Bringing together some of the most distinguished scholars in the field,
this volume looks at the comparative development of legal practice in
the early modern period across Europe. Focusing deliberately on the
impact of law courts on substantive law - and not on its systematisation
by learned jurists - it studies similarities and differences in the
development of the law across different jurisdictions. In doing so it
evaluates whether and to what extent it is possible to consider this
development as a unitary and truly European phenomenon. This collection
re-evaluates current debates surrounding the development of civil law in
the early modern period in the context of the grand narratives of
European legal history and sets out to challenge current orthodox views
about early modern civil law.