Dear Colleagues:

 

Three books have been released (or will soon be released) which will be of interest to many on the list.  Congratulations to the many ODGer authors, editors and contributors.

 

1. Prue Vines and M Scott Donald, eds, Statutory Interpretation in Private Law (Federation Press):  In the past 50 years private law has undergone a revolution: statutes are now prevalent in every area. This book considers how judges in private law cases should respond to this change. How are statutes to be interpreted in this area with its deep historical roots, and is it reasonable to think that statutory interpretation might have different aspects and emphases in private law compared with public law? The book canvasses some general questions about how statutory interpretation operates in private law, such as whether there should be a different concept of the principle of legality in private law, or whether parliamentary intention might include an understanding of private law. Particular applications such as the role of statutory interpretation in contributory negligence, defamation, directors’ duties, consumer law and equity are also considered.

 

The Table of Contents and ordering information can be found here: https://www.federationpress.com.au/bookstore/book.asp?isbn=9781760022051

 

2. David Rolph, ed, Landmark Cases in Defamation Law (Hart): Landmark Cases in Defamation Law is a diverse and engaging edited collection that brings together eminent scholars from the United Kingdom, the United States, Australia, Canada and New Zealand to analyse cases of enduring significance to defamation law. The cases selected have all had a significant impact on defamation law, not only in the jurisdiction in which they were decided but internationally. Given the formative influence of English defamation law in the United States, Australia, Canada and New Zealand, the focus is predominantly on English cases, although decisions of the United States and Australia are also included in the collection. The authors all naturally share a common interest in defamation law but bring different expertise and emphasis to their respective chapters. Among the authors are specialists in tort law, legal history and internet law. The cases selected cover all aspects of defamation law, including defamatory capacity and meaning; practice and procedure; defences; and remedies.

 

A 20% discount is available if the instructions on the attached ordering form are followed.  For more information: https://www.bloomsbury.com/au/landmark-cases-in-defamation-law-9781509916702/

 

3. Mark Lunney, A History of Australian Tort Law 1901–1945 England's Obedient Servant? (CUP, Paperback edition):  Little attention has been paid to the development of Australian private law throughout the first half of the twentieth century. Using the law of tort as an example, Mark Lunney argues that Australian contributions to common law development need to be viewed in the context of the British race patriotism that characterised the intellectual and cultural milieu of Australian legal practitioners. Using not only primary legal materials but also newspapers and other secondary sources, he traces Australian developments to what Australian lawyers viewed as British common law. The interaction between formal legal doctrine and the wider Australian contexts in which that doctrine applied provided considerable opportunities for nuanced innovation in both the legal rules themselves and in their application. This book will be of interest to both lawyers and historians keen to see how notions of Australian identity have contributed to the development of an Australian law.

 

A 20% discount is available if the instructions on the attached ordering form are followed.  For more information: https://www.cambridge.org/us/academic/subjects/law/legal-history/history-australian-tort-law-19011945-englands-obedient-servant?format=PB

 

Happy Reading,

 

Jason Neyers
Professor of Law
Faculty of Law
Western University
Law Building Rm 26
e. jneyers@uwo.ca
t. 519.661.2111 (x88435)