Law as Engineering: Rethinking What Lawyers Do

In his book Law as Engineering Professor David Howarth (University of Cambridge) invites us to rethink the role of lawyers and the nature of legal work. Instead of understanding law primarily through courts, constitutional structures, or legal interpretation, David argues that lawyers are best seen as designers of social arrangements. In this respect, lawyers resemble engineers more than litigators: their task is to create legal devices that enable people and organisations to achieve practical objectives.

At the centre of David’s argument is the idea that contracts, corporate structures, statutes, regulations, and other legal instruments are not merely texts or rules; they are designed artefacts. Like engineers, lawyers work within constraints, seek solutions to practical problems, and build frameworks that allow cooperation to take place in complex social and economic environments.

These ideas David will present and discuss at a seminar organised by the Law Faculty’s Research Group for Advanced Legal Methods and MOBILE. The seminar takes place on 8 September 2026 (from 11 am to 12 noon) in MOBILE’s meeting room (room 6B-2-22).