ABSTRACT
The writing of Professor Lon Fuller (1964) – who stands in contrast to Raz – may be invoked here in order to develop further this idea. Fuller’s focus is on the ‘morality of law’. For Fuller, the requirements of law, which are substantially the same as those of Raz, lay down the basic minimum requirements, not just of a system in accordance with the rule of law, but for the very existence of a system to which he would accord the label ‘legal’. These basic prerequisites form the ‘morality of duty’ or ‘inner morality of law’. These principles provide the basic foundations of a legal system. To draw an analogy with building construction, failure to lay sound foundations will result in the edifice resting on an insecure and fragile base. In addition to a secure foundation, for a legal system to be worthy of recognition – and to impose the duty of obedience upon its members – it must serve the needs of the people. Law does not exist in a vacuum separate from the society it regulates. Recognition of this vital characteristic of law demands that the legal system be directed towards altruistic, beneficial ends. This is the ‘morality of aspiration’ towards which each valid legal system must strive. Thus, a government must seek to provide the environment in which each citizen may realise to his or her maximum potential the rational plan of life to which he or she aspires. Society must be free and directed to the good of each of its members. Any government which fails in a material degree to meet these requirements may fail to deserve the label of a ‘legal system’.
