Balancing of Interests : Reflections on the Notion of Interest

This is a legal theory article on a methodology judges and arbitrators may use to balance interests in their decision making-process. Special consideration is given to the definition of the notion of interest, which lies between legal norms and facts, and its role in relation to vague or indetermined legal norms. The article seeks to find common threads in the developments of legal philosophers such as H.L.A. Hart, Ronald Dworkin, Jeremy Bentham, Juuml;rgen Habermas, Franccedil;ois Ost, Enrico Pattaro, and Umberto Eco