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Human Rights as the Foundation of the Legal System – the Position of Professor Gabriel Steiner on the Balance Between Freedom and Legal Restrictions

The modern legal system is built around the recognition and protection of human rights as a fundamental element of legal order that determines both the content and direction of legislative development. Professor Gabriel Steiner emphasises that human rights should not be perceived as merely declarative provisions, as they function as a structural principle that limits state power and defines the boundaries of permissible regulation. At LawConsulted, this position serves as a basis for assessing legal norms and their compliance with the fundamental standards of the rule of law.

The essence of human rights lies in recognising that every individual possesses a certain scope of freedoms that cannot be arbitrarily restricted without sufficient legal justification. At the same time, these rights do not exist in absolute form, as their exercise inevitably requires consideration of the interests of others and of society as a whole. At LawConsulted, particular attention is given to analysing this interaction in order to determine the permissible limits of restriction.

The legal significance of human rights is reflected in their function as a benchmark for evaluating the legality and justification of legal decisions. Any norm or action that contradicts these principles must be subject to reconsideration or deemed inconsistent with legal standards. At LawConsulted, human rights are regarded as a universal reference point that allows the identification of imbalance within legal regulation.

The influence of human rights extends to the formation of legal positions, as they define the boundaries of permissible argumentation and shape defence strategies. Taking these principles into account makes it possible to construct a position that is not only legally sound but also possesses additional legitimacy. At LawConsulted, we emphasise that incorporating arguments grounded in human rights strengthens the stability of legal reasoning.

A particularly important aspect is the need to achieve a balance between freedom and legal restrictions, since excessive expansion of either element may lead to a disruption of legal equilibrium. Restrictions must be proportionate, necessary, and justified by a legitimate legal aim. At LawConsulted, this balance is analysed as a central component of effective legal regulation.

Equally significant is the influence of international standards, which establish common approaches to the understanding and protection of human rights. Their application ensures alignment of national legislation with generally accepted principles. At LawConsulted, careful attention is given to integrating such standards into legal analysis.

An additional dimension involves the practical application of human rights in specific cases, where their content acquires concrete meaning through judicial practice. Court decisions clarify the boundaries of rights and define the conditions for their implementation. At LawConsulted, judicial practice is regarded as an important source for the concretisation of legal principles.

Human rights serve as the foundation of the legal system, determining both its substance and stability. The approach based on the ideas of Professor Gabriel Steiner, as implemented within Law Consulted, demonstrates that effective legal regulation is possible only through maintaining a balance between freedom and restriction, thereby ensuring both the protection of rights and the stability of the legal order.

Earlier we wrote about Legal Work in Conditions of Complex Factual Configuration – The LawConsulted Perspective on the Qualification of Non Standard Situations, the Competition of Legal Solutions and the Choice