The Formal Character of Law — Statutory Rules

Abstract

My general thesis is that law is formal in character.^* Here I will suggestively develop how this thesis, applies to statutory rules, which comprise one of the basic, essential, and ubiquitous types of legal construct in all legal systems. I single out such rules because of their special importance. First, they are instruments both of problem-specific policy and values associated with the rule of law. Second, they are also used to shape and define virtually all other basic types of legal constructs. Thus, rules are used to shape and define legislatures, elections, courts, criteria of validity, methodologies of interpretation, the practice of stare decisis, official agencies, corporate bodies, other recognized legal entities, and so on.