Liberty and the Common Law

England’s legal system, which has since spread beyond its country of origin, resulted from an uncommon combination of centuries of input from a wide variety of sources. Harry Potter traces its roots and follows its branches.

Westminster Hall, 1730The Common law of England has been compared to a broad river with many tributaries or to a tree with many deep roots and myriad branches. It is inherently conservative in a Burkean sense: its authority depends on its antiquity, on its ability to change and on popular involvement and public acceptability. 

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