Pitamic’s contribution to the understanding of law ranges between
the meth- odological purity of legal science
and an integral conception of law. The methodological purity demands that one avoids
mixing different thinking
methods, at the same time, however, law as a pure normative structure
must also have adequate material prerequisites. The essential elements of an
integral conception of law are
order and humaneness. The task of law is that, by regulating external human behaviour, it "ensures that people in a community live as human persons.” Pitamic’s challenge opens very broad creative possibilities. For the author of this paper, it is of special importance that Pitamic’s theory also fecundates the modern
theory of argumentation in law. The
methodological pluralism makes it possible to accept the theory of graduated
legal order and to treat it contentually. It is of decisive
importance to differentiate between the legal
text and the understanding thereof. Acting in a responsible manner, one cannot avoid the arguments of understanding. The work of a lawyer is creative, yet it also burdens him with
responsibility that has to be borne.
The judge or any other
decision-maker must be aware that, as Pitamic would say, Hominum causa omne ius constitutum. If we deviate from this route, we betray law and nature.
If we remain on this course, we can contribute – sometimes more
and sometimes less – to the rule of law. It would be naive to think that we shall
reach the Golden Age the poet Ovid was talking about, but it is realistic to
think that we shall be able to live reasonably
securely.
Keywords:
understanding of law, pure theory of law, methodological purity, methodological pluralism, order, humaneness, Leonid Pitamic, reaction
to the challenge of Leonid Pitamic.