Topic: laws, rules, regulations and conscience as sources of ethical guidance;
6. Upholding the letter of law is more important than upholding the spirit of law. State your opinion regarding this statement with examples. (150 words)
Key Demand of the question:
To debate up on the relative importance of Letter of law and the spirit of law.
Why the question:
The question is part of the static syllabus of General studies paper – 4.
Introduction:
Start by mentioning as to how The Letter Versus the Spirit of The Law Model as a medium for understanding the relationship between the law, social norms, and fairness in society.
Body:
Start by describing the letter of law – The letter of the law can be defined as any formal code, rule, regulation, or principle that must be followed according to governmental mandates or policies.
Then describe spirit of law – spirit of the law, which we define as a social and moral consensus of the interpretation of the letter of the law. Because social norms generally reflect social and moral consensus, we turn to the literature on social norms and the law to further expand on the spirit of the law.
With examples describe relative importance of both and conflict between them.
Conclusion:
Sum off with a balanced way of interpretation of law and need to judge on case by case basis as to what is important.
