Michael S. Moore (academic)

Michael S. Moore is an American legal philosopher known for his work in legal positivism, moral philosophy, and the intersection of law and neuroscience. He is currently the Charles Walgreen University Chair in Law at the University of Illinois College of Law and a professor of philosophy at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Moore's scholarship defends a realist perspective on law, morality, and metaphysics. He argues for the existence of objective moral truths and the possibility of moral knowledge. In the philosophy of law, he is a prominent defender of legal positivism, particularly the branch known as "natural law positivism." This view holds that law and morality are conceptually distinct but that law necessarily aims at achieving moral goodness. Therefore, understanding the moral implications of laws is essential for interpreting and applying them correctly.

A significant portion of Moore's work addresses the relationship between law and neuroscience. He explores the implications of neuroscience for legal concepts like responsibility, free will, and intention. He argues that while neuroscience can illuminate the biological mechanisms underlying human behavior, it does not necessarily undermine traditional legal concepts of responsibility and culpability. He has written extensively on the volitional condition of responsibility, examining the extent to which intentionality and freedom of action are necessary for holding individuals accountable for their actions.

Moore's notable publications include Law and Psychiatry: Rethinking the Relationship (1984), Act and Crime: The Philosophy of Action and Its Implications for Criminal Law (1993), Placing Blame: A General Theory of the Criminal Law (1997), and Causation and Responsibility: An Essay in Law, Morality, and Metaphysics (2009). His work has been influential in shaping contemporary debates in legal philosophy and criminal law theory.