Johansen, Tormod “Law beyond the legal form”

Johansen, Tormod “Law beyond the legal form” in Cercel, C., Fusco, G.-G., & Tacik, P. (Eds.). (2024). Legal Form and the End of Law: Pashukanis's Legacy (1st ed.). Routledge.

This chapter reevaluates Evgeny Pashukanis’ theory of the legal form within a broader conceptual framework, critically examining the distinctions between legal form, law, and social ordering. It challenges the Marxist legal debate’s conflation of legal form with law by integrating insights from Thanos Zartaloudis on Greek nomos, Lorraine Daston’s rule categorization, and Simon Roberts’ legal anthropology. The analysis demonstrates that the dissolution of the legal form, as foreseen by Pashukanis, does not equate to the end of law or rules. Instead, it argues for a nuanced understanding that law transcends the legal form, persisting in society through ideals and norms that guide social interactions. By proposing a refined conceptual differentiation, the chapter contributes to a clearer comprehension of law’s potential beyond its current manifestations.