiry into what law or legal
principle is appropriate for a given problem or situation. All
those engaged in critically examining the law will benefit from its
insights.’
*Anthony Ogus, Professor Emeritus, University of Manchester, UK and
Erasmus University Rotterdam, the Netherlands*
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