Meaning and structure of the legal norm

Abstract

The understanding one has of the internal logic of juridical norms depends on the understanding of the nature of norms. In turn, the understanding of the nature of norms depends on the understanding one has of the nature of law. For this reason the debate over the logical structure of the juridical norms pertains to the debate about the nature of law. This article begins with the Kelsenian theory and analyzes it in light of ideas taken from the Argentine school of the philosophy of law.

The author’s conclusion states a logical formula in which he gathers the contributions of twentieth-century authors. According to the author, the way to escape the contradictions of positivist legal-norm theory is to follow the path of phenomenology and classical realism keeping in mind historical studies of the law.