This book is concerned with a conception of law that I have chosen to call 'the view from within'. 'The view from within' is thought to capture the basic presuppositions and consequences of legal realism, as it has developed in American doctrine, and in Scandinavian legal theory from the middle of the 19th century, as found in some influential texts and positions in the Norwegian tradition, and with the Dane Alf Ross who was the major figure in this debate from the 1930s and onwards. 'The view from within' is meant to describe a certain 'closed' mode of understanding, having little room for abstraction, broader normative and legal principles, apart from those already well established, functioning and immediately rewarding. It is understood and used in this book as a certain, strong and exclusive form of an internal, practical, participant-based point of view. 'The view from within' is thought to capture the position one ends up in when all external correctives and other perspectives are relinquished from the sphere of theoretically and academically interesting subjects. It is, in simple terms, a self-centred point of view, making a public dialogue and debate about legal principles and decisions a difficult enterprise. Although no one should aspire to implement a legal or social theory without reference to practice and the way the agents of these practices understand their performance, it is nevertheless crucial that a theory of law be supplemented with a critical perspective. Law is too important to leave the criterion and concept of law solely to its practitioners. Accordingly, the main objective of this book is to demonstrate that this is in fact the position of legal realism, and to challenge the supposition that realism has drawn a correct and true picture of the legal process and legal theory. This book should be of interest to anyone interested in the historical roots and current conceptions of an extremely influential theory of law in a Scandinavian legal context. It includes, moreover, coverage and discussion of central concepts in the international legal theoretic debate, such as indeterminacy, transparency and legitimacy. Morten Kinander is Associate Professor at the University of Bergen, The Faculty of Law.
