The Evolution of Law
The Evolution of Law
Political Foundations of Private Law in Medieval Europe and Japan
This chapter traces the historical process that led to the rise of one of the specific features of the Western legal tradition, the emphasis on private law and the reliance on adjudication disputes. It examines a parallel historical process of fragmented power structures in Japan that partly accounted for the emergence of a similar Japanese legal tradition of adjudication as the primary means of formal law enforcement. However, in comparison with Western legal tradition, there is a distinct absence of a conceptual system of law or legal rights that could enable recognition of substantive rules and analogous principles of private or public laws. Still, this chapter notes that this historical background of political fragmentation and reliance on adjudication laid the foundation for the successful reception of European private law during the late nineteenth century.
Keywords: adjudication disputes, European private law, political fragmentation, Japan, formal law enforcement
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