Description

In a number of recent articles I have attempted to refine our understanding of the concept of liberty (permission). In this paper I address what happens when we examine the implications of a fuller understanding of liberty, including its relational aspects, in a social context. In this broader context individual liberty is commonly expected to satisfy the twin objectives of individual self-realization and social cohesion. I suggest that recognition of a plurality of liberties among a number of individuals produces a conundrum: the evident advantages of a single individual possessing a liberty cannot be transferred to a greater number of beneficiaries. Having posed this conundrum, the question explored here is whether a principle of individual liberty can retain its foundational standing in the construction of (Western) society.

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About The Speaker

Andrew Halpin has been a Professor in the Law Faculty at the National University of Singapore since 2012. His research interests fall within legal theory, broadly conceived. They have included exploring perspectives on law from other disciplines, and confronting novel legal phenomena arising in a global context. A volume co-edited with Nicole Roughan, In Pursuit of Pluralist Jurisprudence, was published by CUP in 2017. His work on rights and the Hohfeldian framework dates back to his doctoral research, which formed the basis for Rights and Law – Analysis and Theory (Hart, 1997), and has been published in a number of journals and edited collections. A recent series of articles dealing with the logic of correlativity and related issues forms the backdrop to the present paper.