RICHARD POSNER's 'PRAGMATIC JURISPRUDENCE' rejects:

Question

Accepted Answer

A.

1. RICHARD POSNER advanced a sophisticated PRAGMATIC JURISPRUDENCE.
2. He rejected both extremes:
3. (i) LEGAL FORMALISM — the view that judges only mechanically apply rules; ignores judicial discretion in hard cases;
4. (ii) IDEOLOGICAL JUDGING — view that judges decide based on political preferences alone.
5. PRAGMATIC APPROACH:
6. (i) Focus on CONSEQUENCES of decisions;
7. (ii) Practical effects on legal system and society;
8. (iii) Decide cases pragmatically with reference to outcomes;
9. (iv) Recognise judicial role as 'gap-fillers' and 'occasional legislators' in difficult cases.
10. Posner drew on John Dewey's American pragmatism.
11. Hence option B is correct.
_Source: Legal Research Methodology + Jurisprudence — Richard Posner, 'How Judges Think' (2008); 'Law, Pragmatism and Democracy' (2003)_