On the Philosophy of Precedent

In this volume, the 3rd issue of the Proceedings of the 24th IVR World Congress, the reader will find a selection of papers on the general theme of The Philosophy of Precedent. The foundations, legal nature, structure, strength and uses of the case law were vividly debated at two special workshops dedicated to the study of legal precedent by a large number of scholars from around the world. The attention that the theme received at the congress indicates a trend of growing interest on the topic of precedent among legal philosophers, legal theorists and practitioners from all of the legal families and traditions, including those of the so-called Civil Law Systems. Taking into consideration this movement towards the universality of precedent-based reasoning in legal discourses, the essays comprised in this volume provide an account of legal precedent which explains the connections between theoretical issues on the nature of precedent and practical queries over its foundations, structure, strength and uses in contemporary legal systems.