Table of Contents

Preface
Richard Nobles and David Schiff: Introduction
1: The Location of Legal Theory
2: The Operative Closure of the Legal System
3: The Function of Law
4: Coding and Programming
5: Justice: a Formula for Contingency
6: The Evolution of Law
7: The Position of Courts in the Legal System
8: Legal Argumentation
9: Politics and Law
10: Structural Couplings
11: The Self-description of the Legal System
12: Society and its Law
Index

About the Author

Prior to his death in 1998, Niklas Luhammn was Emeritus Professor of Sociology at Bielefeld University.

Reviews

That a major volume bringing together his [Luhmann's] ideas has been made available in English is both very welcome and potentially influential Cambridge Law Journal ..an important analysis about the way in which law operates asa distinctive social system..the analysis of the book illuminates legal practice Cambridge Law Journal ..it is a 'must read' for serious scholars.. Cambridge Law Journal