16 Discuss the Salient features of the Sociological School

of Jurisprudence? OR Salient features of the Sociological

School of Jurisprudence?
Introduction:- The sociological school is one of he
important branches of law. It comes after the Analytical
school and Historical school. Its seeds were found in the
historical school. Duguit, Roscopound and Camta are the
supporters of this school. This school is related with
society. According to this school law is numerator of
society. Law and society both are the two sides of the
same coin, one cannot exist without the other. If there is
law there should be society and if there is society there
should be law. Law is very necessary for regulating the
society. Many writers like Duguit, Roscopound and
Inhering gave these view in the sociological school.
The theory of Duguit under sociological school is a
social solidarity. Scocial solidarity means the greatness of
society. Duguit said that there are mainly two types of
needs of the society:-
1.Common Needs 2. Adverse Needs.
1. Common Needs :- Which are fulfilled by mutual
assistance.
2. Adverse Needs.:- Which are fulfilled by the exchange
of services. No one can live without the help of other.
Even a state cannot exist without the help of other state.
One cannot produce all things required for him. So he has
to depend upon others. The dependency is called social
solidarity. For this purpose the division of labour is
necessary. Division of labour will fulfill all requirement for
the society. This philosophy or views is called social
solidarity.
 ESSENTIAL ELEMENTS OF DUGUIT
THEORY OF LAW
1.Mutual Inter dependence : In society all persons are
depending upon each other. Individual cannot fulfill his
ambitions alone.
2. No difference between state & society: State and
society are a group of persons. Main purpose of the
society is to save the people. This responsibility is also lies
upon the state. So state does not have a special status or
above status from people. State should make law for the
welfare of the people.
3. Sovereign and will of people: Sovereign is a politically
superior person. Duguit says that sovereign is not superior
to people. The sovereign of a state lives in people or in the
will of people.
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN PUBLIC &
PRIVATE LAW
Duguit says that there is no difference between public law
and private law because the aim of both the law is to
develop the social solidarity. Pubic law and private law are
meant for people. Public right and private right or people
have only duties and not any right.
There is no difference between public right and private
right. According to Duguit there is only one right that is to
serve the people. It means person have only duties not
rights.
CRITICISM OF DUGUIT’S THEORY
1.The theory of social solidarity is vague:- This theory is
not clear for a common person. One cannot gain anything
from this theory so this is vague theory.
2.Who will decide social solidarity :- Duguit has not given
the authority that who will explain the solidarity because
Duguit did not recognize sovereignty. We can imagine
that Judge will explain the standard of social solidarity. But
there are no guidelines for the Judgess
3.Public law and Private law are not same :- There must
be an authority which passes the law. In Duguit theory
there is no place for such authority.
4. Public right and Private right are also not same :- The
right of society is public right and the right of common
people is private right.
5. Custom ignored:- Custom is the base of any law but
Duguit ignore these customs. In this way the theory of
Duguit is not suitably in modern times.
CONCLUSION
No doubt Duguit was a sociologist because he gave a lot
of development to society. The social solidarity itself
contains the welfare of the people. Duguit said that law
should be according to the social solidarity. Here he
discards natural principal but the theory of the social
solidarity itself is based upon natural law, which demands
that the people should served properly according to their
needs. In this way Duguit put out the natural law principal
from the door and accepted through the window.
However the contribution of Duguit is accepted by
many writers and some of them also adopted this theory.