ABSTRACT
The reflections of André-Jean Arnaud and Roger Cotterrell on contemporary sociolegal studies, in spite of their different perspectives, suggest two substantially complementary representations of the discipline which could be considered as two sides of the same coin. Arnaud, by focusing attention primarily on the functional impact of legal regulations, describes a sociology of law which is concentrated on the limits of the internal culture of legal decision-makers; Cotterrell, by focusing attention on the structural aspects of legal regulations, describes a sociology of law that is overwhelmingly challenged by the twilight of the centralized power of the state.
