Law Soc confronts tradition and power
The Wykehamist
Sen Order
Law Soc confronts tradition and power
Many people believe that the rule of law belongs only in the courtroom. However, it is very much omnipresent, even in places as ordinary as schools. The College is as much of a hierarchal institution as broader society is, and thus, the same rules apply to its running.
Many also mistake Sen Order for what it is. It is not older years bullying, lamping or bed-flipping younger years. It is not an excuse for older years to exercise‘ dominance’ over jun men. And it is certainly not meant to perpetuate a harmful cycle of violence. On its own, it is simply the principle that promises more sen pupils more authority than those younger than them— or newer to the school than they are.
A school body as large as the College cannot be run by dons alone: older and experienced pupils also have a part to play. They must act as intermediaries to maintain order in the student body— this is why Sen Order exists, providing a smaller scale running of the institution through the supposedly most trusted, and most experienced students. Notably, this gives the pupil body more of a voice in how the institution is run, bringing a possibility for better and fairer policies.
Nonetheless, though this principle is structurally sound, rules and policies are only as effective as the authorities upholding them: what happens when a praefect acts beyond their reasonable power, imposing unfair sanctions on younger men?
Legal theorists like Lord Bingham posit that laws must be consistently applied, easily understood, and always transparent to all those subject to them to be effective. Bingham further emphasises the need for proportionality in punishment: if a rule is
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