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National Law Institute University Bhopal, M.P
National Law Institute University Bhopal, M.P
UNIVERSITY
BHOPAL , M.P.
I would take this opportunity to acknowledge the roles played by all the people in helping me
to successfully make this project. I would thank my parents who act as my pillars of strength
in all situations. I would also thank Ranjan Kumar Sir who guided me in completion of my
project.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Biblography
Case Index
ABOUT THE PHILOSOPHER
Fuller was inclined to dwell on the way things can go wrong in the law —
the pathological cases.5
SUMMARY OF CASE:
There was massive escape of lethal gas, methyl isocyanide from
appellants plant into atmosphere which led to a man made calamity.
Union of India (UOI) sued appellant for compensation on behalf of all the
aggrieved parties. UOI in exercise of power filed suit in District Court at
Bhopal the suit asked for decree for damages for people affected by
calamity,the matter first went to District Court, where awarded monetary
compensation to tune of 350 million dollars then went in appeal before
High Court compensation reduced to 250 million dollars after which
1
See. Fuller, Lon L, “The Natural Law Philosophy in contrast toRoe v. Wade and Its ProgenyThomas W. Strahan”.
2
See Fuller, Lon L, The Natural Law Philosophy in contrast toRoe v. Wade and Its ProgenyThomas W. Strahan
3
See Summers, Robert,” LON L. FULLER”. By. Stanford University Press, Stanford, California, 1984. pp. xiii,
174.
Reviewed by William Powers, Jr. *
4
Fuller Lon Luvois,by Kenneth Winston retrived on 18 th September from http://ivr-enc.info/index.php?
title=Fuller,_Lon_Luvois,
5
Fuller Lon Luvois,by Kenneth Winston retrived on 18 th September from http://ivr-enc.info/index.php?
title=Fuller,_Lon_Luvois
decisions of High Court challenged by appellant and UOI .enterprise which
is engaged in hazardous or inherently dangerous industry posing potential
threat to health and safety of persons working in factory owes absolute
and non-delegable duty to community to ensure that no harm done to
any person - enterprise must be held to be under obligation to provide
that hazardous or inherently dangerous activity enterprise must be
absolutely liable to compensate for such harm - enterprise cannot take
defense that it took all reasonable care and harm occurred without
negligence on its part.
The theory lays more focus on criminal law with respect to legal
pathologies. In light of criminal law , ‘ Fuller argues for the necessity of
multiple ends and for a compromise of punitive, deterrent, custodial, and
rehabilitative aims.’8 Fuller refutes that the modern society need law of
crimes in order to define what is morally right and wrong or to establish ‘a
proper balance of advantage between the criminal and honest man’ 9.He
justifies penalities saying that in order for a legal system to uphold its
integrity it need a system where in order to upholds ones right and safety
other should be deprived of it.
Fuller says that ‘deterrence and restrain of immediate harm’ is the the
primary object of criminal law.The acceptable level of doctrine of
retribution that is punishing a person in a way that it is morally right and
fully deserved, such that there is a balance between penality and offence
plays a primary role. Fuller argues that the clinical approach toward law is
acceptable as legal order is bound to change change over a period of time
and hence the pathologies are not carried out by chance, their roots lay in
the dilemmas of lawmaking and administration.
The concept of implicit law according to him rests on the fact that some
social facts carry legal authority, this authority is not derived from
legislative but its force lays in its factual circumstances and its relation
with the legal system in simpler words when there is a consensus on
mode of conduct, rules perceptions and beliefs which are stated it is
immaterial to say that the officials “make” the.
Fuller says that citizens sometimes have distorted idea about the meaning
of statutory rules. Thus Fuller points out the need for institutional means
of settling particular disputes authoritatively. 10
The "No man may profit from his own wrong"11 is not a stable foundation
to deciding judicial decisions ., it seems inappropriate to maintain that
courts must "legislate" to fill "gaps" left by legal rules.
If decision must be made in an area in which established legal rules are
silent, it would seem that the resulting disposition of the case would be an
instance of judicial fiat, a piece of retrospective legislation precisely
because the decision would be out of reach of established legal rules and
the basis for prediction and criticism which they afford.
The function of legislative enactment is to to create rules by fiat(decree)
without having to give legal justification for those rules, which is the
whole idea of positivism. But cannot be entirely true as some justification
will have to be available: that which establishes the appropriate
legislative act as competent. But beyond this minimum, any more detailed
argument in support of the enactment is , and any such argument against
the enactment is useless, insofar as its legal validity is concerned.
Fuller basically talks about legal positivism in light of naturalism.
BRIEF FACTS
10
Fuller, Lon L,ANATOMY OF LAW, (1976)p. 100.
11
Dworkin's drawn from Riggs v. Palmer, 115 N.Y. 506,
N.E. 188 (1889). Is Law a System of Rules?, supra at pp. 35-41.
On the night of December 2-3, 1984, the UCIL Bhopal chemical plant
leaked a large quantity of methyl isocyanate, a highly toxic gas, into the
City of Bhopal, State of Madhya Pradesh. Due to the wind the gas spread
in the densely populated surrounding areas causing thousands of people
to die and over two thousand who sustained bodily deformity. Shortly
after the disaster, victims and their relatives began to seek recovery from
Union Carbide in United States courts.12
The suit asked for a decree for damages for such amount as may be
appropriate under the facts and the law and what is fair and full, fairly
and finally compensate all persons and authorities who had suffered as a
result of the disaster and were having claims against the UCC.
It also asked for a decree for effective damages in an amount sufficient
to deter the defendant and other multi-national corporations involved in
business activities from committing wilful and malicious acts that
disregard the rights and safety of the citizens ofthe Constitution Bench
which had recorded the settlement proceeded to set out brief reasons on
three aspects:
ISSUES RAISED
1. How did this Court arrive at the sum of 470 million US dollars for an
over-all settlement?
2. Why did the Court consider this sum of 470 million US dollars as 'just,
equitable and reasonable?
With respect to the companies liability with respect to law of torts it
was established that the liability rose out of the use of ultra-hazardous
chemical poisons said to engender not merely strict liability on Rylands
v. Fletcher principal but an absolute liability on the principals of M.C.
Mehta's case.
12
Indian Environment Portal, retrived on 9 th Septeber 2013
http://www.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/files/Federal%20Appeals%20Court%20Decision.pdf
The issue which could be discussed in light of Fuller’s Anatomy of law
which talks about legal naturalism in the light of fitting penalty to the
crime in case of criminal offenses, are:
(i) The criminal cases could not have been compounded or quashed
and immunity against criminal action could not be granted; and
It was discussed in the final decision that the court under the Article
142 had power to squash the criminal proceedings against the UCC
and further more make it liable to not only pay compensatory but
exemplary damages in the light of the fact that the company acted
grossly negligently when it was suppose to take due care and
causion.
In the case it was contended that the court had no right to command
UCC to pay interim compensation.
Here Fuller’s philosophy of Anatomy of law talks about the very same
aspect of law it says that when it comes to providing relief law
should be considered but courts should legislate in such a way that
it fills the gaps between what is written and ought to be done.
CONCLUSION
We at the face of it we are made to agree why a proper settlement could
not be set aside on the ground that natural justice have been violated and
that practical consequences arise out of the fact that it is not practical.The
the validity of the settlement could not be assured.
I am in disagreement of Fuller’s Philosophy as it is vague and not in
compliance of his earlier philosophies. He tries to combine natural justice
with positivism which are both to an extent contradictory concepts, his
view of criminal law and pathologies though could be applied but it is not
fit for use in all situations.
BIBLOGRAPHY
Fuller,L.L., ‘Human Interaction and the Law’ from (1969) 14
Amer. J of jurisprudence 1
Fuller, L.L, “Morality Of Law”, Universal Law Publishing Company,
Delhi, Edi V, 2009
Selznik, Philip, “Anatomy of law By LL Fuller”, Harvard Law
Review, Vol. 83, No. 6,April 1970
Summers, Robert,’LON L. FULLER.’ Stanford University
Press,Stanford, California, 1984. pp. xiii, 174.
CASE INDEX:
1.Union Carbide Corporation V Inion Of India
MANU/SC/0058/1992
Equivalent Citation: I(1992)ACC332, AIR1992SC248,
1991)3CompLJ213(SC), JT1991(6)SC8, 1991(2)SCALE675,
(1991)4SCC584, [1991]Supp1SCR251, 1992(1)UJ505