KSLU Solved Question Papers
Jurisprudence
Previous Year Question Paper with Solution
B.A. LL.B. (Five Years) · Sem 5
2013 Jun Examination
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Mumbai
B.A. LL.B. (Five Years) Sem 5 Jurisprudence 2013 Jun Question Paper with Solutions
First published on munotes.in on 21 October 2026.
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The question paper reproduced here is the paper as set by Karnataka State Law University at the 2013 Jun examination.
Contents
The questions below are the paper as Karnataka State Law University set it at the 2013 Jun examination, in the order it was set.
MarksPage
MarksPage
The Paper as Set
The questions in this volume are the questions asked at the 2013 Jun examination, reproduced as Karnataka State Law University set them, in the order it set them. Long reading passages are shortened to their first and last lines and our summary; the original paper prints them in full. Only the answers are ours. See the original question paper.
Duration 3 hours · Total marks 100 · 20 questions answered
Instructions printed on the paper
- N.B. (1) Answer all 5 Questions. (2) One essay type and one short note question or problem from each unit have to be attempted. (3) Figures to the right indicate marks. (4) Answers should be written either in English or Kannada completely.
How to use this volume
Solve the paper first, under exam conditions and against the clock. Then read the answers here and mark your own. Reading a solution before attempting the question feels productive and teaches very little, because recognising an answer is not the same as being able to write one.
Q1
Unit I
(a)Explain the meaning and scope of jurisprudence.[15]
Answer
For full marks, cover: the meaning of jurisprudence: the word (juris prudentia) and its use in different senses; the classical definitions (Ulpian, Austin, Holland, Salmond, Keeton, Pound, Stone) and what each stresses; a working definition; the scope of jurisprudence: Austin's general and particular jurisprudence, Salmond's analytical, historical and ethical branches, and the subjects it covers (the nature of law and the schools; sources of law; legal concepts; the administration of justice; liability), each shown with an Indian decision (Bhimashya v. Janabi, 2006, on custom as a source; State of Orissa v. Sudhansu Sekhar Misra, 1967, on precedent; Mohori Bibee v. Dharmodas Ghose, 1903, on capacity and obligation; Vishaka v. State of Rajasthan, 1997, on newer fields); the newer fields; why the scope keeps changing; a table; a conclusion.
The meaning of the word
Jurisprudence comes from the Latin juris prudentia: knowledge of law, or skill in law. The word is used in several senses.
- In its widest sense, any knowledge of law.
- In French usage, jurisprudence means case law, the body of judicial decisions.
- In the sense used in legal education, the study of the fundamental principles and concepts of law: the theory or philosophy of law.
It is in the third sense that jurisprudence is a subject of study.
The classical definitions
- Ulpian, the Roman jurist, called jurisprudence the knowledge of things divine and human, the science of the just and the unjust. This stresses justice, but is too wide for a modern subject.
- Austin called it the philosophy of positive law. He meant the study of law as it is, laid down by the State, apart from its goodness or badness.
- Holland called it the formal science of positive law. He meant the study of the forms of legal relations common to legal systems, rather than their content.
- Salmond called it the science of the first principles of the civil law, that is, the law of the State.
- Keeton described it as the study and systematic arrangement of the general principles of law.
- Pound treated it as the science of law in its widest sense, including its social effects.
- Julius Stone called it the lawyer's extraversion: the lawyer's examination of law in the light of other disciplines.
A working definition. Jurisprudence is the study of the general nature of law, its sources, its basic concepts and its purposes. It also studies the relation of law to society and justice.
The scope of jurisprudence
1. Austin's general and particular jurisprudence. General jurisprudence studies the principles, notions and distinctions common to mature legal systems. Particular jurisprudence studies the law of one country. Jurisprudence as an academic subject is mainly general, but it draws its examples from particular systems such as Indian law.
2. Salmond's three branches.
- Analytical jurisprudence analyses the basic concepts of existing law: right, duty, person, possession, ownership, obligation and liability.
- Historical jurisprudence studies how law and legal ideas have developed.
- Ethical jurisprudence examines what law ought to be, judging it by standards of justice.
3. The subjects it covers.
(a) The nature of law and the schools. What law is, its functions and purposes, and the answers of the natural law, analytical, historical, sociological and realist schools.
(b) The sources of law. Legislation, precedent and custom, and how each produces law.
Custom as a source is shown in Bhimashya v. Janabi, decided by the Supreme Court on 11 December 2006. A daughter sued for a share in joint family property. The defendants relied on an adoption that the general law forbade, claiming a custom of the area and the family allowed it. The custom had never been pleaded or proved. The Supreme Court held that a person relying on a custom that varies the general law must plead it and prove it by clear evidence. The theory of custom decided the case.
Precedent as a source is shown in State of Orissa v. Sudhansu Sekhar Misra, 1968 AIR 647. The High Court had relied on broad observations in two earlier Supreme Court decisions about the control of the subordinate judiciary. The Supreme Court held that a decision is an authority only for what it actually decides, and that only its ratio binds.
(c) Legal concepts. Persons, rights and duties, possession, ownership, obligations and liability.
Capacity and obligation are shown in Mohori Bibee v. Dharmodas Ghose, (1903) 30 IA 114. A minor, Dharmodas Ghose, mortgaged his property to a moneylender in 1895. The lender's attorney had been told that he was a minor. The Privy Council held a minor's agreement absolutely void. No obligation arose, the mortgage was set aside, and the lender could not recover the advance. The concepts of capacity and obligation decided the case.
(d) The administration of justice. Civil and criminal justice, the functions of courts, and the theories of punishment.
(e) Liability. Its conditions (act, mens rea, causation), its kinds (civil and criminal, strict and vicarious) and its limits.
Jurisprudence and other subjects
Jurisprudence is related to, but distinct from, several other subjects. Political science studies the State and government; jurisprudence studies the law the State makes and applies. Sociology studies society in general; jurisprudence studies law as one of society's institutions. Ethics studies right conduct; jurisprudence asks how far law should follow morality. Philosophy supplies the methods of analysis that jurisprudence uses. The overlap explains why jurisprudence is sometimes called the meeting point of law and the other social sciences.
The newer fields
Modern jurisprudence has widened its scope further.
- Law and economics studies legal rules by their economic effects.
- Feminist jurisprudence examines how law affects women and gender equality.
- Critical legal studies examines how law reflects power.
- Law and technology examines questions such as data, artificial intelligence and privacy.
- Human rights jurisprudence studies rights that belong to people as human beings.
Indian courts have drawn on such newer thinking. In Vishaka v. State of Rajasthan, AIR 1997 SC 3011, there was no law against sexual harassment at the workplace. The Supreme Court held that it violates the rights to equality and to life with dignity. It drew on an international convention on discrimination against women, and laid down binding guidelines until Parliament legislated. The case shows gender justice entering the scope of Indian jurisprudence.
Why the scope keeps changing
Jurisprudence has no fixed boundaries, because law and society change. New problems, such as the environment, technology and the status of animals, raise new questions about rights, persons and liability. Each school also draws the boundaries differently. The scope of jurisprudence therefore grows with the law it studies.
| Aspect | Content | Indian illustration |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Study of first principles of law | Ulpian, Austin, Holland, Salmond |
| General and particular | Common principles; one country's law | Indian law as examples |
| Analytical branch | Legal concepts | Capacity in Mohori Bibee |
| Aspect | Content | Indian illustration |
|---|---|---|
| Historical branch | Growth of law | Custom in Bhimashya |
| Ethical branch | What law ought to be | Gender justice in Vishaka |
| Sources | Legislation, precedent, custom | Precedent in Sudhansu Sekhar Misra |
| Newer fields | Economics, gender, technology, rights | Vishaka |
Conclusion. Jurisprudence means knowledge of law, and in legal study the science of its first principles. Ulpian, Austin, Holland, Salmond, Keeton, Pound and Stone each define it by a different aspect. Its scope covers general jurisprudence and Salmond's analytical, historical and ethical branches. It includes the nature of law, its sources, its concepts, the administration of justice and liability, and it now reaches into newer fields. Indian decisions show this scope at work: Bhimashya on custom, Sudhansu Sekhar Misra on precedent, Mohori Bibee on capacity, and Vishaka on gender justice. The scope of jurisprudence grows as law and society change.
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