Real Rights

Real Rights offers a new theory of the grounds of legal and moral rights, thereby providing a platform from which to determine whether alleged rights are "real" or not. In particular, Wellman conceives of a legal or moral right as a complex of liberties, claims, powers, and immunities, and distinguishes the kinds of laws and moral reasons that can ground each of these. The book argues that only agents can be right-holders, that children and the mentally-limited can have only limited rights, while fetuses, the dead, and groups can have none. It also discusses the duties implied by any real right, as well as the kinds of considerations (including conflicting rights) that could override implied duties. This original and systematic discussion of the grounds of rights should interest a wide range of scholars and practitioners in philosophy, law, and political science. MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict Acknowledgments 6 Contents 8 Introduction 12 1. Grounds of Institutional Rights 21 Defining Grounds 21 Grounds of Hohfeldian Positions 22 Grounds of Legal Rights 33 Grounds of Other Institutional Rights 38 2. Grounds of Moral Positions 47 Defining Morals 48 Moral Reasons 52 Law and Morals 57 Moral Duties 58 Moral Liberties 68 Moral Powers 74 Moral Immunities 86 3. Grounds of Moral Rights 88 The Right Not to Be Struck 88 The Right of Self-Defense 94 The Right to Aid for a Dependent Child 97 The Right to Dress as One Wishes 101 Derivative Rights 106 Presupposed Reasons 110 4. Possible Right-Holders 114 Normal Adults 116 Children 122 The Mentally Limited 135 Legal Right-Holders 141 5. Alleged Right-Holders 146 Fetuses 146 The Dead 155 Corporations 166 Teams 174 Collections 178 Classes 179 Peoples 182 6. Implied Duties 187 Interpreting Rights 188 Correlative Duties 192 Associated Duties 195 New Duties 199 Supplementary Duties 204 7. Conflicts of Rights 209 Legal Conflicts 211 Moral Conflicts 225 Mixed Conflicts 243 8. Real Rights and Duties 251 Unreal Rights 251 Real Conflicts 253 Overriding Rights 260 Real Duties 270 Notes 273 References 281 Index 284 A 284 B 284 C 284 D 285 E 285 F 285 G 285 H 285 I 286 J 286 K 286 L 286 M 286 N 287 O 287 P 287 R 287 S 288 T 288 U 288 V 288 W 288 Real Rights offers a new theory of the grounds of legal and moral rights, providing a platform from which to determine whether alleged rights are "real" or not. Defining a legal or moral right as a complex of liberties, claims, powers, and immunities, Wellman distinguishes the kinds of laws and moral reasons that can ground each of these. The book argues that it is agency which qualifies individuals to possess rights. Children acquire rights gradually, and the mentally limited can have only limited rights; fetuses and the dead can have none, nor can groups. Wellman goes on to discuss the duties implied by any real right, offering a detailed review of conflicts between rights, and analyzing the ways in which incompatible rights or other considerations could override implied duties. An original and systematic discussion of the grounds of rights, this book has concrete judicial implications, and should interest a wide range of scholars and practitioners in philosophy, law, and political science. Real Rights provides a new theory of the grounds of legal and moral rights. Wellman argues that only agents can be right-holders, that children and the mentally limited can have only limited rights, and that foetuses, the dead, and groups can have none. Real Rights also describes how rights imply duties, and how rights conflicts can be resolved and what considerations override rights.