Insights about the Nature of Law from History

Brian Tamanaha has consistently sought his own version of general jurisprudence, stressing mutual influence between law and cultural and historical diversity of human lives. Now he takes a "third-way" approach of jurisprudence, which inherits the viewpoints of legal realism, historical jurisprudence, and sociological jurisprudence. Tamanaha identifies several alluring problems, like the complacence of the "law and development" projects, the prevalence of legal instrumentalism, the debate between legal formalists and legal realists, and the universal value and applicability of the rule of law.

The contributors of this volume critically approach Tamanaha’s arguments and hypotheses, or his methodological position, some from particular contexts of historical experiences of Japanese society, and some from more general and theoretical perspectives. This will help us to deepen the understandings about certain central problems of jurisprudence and philosophy of law, as well as significance of Tamanaha’s own jurisprudential accomplishments and future prospects.