Law Commons^™

A New Right To Property: Civil War Confiscation In The Reconstruction Supreme Court, Daniel W. Hamilton

Daniel W. Hamilton

During the Civil War, both the Union Congress, in the First and Second Confiscation Acts, and the Confederate Congress, in the Sequestration Act, put in place sweeping confiscation programs designed to seize the private property of enemy citizens on a massive scale. This paper compares property confiscation in the Union and the Confederacy. It examines congressional debates, the social impact of confiscation legislation, and the interpretation of confiscation doctrine by the Supreme Court. I contend that the Civil War experiment with confiscation helped cause an important shift in American property ideology and constitutional law by accelerating the rise of liberal …

The Beecher Sisters As Nineteenth-Century Feminist Icons Of The Sameness-Difference Debate, Tracy A. Thomas

Tracy A. Thomas

This essay reviews the recent book, The Beecher Sisters by Barbara White, through the lens of feminist theory. It argues that each of the three great women chronicled in the book – Catharine Beecher, Harriet Beecher Stowe, and Isabella Beecher Hooker – serve as icons for each of the distinct strands of modern feminist thought. Barbara White, a professor emeritus of women’s studies at the University of New Hampshire, has given the field of women’s legal history a boost with her interdisciplinary contribution to the social and legal history of women. In The Beecher Sisters, White introduces us to each …

Proyecto De Ley Sobre Juicio Por Jurados, Dr Leonardo J. Raznovich

Dr Leonardo J Raznovich

This article published in Spanish provides with an assessment of a bill sent to the Argentinean Parliament in order to implement trial by jury for serious criminal matters. It also provides with a historical overview of the institution and with some possible explanations why the Argentinean legislator has been reluctant to fulfill the constitutional mandate of implementing trial by jury for all criminal matters (articles 24, 75 (12) and 118 of the Argentinean Constitution).

Власть И Отечественная Наука: Формирование Государственной Политики (1917-1941 Гг.), Leonid G. Berlyavskiy

Leonid G. Berlyavskiy

Despite cardinal changes of political regime throughout 1917-1941, the science remained essential factor of the social development in the USSR. The essence of the State scientific policy was use and development with a view of the socialist modernisation. By the State were applied such methods, as legislative adjustment, State budgetary financing, management of system of the organisation scientific activities, political control on the researces.

The Agency Law Origins Of The Necessary And Proper Clause, Robert G. Natelson

Robert G. Natelson

This is the first of several writings by the author on the original meaning of the Constitution's Necessary and Proper Clause. It explains part of the legal background of the Clause, identifies it as a recital (not an independent grant of power) of the 18th century doctrine of incidental powers, and explains the content of that doctrine. The article has since been updated and supplemented by the author's signed chapters in Lawson, Miller, Natelson & Seidman, The Origins of the Necessary and Proper Clause (Cambridge Univ. Press, 2010).

The General Welfare Clause And The Public Trust: An Essay In Original Understanding, Robert G. Natelson

Robert G. Natelson

This article explains the original meaning/understanding of the Constitution's General Welfare Clause, including the scope of the taxing and spending power granted to Congress

The Constitution And The Public Trust, Robert G. Natelson

Robert G. Natelson

The American Founders believed that public officials were bound by fiduciary obligations, and they wrote that view into the Constitution. This article copiously documents their position.

El Vino Y El Derecho: La Regulación Jurídica De La Producción, Comercio Y Consumo Del Vino En México (1529-1888), Óscar Cruz

Óscar Cruz Barney

No abstract provided.

Government And The Economy, 1688 - 1850, Ron Harris

Ron Harris

No abstract provided.

A Key Influence On The Doctrine Of Actual Malice: Justice William Brennan’S Judicial Philosophy At Work In Changing The Law Of Seditious Libel, Carlo A. Pedrioli

Carlo A. Pedrioli

In light of the historical change in the law of seditious libel that New York Times v. Sullivan (1964) prompted and the need for further exploration of the human factors behind the case, this article gives attention to William Brennan’s judicial philosophy at work in the case. The article defines judicial philosophy as a system of guiding principles upon which a judge calls in the process of legal decision-making. Specifically, the article explains how, through Times v. Sullivan, Brennan’s instrumentalist judicial philosophy had an important influence on changing the course of legal protection for criticism of the government in the …

The Anglo-American Legal Heritage Introductory Materials, Daniel Coquillette

Daniel R. Coquillette

This fascinating book about our legal heritage is copiously illustrated with original materials. From our cultural roots in the Roman law, the Anglo-Saxon dooms, and English feudalism, to modern crises of social revolution and reform. Coquillette's work shows how legal culture is part of what has been called the "seamless web" of history. Most introductory books rely heavily, if not exclusively, on secondary sources. This book, however, provides carefully edited and chosen primary sources and culminates with provocative excerpts of the most recent twentieth century historical criticism. Also included are many useful charts and diagrams, and an extensive bibliography for …

The Birth Of A "Logical System": Thurman Arnold And The Making Of Modern Administrative Law, Mark Fenster

Mark Fenster