Law and Social

Transformation
Unit-I
 Roscoe Pound (1870-1964)
 American Legal Philosopher and law teacher
 Pound put forth his conception of legal change as
experience developed by reason and tested by further
reason.
 n his famous 1906 address to the 
American Bar Association, which aroused a storm of
protest, Pound attacked the complacency of lawyers
who mechanically follow outmoded rules of judicial
procedure. 
 Pound’s great contribution to juristic thought was his
view of law as an instrument of social engineering
 Roscoe’s Legal Philosophy
 Study of society is important for law-making
 Effects of society on law-making
 Two theories: Social engineering and Theory

of interest.
Theory of Social Enginering
 Law as an instrument of social engineering
means a balance between the competing
interests in society.
 Maximum happiness and minimum friction.
Role of law in Social Engineering
 Balancing of conflicting interests between law
and state.
 Example, article 19 of Indian Constitution

says freedom of speech and expression.

Main aspects with reference to law
 Making of law: Social effects of legal
administration
 Application of law: making laws effective
 Interpretation of law: use of legal history
 Theory of interests
 Individual interests
 Public interests
 Social interests
Law: Purposive, Functional and Need-
based
 Law is of practical importance as it moulds
law to the interests of community.
 Society is always changing so laws should

always be changing.
 Effective implementation of law is required

for larger social interest.

 Weber on law
 Rechtssoziologie (Sociology of law)
 Relationship between law and economic

development
 Weber categorises lawmaking based on

rationality.
 Style of law determines economy.
THANKING YOU