Description:
Seventeen essays use the concept of "legality" to explore ways in which early Americans ordered their relationships as individuals, groups, classes, communities, and states. Addressing issues of gender, ethnicity, family, patriarchy, culture, and dependence, contributors explore the transatlantic context of early American law, the negotiation between European and indigenous cultures, and the transformation of many legalities to a uniform legal culture.
Brief description: Christopher L. Tomlins is a senior research fellow at the American Bar Foundation in Chicago.