These first two volumes arising from a series of high-level seminars held at Oxford in 1993 bring together leading academics, practitioners, and judges to identify current trends in English law and assess how the law will develop in the future, particularly in the areas of restitution and property, general common law, judicial review, and child law.

The 'Frontiers of Liability' is the title of a series of high-level seminars held in All Souls College, Oxford during 1993 and 1994. Drawing together top academics, practitioners and judges, these seminars have sought to identify current trends in English law and have provided a forum for experts to give their assessment of how the law will develop in the future. The papers produced for the first 4 seminars and the comments made by the distinguished rapporteurs are reproduced in this volume. Anyone interested in the future of the law of restitution, the common law, judicial review, and the law relating to children will find these essays essential reading. Contributors: Charles Harpum, Sir Leonard Hoffman, Peter Birks, William Swadling, Sir Peter Millett, John Birds, W. R. Cornish, Sir Patrick Neill, Martin Loughlin, D. J. Galligan, Peter Cane, Andrew Bainham, Sheriff David Kelbie, J. M. Thomson, Stephen Cretney

This book explores how the design, construction, and use of robotics technology may affect today’s legal systems and, more particularly, matters of responsibility and agency in criminal law, contractual obligations, and torts. By distinguishing between the behaviour of robots as tools of human interaction, and robots as proper agents in the legal arena, jurists will have to address a new generation of “hard cases.” General disagreement may concern immunity in criminal law (e.g., the employment of robot soldiers in battle), personal accountability for certain robots in contracts (e.g., robo-traders), much as clauses of strict liability and negligence-based responsibility in extra-contractual obligations (e.g., service robots in tort law). Since robots are here to stay, the aim of the law should be to wisely govern our mutual relationships.

Roman law as a field of study is rapidly evolving to reflect new perspectives and approaches in research. Scholars who work on the subject are increasingly being asked to conduct research in an interdisciplinary manner whereby Roman law is not merely seen as a set of abstract concepts devoid of any background, but as a body of law which operated in a specific social, economic and cultural context. This context-based, 'law and society' approach to the study of Roman law is an exciting new field which legal historians must address. This interdisciplinary collection focuses on three larger themes which have emerged from these studies: Roman legal thought the interaction between legal theory and legal practice and the relationship between law and economics.

The most exciting development in legal thinking since World War II has been the growth of interdisciplinary legal studies. Judge Richard Posner has been a leader in this movement, and his new book explores its rapidly expanding frontier.