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Truth, Error, and Criminal Law

An Essay in Legal Epistemology

Larry Laudan author

Format:Paperback

Publisher:Cambridge University Press

Published:28th Apr '08

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Truth, Error, and Criminal Law cover

Examines the problems in the epistemology of law and the function of a criminal court.

Beginning with the premise that the principal function of a criminal trial is to find out the truth, Laudan examines the rules of evidence and procedure that would be appropriate if the discovery of the truth were, as higher courts routinely claim, the overriding aim of the criminal justice system.Beginning with the premise that the principal function of a criminal trial is to find out the truth about a crime, Larry Laudan examines the rules of evidence and procedure that would be appropriate if the discovery of the truth were, as higher courts routinely claim, the overriding aim of the criminal justice system. Laudan mounts a systematic critique of existing rules and procedures that are obstacles to that quest. He also examines issues of error distribution by offering the first integrated analysis of the various mechanisms - the standard of proof, the benefit of the doubt, the presumption of innocence and the burden of proof - for implementing society's view about the relative importance of the errors that can occur in a trial.

'Laudan has written an estimable book, one that deserves a wide audience. His arguments are of consistently high calibre and his conclusions are provocative.' Criminal Law and Philosophy

ISBN: 9780521730358

Dimensions: 228mm x 151mm x 16mm

Weight: 350g

256 pages