While acknowledging the close relationship that exists between law and morality, he does not Fuller's reply argued for morality as the source of law's binding power. Because of this conceptual distinction between law and morality, Hart argued, a directive’s legality said nothing about its morality [4] The Hart- Devlin Debate. Hart argued that the law remains law even if it does not meet the demands of external moral criteria. This is consistent with Hart's argument that one role of law was to protect individual liberty. Hart said ‘Law is not morality; do not let it supplant morality’. The Report came in favour of legalisation as it stated that the law need not concern itself with immorality. 2. Prof Hart‟s view on Law and Morality Prof HLA Hart was a legal positivist and a critical moral philosopher. Again, it is important at the outside to understand Devlin’s approach to law and morality, before considering Hart’s criticism of his approach. Class notes for 6 February. He thought that it was clearer to distinguish law and morality than it was to try to explain how the one might be necessarily related to the other. Hart said that a law being inherently evil and how one ought to react to the law are two separate issues and merely because a law‘s foundation is on evil it cannot be said to be law. Hart took the positivist view in arguing that morality and law were separate. HLA Hart, Lord Patrick and Lord Devlin took part in the debate. The Hart–Fuller debate is an exchange between Lon Fuller and H. L. A. Hart published in the Harvard Law Review in 1958 on morality and law, which demonstrated the divide between the positivist and natural law philosophy. Spread the loveBackground Facts: Wolfenden Committee had to prepare a report on the issue of legalising homosexuality and prostitution. Hart on Law and Morality. These five truisms about human nature, claims Hart, makes it a "natural necessity" that law has a certain content that embodies the minimum forms of protection for persons, property and promises. We discussed Hart’s attitude towards Nazi law. As a legal positivist, he states that it is not necessary that laws have to necessarily satisfy certain demands of morality. Hart's philosophy of legal positivism is a pragmatist's approach to the role of law in society. Main ideas. Hart's philosophy of law held that laws should not be based only on popular moral consensus, in the absence of other harms.