Document Type

Working Paper

Publication Date

4-29-2010

SSRN Discipline

Legal Scholarship Network; PRN Subject Matter eJournals; Philosophy Research Network; Law School Research Papers - Legal Studies; LSN Subject Matter eJournals; Law School Research Papers - Public Law & Legal Theory; Constitutional Law, Jurisprudence & Legal Philosophy eJournals; Humanities Network

Abstract

This article explores the relationships between legal proof and fundamental epistemic concepts such as knowledge and justification A survey of the legal literature reveals a confusing array of seemingly inconsistent proposals and presuppositions regarding these relationships This article makes two contributions First it reconciles a number of apparent inconsistencies and tensions in accounts of the epistemology of legal proof Second it argues that there is a deeper connection between knowledge and legal proof than is typically argued for or presupposed in the legal literature This connection is illustrated through a discussion of the Gettier problem in epistemology It is argued that the gap or disconnect between truth and justification that undermines knowledge in Gettier cases also potentially undermines the success of legal verdicts

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