The Common Law

Name: The Common Law
Author: Oliver Wendell Holmes

By Oliver Wendell Holmes

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History - Other Law & Criminology

About This Book

This work gathers lectures that trace the development and doctrines of the common law, emphasizing that legal rules arise from experience and social needs rather than abstract logic. It examines early forms of liability originating in vengeance, the expansion of trespass to negligence and unforeseen harms, and the significance of intent, fraud, and malice in tort law. It also analyzes bailment, possession, the history and elements of contract (including void and voidable agreements), and successions both after death and inter vivos, using historical and doctrinal discussion to show how earlier practices shape present rules and tendencies.

About the Author

Oliver Wendell Holmes

Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr. was an American physician, poet, and essayist, known for his contributions to literature and his role in the development of American thought in the 19th century. He was a prominent figure in the literary circles of his time and is best remembered for his work "A Mortal Antipathy," which explores themes of love and social interaction through a unique narrative style. Holmes was also a key member of the Fireside Poets, a group that included notable contemporaries such as Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and James Russell Lowell. His essays, particularly those in "Medical Essays, 1842-1882," reflect his keen observations on society and culture, showcasing his wit and intellect.