Per Stjernquist
Encyclopedia
Per Sternquist was a Swedish
law professor who was almost single-handedly responsible for establishing the teaching of the new field of sociology of law
in Sweden from the 1960s.
Stjernquist had begun his career as a local judge and court official. He became a doctoral student of the celebrated 'realist' jurist Karl Olivecrona
in the 1940s but, as a left-leaning liberal, soon fell out with his supervisor over Olivecrona's authoritarian politics and vocal support in the war years for Nazi Germany
's hegemony in Europe
.
He was professor of civil law
at Lund University
from 1950 to 1972 and rector
of the university through the turbulent years of the late 1960s. His publications set the dominant orientation of Swedish
sociology of law, and he supervised generations of research students in the subject. His first seminar in sociology of law (established against determined opposition from the Law Faculty) was taught in 1963. The subject, then regarded by many jurists as subversive or unnecessary, was offered initially for administrative science students but soon attracted students from many disciplines. The Chair of Sociology of Law at Lund was created specially for him in 1972, as an initiative of the Swedish government.
Stjernquist's work included important empirical studies of the legal mechanisms and policies of regulation of Swedish private forestry, which attempted to show the range of strategies by which law could influence social behaviour, as well as the constraints on law as a social mechanism.
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
law professor who was almost single-handedly responsible for establishing the teaching of the new field of sociology of law
Sociology of law
The sociology of law is often described as a sub-discipline of sociology or an interdisciplinary approach within legal studies...
in Sweden from the 1960s.
Stjernquist had begun his career as a local judge and court official. He became a doctoral student of the celebrated 'realist' jurist Karl Olivecrona
Karl Olivecrona
Karl Olivecrona was a Swedish lawyer and legal philosopher: He studied law at Uppsala from 1915 to 1920 and was a pupil of Axel Hägerström, the spiritual father of Scandinavian legal realism. One of the internationally best-known Swedish legal theorists, Olivecrona was a professor of procedural...
in the 1940s but, as a left-leaning liberal, soon fell out with his supervisor over Olivecrona's authoritarian politics and vocal support in the war years for Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
's hegemony in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
.
He was professor of civil law
Civil law (area)
Civil law in continental law is a branch of law which is the general part of private law.The basis for civil law lies in a civil code. Before enacting of codes, civil law could not be distinguished from private law...
at Lund University
Lund University
Lund University , located in the city of Lund in the province of Scania, Sweden, is one of northern Europe's most prestigious universities and one of Scandinavia's largest institutions for education and research, frequently ranked among the world's top 100 universities...
from 1950 to 1972 and rector
Rector
The word rector has a number of different meanings; it is widely used to refer to an academic, religious or political administrator...
of the university through the turbulent years of the late 1960s. His publications set the dominant orientation of Swedish
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
sociology of law, and he supervised generations of research students in the subject. His first seminar in sociology of law (established against determined opposition from the Law Faculty) was taught in 1963. The subject, then regarded by many jurists as subversive or unnecessary, was offered initially for administrative science students but soon attracted students from many disciplines. The Chair of Sociology of Law at Lund was created specially for him in 1972, as an initiative of the Swedish government.
Stjernquist's work included important empirical studies of the legal mechanisms and policies of regulation of Swedish private forestry, which attempted to show the range of strategies by which law could influence social behaviour, as well as the constraints on law as a social mechanism.