Legal personhood has long been applied in surprising and creative ways. Corporations, animals, rivers, infrastructure, religious institutions, municipalities, unions, social movements, countries, and even continents have all been argued to deserve legal recognition based on the labor they perform, their continuity, and their societal impact. Extending this framework further, libraries and schools clearly meet theseContinue reading “Libraries and Schools as Legal Persons: Recognizing Institutions That Labor for Society”
Tag Archives: continuity
From Countries to Continents: Expanding Legal Personhood to the Global Scale
Legal personhood has historically been flexible, extending beyond individual humans to corporations, animals, infrastructure, and even religious institutions. If we recognize entities as legal persons based on labor, contribution, continuity, and societal impact, there is no inherent reason to stop at the scale of cities or unions. In fact, the next logical step is toContinue reading “From Countries to Continents: Expanding Legal Personhood to the Global Scale”
Beyond Humans: Recognizing Municipalities, Unions, and Movements as Legal Persons
The concept of legal personhood has expanded remarkably over time. Corporations, animals, rivers, infrastructure, and religious institutions have all been argued to deserve personhood under various ethical and legal frameworks. If personhood can be extended to these entities based on labor, contribution, continuity, and societal impact, then it naturally follows that municipalities, unions, and organizedContinue reading “Beyond Humans: Recognizing Municipalities, Unions, and Movements as Legal Persons”