Roscoe Pound proposed a theory of law as social engineering. He viewed law as a tool for balancing competing interests in society, similar to how engineers design products. Pound argued law should balance individual interests, public interests, and social interests to minimize conflict and maximize happiness. He outlined five "jural postulates" of interests that law should protect, such as protection from aggression and securing property. While Pound's theory aimed to adapt law to social needs, critics argue terms like "friction" are too mechanistic and it overlooks important personal freedoms. Overall, Pound advocated a functional approach where law evolves with society.
3. Table of content
Introduction
About Pound
Pound’s Conceptions of what law is
Law as Social Engineering
Theory of Interests
Jural Postulates
Pound’s contribution to Jurisprudence
Criticism against Pound’s Theory
Conclusion
4. Introduction:
Sociological School of jurisprudence has emerged as a result of synthesis of various juristic
thoughts. According to this school, the essential characteristic of law should be to represent
common interaction of men in social groups, whether past or present, ancient or modern.
The main subject matter of sociology is Society. Sociology is the study of society, human behavior,
and social changes. And jurisprudence is the study of law and legal aspect of things. The
Sociological school of Jurisprudence advocates that the Law and society are related to each other.
This school argues that the law is a social phenomenon because it has a major impact on society.
The basic tenets of Sociological school are:
1. Law is a social institution which can be consciously made and also found on the basis of
experience;
2. The working or the function of law is more important than the nature of law;
3. Sociological jurists lay emphasis upon social purposes which the law subserves rather upon
sanction; and
4. Sociological jurists regard law as a body of authoritative guide to decision and of the judicial and
administrative processes.
Montesque was considered to be the forerunner of the Sociological school of jurisprudence. Then
Auguste Compte is regarded as the founding father of science of sociology because he was the first
to employ the term “sociology” to connote an independent discipline.
5. Roscoe Pound (1870–1964)
Roscoe Pound was born in Lincoln Nearaska (New Jersey) in 1870.
He was an auxiliary Judge of The Supreme Court of Nebraska in 1901-1903.
Later he worked as Dean of Law School at Nebraska an Hardward University.
He was a prolific writer and his major works are;
Sprit of Common Law (1921),
An Introduction to the Philosophy of Law (1922),
Law and Morals (1926),
Contemporary Juristic Theory(1940),
Administrative Law- Its Growth, Procedure and Significance (1942),
Social Control Through Law (1942),
The Task of Law (1944),etc.
Allen remarks that “Pound is a moderate of moderates, a relativist with a strong conviction of the
provisional nature of all legal creeds and expedients”.
6. Pound’s Conceptions of what law is:
As ideas of what law is for are so largely implicit in ideas of what law is, a brief survey of ideas of the
nature of law from this standpoint will be useful. No less than twelve conceptions of what law is may be
distinguished.
First, the idea of a divinely ordained rule or set of rules for human action,
Second, there is an idea of law as a tradition of the old customs which have proved acceptable to the
gods
Third idea conceives of law as the recorded wisdom of the wise men of old who had learned the safe
course or the divinely approved course for human conduct.
Fourth, law may be conceived as a philosophically discovered system of principles which express the
nature of things, to which, therefore, man ought to conform his conduct.
Fifth, law is looked upon as a body of ascertainments and declarations of an eternal and immutable
moral code.
Sixth, there is an idea of law as a body of agreements of men in politically organized society as to their
relations with each other.
Seventh, law has been thought of as a reflection of the divine reason governing the universe
Eighth, law has been conceived as a body of commands of the sovereign authority in a politically
organized society as to how men should conduct themselves therein
Ninth idea of law takes it to be a system of precepts discovered by human experience
Tenth, men have thought of law as a system of principles, discovered philosophically and developed in
detail by juristic writing and judicial decision
Eleventh, law has been thought of as a body or system of rules imposed on men in society by the
dominant class for the time being
Twelfth, there is an idea of law as made up of the dictates of economic or social laws with respect to the
conduct of men in society
7. Law as Social Engineering
Roscoe Pound gives the theory of Social Engineering in which he compared lawyers with the
Engineers. Engineers are required to use their engineering skill to manufacture new products.
Similarly, social engineers are required to build that type of structure in the society which provides
maximum happiness and minimum friction.
According to Pound, “Law is social engineering which means a balance between the competing
interests in society,” in which applied science is used for resolving individual and social problems.
Social Engineering is the balancing the conflicting interest of Individual and the state with the help of
law. Law is a body of knowledge with the help of law the large part of Social engineering is carried
on. Law is used to solve the conflicting interest and problems in society.
He mentioned that everybody has its own individual interest and considered it supreme over all other
interest. The objective of the law is to create a balance between the interests of the people.
For Example, Article 19 of the Indian Constitution provides ‘Rights to speech and expression’ but on
the other side, State put some restriction on this right. And when the conflict arises between Individual
right and State’s restriction, then the law comes to play its part. And solve the conflict between the
interests.
8. Pound follows the theory of interest as given by Ihering and advocates that the task of law is to satisfy
the interest without friction and waste.
For this purpose interests were defined as ‘claims or wants or desires (or expectations) which men
asserts de facto, about which the law must do something if organized societies are to endure.
Pound classified the various interests which are to be protected by the law under three heads ;
individual interests, public interests and social interests.
A. Individual Interests;
B. Public Interests
Domestic Relations
•Parents
•Children
•Husband
•Wife
•Marital relations
Interest of substance
•Property
•Freedom of industry and contract
•Promised Advantage
•Freedom of association
•Continuity of employment
Interests of the state as a juristic person
•Integrity, Freedom of action and honour of
state’s personality
•Claims of politically organized society as a
corporation of property.
Personality
•Physical person
•Freedom of will
•Honour and reputation
•Privacy
•Belief and opinion
Interest of the state as guardian of social
interest
•Superintendence and administration of trusts and
charitable endowments
•Conservation and protection of natural
environment
•Protection of territorial waters and seashores
•Regulation of public employment to make use of
things which are open to public use etc.
Theory of Interests
9. C. Social Interest;
Predominance of Social Interest
Security of
Social
Institutions
• Domestic
institutions
• Religious
institutions
• Political
institutions
• Economic
institutions.
General
Morals
• Prostitution
• Drunkenness
• Gambling
Conservation
of social
resources
•Natural
resources
• Protection
and training of
dependants and
defectives
• Human
resources
General
progress
• Economic
progress
• Political
progress
General
Security
• General
Safety
•General health
• Peace and
order
• Security of
acquisitions
• Security of
transactions
Individual
Life
• Self
assertion
•Opportunity
•Conditions
of life
SOCIAL INTEREST
STATE INTEREST
INDIVIDUAL
INTEREST
10. Jural Postulates
Roscoe Pound mentioned the five Jural Postulate and mentioned that the interest mentioned in these
jural postulates should be protected and nourished.
Jural Postulate -I :An interest of protection from any intentional aggression. For Example, Assault,
Wrongful restraint, Battery, etc. –Criminal
Jural Postulate –II :An interest of securing his own created property by his own labour and hard work.
E.g. agricultural land, any music or artistic things. -Law of Patent
Jural Postulate –III: The interest in making the contract and getting of reasonable remedy or
compensation when his right violate- Contract
Jural Postulate –IV: Protection against Defamation and unreasonable injury caused by the negligent
act of another person.-Torts
Jural Postulate –V: Similarly, Protection of our interest if the injury caused by the things of another
person. It is the duty of other people to keep his/her things with his/her boundary and should look after
that thing to avoid injury to other people. In case Ryland Vs. Fletcher - Strict Liability.
He modified his jural postulates in 1942 by adding following.
(1) A person will have security as a job –holder;
(2) Society will bear the burden of supporting him when he becomes aged; and
(3) Society as a whole will bear the risk of unforeseen misfortunes such as disablements.
The jural postulates are to be applied both by the legislators and by the judges for evaluatin and
balancing the various interests and harmonising them.
11. Pound’s contribution to Jurisprudence
Roscoe Pound based his theory of social engineering on the assumption that protection of interests is
the subject-matter of law and it is the duty of jurists to make a ‘valuation of these interests’ for the
satisfaction of human wants in order to strike a balance between stability and social change.
Thus adopting a functional approach to law, Pound stressed upon the need for study of law in relation
to and as a part of the whole process of social control.
The practical importance of Pound’s concept of law is that it inspires legislators, Judges and jurists to
interpret law according to the needs and interests of the community through his ‘law in action, Pound
suggests that the legal fraternity should take of changes taking place in the society while interpreting
and making laws because law has to be considered as an instrument of social change.
12. Criticism
Frequent use of terms ‘friction, waste, social engineering to equate society with factory-like institution.
Dr. Allen – the interpretation of ‘wants and desire’ – material welfare of individual’s life – ignoring the
personal freedoms which are equally important for a happy social living.
Dr. Friedmann has expressed doubts about the value of classification of interests. Because these are
changing conceptions.
To Paton, the jurisprudence of interests is nothing but a resurrection of the natural law doctrine under a
new set of terms.
13. Conclusion:
The law plays an important role in adjusting conflict of interests. Both the social interest and individual
interest co-exist. Both of them have equal priority. Roscoe Pound has given the idea of Social
Engineering for the American Society but this concept is followed universally for dispute resolution.
India also followed the same concept in establishing a societal welfare. Both Judiciary and Legislators
play an important role in enacting the statutes which fulfill the various desires of human being.
But in reality Social Justice/Welfare is a vague concept in the law no one is ready to define, but often
use the concept.
