Continuity, Influences and Integration in Scottish Legal History

Hector MacQueen has been a member of the Edinburgh Law School since 1979. Appointed to the Chair of Private Law in 1994, he was Dean of the Law School 1999-2003, and Dean of Research and Deputy Head of the College of Humanities and Social Science in the University 2004-2008. He is currently a Scottish Law Commissioner. He is the author of many books and articles on Scots law and its historical development in comparative perspective, and of key textbooks such as The Scottish Legal System (5th edition) (2013), Unjustified Enrichment Law Basics (3rd edition) (2013), and Studying Scots Law 4th edition (2012).

• Introduction: David Sellar, Legal Historian,H L MacQueenThe Continuity of Scottish Legal History: An Overview Part I: Celtic Law and Birlaw: Customary LawCeltic Law and Scots Law: Survival and IntegrationMarriage, Divorce and Concubinage in Gaelic Scotland The Lyon and the Seannachie Birlaw Courts and Birleymen Part II: The Influence of English LawEnglish Law as a Source of Stair’s Institutions The Resilience of the Scottish Common Law Scots Law: Mixed from the Very Beginning? A Tale of Two Receptions Part III: The Influence of Canon Law: Marriage, Divorce and HomicideMarriage by Cohabitation with Habit and Repute: Review and Requiem? Marriage, Divorce and the Forbidden Degrees: Canon Law and Scots LawForethocht Felony, Malice Aforethought and the Classification of Homicide Part IV: The Influence of English and Canon Law: SuccessionJuridical Acts Made in Contemplation of Death Succession Courtesy, Battle and the Brieve of Right, 1368Part V: The Influence of the European Jus CommunePromise Presumptions

There are sixteen essays (let us call them chapters)in the book, of which three are directly concerned with Gaelic and the Highlands, and four contain passages of interest to Highland historians. Another nine are simply well worth reading by anyone, for David had an engagingly fluid, anecdotal style, and topics like cohabitation (Ch. 9), divorce (Ch. 10), murder (Ch. 11) and deathbed wishes (Ch. 12) come alive before our eyes.