Chapter 2 Self-test questions

. 'Lex iniusta non est lex' has which of the following meanings?

The law is not valid unless it is formally enacted.

Law has lexical priority over morality.

An unjust law is not law.

No-one is above the law.

. Cicero's conception of natural law is 'based on the idea that 'true law is right reason in agreement with Nature.' Reason is a key element because:

It is a sin for humans not to apply reason.

The principles of natural law are discoverable by reason.

Natural law does not apply without good reason.

The law of nature is the basis of all positive law.

. According to Hobbes, peace is the first law of nature because of which of the following situations?

Without peace everyone has a right to everything – including another's life.

Peace is possible only after war.

Law cannot achieve peace.

The social contract cannot be entered into unless there is peace.

. Which statement is closest to characterizing the principal difference between the positions adopted by Hobbes and Locke?

They adopt different attitudes towards the role of the courts in maintaining order.

They disagree about the role of law in society.

They have opposing views about the nature of contractual obligations.

They differ in respect of their account of life before the social contract.

. Hume's attack on natural law is founded on his argument that:

We cannot objectively know what is morally right or wrong.

Natural law is backward-looking.

There is no such thing as a social contract.

Natural law fails to protect the state against attacks.

. Which of the factors below contributed significantly to the revival of natural law in the 20^th century?

The Depression of the 1930s.

The rise of Fascism.

The international recognition of human rights after WWII.

The Bolshevik revolution.

. On what grounds does John Finnis reject Hume's conception of practical reason?

That natural law corresponds to positive law.

That Hume is a legal positivist.

That syllogistic logic is false.

That human reason can help us to determine what constitutes a worthwhile life.

. Which of the following most accurately describes Hart's response to Fuller's argument concerning the invalidity of Nazi law?

The Nazi law in question was validly enacted.

The court misunderstood the legislation.

Fuller misconstrued the purpose of the law.

The Nazi rule of recognition was unclear.

. Which of the following statements best captures the nature of Fuller's 'inner morality of law'?

A positivist view of law.

A morality of aspiration.

An Aquinian concept of natural law.

A rejection of the 'harm principle'.

. Which proposition below may be characterized as the most powerful refutation by Hart of Lord Devlin's argument?

Society has no right to preserve its moral and social cohesion through the criminal law.

Homosexual acts cause public outrage.

The courts are the best place to resolve moral questions such as those concerning homosexuality and prostitution.

The law is anachronistic.

. The United States Supreme Court's decision in Roe v Wade is highly controversial because:

It failed to consider the rights of fathers.

It overlooked the common law relating to abortion.

The majority held that the abortion law of Texas was unconstitutional because it violated a woman's right to privacy.

The court failed to consider the medical evidence.

. Which statement best describes the relationship between law and morality among non-positivist legal theorists?

There is no relationship between law and morality.

Law is always in advance of moral ideas.

The law is inextricably bound up with morals.

Morality is generally in advance of the law.

. Which statement below is the least consistent with the argument that judges in an unjust legal system ought to resign?

Judges are under a duty to act justly.

Since they also prop up the unjust system, lawyers should also resign.

If a moral judge resigns, he or she may be replaced by a less moral judge.

Judges do not make the law, hence they cannot be held responsible for applying unjust legislation.

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