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Fidelity To Law Meaning ((top))

Natural law risks collapsing law into morality. If every judge can declare a law "unjust" and thus void, legal certainty disappears. Fidelity becomes indistinguishable from personal conscience.

No "ex post facto" laws (punishing people for actions that were legal when done). Laws must be understandable. Non-contradiction: Rules cannot require impossible or conflicting things. Practicability: Laws must be possible to obey. Stability: fidelity to law meaning

At its most basic level, fidelity to law is the moral and professional obligation to respect and uphold the legal order. However, its specific meaning varies significantly depending on the legal theory: NYU Law School Legal Positivism (H.L.A. Hart): Natural law risks collapsing law into morality