Introduction into Jurisprudence WP-PR-WDP
1. The concept of science and the subject matter of legal science and jurisprudence. Auxiliary sciences. The relationship between legal science and jurisprudence. The concept of justice and an analysis of the principle of justice, the role of lawyers and the significance of law in the realisation of justice,
2. Basic concepts and the definition of law – ex.fundamental philosophical and legal concepts: John Austin, Herbert Hart and the emergence, evolution and decline of positivism, Ronald Dworkin and the anti-positivist turn, Gustav Radbruch and the concept of gross injustice, Thomas Aquinas and the school of natural law, American functionalism and law in action, Leon Petrażycki and psychological theory of law
3. The functions and role of law in the state (coordination of actions for the common good, distribution of benefits and burdens, control of behaviour, conflict resolution), various normative systems (law, morality, custom), the relationship between law and other normative systems.
4. The concept of a norm and a legal provision; the abstract and general nature of legal norms; elements of a legal norm: hypothesis, disposition and sanction; concepts of the structure of a legal norm; types of provisions.
5. The validity of law – the concept of the validity of law, concepts of the validity of legal norms, a discussion of specific rules of validity, criteria for the validity of law – in terms of time, place and persons.
6. Sources of law – basic forms of law-making: customs and common law, precedents, contract as a source of law, statutory law, basic types of normative acts and their hierarchy.
7. Legal cultures – types of legal cultures (common law, civil law) and their convergence, vertical and horizontal organisation of legal systems, the principle of consistency within a legal system, types of inconsistencies and methods of resolving them, conflict-of-laws rules, the principle of completeness of legal systems, and gaps in the law and methods of addressing them.
8. Fundamental issues of the application and interpretation of law; models and stages of the application of law; the evolution of views on the application of law; compliance with the law; legal liability.
9. Interpretation of law: types based on the subject, scope and binding force of interpretation. Linguistic, systemic and functional interpretation.
10. Legal reasoning: by analogy, by contrast, a fortiori, and from instrumental commands and prohibitions. Elements of the theory of argumentation, basic legal topoi.
11. Legal relationship – legal facts, subject, object, content of the legal relationship, and typology of rights and obligations.
12. The rule of law, protection of human dignity, the common good, the principle of justice and the principle of fairness and their role in the state and society, guarantees of the rule of law.
(in Polish) E-Learning
Term 2023/24_Z: (in Polish) E-Learning (pełny kurs) z podziałem na grupy | Term 2019/20_Z: (in Polish) E-Learning (pełny kurs) | Term 2021/22_Z: (in Polish) E-Learning (pełny kurs) z podziałem na grupy | Term 2020/21_Z: (in Polish) E-Learning (pełny kurs) z podziałem na grupy | Term 2022/23_Z: (in Polish) E-Learning (pełny kurs) z podziałem na grupy | Term 2024/25_Z: (in Polish) E-Learning (pełny kurs) z podziałem na grupy | Term 2025/26_Z: (in Polish) E-Learning (pełny kurs) z podziałem na grupy |
(in Polish) Grupa przedmiotów ogólnouczenianych
(in Polish) Punkty ECTS
Learning outcome code/codes
Type of subject
Preliminary Requirements
Course coordinators
Learning outcomes
PR_W01 Graduate knows and understands the nature and meaning of the legal sciences and their relation to other sciences, as well as how to define concepts and institutions relevant to law
PR_W02 Graduate knows and understands the sources and nature of the norms of public/private/international law, in historical and contemporary aspects with respect to the subjects included in the curriculum.
Description ECTS:
Number of ECTS points:
Participation in the lecture: 30h
Preparation for the exam: 40h
70 = approx. 3 ECTS
Assessment criteria
Learning outcomes relating to knowledge are achieved through the following teaching methods: informative lectures and problem-based lectures.
Learning outcomes in terms of knowledge are assessed through a written examination, an oral examination and continuous assessment.
Assessment criteria:
For a grade of 2, the student:
LO1 Is unable to identify the subject of legal studies, is unaware of its place within the system of sciences, and cannot distinguish between types of legal sciences.
EK2 Is unable to define basic concepts in the field of jurisprudence.
EK3 Is unable to list and characterise other normative systems, does not know the origin, development and nature of the sources of the legal system, and is unable to identify applicable legal norms.
EK4 Is unable to list the characteristics of a legal system and is unable to classify legal systems or identify contradictions and gaps within a legal system.
EK5 Is unfamiliar with the elements of the process of applying the law.
EK6 Is unfamiliar with the types and elements of legal relationships in society and is unable to identify and analyse them from the perspective of the rights and obligations of legal entities.
EK7 Is unfamiliar with legal reasoning and legal tropes, as well as the fundamental principles of law.
For a grade of 3, the student:
EK1 Identifies the subject of legal studies amongst other social sciences, lists the basic divisions of legal studies and the main types of legal disciplines.
EK2 Provides one definition of basic concepts in the field of jurisprudence.
EK3 Lists normative systems other than law, knows the origin, development and nature of the types of sources of the legal system, and lists the rules for validating legal norms.
EK4 Lists the characteristic features of a legal system, classifies legal systems into common law and civil law, public and private law, identifies several basic branches of law, and lists types of contradictions and gaps in the legal system.
EK5 Lists and characterises at least the basic rules of legal interpretation and conflict-of-law rules, and explains the process of subsumption.
EK6 Distinguishes between the basic types and lists the elements of legal relationships in society, and lists the basic types of rights.
EK7 Lists all and characterises at least two rules of legal reasoning, lists several legal topoi and identifies the basic principles of law.
For a grade of 4, the student:
EK1 Describes the general framework of the discipline of law, identifies the fundamental methodological differences between the social and natural sciences, theoretical and practical disciplines, and empirical and formal approaches, and describes the main features of the philosophy of law, legal dogmatics and historical-legal sciences.
EK2 Provides at least two definitions of basic concepts in the field of jurisprudence.
EK3 Lists the characteristics of normative systems other than law, knows the origin, development and nature of the types of sources of the legal system and the nature of individual types of normative acts, and describes the rules for the validation of legal norms.
EK4 Lists and characterises the main elements of a legal system; characterises the features of common law and civil law systems; characterises the criteria for the division into public and private law; identifies and characterises the subject matter and method of regulation of the main branches of law; lists and characterises the types of contradictions and gaps in the legal system.
EK5 Lists and describes the characteristics of all elements of the process of applying the law.
EK6 Distinguishes between types and describes in detail the elements of legal relationships; lists and describes several types of rights.
EK7 Lists and describes the structure of all rules of legal reasoning, lists and describes several legal topoi, and describes the constitutive elements of the fundamental principles of law.
For a grade of 5, the student:
EK1 describes in detail the subject of legal studies, giving examples from the Polish legal system; identifies in detail the methodological differences between the social and natural sciences, theoretical and practical disciplines, and empirical and formal approaches, indicating the relationships between these classifications; describes the characteristics of the philosophy of law, legal dogmatics and historical from a historical perspective.
EK2 Provides several definitions of basic concepts in jurisprudence and indicates the relationships between them.
EK3 Lists the characteristics of normative systems other than law, pointing out the connections between them; identifies the origin, development and nature of the types of sources of the legal system from a comparative perspective, and characterises the various types of normative acts as such and within the Polish legal system; describes and characterises in detail the rules for the validation of legal norms, highlighting divergences in doctrinal views in this regard.
EK4 Lists and describes in detail the features of the legal system, highlighting their typological nature; characterises the features of common law and civil law systems, describing contemporary trends in their development; characterises the criteria for the division into public and private law, describing the features of the process of publicising the law; and identifies and characterises the subject matter, method of regulation and the fundamental institutions of the main branches and fields of law; lists and characterises the types of contradictions and gaps in the legal system and illustrates them with practical examples.
EK5 Lists and characterises the features of all elements of the process of applying the law and illustrates them with practical examples, and identifies the fundamental doctrinal disputes in this area.
EK6 Distinguishes between types and describes in detail the elements of legal relationships, providing characteristics of legal subjects, objects and facts based on Polish legal regulations; lists and describes types of rights, highlighting the relationships between different typologies and the historical perspective on views regarding rights and obligations.
EK7 Lists and describes the structure of all rules of legal reasoning, illustrates them with practical examples and identifies the fundamental problems in their application; describes legal topoi, taking into account elements of the Roman legal tradition; describes legal principles in detail and identifies the fundamental differences in their interpretation.
Bibliography
Core literature:
Textbook to choice by student:
1. Kaleta K., Kotowski A., Fundamentals of Jurisprudence, Warsaw 2024 (3rd ed.) / Warsaw 2019 (at least 2nd ed. recommended)
2. Morawski L., Introduction to Jurisprudence, Toruń 2013
3. Chauvin T, Stawecki T, Winczorek P., Introduction to Jurisprudence. Warsaw, at least 9th ed.
Supplementary papers:
1. G. Radbruch, http://www.law.uj.edu.pl/users/kprz/docs/radbruch%20ustawa_i_prawo.pdf
Additional information
Information on level of this course, year of study and semester when the course unit is delivered, types and amount of class hours - can be found in course structure diagrams of apropriate study programmes. This course is related to the following study programmes:
Additional information (registration calendar, class conductors, localization and schedules of classes), might be available in the USOSweb system: