Author Archives: John Cairns

All legal historians know the importance of the work of Mike Widener in developing greater knowledge about rare books, particularly through the Rare Book School at Yale Law Library. He is offering it again this summer. See the note below: … Continue reading →

On 23 November, at the winter graduation ceremony in law at the University of Edinburgh, four research students in legal history took their degrees. In alphabetical order they were: Peter Candy, currently Sir John Baker Lecturer and Research Fellow at … Continue reading →

Your blogger has been involved in a variety of projects relating to the Session Papers, one of the most important historical sources on Scots law and Scottish history (politics, economic, social). None of these projects has come to fruition through … Continue reading →

For most of his academic career, your blogger has been interested in both the legal profession and legal education. The topics are of course closely linked. Two recently published books are worth drawing to the attention of the readers of … Continue reading →

One fascinating historical study is that of the dress of lawyers and judges. In general in all the European countries lawyers have historically worn some type of robe to demonstrate their status and judges have worn robes specific to their … Continue reading →

Most law firms have antecedents back through the centuries. In recent years, there have been many amalgamations, and law firms can end up holding interesting caches of documents that once belonged to clients, or that they acquired in the course … Continue reading →