header-logo header-logo

Book review: Anglo-American Law: A Comparison

12 August 2020 / Harry Potter
Categories: Features , Constitutional law
printer mail-detail
"As much an argument as a disquisition, and full of amusing asides, it pulls no punches about the danger of judicial activism..."

Author: Michael Arnheim
Publisher: Talbot Publishing
ISBN: 9781616196325
Price: £70 hb, £7.98 ebook

From the author of The US Constitution for Dummies, this book is in similar vein and covers some of the same material. It provides a comparative overview of the legal systems in England and America, accompanied by many analyses of cases mainly relating to torts, privacy and human rights. Criminal law is absent. 

As much an argument as a disquisition, and full of amusing asides, it pulls no punches about the danger of judicial activism which is rife in both jurisdictions. Almost every page is thought-provoking and contentious. The main thesis is that in England, beginning with the case of Donoghue v Stephenson in 1932 (‘the year of the snail’ as Arnheim calls it), legal principle has been increasingly sacrificed to judicial law-making.

The issue of judicial encroachment into the sovereignty of parliament

If you are not a subscriber, subscribe now to read this content
If you are already a subscriber sign in
...or Register for two weeks' free access to subscriber content

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Gilson Gray—Paul Madden

Gilson Gray—Paul Madden

Partner appointed to head international insolvency and dispute resolution for England

Brachers—Gill Turner Tucker

Brachers—Gill Turner Tucker

Kent firm expands regional footprint through strategic acquisition

Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan—William Charles

Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan—William Charles

Financial disputes and investigations specialist joins as partner in London

NEWS
Ministers’ proposals to raise funds by seizing interest on lawyers’ client account schemes could ‘cause firms to close’, solicitors have warned
Pension sharing orders (PSOs) have quietly reached their 25th anniversary, yet remain stubbornly underused. Writing in NLJ this week, Joanna Newton of Stowe Family Law argues that this neglect risks long-term financial harm, particularly for women
A school ski trip, a confiscated phone and an unauthorised hotel-room entry culminated in a pupil’s permanent exclusion. In this week's issue of NLJ, Nicholas Dobson charts how the Court of Appeal upheld the decision despite acknowledged procedural flaws
Is a suspect’s state of mind a ‘fact’ capable of triggering adverse inferences? Writing in NLJ this week, Andrew Smith of Corker Binning examines how R v Leslie reshapes the debate
The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has not done enough to protect the future sustainability of the legal aid market, MPs have warned
back-to-top-scroll