Common Law Commons^™

The Politics Of Statutory Construction, Daniel M. Harris

BYU Law Review

No abstract provided.

Origins Of The Common Law (A Three-Part Series)-Part Ii. Anglo-Saxon Antecedents Of The Common Law, David A. Thomas

BYU Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Incompetent Spouse's Election: A Pecuniary Approach, Susan P. Barnabeo

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

Although many state legislatures have preserved the incompetent widow's right of election, these states have developed only general guidelines to govern such an election. These guidelines merely direct the court to act in the "best interests" of the incompetent widow. Courts of the various jurisdictions differ in their approach to determining the "best interests" of the incompetent. Most courts examine all surrounding circumstances regarding the incompetent widow's situation, such as the intent of both the wife prior to her incompetency and of the testator, and the adequacy of the will's provision for the incompetent widow. A minority of jurisdictions, however, …

Qualified Common Law Privilege For News Reporters In Criminal Cases—State V. Rinaldo, 102 Wn. 2d 749, 689 P.2d 392 (1984), Susan Ward

Washington Law Review

In State v. Rinaldo, the Washington Supreme Court extended the news reporter's qualified common law privilege to criminal cases. This extension will adequately protect most confidential information held by reporters. In some cases, however, defendants will be able to defeat the qualified privilege announced in Rinaldo. The Washington courts should then construe article 1, section 5 of the Washington State Constitution to require in camera inspection of the information sought. The trial judge should order disclosure only upon concluding that the defendant's interest in obtaining the information outweighs the news reporter's interest in confidentiality.

The Most Sacred Text: The Supreme Court's Use Of The Federalist Papers, James G. Wilson

BYU Law Review

No abstract provided.

English Common Law In Virgina, William Hamilton Bryson

Law Faculty Publications

By statute the common law of England is the basis of the common law of modern Virginia. This reception statute refers to the customary, unwritten law of the kingdom of England, but only that part which was general and common to all parts of England. That the English common law is the foundation of the law of Virginia is a matter not merely of a modern statute but also of history and reason.

Perpetuities: A Perspective On Wait-And-See, Lawrence W. Waggoner

Articles

Professor Dukeminier and I agree on most of the important points concerning perpetuity law and perpetuity reform. We agree that the Rule Against Perpetuities still serves a socially useful function of limiting dead hand control, and should not be abolished. We also agree that the common law Rule is needlessly harsh and should be softened. Finally, we agree on the type of reform that is most desirable-waitand- see. Our only disagreeihent-concerns the best method of marking off the wait-and-see perpetuity pe]iqod-the period of time during which dispositions that would have been invalid under the common law Rule are to be …

A Rejoinder By Professor Waggoner, Lawrence W. Waggoner

Articles

Since the patience of the reader and the space in this issue of the Law Review are nearing their limits, I wish to publish only two points in response to what Professor Dukeminier has written.. These points further support my position that Dukeminier's proposed statute would lead almost anyone to conclude that A, not X, is the causal relationship measuring life in Example 1 of my article.1 By implication, these points, along with the others made in my article, corroborate my overall thesis: Professor Dukeminier's proposed one-sentence statute2 cannot be counted a responsible way of identifying the measuring lives for …

The Common Law Powers Of Federal Courts, Thomas W. Merrill

Faculty Scholarship

Lawmaking by federal courts has been a matter of controversy since the early days of the Republic. In the last forty years, the debate has fallen into roughly two periods, with Roe v. Wade marking the dividing line. During what might be called the "legal process" era of the 1950's and 1960's, scholarly energy was focused on Erie Railroad v. Tompkins and what was then called the "new federal common law." To be sure, important work on judicial review was also done in those years, particularly in the wake of the Supreme Court's dramatic decision in Brown v. Board of …

The Right And The Reasonable, George P. Fletcher

Faculty Scholarship

As the common law relies on the concept of "reasonableness," the civil law relies on the concept of "Right." Professor Fletcher argues that reliance on reasonableness enables the common law to develop rules that can be voiced in a single standard. Such rules permit what Professor Fletcher terms 'flat" legal thinking. In contrast, the civil law's reliance on the concept of Right leads it to develop rules that proceed in two stages: the first rule asserts an absolute right; the second, a limitation based upon criteria other than Right. The application of such rules proceeds by what Professor Fletcher terms …

Islamic Family Law And Anglo-American Public Policy, David Pearl

Cleveland State Law Review

This Article discusses the response of the English judiciary and legislature to the differing expectations and norms of the Muslim community living in its midst. Although the emphasis is necessarily on the English experience, it is hoped that the problems and the reactions will have echoes on the other side of the Atlantic. England, perhaps more than the United States, enjoys an ecclesiastical entrenchment in historical terms. Little of this experience however should be left in the ongoing day to day reality of the administration of family law. This Article proposes that pluralism and diversity must be a central theme …

Book Review Of Passion: An Essay On Personality , Richard F. Devlin Frsc

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

Passion is a cogently structured, compel Jingly argued and seductively enthralling masterpiece which, in years to come, will undoubtedly stand out as an inspirational source for many who seek social transformation. Unger's style, in this essay at least, is lucid and inviting. Substantively, Passion demonstrates not only the depth of his penetrating intellect but also his command of an array of' disciplines. Unger's polymathy is all the more impressive when we remember that ours is an era in which idiosyncratic specialization is the norm.

The Changing Common Law, Morton J. Horwitz

Dalhousie Law Journal

I am very pleased and honoured to have been asked to participate in this centennial celebration. For me, it underlines the common bonds between the people of Canada and of the United States, who, in spite of various stresses and strains, manage to live side by side in peace and mutual respect. May we continue to set an example for the rest of the world. Until I read John Willis' very interesting history of Dalhousie Law School, I had not fully realized that I am here simply as another link in a long-standing relationship between Dalhousie and Harvard Law Schools. …

The Future Of The Common Law Tradition, Alan Watson

Dalhousie Law Journal

The majority of Western systems of private law is habitually divided by scholars into civil law systems and common law systems. Eastern Canada fortunately partakes of both traditions - the civil law in Quebec and common law in the other provinces. One difference between the two traditions is the greater and earlier emphasis that was placed on the teaching of civil law in universities. In conformity to this, Quebec had three university law schools before the common law provinces had any; they were McGill (established in 1848), Laval (established in 1854), and Laval in Montreal (in 1878). But Dalhousie was …

Origins Of The Common Law ( A Three-Part Series) Part I: The Disappearance Of Roman Law From Dark Age Britain, David A. Thomas

BYU Law Review

No abstract provided.

Justice Through Law-Historical Dimensions Of The American Law School, Calvin Woodard

Journal of Legal Education

No abstract provided.

The Unnecessary Doctrine Of Necessaries, Michigan Law Review

Michigan Law Review

This Note argues that neither the traditional nor the modem necessaries doctrines are justifiable in contemporary society. Part I investigates the practical effects of both the traditional and contemporary necessaries doctrines and demonstrates that neither is an effective mechanism for providing support to a needy spouse. While a more successful support remedy might be devised to replace modem and traditional versions of the necessaries rule, Part II shows that yet another reformulation would not be worthwhile because the theoretical underpinnings of the doctrine are faulty. There is no persuasive evidence to establish the existence of the narrow support problem the …

Concealing Legislative Reform In The Common-Law Tradition: The Advancements Doctrine And The Uniform Probate Code, Mary L. Fellows

Vanderbilt Law Review

This essay first sets forth the doctrine of advancements and includes a discussion of its suitability for a study of statutory reform and the purpose and origin of the doctrine. The essay then demonstrates how a presumption against finding an advancement that can be rebutted only by a writing showing a contrary intent operates as a practical repeal of advancements. Next, the essay explores the rationales of the drafters of the Uniform Probate Code(UPC) in repealing the advancements doctrine by subterfuge and analyzes the costs of reform by subterfuge. Finally, the essay recommends an alternative approach to reforming the advancements …

Christianity As Part Of The Common Law, Jayson L. Spiegel

North Carolina Central Law Review

No abstract provided.

Criminal Justice In Colonial America, 1606-1660, Michigan Law Review

Michigan Law Review

A Review of Criminal Justice in Colonial America, 1606-1660 by Bradley Chapin

Froud V. Celotex Corp.: Rebirth Of An Adage, 17 J. Marshall L. Rev. 781 (1984), Thomas F. Londrigan

UIC Law Review

No abstract provided.

Voluntary Termination Of Joint Tenancies: Illinois Eliminates The Strawman, 17 J. Marshall L. Rev. 765 (1984), Jeffrey W. Jackson

UIC Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Fee Awards Act Of 1976: Examining The Foundation For Legislative Reform Of Attorney's Fees Shifting, 18 J. Marshall L. Rev. 77 (1984), Randall R. Rader

UIC Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Jurisprudence Of The Connecticut Constitution, Richard Kay

Faculty Articles and Papers

No abstract provided.

Do Bad Fences Make Bad Neighbors In New York After Scurti V. City Of New York?, David A. Zarett

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

Press Privacy And Malice: Reflections On New York Times Co. V. Sullivan, Irving R. Kaufman

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Perplexing Borders Of Justification And Excuse, Kent Greenawalt

Faculty Scholarship

This Article's central theme is that Anglo-American criminal law should not attempt to distinguish between justification and excuse in a fully systematic way. I explore three possible bases for drawing the distinction: (1) a distinction between warranted and wrongful conduct; (2) a division between general and individual claims; and (3) a distinction based on the rights of others. I show why none of these bases yields a clear and simple criterion for categorization. The difficulty rests largely on the conceptual fuzziness of the terms ''justification" and "excuse" in ordinary usage and on the uneasy quality of many of the moral …

Inequality In Marital Liabilities: The Need For Equal Protection When Modifying The Necessaries Doctrine, Debra S. Betteridge

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

This Note contends that the "primary/secondary" modification is unconstitutional because it ignores the husband's equal protection rights while unlawfully stigmatizing women as dependent. Part I discusses how the growing independence of women has led courts to modify the common law doctrine. Part II develops the test that the Supreme Court would apply in judging the constitutionality of any modification of the doctrine. Part III applies this test to the "primary/secondary" modification and concludes that the modification is unconstitutional and, therefore, not a legitimate reformation of the common law necessaries doctrine.

The Common Law In The Twentieth Century, A. J. Stone Q.C.

Dalhousie Law Journal

Comparing the judicial with the legislative approach to law-making is the stuff of academic debate. I do not propose to enter upon that debate in this short discussion, except to concede that each approach has its strengths, each its weaknesses, and each its separate role. My purpose is, rather, to examine the making of law by the judiciary as it illustrates the inherent capacity of the common law for change and for growth in a dynamic society. This century has seen several extraordinary developments of the common law in Canada, England, and the United States, the leading example of which …

Substantial Similarity Between Video Games: An Old Copyright Problem In A New Medium, Steven G. Mcknight

Vanderbilt Law Review

Courts have faced a variety of imaginative arguments advocating that video games not receive copyright protection but unanimously have rejected them. A more difficult copyright issue for courts has been deciding whether one video game illegally has copied another. Of the cases involving illegal video game copying that courts presently have decided, only Atari, Inc. v. North American Philips Consumer Electric Corp." has found copyright infringement by a video game that was not virtually identical to the original game.

Part II of this Recent Development discusses the requirement in copyright infringement actions that, in proving copying, a defendant's allegedly infringing …