Syllogisms, Enthymemes and Fallacies: Mastering Secured Transactions Through Deductive Reasoning
In 2007, the University of Pittsburgh Law Review published the essay Logic for Law Students: How to Think Like a Lawyer, co- authored by federal appellate judge Ruggero J. Aldisert and two of his law clerks. The essay begins with the statement: “Logic is the lifeblood of American law.” It then asks the question prompted by Professor Kingsfield’s famous line above—“What is thinking like a lawyer?”—and offers this reply: “It means employing logic to construct arguments.” The authors lament that “our law schools do not give students an orientation in the principles of logic[,]” a failure which “does violence to the essence of the law.” Read More …