This book presents a clear and precise account of the structure and content of Max Weber's sociology of law: situating its methodological and epistemological specificity in relation to other approaches to the sociology of law; as well as offering a critical evaluation of Weber's usefulness for contemporary socio-legal research. The book is divided into three parts. The first part deals with the methodological foundations of Weber's sociology of law. The second analyses the central theme of this sociology, the rationalisation of law, from the perspective of its internal logical coherence, its empirical validity, and finally its legitimacy. The third part questions the present-day relevance of the Weberian sociology of law for socio-legal research, notably with regard to legal pluralism. Max Weber, it is demonstrated, is not merely a 'founding father' of the sociology of law; rather, his methodology, concepts, and empirical analyses remain highly useful to the further development of work in this area.

Max Weber's Sociology of Law evaluates the conditions in which modern legal systems were developed. Using recent research alongside history, this book provides a skilful overview of Weber's theories, layered with analysis and critique. A leading expert on Weber, Treiber provides invaluable insights as he dissects and expands on Weber's theories.

"The main aim of Professor Kronman's study is to show that Weber's sociology of law, despite its apparently diffuse nature, is closely connected to the other branches of Weber's general social theory--in particular those dealing with authority, religion and economic action--and that it is in fact unified by a few simple philosophical ideas which have their roots in his methodological views and, more particularly, in his theory of value. The book traces the role that Weber's theory of value plays in his sociology of law and in certain other closely related aspects of his theory of social organization (for example, his analysis of what he termed 'the sociological foundations of economic action' and his theory of authority). It thus offers an interpretation of the whole Weber's sociology, an interpretation that is focused on Weber's essay on the sociology of law, the Rechtssoziologie, and which places Weber's theory of law in the context of his other writings. The student in need of an introduction to Weber's sociology of law, and the academic teacher or researcher interested in a synthesis of Weber's work centred on his consideration of law and society, will find in Professor Kronman's study a most clear and scholarly exposition" -- Backcover.

This book contains an English translation of the parts of Economy and Society in which Weber investigates the relationship between the social phenomenon "law" and the other spheres of social life, especially the economic and the political. It includes an extensive introduction and explanatory and bibliographical notes by Max Rheinstein.

Weber’s methodological writings form the bedrock of key ideas across the social sciences. His discussion of value freedom and value commitment, causality, understanding and explanation, theory building and ideal types have been of fundamental importance, and their impact remains undiminished today. These ideas influence the current research practice of sociologists, historians, economists and political scientists and are central to debates in the philosophy of social science. But, until now, Weber's extensive writings on methodology have lacked a comprehensive publication. Edited by two of the world's leading Weber scholars, Collected Methodological Writings will provide a completely new, accurate and reliable translation of Weber’s extensive output, including previously untranslated letters. Accompanying editorial commentary explains the context of, and interconnections between, all these writings, and additional useful features include a glossary of German terms and an English key, endnotes, bibliography, and person and subject indexes.

This book is the first account of the way in which Weber appropriated and modified sources in the legal tradition, in which he was trained, to construct his sociology. It leads directly to a new understanding of Weber's intent and his relations to the tradition of social and political theory. the book takes the reader into the heart of Weber's conceptualizations of action and social science, without ever giving the impression that these are rarefied and marginal issues. This is an important book for understanding the significance of one of the key sociologist's of the twentieth century.