Legal history Books

Book SynopsisThis new work casts light upon the British constitution of today by means of an in-depth consideration of eight key moments in British constitutional history. The historical perspective adopted in this book facilitates an informed and contextual understanding of the intricacies of the contemporary British constitution. Indeed the book is based upon the premise that it is impossible to fully comprehend the nature, content and implications of today's constitution without a firm grasp on how it evolved into its present form. Each of the eight main chapters focuses upon a different event in constitutional history which has contributed certain principles or practices to the modern day constitution, and explains how these principles or practices evolved and highlights their modern day significance. Historical events covered include the 1688 Glorious Revolution, the 1707 Union between England and Scotland, the 1911 Parliament Act and the 1972 European Communities Act.Trade ReviewThis is an important and original book. It is a commentary and exegesis on the British constitution by means of eight case studies, turning points which shaped the constitution but which also shed light upon it...In each case Wicks depicts beautifully the historical context, related the events to constitutional moments before and after, and highlights their contemporary significance. The most original contribution of the book is the way in which Wicks teases out core principles of the British constitution which can be derived from each of the episodes she analyses. Some of these are familiar, but some are new and important...this is a commentary on the British constitution which ranks in the canon alongside Bagehot, Dicey and Jennings, and it deserves to last as long. Robert Hazell Journal of Legislative Studies Volume 13, Number 2, 2007 ...a valuable contribution to constitutional history. It is clearly written and stimulating. It provides invaluable background reading for constitutional lawyers. Vernon Bogdanor The Law Quarterly Review Vol 123, 07 The most original contribution of the book is the way in which Wicks teases out core principles of the British constitution which can be derived from each of the episodes she analyses... this is a commentary on the British constitution which ranks in the canon alongside Bagehot, Dicey and Jennings, and it deserves to last as long. Robert Hazell Journal of Law and Society forthcoming in 2007 ...an innovative and important contribution to British constitutional studies. As a result of an acute understanding of both history and present day realities, Wicks not only demonstrates the need, but also provides the opportunity to examine Britain's constitutional evolution in order to understand her current challenges and predicament. It is a first-class piece of scholarship which deserves a wide and engaged readership. David Erdos The Law and Politics Book Review, Vol 17, No 1 Jan 2007 ...this challenging and well-researched book ought to be read widely by those teaching and studying constitutional law...I am sure that the book's format could provide an excellent eight-week introductory course in constitutional law: indeed, the book itself provides ample material for an advanced course on these lines. Anthony Bradley Public Law Winter 2007 ...the practical complexities of devolution which it illustrates are deeply interesting. Alexandra Kelso Parliamentary Affairs Vol. 61 No. 3, 2008 It is a work of erudition and fine insights and is written in a style free from jargon. A.G. Noorani Frontline October 2008Table of ContentsIntroduction 1688 – Glorious Revolution; Enduring Settlement: Sovereignty, Liberty and the Constitution 1707 – Union between England and Scotland: Unitary State and Limited Parliament 1721 – The First Prime Minister? Executive Power and Its Journey from Monarch to Prime Minister 1832 – The Great Reform Act: A First Step towards Democratic Representation? 1911 – The Parliament Act: Guaranteeing the Legislative Superiority of the House of Commons 1953 – The European Convention on Human Rights: an External Influence Within the Constitution 1972 – The European Communities Act: European Legal Supremacy under the UK Constitution 137 1998 – Devolution to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland: Decentralising the Union State Conclusion: The Evolving Constitution

Read more less

Book SynopsisThis work contains the full text of the papers presented at the second Tax Law History Conference in July 2004. The Conference was organised by the Cambridge Law Faculty's Centre for Tax Law. The papers range widely in terms of period - from the Old Testament to the twentieth century - and geographical areas, with papers on matters relating to not only the United Kingdom but also Canada, Australia and the US. The matters discussed are also broad and include the concept of taxation developed by Adam Smith and his fellow United Kingdom writers of the Enlightenment, problems of adjudication in tax law and of access to justice for taxpayers, definitions of income and its UK subset 'total income', capital gains tax, stamp duty on newspapers, the wartime excess profits tax, the nature of tithes, the strange tale of Jasper Moore, the real nature of the decision in the Duke of Westminster case, the demise of wealth transfer taxes in Canada, the nature of the US corporate tax and debates in the US about whether to raise war finance by issuing bonds or levying tax. As a whole the papers illustrate not only the wide variety but also the real depth of the issues waiting to be investigated in this rapidly growing field of scholarship.Trade Review...because the contributors have been given free range, and allowed to delve quite deeply into areas of their own interest, they have been able to come up with all sorts of explanations for things which a speedy overview might not have led most readers to expect. Roger Kerridge The Journal of Legal History Vol 28, No 3 These studies in history of tax laws and policies, their design and development, structure and administration, intended and unintended effects, not only enlightens and informs, sometimes even entertains, but also provides a comparative resource for recurrent issues. Mr Howard Alexander Queensland Supreme Court History Programme Yearbook 2009Table of ContentsPart 1 The Income Tax Era 1 The Special Commissioners from Trafalgar to Waterloo John F Avery Jones 2 Access to Justice before the Special Commissioners of Income Tax in the Nineteenth Century Chantal Stebbings 3 The Rise and Development of the Concept of 'Total Income' in United Kingdom Income Tax Law: 1842-1952 John HN Pearce 4 Official Deliberations on Capital Gains Tax: 1955-1960 David Stopforth 5 Excess Profits Tax Litigation Philip Ridd Part 2 Wider Issues 6 Tax Law and Public Opinion: Explaining IRC v Duke of Westminster Assaf Likhovski 7 A Book Review of The Saving of Income Tax, Surtax and Death Duties by Jasper More Philip Baker 8 When is a Tax not a Tax but a Tithe? Andrew Lewis 9 The Concept of Taxation and the Age of Enlightenment Jane Frecknall Hughes 10 The Abolition of the Taxes on Knowledge Lynne Oats and Pauline Sadler Part 3 Commonwealth Essays 11 The Abolition of Wealth Transfer Taxes in Canada David G Duff 12 A Tale of Two Systems: The Divergent Tax Histories of Australia and Canada Rodney Fisher 13 The Ever-Elusive Definition of Income: A Historical Perspective from Australia Margaret McKerchar and Cynthia Coleman Part 4 The US Dimension 14 Why was the US Corporate Tax Enacted in 1909? Reuven S Avi-Yonah 15 Entity Theory as Myth in the US Corporate Excise Tax of 1909 Steven A Bank 16 Voluntarism and Taxation Carolyn C Jones

Read more less

Book SynopsisAs King’s Counsel he was involved in many celebrated trials, including the prosecution of John Horne Took for high treason and of Queen ­Caroline for adultery. His other notable achievements include the defence of Thomas Paine’s Rights of Man, which cost him the post of Attorney-General to the Prince of Wales. He also served as Member of Parliament for Portsmouth and for one year as Lord Chancellor. Latterly the First Baron Erskine, this absorbing book covers his rise to prominence and distinguished career at the Bar of England and Wales.Trade Review‘Those who are not familiar with the man would be well advised to read this biography without delay’-- Law Society Gazette; ‘This work is of more than historical interest. It shows how the advocate can affect the law, and by doing so, the constitution’-- Counsel; ‘With eloquent invective Erskine mesmerized juries’-- Justice of the Peace; ‘Deserves a wide readership’-- SCOLAG.Table of ContentsAbout the author; Barry Rose; Thomas Erskine and William Garrow- Prologue; CHAPTER 1- ENLIGHTENMENT; Humanity; Ideals of Law; CHAPTER 2- EARLY YEARS; Born to Poverty; Sailor; Cordial Brush with Dr Johnson; Abuses in the Army; Call of the Bar; Degree at Cambridge; CHAPTER 3- FORENSIC TRIUMPHS; The Seamen’s Hospital Case; Odious Prosecution; “Trance of Amazement”; Westminster Hall; Admiral Keppel; Public Acclaim; Bar of the House of Commons; Duelling; CHAPTER 4- HIGH TREASON AND SEDITION; The Gordon Riots; London Burning; The Trial; Constructive Treason; vi; The Case of the Dean of St Asaph; Advocate and Citizen; Defiance by the Jury; Legal Argument; Success; CHAPTER 5- WHIG POLITICS AND ILL-HUMOUR; Member for Portsmouth; Erskine v. Pitt; Spots on the Sun; Discreditable Speech; Retirement of the Earl of Mansfield; CHAPTER 6- FREEDOM OF THE PRESS; House of Commons v. Stockdale; Impeachment of Warren Hastings; The Indian Chief; Gift of Persuasion; Private View; Democrat; CHAPTER 7- COFFEE-HOUSE SEDITION AND; RETURN TO PARLIAMENT; John Frost and “Wretched Vermin”; Tainted Witnesses; Parliament and Fox’s Libel Act; Horrors of War; CHAPTER 8- FEAR OF REVOLUTION; Tom Paine’s Rights of Man; Seditious Libel; Clamour Against Erskine; Free Discussion; Conspiracy Against Paine; Rex v. Morning Chronicle; vii; Rex v. Walker; Imaginary Armoury; Forensic Faculties; CHAPTER 9- THE STATE TRIALS OF 1794; Rehearsal in Scotland; A Panic of Fear; Trial of the Shoemaker; Spies and Informers; Acquittal; John Horne Tooke; Ridicule; Victory; CHAPTER 10- TYRANNY, WAR, RIOT AND BLASPHEMY; “I Will Never Dielave”; Society Against Republicans; Prosecuting the War; Clerical Riot; “Age of Reason”; Erskine’s Mantle; Christian Charity; CHAPTER 11- CONSPIRACY AND CRIMINAL LIBEL; Uproar in Court; The Case of the Courier; Cuthell the Bookseller; 70,000 Enemies; CHAPTER 12- THE DERANGED SOLDIER; Shooting at the King; Madness; Atrocious Wounds; Insanity as a defence; CHAPTER 13- CIVIL ACTIONS 161; Attacking the Judge; Criminal Conversation; Adultery Cases; Dunning v. Sir Thomas Turton; CHAPTER 14-ALL TO ARMS; War Weariness; War Fever; Volunteers; Death of Pitt; CHAPTER 15- THE WOOLSACK; “Ministry of All the Talents”; Baron Erskine; The House of Lords; Abolition of the Slave Trade; Death of Fox; Judicial Duties as Chancellor; Impeachment of Lord Melville; Delivering Up the Great Seal; A Cup Too Many; CHAPTER 16- EX-CHANCELLOR; Politician Again; Animals’ Rights; Parliamentary Privilege; Prince of Wales Deserts the Whigs; CHAPTER 17- SEMI-RETIREMENT; Leisure Pursuits; Peculiar Pets; Manufacture of Brooms; Humour in Court; Regrets; ix; Gretna Green; Author; The “Six Acts”; CHAPTER 18- THE TRIAL OF QUEEN CAROLINE; The Delicate Investigation; Prosecution of the Queen; Brougham’s Triumph; CHAPTER 19- RETURN TO SCOTLAND; The Butler’s Ghost; The Welcoming Banquet; The Thistle; Return to London; The Greek Revolt; Illness and Death; CHAPTER 20- APPRAISALS AND TRIBUTES; Invincible Orator; Vanity; Eloquent for Freedom; BIBLIOGRAPHY; INDEX.

Read more less

Book SynopsisA brand new book by eminent legal biographer and historian John Hostettler. Hard on the heels of his acclaimed work with Richard Braby on Sir William Garrow, comes a further text on one of crime and punishments under-recorded and maybe unsung heroes. In eighteenth century continental Europe penal law was barbaric. Gallows were a regular feature of the landscape, branding and mutilation common and there existed the ghastly spectacle of men being broken on the wheel. To make matters worse, people were often tortured or put to death for minor crimes (sometimes both) and often without any trial at all. Like a bombshell, a book entitled On Crimes and Punishments, exploded onto the scene in 1764 with shattering effect. Its author was a young nobleman named Cesare Beccaria (1738-1794). A central message of that - now classic - work were that such punishments were part of 'a war of nations against their citizens' and should be abolished. It was a cri de coeur for thorough reform of the law affecting punishments and it swept across the continent of Europe like wildfire, being adopted by one ruler after another. It even crossed the Atlantic to the new United States of America, in the hands of Thomas Jefferson. In a wonderful sentence which concludes Beccaria's book, he sums up matters as follows: 'In order that every punishment may not be an act of violence, committed by one man or by many against a single individual, it ought to be above all things public, speedy, necessary, the least possible in the given circumstances, proportioned to its crime [and] dictated by the laws'. A welcome addition to the Waterside Press list of biographical and historical works, this new book on Cesare Beccaria - targeted to highlight matters of both universal and current relevance - will be of considerable interest to anyone wishing to trace the development of the rights of individuals charged with or convicted of crimes, and of the importance of fairness, proportionality, decency and similar matters which may be at-risk in the wrong hands. Civilising penal law remains a topical issue but it began with the subject of this work.Table of ContentsPreface About the author 1. A Modest Man Crime and Punishment House Arrest Academy of Fists Thomas Jefferson A Changing World Retribution Break with Friends Death 2. Secret Accusations and Torture The Effects of Secrecy Torture a MercyA" Trial by Ordeal Consecrated Cruelty Bentham on Torture Voltaire 3. The Death Penalty Ancient Origin War Against Citizens Deprivation of Liberty Judicial Murder Acceptance in Continental Europe Impact in England The Rev. Martin Madan Archdeacon Paley Criminal Law Commissioners 4. Criminal Law and Punishments Reform of Criminal Justice Penal Law The Origins of Punishments and the Right to Punish Interpretation of the Law Consequences Spirit of the Law Obscurity of the Law The Division of Punishments Crimes of High Treason Voltaire Personal Security The Purpose of Punishment Prompt Punishment Public Tranquility Pleas of the Crown and Confessions 5. Crimes Difficult to Prove and Others Presumptions Adultery Homosexuality Infanticide Suicide Voltaire on Suicide Smuggling Bankruptcy Leading Questions Oaths Sanctuaries Extradition 6. Various Topics and Imprisonment Prosecutions and Prescriptions Criminal Attempts Accomplices Evidence and Proofs of a Crime Witnesses William Garrow Imprisonment John Howard Voltaire 7. Other Punishments Crimes of Violence Punishment of Nobles Theft and Robbery Ill-repute Rewards for Detaining or Killing Criminals Criminal Procedure Voltaire Mildness of Punishments The Means of Preventing Crimes Science Magistrates Certainty of Punishments-Pardons False Ideas of Utility Family Spirit Voltaire's Commentary 8. Profound Impact The French Revolution and Adversary Trial Human Rights and Voltaire's Causes Celebres John Adams 9. Conclusion Success Revolution England Conclusion Select Bibliography Index

Read more less

Book SynopsisBased on actual (sometimes exclusive) materials, The Colour of Injustice raises questions about politics and the judiciary in post Second World War Northern Ireland. Describing parallel worlds of power and influence, this book - the first on the case - shows corruption at its most disturbing, justice at its most deficient. The case of Ian Hay Gordon involves a miscarriage of justice brought about in circumstances of privilege, patronage and the social and religious divides existing in Northern Ireland in the decades following World War II. It lifts the lid on a world in which institutions operated against a backdrop of behind-the-scenes influences and manipulation, in which nothing is what it seems due to hidden allegiances, walls of silence and a multitude of competing agendas spanning religious, sectarian and authoritarian interests. It is also a case in which despite the framing of an innocent man there was sufficient concern that he might not be guilty that a way had to be found to ensure that he did not end up on the gallows. Hence the twists, turns and manipulations of a tragic story that was to see a young and until then medically-fit RAF officer confined to a mental institution for a large part of his life. Behind this bizarre sequence of events sits the tragic death of Patricia Curran, the daughter of a High Court judge, killed in the grounds of their home (or was she murdered elsewhere?), a refusal to admit investigators to Glen House, Whiteabbey, Belfast where blood was many years later discovered beneath a carpet, delay in calling the police, private removal of the body, a knee-jerk arrest and other mysterious events surrounding a case in which no proper investigation of the crime scene or other potential suspects took place.Table of ContentsAbout the Author. List of Cases. Acknowledgment. 1.Setting the Scene. 2.Murder in the Glen. 3.The Initial Investigation. 3.The Confession. 4.The Prosecution. 5.The Defence. 6.A Case for "Justice". 7.New Evidence. 8.The Criminal Cases Review Commission. 9.On Appeal. 10.The Relationship of the Court of Appeal to the Criminal Cases Review Commission. 11.The Influence of Stormont Policies on the Legal Process. 12.Aftermath. Select Bibliography. Index.

Read more less

Book SynopsisThe Ouija board jury incident of 1994 is one of the most disconcerting in English legal history, possibly (says the author) 'the nadir of reported juror misbehaviour in the 20th-century'. But, as Professor Jeremy Gans shows, in an era of soundbites it has been distorted by the media whilst even eminent lawyers have sometimes got the story wrong. In this first full-length treatment he emphasises the known facts, the constitutional dilemma of investigating even bizarre jury misbehaviour and how the trial involved one of the most serious murder cases of the decade in which two people were shot in cold blood. Stephen Young's conviction after a re-trial is still claimed to be a miscarriage of justice by some people, as to which Gans puts forward his own ingenious solution. But quite apart from analysing the facts of R v Young, this book is a tour de force on jury misbehaviour in which the author also examines the implications for example of winks and nods, research by jurors, speaking or listening out of turn, going to sleep during the hearing or falling in love with one of the advocates. Amusing at first sight, such events involve deep questions of law, practice and democratic involvement in the Criminal Justice process. Far from being a mere anecdote, the case of the Ouija board jurors, the misconceptions about it and the issues it leads to deserve close study by anyone who is even remotely interested in jury trial. The first full length treatment of an iconic case. Dispels the myths that have built-up around it. Looks at other instances of jury misbehaviour. Shows how the courts and Parliament have wrestled with problems of this kind. A first-rate analysis of a baffling double murder.Trade Review'Gans analyses the case in depth and incorporates many other cases where juror misconduct has also occurred. What I really enjoyed was his ability to consider the situation from a number of hypothetical perspectives to further analyse the conduct of juries and jury members... he highlights a number of the issues which currently still exist in the jury system'-- Academic Traveller; `Very interesting and amusing'-- Ronald Bartle; 'An excellent read - both for the layperson with little or no knowledge of the courtroom and the more experienced professional as it provides a different window through which we see our system'-- Bob Turney; As featured on abc.net.au and in the ABC podcast Jurors Behaving Badly.Table of ContentsForeword. A Juror's Letter; Flash Harry; Only a Game; Iceman; Mansfield's Window; The Horrid Part; Such a Fearful Spectre; Afterword. Index.

Read more less

Book SynopsisThis book presents a broad overview of succession law, encompassing aspects of family law, testamentary law and legal history. It examines society and legal practice in Europe from the Middle Ages to the present from both a legal and a sociological perspective. The contributing authors investigate various aspects of succession law that have not yet been thoroughly examined by legal historians, and in doing so they not only add to our knowledge of past succession law but also provide a valuable key to interpreting and understanding current European succession law. Readers can explore such issues as the importance of a father’s permission to marry in relation to disinheritance, as well as inheritance transactions and private, dynastic and cross-border successions. Further themes addressed by the expert contributors include women’s inheritance rights, the laws of succession for the prince in legal consulting, and succession in the Rota Romana’s jurisprudence.Trade Review“Maria Gigliola di Renzo Villata has masterfully edited an impressive work … . this volume aims to attract a wide audience, which it will surely succeed in doing. … This collection of chapters is clearly a marked improvement on our understanding … . Overall, Succession Law, Practice and Society in Europe across the Centuries is a thoughtful and well-argued collection that has much to offer and will no doubt become essential reading for anyone interested in succession law.” (Matthew J. Cleary, American Journal of Legal History, Vol. 61 (3), September, 2021)Table of ContentsIntroduction.- Ch 1: The Right of Troncalidad in Castillian Inheritance in the High Middle Ages.- Ch 2: Family Succession Wars: Succession Norms and Practices in Medieval and Modern Catalonia .- Ch 3: Actiones Hereditariae – Claims in Favour of, and Against Heirs in Medieval Ius Commune.- Ch 4: The Ius Decretalium and the Development of the Law of Succession in Medieval Europe – Some Examples from Denmark and Sweden (XII–XII c.).- Ch 5: Testamentary Freedom in Law and Practice in Medieval Sweden: Conflicts and Coexistence.- Ch 6: The Evolution of the Scots Law and Practice of Succession: 1300–2000.- Ch 7: Women’s Succession from the Middle Ages to the Modern Era.- Ch 8: A Coffer for the Will.- Ch 9: Materia est valde periculosa: Interpreting Testaments in Quattrocento Florence.- Ch 10: Disinheritance of Children for Lack of Parental Consent to the Marriage in the Ius Commune and Early Modern Scholastic Traditions.- Ch 11: Quidquid ex Testamento Petunt Scriptum Heredem Convenire Debent – Initial Comments on the Inheritance Transactio from the Ius Commune to the Early Modern Period.- Ch 12: Between Practice and Theory: Succession Law According to Jacques Cujas (1522–1590) .- Ch 13: A Difficult Legacy – Initial Comments on the Inheritance Rights of Filii Clericorum in the Middle Ages and Early Modern Period.- Ch 14: Consilia and Dynastic Successions in Modern Europe.- Ch 15: Gift Mortis Causa in the Ius Commune: Contract and Last Will.- Ch 16: Towards a Ius Commune Europaeum on Successions and Testament? The 17th Century Decisiones Rotae Romanae.- Ch 17: Intestate Succession Between Doctrine and Roman Rota Case Law in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries.- Ch 18: Royal Successions – A Special Law for the Inheritance of Power?.- Ch 19: The Difficult Road to Harmonization of French Succession Law.- Ch 20: Notes on the Bonae Fidei Possessio pro Herede in the Civil Law Systems (19th–20th Centuries).

Read more less

Book SynopsisThis book, based on a fresh understanding of Scottish governmental records rooted in extensive archival research, offers the first study of these important institutions in a period of revived royal authority. The regime which emerges from these records is one which understood the power of consultation, adroitly using a range of groups from full parliaments to conventions of specialists and experts selected to deal with the matter in hand. Policies were crafted through not one single meeting but several types of gathering, ranging from small groups when secrecy was of the essence or complex details required to be hammered out, to elaborate large gatherings when the regime employed a performative strategy to disseminate information or legitimise its policies. Still more impressively, much of this was managed in the King’s absence – James remained at a distance from many of these gatherings, relying on key officials such as the Chancellor or Clerk Register to relay counsel and the royal will. This emphasis on specialised, frequent consultation reflects concurrent developments in the council, whilst relocating debate surrounding the development of state and administrative structures in Scotland traditionally located in the late sixteenth-century into the 1530s. In tackling the development of parliament in Scotland and placing it in its proper context amongst many different forms of consultative meeting this book also speaks to subjects of European-wide concern: how far early modern Parliaments were used to impose or resist religious change, the pace of state formation, monarchical power and relations between monarchs and their subjects.Table of ContentsChapter 1: IntroductionChapter 2: Council and ConventionsChapter 3: Conventions of the Lords, War and Wedlock: Public or Private Consultation?Chapter 4: Consultation and Access for the Third EstateChapter 5: Taxation and FinanceChapter 6: Legislation, Treason and ParliamentChapter 7: Conclusion

Read more less

Book SynopsisForeign gunboats forced China, Japan and Korea to open to the outside world under mid-19th century treaties which included "extraterritoriality", rules forbidding local courts from trying foreigners.

Read more less

Book SynopsisOur trial courts conduct hardly any trials, our correctional systems do not correct, and the rise of mandated arbitration has ushered in a shadowy system of privatised justice. Meanwhile, our legislators can''t even follow their own rules for making rules, while the rule of law mutates into a perpetual state of emergency. The legal system is becoming an incomprehensible farce.How did this happen? In The Nonsense Factory, Bruce Cannon Gibney shows that over the past seventy years, the legal system has dangerously confused quantity with quality and might with legitimacy. As the law bloats into chaos, it staggers on only by excusing itself from the very commands it insists that we obey, leaving Americans at the mercy of arbitrary power. By examining the system as a whole, Gibney shows that the tragedies often portrayed as isolated mistakes or the work of bad actors-police misconduct, prosecutorial overreach, and the outrages of imperial presidencies-are really the inevit

Read more less

Book Synopsis

Read more less

Book SynopsisSelected essays by Professor William Gordon on Roman law and Scots law.Table of ContentsPreface; Acknowledgements; ROMAN LAW: 1 Constitutum Possessorium; 2 Acquisition of Ownership by tradition and Acquisition of Possession; 3 Dating the Lex Aquilla; 4 The Actio de Posito Reconsidered; 5 Agency and Roman Law; 6 Observations on "Depositum Irregulare"; 7 The Importance of the iusta causa of tradition; ROMAN LAW AND SCOTS LAW: 8 Roman and Scots Law - the Conditiones si sine Liberis Decesserit; 9 The Interpretation of C 8.55.8; 10 Cinus and Pierre de Belleperche; 11 Roman Law in a Nineteenth Century Scottish Case: Gowans v Christie; 12 Servitudes, Scots Law and Roman Law; 13 Roman Quasi-delicts and Scots Law; 14 Risk in Sale - from Roman to Scots Law; SCOTTISH LEGAL HISTORY: 15 The Right of Women to Graduate in Medicine - Scottish Judicial Attitudes in the Nineteenth Century; 16 Property and Succession Rights; 17 George Joseph Bell - Law Commissioner; 18 Variation and Discharge of Land Obligations; 19 Stair, Grotius and the Sources of Stair's Institutions; 20 The Acts of the Scottish Lords of Council in the Late Fifteenth and Early Sixteenth Centuries: Records and Reports; 21 Balfour's Registrum; ROMAN LAW INFLUENCE: 22 Scotland and France. The Legal Connection; 23 A Comparison of the Influence of Roman Law in England and Scotland; 24 The Civil Law in Scotland; GENERAL INTEREST: 25 Scotland as a Mixed Jurisdiction; 26 European Legal History and the Europeanisation of Law; 27 Legal Tradition, with Particular Reference to Roman Law; 28 Bibliography; List of Cases; Index.

Read more less

Book SynopsisThis book is an important contribution to the current lively debate about the relationship between law and society in the Roman world. This debate, which was initiated by the work of John Crook in the 1960''s, has had a profound impact upon the study of law and history and has created sharply divided opinions on the extent to which law may be said to be a product of the society that created it. This work is a modest attempt to provide a balanced assessment of the various points of view. The chapters within this book have been specifically arranged to represent the debate. It contains an introductory chapter by Alan Watson, whose views on the relationship between law and society have caused some controversy. In the remaining chapters a distinguished international group of scholars address this debate by focusing on studies of law and empire, codes and codification, death and economics, commerce and procedure. This book does not purport to provide a complete survey of Roman private law in light of RomaTable of ContentsCONTENTS; Preface; List of Contributors; List of Abbreviations; DEBATES AND CONTEXTS; Introduction: Themes and Literature; J . Cairns and P J du Plessis; 1 Law and Society; A Watson; LAW AND EMPIRE; 2 Legal Pluralism and the Roman Empires; K Tuori; 3 Diplomatics, Law and Romanization in the Documents from the Judaean Desert; E A Meyer; LAW CODES AND CODIFICATION; 4 Roman Law Codes and the Roman Legal Tradition; J Harries; 5 Diocletian and the Efficacy of Public Law; R Rees; DEATH, ECONOMICS AND SUCCESSION; 6 The Dutiful Legatee: Pliny, Letters V.1; A D E Lewis; 7 The Hereditability of Locatio Conductio; P J du Plessis; COMMERCE AND LAW; 8 Dealing with the Abyss: the Nature and Purpose of the Rhodian Sea-Law on Jettison (Lex Rhodia de Iactu, D 14.2) and the Making of Justinian's Digest; J-J Aubert; 9 Suing the Paterfamilias: Theory and Practice; D Johnston; PROCEDURE;; 10 Lawsuits in Context; E Metzger; 11 The Role of Delators; O F Robinson; Index.

Read more less

Book SynopsisHow important can a court and its members be in influencing the development of a country? In Scotland's case, the answer is surprising. This study investigates the important role of College members in the cultural and economic flowering of Scotland as a whole, and Edinburgh in particular.

Read more less

Book SynopsisRoman law as a field of study is rapidly evolving to reflect new perspectives and approaches in research. Scholars who work on the subject are increasingly being asked to conduct research in an interdisciplinary manner whereby Roman law is not merely seen as a set of abstract concepts devoid of any background, but as a body of law which operated in a specific social, economic and cultural context. This context-based, ''law and society'' approach to the study of Roman law is an exciting new field which legal historians must address.This interdisciplinary collection focuses on three larger themes which have emerged from these studies: Roman legal thought the interaction between legal theory and legal practice and the relationship between law and economics.

Read more less

Book SynopsisRe-establishes the importance of the ideas and legal philosophy of Scottish jurist and philosopher Lord Kames. This book explains Kames' conceptions of legal philosophy, including black letter law, legal science, legal theory, legal sociology and anthropology in its early stages, setting them in the context of the Scottish Enlightenment.

Read more less