Generally Accepted Accounting Principles: Perspectives From Philosophy of Law.

This paper examines the nature of generally accepted accounting principles from the viewpoint of the philosophy of law (or jurisprudence). It shows that the dominance of a form of utilitarian legal positivism in accounting thought, at least in the United States, has inhibited the development of accounting principles which promote fair financial reporting. Key words: accounting principles, fairness, jurisprudence, philosophy of law, positivism in accounting. Running Title: GAAP: Perspectives from Philosophy of Law. 1 Introduction The generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) or their constituent parts have been subjected in the accounting literature to intensive analysis inspired by theories in economics, history, psychology and sociology. Debates that subject them to analysis from the perspectives of philosophy of law (or jurisprudence) are, however, conspicuously absent 1 . This void in the literature is to be lamented because of the close but rather incongenial historica..