ABSTRACT
Consideration of the theme of the separation of moral and legal decisions would seem to require the identification of both moral and legal decisions. One particular emphasis which lawyers tend to place upon decisions is upon the process itself, that is, upon the procedures by which decisions are reached. Much of the emphasis on the legal nature of the guides for a legal decision seems to derive from the existence of decisions for which there seems to be only one applicable guide—one principle or standard or rule. In the typical judicial expression: The application of the law to the facts is clear. Such situations seem to engender the notion that the only appropriate guides for decision are preexisting legal rules. The discussion of a legal decision has emphasized three features: the official or public or rule-defined nature of the decision-maker; the procedural requirements for decision-making; and the legal consequences of the decision.
