Nobody’s Law: Past, Present and Future

Abstract

In the concluding chapter, it is argued that this study challenges the central idea of the legal consciousness literature that—despite strong criticism—people still turn to law. Instead, the case studies and the survey evidence in this book suggest that—because of this criticism—people move away from law. Based on these findings, it is argued that we need to redirect future legal consciousness studies. Rather than limiting our focus to the ‘salience of law’ and ‘legal hegemony’, legal consciousness research should also look at the ‘absence of law’ and the effects of ‘legal alienation’. While previous studies focused on ‘law and society’ and ‘law in society’, the next generation of researchers should shift their attention to ‘law versus society’.