Introduction Chapter I Extra-legal references and legislative intentions. 1. The legal system and its opening. 1.1. Methods for opening the legal system 1.2. Legislative instruments of opening the legal system2. General reference clauses2.1. Some examples 2.2. The concept and its constituents 2.3. Extra-legal referencing and its direction 2.4. Reference clauses and legal principles 3. Extra-legal reference as a component oflegislative policy 3.1. References and rationality oflegislation 3.2. Purposes ofreferencing to the extra-legal criteria. 3.3. Initial conditions for legislative “reference policy” 4. Measures for legislative influence on the use of extralegal references 4.1. Selecting the name ofthe extra-legal criterion 4.2. Locating the reference clause in the system oflegal regulations 4.2.1. Horizontal structure ofthe legal system. 4.2.2. Vertical structure ofthe legal system 4.2.3. Systematics of a normative act4.2.4. Type of normative regulation 4.3. Determining the conditions for the use of extra-legal criteri5. Basic factors differentiating the legislative policyand its effectsChapter II The basis for the use of extra-legal reference inthe judicial decision-making process 1. Extra-legal reference as a validation argument foran operative interpretation ofthe law2. Direct application ofthe general reference clause 2.1. The use ofreferences and the type oflegal actcontaining the clause 2.2. The use ofreferences and the type oflegalregulation containing the clause2.3. Application ofreferences ofinternationaland supranational law3. “Borrowing” a reference per analogiam clausulae3.1. Borrowing the clause from specific provisions(per analogiam legis)3.2. Borrowing a clause from general(“supplementary”) provisions4. Special situations for applying extra-legal references4.1. The issue of non-application of a “binding”reference clause 4.2. The problem ofthe application of a “non-binding”reference clause 4.2.1. Use ofreference that is “not yet in force”4.2.2. Use ofreference that is “no longer in force”(formally repealed).4.2.3. Use offoreign law references 4.2.4. Borrowings and the judicial discretion 4.3. The issue of “jurisdictional creating” of an extralegal referenceChapter III Determining the content ofthe extra-legalcriterion1. References to facts and references to values(assessments)1.1. Determining the content ofreferences to facts1.2. Determining the content of evaluation referrals2. Determining the content of general reference clauses 2.1. Identification ofthe components ofthe referringclause name2.2. Selection ofthe type of criterion and the typeof axiology. 2.2.1. Political values 2.2.2. Economic values Ill2.2.3. Moral values. 2.2.4. Differentiating factors3. Effects of combining the content of extra-legal criteria 3.1. “Mutual supporting” (enhancement)of extra-legal content 3.2. Creating and solving collision relations 3.2.1. Collisions within the single-type criteria3.2.2. Collisions between different types ofvalues4. Comparing the content of extra-legal criterionwith intra-legal axiology ("juridization") 5. “Normativization” and “concretization” ofthe content of the extra-legal criterionChapter IV The extra-legal references in the process of judicial interpretation oflaw1. Operative judicial interpretation in the process of application oflaw1.1. Law application process - the decisional model.1.2. Operative interpretation oflaw and its phase sequence2. Influence of extra-legal axiology on preliminaryinterpretative findings (orientation phase)3. Impact of extra-legal references on the applicationof other legal carriers (validation phase)4. Participation of extra-legal references in thereconstruction of behaviour patterns (reconstruction phase) 5. Participation ofthe extra-legal references in buildingthe normative basis for decision (construction phase).5.1. Features ofthe construction phase.5.2. Basic course.5.3. Inferential course5.4. Collision course 6. Impact of extra-legal references on the content of judicial decision (decisional reduction phase)6.1. Features ofthe reduction phase. 6.2. Share of open criteria in the qualification of the facts ofthe case 6.3. Open criteria in establishing the normative consequences of qualification offactsChapter V Some comparisons1. Type oflegal culture 1.1 European culture ofstatutory law (case of Germany)1.2The references in common law and in the Japanese legal order2. Type ofsocial and political environment oflaw. 2.1. The autocratic and democratic political system2.2. References in a situation ofsocial change 3. Place ofthe references in the structure ofthe legal system 3.1. Systematics of a legal act 3.2. Type of normative act3.3. Type of branch oflaw3.3.1. Branches ofthe domestic law3.3.2. International law4. Type of decision-making practice4.1. Type oflaw application 4.2. Type of court and decision ofthe court Chapter VI Functions of references and their optimization models1. Functions ofreferences (the issue of dialogue between legislature and judiciary)1.1. Opening (“deformalizing”) the content ofthe law. 1.2. Extending the decision-making discretion in applying the law1.3. "Axiologization" ofthe process of applying the law1.4. Review of detailed interpretative functionsof extra-legal references2. Outline of optimization models2.1. Optimizing model for creating extra-legal references2.2. Optimizing model for applying extra-legal references2.3. Reference clauses and the axiology ofjudicial discretion 2.4. Appendix: optimizations and the Polish legal order after 1989 BibliographyList of abbreviations