Cesare Maccari, Cicerone denuncia Catilina (1888)

First principles

In February 2022 a group of students at King’s College London met to discuss the establishment of a new student society for the organisation of an undergraduate conference on jurisprudence.

Neither King’s nor any other university in London, at the time, had a student society dedicated to the serious discussion of legal theory or the philosophy of law. It was decided that this rich intellectual field had no business being abandoned to only senior scholars working in arcane academic corners, that a vibrant and present jurisprudence society would keep these fascinating fundamental questions fresh in the minds of the most hard-nosed lawyers-to-be, and in so doing enrich the university’s intellectual environment.

We’re the society for

  • the legal-minded philosopher,

    The emergence and existence of ‘the law’ instigates metaphysical investigation to a degree matched by few other purely-human creations. A society’s ability to determine what the law ends up being is the most important bridge between normative ethics and real human lives.

    For the student of philosophy with skin in the game of society and civilisation, we provide opportunities to present your work and a community to solve these intellectual puzzles with.

  • the philosophically-minded lawyer

    In the deep end of the law await dilemmas demanding answers: the true nature of a property right, the many objectives of the law and how conflicts between them are to be resolved — answers that demand perpetual updating in a changing world.

    For the student of law dissatisfied with mere case knowledge, and for aspiring judges and constitutional lawyers especially, we provide a step on the path to being not just a lawyer but a jurist.

  • and the intellectually curious.

    The questions at the heart of jurisprudence — what is the law? what should the law be, and what should the law be for? — are as pressing as they are fundamental. Unsurprisingly these questions sit at the intersection of politics, history, international affairs, and many other disciplines.

    Whatever your field, we’re here for you to indulge that curiosity in and enrich your understanding of human affairs, and we’re excited to see your discipline’s perspectives and contributions to the philosophy of law.

  • Membership is free.

    Acquire your membership through the KCLSU portal; the link below takes you there. It’s a standard membership if you’re a KCL student, and an associate membership if you aren’t.

Join

Flagship events

Jurisprudence Conference

 

The Jurisprudence Conferences are an opportunity for young academics to present their work while networking and interacting with senior legal scholars in the field.

De Legibus

 

De Legibus is the official publication of the King’s College London Jurisprudence Society. Essays are peer-reviewed, and the journal is published annually.

Moots

 

We do it a little differently. Expect high-concept moot problems demanding abstract thought and first-principle argument, while honing research and public speaking skills all the same.

Speculation about the nature of law [...] has centred almost continuously upon a few principal issues. These were not gratuitously chosen or invented for the pleasure of academic discussion; they concern aspects of law which seem naturally, at all times, to give rise to misunderstanding, so that confusion and a consequent need for greater clarity about them may coexist even in the minds of thoughtful men with a firm mastery and knowledge of the law.

H. L. A. Hart, The Concept of Law