Vol. 35 No. 2 (2010)
Research articles

Chilean Legal Culture: Historical Notes, Tendencies and Challenges

Jorge Baraona González
Universidad de los Andes
Bio

How to Cite

Baraona González, J. (2011). Chilean Legal Culture: Historical Notes, Tendencies and Challenges. Revista De Derecho - Pontificia Universidad Católica De Valparaíso, 35(2). Retrieved from https://www.rdpucv.cl/index.php/rderecho/article/view/760

Abstract

This article analyzes the different legal influences that Chile has received in terms of configuration of the institutions and the manner in which Law is understood. Such has been the Hispanic influence that lies in the formation of the national Law; there also is the French legacy which becomes evident in the XIXth Century, marked by the codification and regarding this, Andrés Bello stands out, who turns into a key factor, especially for the drafting of the Civil Code, quite determining in the configuration of the legalist mind in Chile. It is the Century of influence of lawyers in public life. Regarding the XXth Century, the beginning of the dogmatic study of Law and the influence that the European positivism had is analyzed, as well as technological development of politics. It is the time in which lawyers withdraw themselves as an influence on public life. New tendencies in the legal culture, such as the entry into force of human rights and the impact the manner of understanding the Law are analyzed in the second part of this work; also the overcrowding effect on Law Studies within the past years, and the significant influence the United States' culture has, especially in the manner the profession is practiced in large firms.