Nominalism (law)
In the philosophy of law , the term nominalism emphasizes above all the naming of the facts to be dealt with in legal theory . As in general philosophy , he turns against the idea that the things, facts or ideas to be judged have a kind of universal reality ( universal realism ).
application
In economics and business law , the concept of nominalism, also known as the nominal value principle , the nominal value principle, the mark-equal-mark principle, means that a monetary claim running on a certain amount can be met by providing exactly the originally agreed number of nominal monetary units . Changes in purchasing power between the creation of the claim and its repayment ( inflation , monetary devaluation ) are not taken into account in the nominal principle. It is irrelevant whether the purchasing power transferred with the transfer of the agreed number of nominal monetary units is the same as the purchasing power of the corresponding number of monetary units at the time of the agreement of the monetary debt. In the case of short terms and smaller nominal amounts, the nominal principle corresponds to business usages .
In the case of large amounts and / or long terms, however, interest is usually agreed. The monetary claim then takes on the character of a loan .
The definition described is now referred to as what is known as monetary debt nominalism . Technical nominalism is understood to mean that money tokens that represent the same value after being printed on the individual money tokens are also treated as equivalent. The respective material properties are therefore irrelevant, which is a matter of course in today's monetary and currency system, but not in earlier times (see metallism ).
The opposite position is the so-called valorism . This theory played a certain role in the time of the Great Inflation , but it was also not generally recognized legally. Today she is no longer represented.
