Examine the Social Relevance of Legal Research Essay Example

subject/topic.

He requires not only to locate and to look into relevant Act(s) of Parliament but also to locate relevant secondary legislative instruments in the form of rules, regulations, orders, directions, notifications, and byelaws and judicial pronouncements thereon. It is a matter of common experience that these legislative instruments are scattered and are not easily traceable. More than one Acts may have bearing on the topic under study. He, therefore, needs to be more careful in locating these laws. Most of the subsidiary legislative instruments are not published on time in Official Gazette. Most of the times they are published after they have come into force.

A plethora of judicial pronouncements of different higher judicial institutions including of the apex court adds to the difficulty in ascertainment of law. He needs to locate, analyze and digest these judicial pronouncements. Finding law on a particular topic or subject, thus, is not a simple task, as it seems to be. It involves intensive analysis of legal instruments and judicial pronouncements. Further, there is a constant stream of statutes (with often amendments), statutory rules, directives and orders, and judicial decisions flowing at a tremendous speed in a modern welfare State.

2.6.2 Highlighting inbuilt ‘gaps’ and ‘ambiguities’ No legal language or phrase, howsoever a legal drafter may be vigilant, visionary and skilled craftsman, can be perfect and be capable to take forever into its ambit all the future contingencies and circumstances. Sometimes, a provision may not, in terms of its phraseology or pragmatic operation, aptly fit into overall legislative intent of the Act or match with its other provisions or provisions of other Acts. A legal

researcher, through systematic analysis, may be able to highlight these ‘gaps’ and inbuilt weaknesses of the Act or its provisions.

2.6.3 Determining consistency, coherence and stability of law A legal researcher, through critical examination of legal propositions, rules and doctrines embodied therein, in the light of interpretations thereof and legislative policy of the statute, can, with apt analysis and supporting reasoning, exhibit consistency and coherence or otherwise of a given law. Such an analysis helps in the development of law, legal provision or doctrine, as the case may be.

2.6.4 Social auditing of law

Legal research is also necessary for taking pre-legislative social audit of law as it helps to understand and appreciate the social forces that played significant role in the making of given law in its present form. Such an understanding enables us to know the social stakes that law intends to protect or change and reasons therefor.

It helps to appreciate underpinning of the given law and its legislative target and strategy. While post-legislation social auditing helps us to identify ‘gap(s)’, if any, between the ‘legal ideal’ and the ‘social reality’ and to know reasons or factors responsible therefor. Such an audit helps us to find out as to whether a given law is assimilated in the society and is (or is not) serving the needs of the society. It also unravels the reasons or factors that are responsible for making a given law a mere symbolic or a failure in attaining its intended legislative goal(s). It also enables us to predict future of the law.

2.6.5 Suggesting reforms in law

In the light of underlying

legislative policy of a Statute and the highlighted inbuilt weaknesses or inconsistencies thereof, a legal researcher can easily offer concrete suggestions or proposals for reform or improvement in the given law. By undertaking analytical, historical and comparative research, he can also formulate his proposals for reform in precise terms. Analytical research, as stated above, is concerned with the ascertainment of law.

It deals with the present. Historical research, on the other hand, deals with the past and it involves an inquiry into historical antecedents and evolution of law. The past often explains the present, most vividly. It reveals different alternative legislative measures, other than the current ones, thought of when the law was in the making. It discloses the reasons for their rejection and for adoption of the present ones. Historical research often shows that a particular existing legal provision, rule or doctrine, fully justifiable at the time when it was introduced or adapted, is no longer so justifiable because the reasons or circumstances that justified the original inclusion of that provision, rule or doctrine are no longer valid or exist. While comparative research aims at finding parallels from other jurisdictions.

Thus, analytical [i.e., finding the existing law]; historical [i.e., finding out the previous law in order to understand the reasons behind the existing law and the course of evolution], and comparative [i.e., finding out what the law is in other countries, and considering whether it can be adapted, with or without modifications] lead to law reforms or development of law. Legal research, to sum up, needs to be carried out for the following reasons:

1. To ascertain laws on a given

topic or subject. 2. To identify ‘gaps’ and ‘ambiguities’ in law. 3. To critically examine consistency, coherence and stability of law and legal propositions. 4. To undertake ‘social auditing of law’ [i.e. auditing pre-Legislative ‘forces’ and post-Legislative ‘impacts’ of law]. 5. To suggest reforms/developments in law by undertakings research intended: i. To investigate ‘gap’ between the ‘legal ideals’ and ‘actual practice’. ii. To understand ‘effectiveness’ or ‘impact’ of law in a given social set-up at a given time. iii. To find out as to whether law is serving the needs of the society and has a social value. iv. To make suggestions for improvements in the law on concrete formulations and proposals. v. To predict future trends of law.