Philosophy of law

Legal Realism and Skepticism As we look into the topic of legal realism and skepticism we realize that there are basically three basic concepts to understand in this subject. These three tenets are as follows; law is whatever a judge decides it is, law and morality are independent of each other, and rights are conferred. This is in opposition to the theories of natural law and legal positivism. During this chapter we will examine three separate works from three different authors. The first article is "Legal Realism" by Jerome Frank, the second is "The Path of the Law" by O.W. Holmes Jr. and the third selection is "Ships and Shoes and Sealing Wax" by K.N. Llewellyn. Although these three men are all part of the movement of legal realism, they have differences in their arguments and examples. The differences in their articles help to cover all the bases of legal realism. Jerome Frank was a Chicago lawyer during the time period of the political realism movement. He was appointed to the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit by the president, Franklin D. Roosevelt, in February 1941. In the article "Legal Realism" by Jerome Frank a dispute between two taxi companies is examined and discussed. The main concern of this article is what law means to the average man when he is consulting with an attorney. Through the examination of this case you see that the interpretation of the law depends on which court the case is being tried in. In this case Blue & Gray Taxi vs. Williams Purple Taxi, there is a dispute between two cab companies about who has the right to certain territories due to an agreement between the Blue & Gray taxi company and the A & B railroad company. The rail company had signed an agreement stating that no taxi company would be allowed to pick up or drop off passengers on their premises. When the Williams Purple Taxi company started infringing on their territory, the Jones family, owners of the Blue & Gray Taxi Company, sought counsel from a