: It requires lawyers and citizens to view the law not just as a set of rules with penalties, but as a shared social project worthy of respect and loyalty. The Rule of Law Test
Another criticism of fidelity to law is that it can lead to unjust outcomes in cases where the law is discriminatory or unjust. For example, in the United States, the law was once used to justify segregation and discrimination against African Americans. In such cases, fidelity to law would have required judges and lawyers to uphold these unjust laws, which would have been morally and ethically wrong. fidelity to law meaning
Fuller contended that fidelity to law is only possible when the following conditions are met: Generality: : It requires lawyers and citizens to view
Legal philosopher Lon Fuller argued that law has an "inner morality"—eight principles that make law possible: generality, promulgation, non-retroactivity, clarity, non-contradiction, possibility of compliance, constancy over time, and congruence between official action and declared rules. Fidelity to law is the acceptance of these principles as binding on those who make, interpret, and enforce law. In such cases, fidelity to law would have
: Citizens can plan their lives knowing the law won't change on a whim.
Modern scholars have expanded the meaning of fidelity to include broader socio-political and interpretive dimensions:
: It requires lawyers and citizens to view the law not just as a set of rules with penalties, but as a shared social project worthy of respect and loyalty. The Rule of Law Test
Another criticism of fidelity to law is that it can lead to unjust outcomes in cases where the law is discriminatory or unjust. For example, in the United States, the law was once used to justify segregation and discrimination against African Americans. In such cases, fidelity to law would have required judges and lawyers to uphold these unjust laws, which would have been morally and ethically wrong.
Fuller contended that fidelity to law is only possible when the following conditions are met: Generality:
Legal philosopher Lon Fuller argued that law has an "inner morality"—eight principles that make law possible: generality, promulgation, non-retroactivity, clarity, non-contradiction, possibility of compliance, constancy over time, and congruence between official action and declared rules. Fidelity to law is the acceptance of these principles as binding on those who make, interpret, and enforce law.
: Citizens can plan their lives knowing the law won't change on a whim.
Modern scholars have expanded the meaning of fidelity to include broader socio-political and interpretive dimensions: