“活法”是什么

美国现实主义法学针对传统法学独尊“纸面上的法律”提出了“活法”概念。卢埃林认为:法律是官员关于纠纷的行为;弗兰克认为:法律并不是“书本上的法律”,而是“行动中的法律”;“活法”概念向人们揭示了:影响人们行为、决定司法审判的不仅只有国家立法机关创制的成文法和代表国家行使审判权的法官所创之法(判例法),社会现实的其他事物,如政治、经济、道德、习俗、甚至人们的感觉情绪都对法律生活发生不同程度的影响。但“活法”将“法律”概念泛化,与其他社会规范混同;法律的“意义”并非必须期待“活法”来填充,现行法(实体法)已具有“先决强制力”;官员行动并不等于法律规则本身,而只是适用法律的行为。

Some Inquiries into the Concept of Living Law

The concept of "Living law" reveals that it is not only the formal law,which is formulated by the legal institutions of a country and the case law,which is created by the judges who are the representatives of a country to exercise the laws,but also some other things,such as politics,ethics,custom,even the feeling and sensation can influence the legal activities,will affect people's activities and decide the trial judgment.Nevertheless,the concept of living law generalizes the concept of law and confuses it with other social criteria.The significance of law does not necessarily need living law to fill and the substantive law has the prerequisite of enforceability.The actions of officials are not equal to the legal rules but activities of carrying out laws.