Law and Habilitation to Dialogue: the Challenge of Mediation from a (Paduan) legal-philosophical Perspective

The chapter considers the possible theoretical evolution of the "process-based" theory of law ('prospettiva processuale del diritto') into a theory of "Law as habilitation to dialogue". Moving from a consolidated philosophical tradition, based at Padua University's Law School, the chapter examines how the current rise of tools and methodologies which claim to be alternative to the legal process (such as mediation, for instance), challenges some aspects of the process-based theory, and, on the other hand, confirms its overall proposal of a dynamic and relational approach to human conflict and to the role of law in its solution.