Colloquio su Scienza, Diritto e Comparazione Intervista al Prof. Rodolfo Sacco (Torino, 24 gennaio 2017)

The article constitutes a critical treatment of the theoretical foundations of the comparative approach to law and legal sciences. First of all, it examines the epistemology of the comparatist, rooted in the validation method, along the lines of the historical sciences, relating it to the normative approach typical of legal positivism. It then goes on to examine the concept of ‘law’ developed on the basis of comparative sciences according to the so-called ‘theory of formants’, paying special attention to the varying importance which – compared to traditional treatises – on one hand is attributed to written sources in this reconstruction (starting from the Constitution) and those unwritten (starting from common practice and the opinio iuris that underpins it) on the other. Lastly, the final part is dedicated to the theme of juridical interpretation and its repercussions with regard to the relationship between the comparative approach to law, ‘legal positivism’ and Richterrecht.