The Alexy-Poscher Debate on Legal Principles

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Robert Alexy (Kiel University, Germany) Ralf Poscher (Max Planck Institute, Germany)

The Alexy-Poscher Debate on Legal Principles

Robert Alexy (Kiel University, Germany), Ralf Poscher (Max Planck Institute, Germany), Rafael Giorgio Dalla-Barba (Max Planck Institute for the Study of Crime, Security and Law, Germany)

$180

Hardback

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English

Hart Publishing
12 June 2025

Comparative law

This collective work provides a chronological and up-to-date reconstruction of the three-round debate between Robert Alexy and Ralf Poscher.

The debate represents the German development of an enduring jurisprudential controversy over the concept and adjudicatory role of legal principles, classically addressed by HLA Hart and Ronald Dworkin. Alexy’s principles theory, which has initially defined ‘legal principles’ as optimisation requirements, currently argues that they express an ‘ideal ought’. Poscher’s critique challenges the soundness of Alexy’s principles theory by questioning its ontological and epistemological commitments.

As legal principles are directly related to constitutional rights, the Alexy-Poscher debate has significant implications for constitutional adjudication. For instance, proportionality analysis – which incorporates a highly controversial balancing test – and the legitimate boundaries of judicial power, hinge on the debate's two opposing views. Yet despite the centrality and pervasiveness of this topic, German contributions to the theoretical and practical impact of legal principles remain generally overlooked by English-speaking scholars.

Concluding with David Duarte’s critical and meticulous assessment of the debate, this collection bridges that important scholarly gap. Whether or not conversant in the debate on legal principles, legal researchers and advanced law students with interdisciplinary interests in jurisprudence and constitutional law will find in this book a timely and distinctive introduction to leading developments in German legal thinking.

By: Robert Alexy (Kiel University Germany), Ralf Poscher (Max Planck Institute, Germany)
Edited by: Rafael Giorgio Dalla-Barba (Max Planck Institute for the Study of Crime Security and Law Germany)
Imprint: Hart Publishing
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 236mm, Width: 164mm, Spine: 18mm
Weight: 460g
ISBN: 9781509980611
ISBN 10: 150998061X
Pages: 200
Publication Date: 12 June 2025
Audience: Professional and scholarly , College/higher education , Undergraduate , Primary
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active

Robert Alexy is Professor of Public Law and Legal Philosophy at Kiel University, Germany. Ralf Poscher is Director of the Department of Public Law at the Max Planck Institute for the Study of Crime, Security and Law, Germany. Rafael Giorgio Dalla-Barba is Doctoral Researcher at the Max Planck Institute for the Study of Crime, Security and Law, Germany. David Duarte is Associate Professor of Law at the University of Lisbon, Portugal.

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The Alexy-Poscher Debate on Legal Principles

Robert Alexy (Kiel University, Germany), Ralf Poscher (Max Planck Institute, Germany), Rafael Giorgio Dalla-Barba (Max Planck Institute for the Study of Crime, Security and Law, Germany)

$180

Hardback

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