NATURAL LAW

What Is Natural Law?

 Natural law is a theory in the ethics and philosophy that
says that human being possess intrinsic values that govern
their reasoning and behavior.
 The concepts of natural law are ancient, stemming from
the times of Plato and Aristotle.
 This is opposed to theories that laws socially constructed
and created by people.
 Examples of natural laws exist in several fields from
philosophy to economics.
 Natural Law vs. Positive Law

 The theory of natural law believes that our

civil laws should be based on morality,
ethics, and what is inherently correct. This is
in contrast to what is called “positive law’’ or
“man-made law’’, which is defined by statue
and common law and may or may not reflect
the natural law.
 Examples of Positive Law

 Examples of natural law include rules such as

the speed that individuals are allowed to
drive on the highway and the age that
individuals can legally purchase alcohol.
Ideally, when drafting positive laws,
governing bodies would base them on their
sense of natural law.
 Examples of Natural Law

 Examples of natural law abound,

but philosophers and theologians
throughout history have differed
in their interpretations of this
doctrine.
 Examples of Natural Law in Philosophy and
Religion
 Aristotle (384-322 BCE)
 Is considered by many to be the father of natural law – argued that what
is “just by nature” is not always the same as what is “just by law”.
 St. Thomas Aquinas (1224/25-1274 CE)
 Natural law and religion were inextricably connected.
 He believed that natural law “participates” in the divine “eternal”.
 The Author C.C Lewis (1898-19630 )
 He explained it this way: “ According to the religious view, [what is]
behind the universe is more like a mind, that is to say, a conscious, that
prefers one thing to another.
 Examples of Natural Law In Economics
 Early economists of the medieval period, including the
aforementioned Aquinas as well as the Scholastic monks of the
school of Salamanca, heavily emphasized natural law as an aspect
of economics in their theories of just price of an economic good.
 John Lock based his theories related to economics on a version of
natural right to claim unowned resources and land as private
property, thereby transforming them into economic goods by mixing
them with their labor.
 Adam Smith (1723-1790)
 Is renowned as the Father of Modern economics. In Smith’s first
major treatise, The Theory of Moral Sentiments, he described a
“system of natural liberty” as being the matrix of true wealth.
 Smith’s Three Natural Laws

I. The Law of Self Interest : People work for their

own good.
II.The Law of Competition: Competition forces
people to make a better product.
III.The Law of Supply and Demand: Enough
goods would be produced at the lowest possible
price to meet demand in a market economy.
 What is the Theory of Natural
Law
 Natural law is the theory of ethics
that says that human beings possess
intrinsic values that govern our
reasoning and behavior.
 What are Examples of Natural Law in
Systems of Government?

 In the U.S constitutions, the right of citizens

to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness is
a motto based on natural law. In the penal
code, certain crimes are almost universally
accepted as punishable, including murder and
rape.
 How does Natural Law affects Business?

 Natural Law affects businesses from an

ethics standpoint, whereby they a firm should
not defraud it’s customers or other
stakeholders. For instance, the marketing of
drugs should be made with full disclosure of
potential harms and not be sold as “snake
oil”.
 What are some flaws in Natural Law
Theory?

 Since Natural Law assumes universalizing

rules, it does not account for the fact that
different people or different cultures may
view the world differently what it means for
something to be fair or just, the results will
differ.
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