Een algemene normtheorie toegepast op open normen in het belastingrecht

Abstract

The objective of this research was to establish a theoretical method with which legal norms could be distinguished by their content. Extensive research led to the development of a general norm theory based on norm definitions that allowed for the formulation of a coherent set of legal norms, thus distinguishing between different norms. Consequently, this set is constitutive for the construction of an executable legal system which is demonstrated by applying the theory on the Dutch tax system. The general formula of a norm is given by ∀ε∈E 'imperatief^'φ, in which φ represents in algorithmic form the most recent content. This symbolic form represents all the properties of a norm and may include existing norm theories. Furthermore, it is demonstrated that every legal text can be transformed into this algorithmic form.