Law and medicine are based on different professional paradigms. Medicine is a
science-based profession. Since knowledge of medical science is both vast and
imperfect, most medical decisions are based on experiential information
combined with nondeterministic rational analysis (the art of medicine).
Although all physicians recognize the importance of art in medicine, most also
appreciate the scientific advances that reduce the necessity of art-based
practice. Art is overemphasized because we ignore how much is predetermined by
science and thus taken for granted in decision making.
Law is not based on a scientific paradigm. There have been efforts to bring
social science and economic analysis techniques to bear on legal problems, but
these have been of limited utility. The evolution of legal theory is a
nonrational social process that most resembles religious disputation. One
accepts a premise and then develops an intricate set of rules and theories
based on that premise. We see Marxist-based legal systems, democratic-based
legal systems, and legal systems such as Islamic law that are openly derived
from religious beliefs. Understanding law and lawyers requires an appreciation
of legal belief systems, as well as rules.
This chapter is a brief introduction to the U.S. legal system, one
characterized by a complexity stemming from the high value Americans place on
pluralism and the difficulties of maintaining an eighteenth-century system of
government in the late twentieth century. For nonlawyers, the most perplexing
aspect of the U.S. legal system is that it is not unified. There are two
primary divisions: federal law and the laws of the fifty states. These systems
are divided still further into civil, criminal, and administrative divisions.
This chapter also reviews the problem of the cost of legal services and the
uniquely American practice of contingent fees.
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