Nothing so Practical as a Good Theory: Festschrift for George L Gretton

Professor George Gretton’s contribution to legal scholarship in Scotland and beyond over the last forty years has been immense. “He has shown us how to live the scholarly life”, his longstanding friend and colleague, Professor Kenneth Reid writes in the foreword. “There is a brilliance and vitality to his writing and a distinctiveness of voice that mark it out as work of exceptional quality.” Professor Gretton’s interests are varied and wideranging. As a teacher he is held in affection by generations of students. His period of service as a Scottish Law Commissioner from 2006 to 2011 was a distinguished one, which culminated in the enactment of the Land Registration etc (Scotland) Act 2012. He is well known to the legal profession in Scotland for his annual conveyancing lectures with Professor Reid.

This book marks Professor Gretton’s retirement in 2016 as Lord President Reid Professor of Law in the University of Edinburgh. Contributions have been made by colleagues and friends from academia, the judiciary and legal practice. They are collected within subject areas of particulr interest to him, including the law of obligations, the law of property, the law of succession and the law of trusts. The essays include both discussions of Scots law and the law of other jurisdictions, including France, Germany, Louisiana, Quebec and South Africa, as well as a reflection by Professor Gretton himself. The volume will be of interest to his former students, to his academic and professional colleagues and to private lawyers everywhere.