The Scope of Principles of Justice
Panel at the Conference for young academics
Normative Orders: Justification and Sanctions
October 24-25, 2009, Frankfurt am Main
The Formation of Normative Orders, Cluster of Excellence at Goethe University Frankfurt
Political philosophers defend highly divergent views concerning the scope of principles of justice.
Some restrict the application of principles of justice to the legal relations between persons, which
are characterized by the use of coercion. Others argue that principles of justice are to be applied
to all relationships between persons, even if these relations lack any type of institutionalization. A
third position between these two extremes limits the applicability and thus the scope of justice
principles to the existence of relationships of power between persons.
This panel aims at examining the moral significance of institutionalized relations between persons
for the justification of a conception of the scope of principles of justice. Are such principles
limited in scope by state boundaries, or do they also apply internationally, transnationally, and/or
globally? And if they do apply internationally, transnationally, and/or globally, how, if at all,
should their content be adapted? At the limit, is it possible to draw conclusions regarding the
systematic relationship between the conditions of application, the content, and the normative
sources of the principles of justice?
The panel is directed at researchers in the fields of philosophy, politics, and law. Please send
proposals and questions to julian.culp@normativeorders.net and
ulrike.meyer@normativeorders.net . Proposals should be approximately 500 words. The deadline
is 30 June 2009. Where necessary, some funding can be provided for travel and lodging expenses.
See also www.normativeorders.net.
