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Dakota Civil Code: More Notes For An Uncelebrated Centennial, William B. Fisch

Faculty Publications

In an earlier article in this journal, I sketched and discussed the Dakota Civil Code as originally drafted for New York by David Dudley Field, the historical and conceptual background into which the work was cast, and some of the departures made in the Code from what appear to have been then generally accepted common law classifications, terminology and substantive rules. In this sequel I propose to consider the history of the Code after its completion in 1865 by Field's commission, concentrating on three jurisdictions: New York, where it was rejected after twenty-five years of wearying debate, amendment, parliamentary maneuver, …