INTRODUCTION
The laws are a set of rules or regulations which govern the working of a country. The various types of laws, like Civil Law, Common Law, Corporate Law, and Religious Law, together structure the legal framework of India. These laws not only govern the state but are majorly created for effective use by the individuals of the society. However, the existence of social interests broadens the perspective, considering the needs of the entire community. Therefore, the law is always interlinked with social interests.
INITIATION OF LAW AND SOCIAL INTERESTS: DEAN ROSCOE POUND
“Roscoe Pound” was an “American Jurist and Legal Scholar” who made prominent contributions to the field of “Jurisprudence.” He is known for his “Theory of Sociological Jurisprudence,” which emphasizes the reason and importance of understanding law in a social context and alongside society.
“Pound was more particularly concerned about the link between law and society and how this relationship leads to law reforms than about the examination and interpretation of legal language contained in legislations and decisions.”[1]In other words, he believed that law was a tool to achieve social order and justice in the society and not merely a set of rules or regulations.
Pound formulated the new concept of social engineering “as the ideal of law.”[2]According to the theory, the task of social ordering has certain prerequisites like a mindset that is prepared to put in sincere efforts in order to avoid any collision due to “conflict of interests” in society. “According to Pound, the main aim of a legal system is the satisfaction of demands, desires, and claims.” These are collectively known as “interests.” These are interests that people actually have. He does not believe that there is “any standard for determining whether one interest is more valuable than another.”[3] All the various levels of the legal system and their initiative should be directed to ensuring that the interest of the individuals is secured by “determining the boundaries which contain minimum friction” and greater satisfaction to the society. Thus, the main aim of the “Social Engineering Theory” is the “satisfaction of the demands to have the widest possible distribution.”[4]
TECHNIQUES OF THE SOCIAL ENGINEERING THEORY
“The techniques of the “Social Engineering Theory” include: a) the study of the actual social effects of legal institutions, b) the study of means of making the legal rules effective, c) the importance of reasonable and just solutions of individual cases, d) a sociological history and e) study of judicial method.”[5]
The theory refers to lawyers as engineers who resolve disputes of individuals and work for harmony and reform in society. These interests of the society have been examined from various perspectives: a) “Individual interests,” b) “Public interests,” and c) “Social interests.” “Individual interests” involve personality, domestic relations, and the substance of interest of each individual. “Public interests” include the protection that interests a jurist person and the interest as a guardian to promote social development as well as the social environment. “Social interests” involve general safety, security, morality, conservation of social resources, and the different fundamental rights and policies which lead to progress in all fields. Pound had accepted that his explanation of interests needed to be more foolproof and that there was a possibility of overlapping. At the same time, “the merit of each interest of his theory did not imply a neglect of the others.”[6]
BALANCING SOCIAL INTERESTS: JURAL POSTULATES
To evaluate and balance social interests, Pound provided the “Jural Postulates of the Civilized Society in 1919,”[7] containing five such Postulates that expressed certain rights that man could take for granted by individuals. It is stated that the man must have authority over his own work so as to maintain economic order. He must not be a victim of any intentional aggression of others, and they would take due care and act in good faith. The application of the Postulates was to be fulfilled by the judges and legislatures in determining and settling the interests in line.[8]
In 1942, Pound added three more Postulates. These include: a) should have a security backing while being a job-holder, b) society would bear the burden of supporting them once he has retired, and c) society would bear the risk of any unanticipated situations such as a disability.”[9]
APPLICATION OF THE SOCIAL ENGINEERING THEORY IN TODAY’S SOCIETY
This theory can be applied to today’s society as well. The one-fifty-year-old Sedition Law under “Section 124A” of the “Indian Penal Code, 1860” is one of the finest examples which displays the execution of the theory of the law and social interests. This Law punishes offenses against the state. It has been severely criticized since it hindered the “Freedom of Speech” of the citizens of India. Due to the historical order of “reconsideration and re-examination” by the Government[10], the law has been suspended since May 2022. As a result, the Court endeavoured to strike a balance between the interests of the State and law, thereby emphasizing the Social Engineering Theory by Roscoe Pound. The Sedition Law brought the social interests into a conflict. The law curbed “any speech that resulted in hatred and disdain”[11] causing public disorder in the society. This comes under the “Individual interests” mentioned in the theory under the head “Personality.” The second error comes under the “Public interests,” which included the State’s interest as a “Jurist person” and, lastly, the “Social interests” of maintaining peace, protection and order in the society.[12]
Yet, Pound’s theory has been criticized due to several reasons. It is said that the division of interests created by Pound was like “catalogue” to which amendments had to be made continuously. The priority given to several interests is different for different sets of individuals. It varies accordingly. Thus, the order given was neutral and could not remain stagnant for all. The concept of “Engineering” was attacked with the argument that an engineering law would only suggest new experiments and different means of carrying them out. In contrast, in law, this would lead to innumerable “social legislations” in the modern state. The laws in the modern world must be dynamic, but a part of it must be static if the law aims to maintain order in the society. The question of who is an individual and what is his social interest itself has different “political conceptions.”
“Sir C. K. Allen,” an honoured professor at the “University of Oxford, had pointed out that if “wants and desires” are thought about as an integral subject, they should be given the widest possible definition.”[13] At the same time, Pound had restricted the same to a definite number.
The theory demands solutions for any disputes faced by the individuals of the society. This causes “a shift in legal order from legislation to Judiciary.” Judges can give “ad hoc judgements” on certain issues but are not permitted to frame an entire plan for reform. Pound said, “Law must be stable and yet not stand still.”[14]His solution to this issue was “justice without law,” which would lead to a state of lawlessness.[15]
CONCLUSION
After all, who must benefit from these laws? The society. Therefore, the law must steer the intricate task of ensuring that all individuals enjoy their rights and, at the same time, serve the greater good. Though the “Social Engineering” theory has been criticized, it definitely has strong conclusions. Humans have created laws and theories and are subject to their limitations, but the theory given by Pound explains how individual rights are directly proportional to collective welfare. This promotes legal responsiveness and adds flexibility to the laws.
As a result, the dynamic relationship between law and social interests is a driving force behind the evolution of the society.
Author(s) Name: Simran Sethia (Symbiosis Law School, Noida)
Reference(s):
[1] Ian Mcleod, Legal Theory (6th edn, Palgrave Macmillan 2012)
[2] SN Dhyani, Fundamentals of Jurisprudence (Central Law Agency 2011)
[3] Michael Martin, ‘Roscoe Pound’s Philosophy of Law’ (1965) Vol. 51, JSTOR
<https://www.jstor.org/stable/i23676171> accessed date 18th December 2023
[4] SN Dhyani, Fundamentals of Jurisprudence (Central Law Agency 2011)
[5] R Dias, Jurisprudence Dias (4th edn, LexisNexis 2013)
[6] SN Dhyani, Fundamentals of Jurisprudence (Central Law Agency 2011)
[7] Edward McLean, ‘Roscoe Pound’s Theory of Interests and The Furtherance Western Civilization’ (1976) Vol. 41, JSTOR
<https://www.jstor.org/stable/i40125732> accessed on 17th December 2023
[8] VD Mahajan, Jurisprudence & Legal Theory (6th edn, Eastern Book Company 2022)
[9]ibid
[10]SG Vombatkere v Union of India (2022) 7 SCC 433
[11] Indian Penal Code 1860, s 126A
[12] Bhumika Indulia, ‘Balancing the Interests of State with the Interests of Individuals: Law of Sedition vis-à-vis Roscoe Pound’s Theory of Social Engineering’ (SCC ONLINE BLOG, 11 July 2022)
<https://www.scconline.com/blog/post/2022/07/11/balancing-the-interests-of-state-with-the-interests-of-individuals-law-of-sedition-vis-a-vis-roscoe-pounds-theory-of-social-engineering/> accessed 19th December 2023
[13] CK Allen, Law in Making (7th Edition, Oxford Paperbacks 1964)
[14] VD Mahajan, Jurisprudence & Legal Theory (6th edn, Eastern Book Company 2022)
[15]ibid
