In search of a science of law

One of the general aims of any science is to concern itself with the distinction between what is real and actual as opposed to what is but merely apparent. In this sense it seems gratuitous to announce that one intends to be realistic about scientific endeavour: to adopt a scientific approach is simply to refuse to be the dupe of mere appearance. The zealous pursuit of the true, the real and the actual, or of the essential as opposed to the epiphenomenal can, however, be subverted and diverted in many ways. In this article we examine various aspects of this problem in relation to legal science, and more specifically to the theories and methodologies associated with Legal Realism.