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Legal Methods Home Assingment V

Hohfeld explained that there are eight fundamental legal relationships consisting of two pairs. The first pair includes rights/claims and duties, and privileges/liberties and no-claims. The second pair includes powers and liabilities, and immunities and disabilities. Hohfeld's analysis falls short by not resolving ambiguities such as whether a person has a duty or no duty. The Right to Information Act can be analyzed using Hohfeld's framework by examining the legal relationships it creates between citizens and the government regarding access to information.

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48 views4 pages

Legal Methods Home Assingment V

Hohfeld explained that there are eight fundamental legal relationships consisting of two pairs. The first pair includes rights/claims and duties, and privileges/liberties and no-claims. The second pair includes powers and liabilities, and immunities and disabilities. Hohfeld's analysis falls short by not resolving ambiguities such as whether a person has a duty or no duty. The Right to Information Act can be analyzed using Hohfeld's framework by examining the legal relationships it creates between citizens and the government regarding access to information.

Uploaded by

kukoo darling
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Vishal Bang

Section-A
Legal Methods & Legal Systems
Home Assignment

Q 1. What is hohfeldian analysis?


Hohfeld explained in his article, “Some Fundamental Legal Conceptions as Applied in Legal
Reasoning.” In this examination of basic legal relations (If someone has benefit of right, so
there will be some burden on other).
He found a total of eight legal relationship and identified two pairs of four within eight legal
relationship.

Jural Concept-
(1.) Right(Claim) Privilege\Liberty

Duty No-Claim

Rights (Claim) and Duty-


Rights can be defined as an interest recognized and protected by law.Each and Every right
has a corresponding duty, duty can be defined as a legal obligation towards someone. Right
and Duty are correlative terms, “when a right is invaded, a duty is violated.” They goes hand
in hand.
For example-
If V enjoys a right against N, then N is bound by the duty to respect this right.

Privilege\Liberty and No-Claim-


Privilege\Liberty can be defined as the exercise of a right without interference of law. Liberty
has a corresponding No-Claim, as if one has the liberty to do something another person have
no claim against it.
For example-
If V has the Privilege\Liberty to undertake a particular act, it means that another person has
No-Claim over the particular act.

Rights (Claim) and No-Claim-


Claim and No-Claim are opposite, as if one person has Claim, another person has No-Claim.
For example-
If V has right to write from pen, N has no claim over it.

Privilege\Liberty and Duty-


Privilege\Liberty and Duty are opposite. If one person has privilege\claim over something,
another person is bound by Duty not to take that Privilege\Claim.
For example-
If V has Privilege to write on board, he no duty no to write on the board.

Rights and Privilege\Liberty-


There is difference between Right and Privilege\Liberty, that Right does not primarily
include Privilege\Liberty but Privilege \Liberty do include Right. They either existence of
one of them or they can co-exist.
For example-
In Article 19 of Indian Constitution provides not only the right to speech and expression but
also privilege not to get interrupt while exercising the right.

(2.) Power Immunity

Liability Disability

Power and Liability-


Power constitute interests that are legally recognized. Power and Liability are co-relative, as
if one has the power to do something, other has burden of Liability to do something. It is
similar to Right (Claim) and Duty.
For example-
If V professes to transfer his property as a gift through the exercise of power, the person
entitled to the gift has a Liability to receive it.

Immunity and Disability-


Immunity grants an exception to change any legal relations. There is co-relation between
Immunity and Disability, as if one is immune in a particular right, he is not being subject to
come under the right which makes other have disability over one. It is similar to Privilege and
No-Claim.
For example-
Country A Ambassador in Country B have some immunity over Country B and this is
disability of Country B.

Power and Disability-


Power and Disability are opposite, as if one has the power to do something, another is
disabled to do something and is similar to Right (Claim) and No-Claim.

Immunity and Liability-


Immunity and Liability are opposite, as if one has Immunity over something, another has
Liability to respect the Immunity and is similar to Privilege\Liberty and Duty.

Power and Immunity-


Power and Immunity either co-exist or one of them exist. It is similar to Right (Claim) and
Privilege\Liberty.

The main purpose for creating 8 Legal Relations in two different table is that 1st Table deals
with static concepts and 2nd Table deals with dynamic concept.
Q 2. Where does the analysis fall short?
Hohfeld doesn’t resolve some ambiguities. It was not clear whether person have some duty or
no duty itself, for example if a person has duty not to write, there can be two possibilities
either the duty to write or there is no duty itself.
Since this ambiguity isn’t resolved, the theory by hohfeld is believed to be incomplete.
The fallacy of the hohfeldian scheme is presented in form of opposition of squares.

Opposition of Squares!!

All P are Q NO P is Q

Some P are Q Some P are not Q

There is no sufficient information to prove, In some P are Q


1. Whether All P are Q? or
2. Whether Some P are not Q?

To solve this ambiguity the Possibility of Triangles was ruled out-

Possibility of Triangles!!

All P are Q No P is Q

Some P are Q
And
Some P are not Q

Possibility of Triangles resolved the ambiguity.


Further The fallacy of the hohfeldian scheme can be corrected by representing this scheme in
triangle of possibilities. In the triangle of possibilities, the dependent part of the Square of
Opposition are combined to form an independent component. This has 3 perspectives of:

1. What is required by Law in form of conduct-

Conduct is mandate No conduct is mandate

Neither Conduct nor No conduct


2. From the prespective of the person whose action is to be advanced-

Duty to do Duty not to do

No requirement of a
duty at all

3. From the prespective of a person having interest-

Entitlement by conduct No Entitlement by conduct

No Entitlement at all

Q3. Right to Information act with Hohfeldian approach.


The RTI Act, 2005 was introduced with the sole objective of empowering people, containing
corruption, and bringing transparency and accountability in the working of the Government.
The Right to Information Act mandates that timely response be given to any citizen who asks
for information from a government department about facts or data concerning it, within 30
days.
It can be explained by the hohfeldian analysis.

According to 1st Pair-

1. Right- Citizen have right to demand information.


2. Duty- Government has duty to give them information.
3. Privilege\Liberty- Citizen can access information (there is no duty not to access the
information )
4. No-Claim- There can be no claim on this right.

According to 2nd Pair-

1. Power- Citizen has power to ask for information.


2. Liability- Government has liability to provide information.
3. Immunity- Government has no immunity to release information.
4. Disability- Citizen has power to ask for information, so they are not disable to not to
ask for information.

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