A thematic collection of the “Archive of Philosophy of Law and Social Philosophy”. Texts on legal interpretation — its theories, directives and limits, and its role in adjudication. All articles are available free of charge in open access.
Theories of legal interpretation
Polish legal theory contributed two classic conceptions to the analysis of interpretation: Jerzy Wróblewski’s clarificative theory, on which interpretation is called for when doubt arises as to the meaning of a provision, and Maciej Zieliński’s derivational conception, on which every legal text requires full interpretive reconstruction of norms of conduct (omnia sunt interpretanda). The dispute between the two approaches — including the status of the maxim clara non sunt interpretanda — remains among the liveliest strands of Polish jurisprudence, alongside research on interpretive directives, the linguistic limits of interpretation, legislative materials and new empirical tools.
Selected texts
- Wnioskowanie heurystyczne w praktyce orzeczniczej sądów polskich — Paweł Ochmann, No. 2(47)/2026 (in Polish)
- Odczytywanie reguł konstytutywnych z tekstu prawnego. Przykład ułaskawienia — Karolina Gmerek, Michał Krotoszyński, No. 1(46)/2026 (in Polish)
- Stosowanie prawa łaski przez Prezydenta RP w świetle argumentów spoza tekstu Konstytucji — Zygmunt Tobor, Sławomir Piekarczyk, No. 1(46)/2026 (in Polish)
- Krytyczna analiza tezy o przydatności idei metafory konceptualnej w wykładni prawa — Robert Piszko, No. 2(39)/2024 (in Polish)
- Wyznaczanie temporalnych granic decyzji interpretacyjnej przez sąd — Tomasz Grzybowski, Marta Sarnowiec-Cisłak, No. 2(39)/2024 (in Polish)
- Intencjonalistyczny charakter interpretacji Pisma Świętego i interpretacji prawa — Paweł T. Skoczykłoda, No. 4(37)/2023 (in Polish)
- Pewność prawa a zasada interpretatio retro non agit — Agnieszka Bielska-Brodziak, Marek Suska, No. 3(36)/2023 (in Polish)
- Zasada nullum crimen sine lege jako źródło poszukiwania językowej granicy wykładni prawa karnego? — Sławomir Tkacz, No. 2(23)/2020 (in Polish)
See also
Classics of Legal Theory and Philosophy · Hans Kelsen and Legal Positivism · Ronald Dworkin and the Debate with Positivism.
For authors
The “Archive” publishes articles in legal theory and philosophy — including work on interpretation and legal argumentation — in Polish and English, in open access with no publication charges and with double-blind peer review. The journal is indexed in Scopus, DOAJ and ERIH PLUS (100 points on the Polish ministerial list). See the guidelines for authors.
An editorial collection. Last updated: July 2026.