Reflections

Workshop Reflection 1: Natural Law and Legal Positivism

By looking into parliamentary changes in the UK in the 1960s, my study of the argument between Natural law and Legal Positivism proved to be a very intricate and complex issue of morality, law and the parliamentary role. The process of making choices between two contrasting advisories, of natural law which puts more emphasis on invariable moral writings and positive law which is more of legislative superiority and mandatory rule has been exhilarating. Through exploration of the impact of legislative changes aimed at restricting contraception, suicide, abortion and homosexuality on Natural Law, I realized that firstly I could illustrate how Natural Law proponents would criticize Parliament's role in shaping morality, while, secondly, I could emphasize the significance of Parliament as a source of authority in the legal positivist context. By scrutiny of every bit of legislative change from two perspectives of Natural Law and Legal Positivism, I unveiled the layers of their implementation. Both the ways have significant meanings I just discovered. 

Further, the analysis and the argumentation part made me examine the subtleties intrinsic to handling the dilemmas that arise within the parliamentary prerogative and above the ethical bylines. It accentuated the pragmatism of the wording of the connection between legislative authority, moral guidelines and constitutional provision. Consequently, the coexistence of parliament supremacy along with the challenge of joining the discrepancies is emphasized. In summary, this experience highlighted the centrality of the role of maintaining a balance between different perspectives in the legal framework, which provides the principle of justice, the legality of institutions, as well as accountability. My self-reflection on this occasion has engendered thoughts regarding the complexities of race, gender, and the inequalities cemented within the criminal justice system's framework, which by and large, illustrates the contemporary societal dialogues' utter relevance.

Workshop Reflection 2: Judicial Law-making

The work on Lord Mansfield's contribution towards judicial law-making and its effect on the development of Commercial Law remained crucial to fostering my learning. My perspective regarding the interplay between judicial decision-making, legal precedent, and the legal structure as a whole underwent expansion and was clarified after undertaking the project and conducting research and analysis in the Mansfield story. One of the most notable outcomes of my investigation on Lord Mansfield's style of adjudicating revealed the need for pragmatism and adaptability during the judicial process. The real need for the legal system to be responsive to the ever-evolving situations of society and the reality of trade informs Mansfield's efforts for the application of practicality and efficiency in resolving commercial cases. His ability to be lenient in a methodical and formal process of an indictment system and emphasize the necessity of the influence of judicial discretion in the domination of justice is a good example. 

Moreover, Mansfield's endeavours to ensure the integrity of Commercial transactions, assets and practices contributed a lot just as principles of Commerce Jurisprudence had been conceived. Significant emphasis on the importance of the economic contribution of coherent and mandatory legal rules catches the eye of the market participants as now taking part in the ever-growing discussions between the regulators and the managers. Mansfield's role points to the timeless nature of the values of the rule of law that would ensure order as well as the fairness, transparency, and certainty that support a business-friendly environment. The other side of the coin, though, was that it turned out to be more of a hurdle for me, more than anything else, to cope with rather intricate doctrines and past contexts. 

Furthermore, acquiring the proficiency to discern what character made those choices involved chasing clues, embracing law principles, and knowing the historical norms of 18th-century people. As well as interpreting his jurisprudence to fit the context of our world which changes and develops daily requires intricate and competent analysis. Even with all these difficulties, interacting with Lord Mansfield's philosophical jurisprudence and what it generated in the direction of Commercial Law gave important lessons as seen the law being changed with the existing circumstances as well.

This revealed to me that the relationship between judicial law-making, statutory interpretation, and societal norms have to play some leading roles for the framework guiding society to be in good shape. In a nutshell, it deserves mentioning that penning the essay about Lord Mansfield's role in the development of Commercial Law was a good experience and it allowed me to improve my knowledge about Legal History and Jurisprudence. Through the experience of analysing Mansfield's practical approach as well as his recognition of justice, I imagine these ideas to remain my guiding principles as I encounter and explore more current legal challenges in the evolution of Commercial Law.

Workshop Reflection 3: Civil Justice/Access Justice

In my work on civil justice, I tried to look at the civil justice system and also examine the occasions like UNISON v. Lord Chancellor case, on the one hand, it was also cognitively demanding. I also gained a deeper grasp of a variety of essential concepts and principles of access to justice, the significance of procedural fairness and efficiency, and the ripple effects of domestic significant legal rulings on society. A considerable lesson gathered here is that access to justice is a fundamental issue, where the rule of law can be upheld and the equal in front of the law can appear. Under UNISON v. Lord Chancellor, I obtained a higher level of awareness relating to how barriers to courts might just jeopardize the sole values of equality, justice, and fairness that institute democratic societies. It was obvious that the civil justice system was increasingly important as the way for individuals to have justice, which by holding the state obligatory helped to maintain the social justice order. 

From a broader perspective, I believe that being familiar with the civil justice system components and functions yielded a bit more complex view of the network of different institutions and procedures that deal with justice administration. On the other hand, I met numerous times with difficulties comprehending the legal concepts at hand and the court decisions, especially decoding the legal terminology and the occasion that occurred during the historical period under review. My struggle with understanding the subtleties of legal rules and their implications in real life led to my carefulness towards analytical skills. On the other hand, blending divergent standpoints and legal claims became one of the tasks that proved to be a true challenge in assisting to build a storyline which in turn was supposed to demonstrate the complex nature of the civil legal system. 

The conjunction of the theory of the law with the practice of real-life examples constituted a balancing act, which could be done well only if a profound way of explanation was used. In wrap-up, the civil justice system studying interlude has intellectually dragged the wax wings of my mind and provided me with the necessary information about the mechanisms that make justice equally applicable to all citizens of a country. Although there still definitely are complexities and challenges in legal thinking, the chance for me to explore the ideas more deeply as far as principles of justice and accountability are concerned is truly precious.