Legal theorist Rudolf von Jhering believed that the rule of law was a primary method

of governing society. In his eyes, society consists of a collection of competing interests, some
of which could not be satisfied. He thinks that the individual's interests would clash with the
society's interests in general. Therefore, the law's function was to balance interests by
harmonizing the individual's interests to those of society so that they conformed. This was
achieved through state-organised coercion

Greatly influenced by von Jhering's work, Roscoe Pound further divided the scope of
interest into 3 classifications, namely individual interest, public interest and society interest.
Pound argued that the proper balancing of interests could only be executed if positioned on
the same level. Failure to do so causes inherent bias favoring the social interest. Conflict of
interests usually arose as it seems to be impossible to satisfy the interest from different
standpoint. Thus, the concept of social engineering enables the authority, including
lawmakers, to balance the interest based on the social needs and wants, with less friction
between interests.

Balancing conflicting interests is the process whereby the law attempts to compare the
various conflicting views of different people as well as resolve the conflicts that arise in the
fairest way for both parties. In maintaining a stable and ordered society, it is important that
individuals and groups can resolve disputes peacefully and that the various interests are, to
some extent, satisfied by the outcome. However, history shows that it is not always the case
that the various interests are recognised, let alone balanced by the courts.

Pound's argument can be seen in the case of Miller v Jackson, whereby the court had
to weigh up the claimants' private interest to peacefully enjoy their own home against the
defendant's enjoyment of a valuable recreational activity. There was, in addition, the interest
of the local community in enjoying the open space. Roscoe Pound warned against this
balancing of a private interest with a social interest. Rather than having an injunction granted,
the Millers were merely awarded damages for the inconvenience and damage to their house.
The effect of the decision was that the public interest of the cricket club and the local
community outweighed the right of the individual householder to enjoy their property. Lord
Denning said, "The public interest lies in protecting the environment by preserving our
playing fields... The private interest lies in securing the privacy of his home." The public
interest thus prevailed.

The process of making an Act of Parliament helps to balance competing interests to

some degree. The green paper prompts consultation from a wide range of stakeholders who
may be impacted by the proposed legislation. Many debates and votes are required during the
bill stage of creating legislation. There are numerous political parties that represent a diverse
range of viewpoints. Thus, many compromises and amendments will be made to the bill
before it becomes an Act. However, Within society, there are plenty of powerful interest
groups as well as classes, who affect the views of Ministers, MPs, and civil servants.
Furthermore, due to a large number of politicians being wealthy and influential individuals,
they may own large stakes in corporations, serve on boards of directors, or have other
connections. They may be coaxed more than they should be by groups advocating for the
protection of such interests. Albeit, parliament occasionally attempts to balance competing
interests by enacting legislation that benefits the weaker interest groups while disadvantages
the powerful groups such as the Consumer Protection Act 1897 and the Unfair Contract
Terms Act 1977.
 In R v Wilson, Lord Mustill, spoke of the rights of an individual to live his life as he
chooses. He said, "The state should interfere with the rights of the individual no more than is
necessary to ensure a proper balance between the special interests of the individual and the
general interests of the populace at large." Clearly, these judges had different views about
which considerations should form part of the balancing exercise they were performing.

Although important, it is evident that achieving balance when dealing with competing
interests is a heavy task for the courts. It seems highly unlikely that the law will ever be able
to come to decisions which do not appear to be advantageous to a particular party. However,
it is apparent that the courts are willing to change and adapt the rules in order to try to
achieve the appropriate balance and so it could be said that English Law, to a certain extent,
effectively balances conflicting interests.