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Custom as a Source of Law

Custom as a Source of Law

Custom as a Source of Law

Author: David J. Bederman
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521721820
Published In: October 2010
Format: Paperback
Jurisdiction: U.K. ? Disclaimer:
Countri(es) stated herein are used as reference only

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A central puzzle in jurisprudence has been the role of custom in law. Custom is simply the practices and usages of distinctive communities.

But are such customs legally binding? Can custom be law, even before it is recognized by authoritative legislation or precedent? And, assuming that custom is a source of law, what are its constituent elements? Is proof of a consistent and long-standing practice sufficient, or must there be an extra ingredient - that the usage is pursued out of a sense of legal obligation, or, at least, that the custom is reasonable and efficacious?

And, most tantalizing of all, is custom a source of law that we should embrace in modern, sophisticated legal systems, or is the notion of law from below outdated, or even dangerous, today? This volume answers these questions through a rigorous multidisciplinary, historical, and comparative approach, offering a fresh perspective on custom's enduring place in both domestic and international law.

Most recent, comprehensive treatment of customary law in nearly a half-century
Interdisciplinary and comparative in scope
Combines jurisprudential perspectives on custom, with historical and doctrinal analysis
Examines customary law in both domestic law and international contexts

Contents:: Part I. Customary Law in Perspective; 1. Anthropology: custom in pre-literate societies; 2. Culture: the western legal tradition of positivism; 3. History: the common law and custom; 4. Economics, socio-biology and psychology: the human impulse of custom; Part II. Custom in Domestic Legal Systems:
5. Family law; 6. Property; 7. Contracts; 8. Torts; 9. Constitutional law; Part III. Custom in International Law; 10. Private international law: international commercial usage; 11. Public international law: custom among nations; Conclusion: how and why custom endures

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