Law as It Is

This chapter explores legal positivism, a school of legal theory that views law as a social construct, distinct from morality. Legal positivism emphasises that legal validity depends on social facts, such as enactment by recognised institutions, rather than moral content. Key figures like H. L. A. Hart and Hans Kelsen are discussed. The chapter outlines two central theses of legal positivism: the social thesis (law is rooted in social practices) and the separability thesis (law and morality are conceptually distinct). It also examines debates between inclusive and exclusive positivists regarding morality’s role in legal validity. The chapter concludes by arguing that legal positivism should be viewed as asserting that law is a human artefact, separable from moral judgments, though explaining the normativity of law remains a challenge for legal positivism.