Legal Rights and Duties In Jurisprudence: State Recognition, Protection & Exceptions

Understanding rights and duties is central to the study of jurisprudence. Legal rights are not merely abstract ideas but legally enforceable claims, protected and recognized by the State. Duties are the counterpart of rights, and together they form the foundation of the legal system. This article explores the nature, theories, recognition, protection, and exceptions concerning legal rights and duties.

🔹 Meaning of Legal Right

Salmond defines a legal right as:

“An interest recognized and protected by the law, the violation of which would be a legal wrong, and the respect of which is a legal duty.”

A legal right thus includes:
• An interest
• Recognition by law
• Protection by law
• A duty imposed on others

 Essence of a Right:

If X owes ₹100 to Y, and the law enforces this debt, Y has a legal right. The right isn’t in the money but in the legal power to demand payment. X, in turn, has a legal duty to pay.

🔹 Theories of Legal Rights

1. Will Theory
• Supported by: Austin, Holland, Kant, Hegel
• View: Rights arise from an individual’s will or autonomy.
• Criticism: Fails to include entities like infants or mentally ill, who can’t express will yet have rights.

2. Interest Theory
• Propounded by: Ihering, Salmond
• View: Law protects socially valuable interests.
• Advantage: Covers a wider range of right-holders including corporations, infants, etc.

🔹 State Recognition of Rights

A claim or interest becomes a legal right only when recognized by the State. Without legal recognition, it remains a moral or social expectation.

Gray: “Only those interests which the law recognizes become rights.”

Even moral rights or natural rights become legal only after formal recognition.

🔹 State Protection of Rights (Controversial)

Recognition is not enough — a right must also be protected and enforced by the legal system.
• Salmond & Ihering: A right requires enforceability through courts.
• Austin: Law must impose a duty through the sovereign.
• Gray: Recognition without protection is incomplete.

For example, if a person has a right to receive rent, the court must provide a remedy (e.g., recovery suit) when that right is violated.

🔹 Exceptions: No Absolute Protection

Despite state recognition, not all rights are perfectly protected or enforceable. These are known as imperfect rights or rights without remedy.

1. Imperfect Rights

Recognized by law but not enforceable due to procedural defects.

Examples:
• Time-barred debts under Limitation Act
• Claims against foreign sovereigns
• Rights with insufficient legal evidence

This is an exception to the famous maxim:

Ubi jus ibi remedium – “Where there is a right, there is a remedy”

2. Rights with Remedies but No Enforcement

Some rights are not enforced by courts but are acknowledged morally or politically, e.g. tortious claims or certain constitutional directives.

Example: Damages for defamation or false imprisonment may be granted, but the act itself may not be immediately stopped.

3. No Enforcement Mechanism: International Law

Some international human rights are recognized but lack enforcement.

Examples:
• Rights under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR)
• International Court of Justice decisions — only binding with state consent

🔹 Types of Legal Rights

Based on Object:
1. Over Material Things – e.g., car, land, house
2. Over Person – e.g., protection from assault
3. Over Reputation – e.g., protection from defamation
4. Intangible Property – e.g., copyrights, patents
5. Domestic Relations – e.g., marital or parental rights

Perfect vs. Imperfect Rights:
• Perfect Right – Enforceable by courts
• Imperfect Right – Recognized but not enforceable

🔹 Hohfeld’s Analysis of Legal Rights

Term                                       Correlative                                    Opposite
Right                                            Duty                                                No-Right
Liberty                                       No-Duty                                             Duty
Power                                          Liability                                        Disability
Immunity                                   Disability                                        Liability

Examples:
• Right: Landlord has right → Tenant has duty to pay rent
• Liberty: Person may walk in public park → No one has right to stop
• Power: Judge can sentence → Accused has liability
• Immunity: President is immune from criminal prosecution (Art. 361)

🔹 Special Classifications

Basis                                                                                    Types
Subject of Right                                                 Proprietary vs. Personal. Enforcement                                                      Ordinary vs. Fundamental
Source of Recognition               Legal vs. Equitable (under English Law)
Scope                                       Right in Rem (against world) vs. Personam                                                                             (specific person)
Ownership                             Right in re propria (own property) vs. re                                                                       aliena (others’ property)
Legal Status                       Vested (certain) vs. Contingent (future event)
Legal Position                    Primary (original) vs. Secondary                                                                             (compensation)

🔹 Legal Duty

A duty is a legal obligation to do or abstain from doing something. Every right has a corresponding duty.

Salmond:

“A duty is an obligatory act; not doing it is a legal wrong.”

Types of Duties:

Nature/Context                                          Type
By Law                                              Legal, Moral, Sovereign, Religious
By Relation                                       Family, Contractual, Public Duties
By Outcome                                      Positive (do something) vs. Negative                                                                      (refrain from something)
By Enforcement                               Absolute (by state) vs. Relative (by                                                                                       other parties)

🔹 Enforcement & Sanction

A key test of a legal right or duty is whether a sanction exists for its violation.

 Pollock:

“Sanction is the consequence of disobedience.”

If no consequence or enforcement mechanism exists, the duty/right may remain theoretical.

🔹 Modern Perspective

• Modern legal systems recognize rights against the state, especially through constitutional rights and judicial review.
• Courts have held that Directive Principles, though unenforceable, create legal duties.
• Rights today include both positive (requiring action) and negative (requiring non-interference) obligations.

 Conclusion

Legal rights and duties are the building blocks of any civilised society. While the State plays the central role in recognizing and enforcing these rights, not all rights enjoy absolute protection. Theories like Will and Interest, along with modern judicial trends, show a dynamic evolution of rights jurisprudence.

To understand and apply these concepts effectively is essential for any law student or judicial aspirant.

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