273 events with tag "law"
1792 BC
ID: 3647
Hammurabi becomes king of Babylon - begins 42-year reign that will transform city-state into empire
ID: 3647
1754 BC
ID: 3649
Code of Hammurabi promulgated - 282 laws carved on stele, 'eye for an eye,' first complete legal code
ID: 3649
700 BC
ID: 5419
Roman law forbids women drinking wine - punishable by death, husbands can kill wives for wine drinking (ius osculi - right of kiss to detect)
ID: 5419
622 BC
ID: 2765
Josiah's reform - Book of Law found in Temple, covenant renewed, pagan altars destroyed throughout land
ID: 2765
458 BC
ID: 2790
Ezra returns to Jerusalem - brings 1,500 exiles, commissioned by Artaxerxes to teach Law
ID: 2790
451 BC
ID: 2649
Law of Twelve Tables published - first written Roman law, displayed in Forum, foundation of legal system
ID: 2649
450 BC
ID: 263
Twelve Tables of Roman Law published - first written laws, foundation of Roman legal system
ID: 263
400 BC
ID: 5416
Athenian wine laws - symposiarch controls mixing ratios (usually 3:1 water to wine), unmixed wine considered barbaric
ID: 5416
175 BC
ID: 5394
Rome bans wine export across Alps - attempts to prevent barbarian invasions by keeping Celts from wine, widely ignored by merchants
ID: 5394
50 BC
ID: 5345
Roman mining law codified - detailed regulations on claims, slaves, safety, ore processing, and taxation developed
ID: 5345
9
ID: 2733
Lex Papia Poppaea - strengthens marriage laws, ironic as both consuls proposing it are unmarried
ID: 2733
92
ID: 5439
Domitian bans provincial vineyards - orders half of provincial vines destroyed to protect Italian wine, widely ignored
ID: 5439
112
ID: 4131
Emperor Trajan's rescript on Christians - establishes legal precedent: Christians not to be hunted but punished if denounced and refuse to recant
ID: 4131
150
ID: 5332
Aljustrel bronze tablets - detailed mining laws found in Portugal, regulate everything from bath house hours to ore theft penalties
ID: 5332
503
ID: 2823
Salic Law codified - Clovis issues written law code for Franks, includes famous inheritance clause excluding women
ID: 2823
534
ID: 4763
Corpus Juris Civilis completed - Justinian's legal code becomes foundation of Western law
ID: 4763
643
ID: 4817
Edictum Rothari issued - Lombard law code combines Germanic customs with Roman law
ID: 4817
782
ID: 2898
Capitulatio de partibus Saxoniae - harsh laws for Saxony, death for refusing baptism or eating meat during Lent
ID: 2898
802
ID: 2913
Administrative reforms - Charlemagne sends missi dominici (royal inspectors) throughout empire, issues capitularies
ID: 2913
899
ID: 2558
October 26, 899
Death of Alfred the Great - only English king called 'Great', saved England, promoted learning and law
ID: 2558
920
ID: 5815
Edward the Elder codifies shire court system - ealdormen preside with shire reeves, but reeves protect royal fiscal interests
ID: 5815
1018
ID: 2638
Cnut's law code issued - synthesis of Anglo-Saxon and Danish law, effective administration
ID: 2638
1075
ID: 2129
Pope Gregory VII issues Dictatus Papae - 27 propositions asserting papal supremacy over temporal rulers and exclusive right to depose emperors
ID: 2129
1088
ID: 2130
University of Bologna founded - Irnerius begins teaching Roman law from newly discovered Digest of Justinian, birth of legal science in Western Europe
ID: 2130
1090
ID: 2131
Irnerius establishes the glossator method - systematic commentary on Roman law texts, creating foundation for European legal education
ID: 2131
1100
ID: 2132
First recorded use of term 'universitas' for collective legal personality - Bologna students form universitas scholarium with legal rights as corporate body
ID: 2132
1119
ID: 2133
Bologna receives charter recognizing student universitas - students gain right to elect rectors, negotiate with city, and internal jurisdiction
ID: 2133
1122
ID: 2134
Concordat of Worms - separation of spiritual and temporal investiture, foundation for dual legal systems
ID: 2134
1130
ID: 2135
Four Doctors emerge at Bologna - Bulgarus, Martinus, Jacobus, and Hugo become authoritative interpreters of Roman law
ID: 2135
1140
ID: 217
Gratian completes Decretum - systematic compilation of canon law, basis for Catholic legal system
ID: 217
1140
ID: 2136
Gratian completes Concordia discordantium canonum (Decretum) at Bologna - systematic harmonization of 3,800 texts of canon law, becomes foundation of Church legal system
ID: 2136
1150
ID: 2137
Vacarius brings Roman law to Oxford - begins teaching from his Liber Pauperum, introducing Continental legal science to England
ID: 2137
1155
ID: 2138
Authentica Habita - Frederick Barbarossa grants special legal privileges to scholars traveling to study, creating protected status for university members
ID: 2138
1158
ID: 2139
Diet of Roncaglia - Frederick Barbarossa consults Four Doctors on imperial rights (regalia), Roman law becomes tool of royal power
ID: 2139
1160
ID: 2140
Lombard city-states develop podestà system - hiring foreign legal professionals as neutral magistrates, creating market for trained lawyers
ID: 2140
1164
ID: 2375
Constitutions of Clarendon - Henry II attempts to subordinate Church courts to royal justice, Becket resists
ID: 2375
1166
ID: 2141
Assize of Clarendon - Henry II establishes royal criminal law procedures, jury of presentment, foundation of common law criminal justice
ID: 2141
1170
ID: 2142
Constitutions of Clarendon codified - defining boundaries between ecclesiastical and royal jurisdiction in England
ID: 2142
1179
ID: 2143
Third Lateran Council requires cathedral schools - legal education spreads beyond Bologna as Church mandates schools at every cathedral
ID: 2143
1180
ID: 2144
Ranulf de Glanvill writes 'Tractatus de legibus' - first systematic treatise on English common law procedures and writs
ID: 2144
1190
ID: 2145
Tancred of Bologna writes Ordo iudiciarius - standard procedural manual for ecclesiastical courts, spreads Romano-canonical procedure across Europe
ID: 2145
1200
ID: 2146
Venice develops commenda contract - legal partnership for maritime trade where investor provides capital, merchant provides labor, profits split by agreement
ID: 2146
1210
ID: 2147
Franciscan Order receives verbal approval - new form of religious corporation with radical poverty, challenging traditional monastic property holding
ID: 2147
1215
ID: 39
June 15, 1215
Magna Carta signed at Runnymede - limiting royal power under law
ID: 39
1215
ID: 2148
June 15, 1215
Magna Carta sealed at Runnymede - limiting royal power under law, establishing due process, 'law of the land' clause becomes foundation of constitutionalism
ID: 2148
1215
ID: 2149
November 1215
Fourth Lateran Council mandates annual confession and prohibits clergy from participating in ordeals - transforms both spiritual discipline and legal proof
ID: 2149
1220
ID: 2150
Azo publishes Summa Codicis - becomes standard textbook of Roman law, 'Chi non ha Azzo non vada a palazzo' (Who doesn't have Azo shouldn't go to court)
ID: 2150
1230
ID: 2151
Liber Extra promulgated by Gregory IX - first official collection of papal decretals, systematizes canon law legislation
ID: 2151
1241
ID: 3757
Jutland Law codified - Valdemar II creates unified law code, used until 1683
ID: 3757
1250
ID: 2152
Accursius completes Glossa Ordinaria - standard gloss on entire Corpus Juris Civilis, contains 96,940 glosses, becomes authoritative as the text itself
ID: 2152
1256
ID: 2153
Henry de Bracton writes De Legibus et Consuetudinibus Angliae - comprehensive treatise attempting to systematize English common law using Roman law methods
ID: 2153
1260
ID: 2154
Hostiensis develops theory of corporation - universitas as fictive person distinct from members, can own property, sue and be sued
ID: 2154
1271
ID: 2155
Statute of Mortmain - Edward I restricts transfer of land to religious corporations without royal license, addressing 'dead hand' problem
ID: 2155
1275
ID: 2156
First Statute of Westminster - comprehensive legal reforms including protection of church property and regulation of wardship
ID: 2156
1283
ID: 2157
Consulate of the Sea codified in Barcelona - maritime commercial law governing Mediterranean trade, includes partnership and insurance rules
ID: 2157
1283
ID: 2280
Statute of Acton Burnell - first English statute dealing with merchant debt, allowing imprisonment of defaulting debtors and seizure of goods
ID: 2280
1285
ID: 2158
Statute De Donis Conditionalibus - creates fee tail estates in England, allowing control of family property across generations
ID: 2158
1285
ID: 2281
Statute of Merchants (Statute of Westminster II) - strengthens creditor remedies, introduces recognizance procedure for merchant debts
ID: 2281
1290
ID: 2159
Statute Quia Emptores - ends subinfeudation in England, all land held directly from crown or mesne lord, modernizing feudal tenure
ID: 2159
1300
ID: 2160
Bartolus de Saxoferrato begins developing conflict of laws doctrine - theories for determining which law applies when multiple jurisdictions involved
ID: 2160
1303
ID: 2161
Unam Sanctam - Boniface VIII declares temporal power subject to spiritual, peak of papal legal claims before collapse at Anagni
ID: 2161
1307
ID: 2162
Knights Templar suppressed - Philip IV seizes Templar assets, demonstrating royal power over international religious corporation
ID: 2162
1315
ID: 2163
Year Books begin systematic reporting - creating body of English case law precedents, foundation of common law method
ID: 2163
1327
ID: 2282
First recorded cessio bonorum in Italian city-states - debtor surrenders all assets to creditors in exchange for discharge, prototype of bankruptcy
ID: 2282
1340
ID: 2283
Edward III defaults on loans from Peruzzi and Bardi banks - sovereign default causes collapse of major Italian banking houses
ID: 2283
1344
ID: 2164
Statute of Provisors - English parliament limits papal appointments to English benefices, asserting national control over church property
ID: 2164
1348
ID: 2165
Black Death transforms legal relations - labor shortage leads to Statute of Laborers attempting to freeze wages and restrict movement
ID: 2165
1350
ID: 2166
Bartolus writes on corporation theory - develops idea of corporate will distinct from members, foundation for modern corporate law
ID: 2166
1350
ID: 2284
Societas (partnership) forms standardized in Italian city-states - general and limited partnerships distinguished in notarial practice
ID: 2284
1351
ID: 2167
Statute of Laborers strengthened - criminalizes demanding higher wages, compulsory labor service, early labor law
ID: 2167
1356
ID: 65
Golden Bull issued - establishing electoral system for Holy Roman Emperor
ID: 65
1375
ID: 2285
Florence establishes specialized bankruptcy court - Mercanzia handles insolvency cases with summary procedure
ID: 2285
1380
ID: 2168
Use (trust) device becomes common in England - separating legal and beneficial ownership to avoid feudal incidents and control inheritance
ID: 2168
1391
ID: 2169
Statute of Mortmain extended to uses - attempt to prevent evasion of mortmain through trust device, showing crown recognition of trust mechanism
ID: 2169
1394
ID: 2286
Barcelona creates first comprehensive bankruptcy statute - distinguishing honest from fraudulent bankruptcy, allowing composition with creditors
ID: 2286
1400
ID: 2170
Medici bank pioneers double-entry bookkeeping for international branches - creating internal law of accounts, foundation for corporate accounting
ID: 2170
1403
ID: 2171
Statute of Henry IV recognizes cestui que use - beneficiary of trust can transfer beneficial interest, legitimizing trust mechanism
ID: 2171
1407
ID: 2172
Casa di San Giorgio established in Genoa - joint-stock company managing public debt, prototype of modern corporation
ID: 2172
1409
ID: 2173
English Chancellor begins systematic equity jurisdiction - developing parallel legal system to correct rigidities of common law
ID: 2173
1420
ID: 2174
Chancellor enforces uses (trusts) in conscience - creating body of trust law outside common law courts
ID: 2174
1421
ID: 2287
Genoa develops accomandita partnership form - sleeping partners with limited liability, active partners with unlimited liability
ID: 2287
1450
ID: 2175
Feoffment to uses widespread - majority of English land held in trust to avoid feudal obligations and control inheritance
ID: 2175
1453
ID: 2176
Fall of Constantinople brings Byzantine legal manuscripts West - Greek texts of Justinian trigger humanist legal scholarship
ID: 2176
1460
ID: 2177
Fortescue writes De Laudibus Legum Angliae - defending English common law against Roman law, articulating distinct English legal tradition
ID: 2177
1467
ID: 2288
Medici bank develops holding company structure - separate partnerships in each city under central control, early corporate group
ID: 2288
1474
ID: 2178
Venice passes first patent statute - granting exclusive rights to inventors for 10 years, birth of intellectual property law
ID: 2178
1481
ID: 2179
Consulado del Mar printed - spreading Mediterranean commercial law throughout Europe, standardizing maritime trade law
ID: 2179
1485
ID: 2180
Court of Chancery fully established - equity jurisdiction formalized under Chancellor as 'keeper of king's conscience'
ID: 2180
1487
ID: 2181
Star Chamber court formalized - using Roman law procedures in England for state trials, bypassing common law protections
ID: 2181
1494
ID: 2182
Luca Pacioli publishes Summa de Arithmetica including double-entry bookkeeping - spreading legal framework for corporate accounting
ID: 2182
1494
ID: 2289
Augsburg Fugger bank pioneers double-entry bookkeeping for bankruptcy proceedings - systematic accounting of assets and liabilities
ID: 2289
1497
ID: 5979
Ivan III issues Sudebnik (law code) - first unified legal code for all Russia, establishes centralized justice
ID: 5979
1500
ID: 2183
Mos gallicus emerges - French humanist legal scholars reject medieval glosses, return to original Roman texts using philology
ID: 2183
1502
ID: 2184
First permanent court of appeal (Parlement) outside Paris established at Rouen - creating hierarchical court system
ID: 2184
1516
ID: 2185
Concordat of Bologna - French king gains right to appoint bishops, controlling vast church property as state resource
ID: 2185
1530
ID: 2186
Reception of Roman law accelerated in Germany - imperial courts require Roman law training, displacing local customs
ID: 2186
1531
ID: 2187
Statute of Uses preparation begins - Henry VIII seeks to reclaim feudal revenues lost to trust device
ID: 2187
1531
ID: 2290
Antwerp develops bankruptcy certificate system - discharged debtors receive certificate allowing return to trade
ID: 2290
1535
ID: 2188
Statute of Uses enacted - attempts to execute uses and restore feudal incidents, but creates unintended consequences leading to modern trust
ID: 2188
1536
ID: 2291
Spain establishes quiebra (bankruptcy) procedures - automatic stay on creditor actions, elected syndics manage estate
ID: 2291
1540
ID: 2189
Statute of Wills - allows devise of land by will, compensating landowners for Statute of Uses
ID: 2189
1542
ID: 2292
First English bankruptcy statute under Henry VIII - only applies to traders, allows commissioners to seize and sell assets, no discharge
ID: 2292
1545
ID: 2190
Council of Trent begins reform of canon law - responding to Protestant challenge, clarifying marriage law and ecclesiastical jurisdiction
ID: 2190
1553
ID: 2191
Muscovy Company chartered - first English joint-stock company with perpetual succession and limited liability
ID: 2191
1556
ID: 2293
Philip II of Spain defaults - largest sovereign bankruptcy in history, German and Italian bankers ruined
ID: 2293
1566
ID: 2192
Dutch Revolt begins challenging Spanish commercial restrictions - fight for economic freedom leads to legal innovations
ID: 2192
1570
ID: 2294
English statute makes fraudulent bankruptcy a capital crime - concealing assets from creditors punishable by death
ID: 2294
1579
ID: 2193
Union of Utrecht establishes Dutch Republic - federal structure with provincial sovereignty, new model of governance
ID: 2193
1580
ID: 2194
Case of Sutton's Hospital - corporation can act through agents, establishing principle of corporate representation
ID: 2194
1585
ID: 2295
Dutch develop maatschap (partnership) and vennootschap (company) distinctions - partnerships personal, companies have separate existence
ID: 2295
1594
ID: 2195
Bank of Amsterdam prototype established - public deposit bank with transferable accounts, foundation for modern banking law
ID: 2195
1596
ID: 2296
Spanish Netherlands bankruptcy ordinance - first to allow voluntary bankruptcy petition by debtor, not just creditor-initiated
ID: 2296
1597
ID: 2196
First Dutch East Indies voyage returns 400% profit - demonstrating need for permanent capital and limited liability
ID: 2196
1600
ID: 2197
English East India Company chartered - monopoly on Asian trade with joint-stock structure and governor-and-company organization
ID: 2197
1602
ID: 2198
Dutch East India Company (VOC) established - first publicly traded company with permanent capital and transferable shares
ID: 2198
1604
ID: 2297
English bankruptcy law adds discharge provision - commissioners can grant certificate of conformity releasing cooperative debtor from debts
ID: 2297
1606
ID: 2199
Case of the Postnati (Calvin's Case) - Coke defines allegiance and nationality, foundation of birthright citizenship
ID: 2199
1607
ID: 2200
Bank of Amsterdam officially established - deposits guaranteed by city, accounts transferable by written order, creates commercial money
ID: 2200
1608
ID: 2201
Dutch develop grondbrief system - registered land titles with public recording, modernizing property law
ID: 2201
1609
ID: 2202
Amsterdam Stock Exchange opens - first official stock exchange with regular trading in VOC shares
ID: 2202
1609
ID: 2203
Hugo Grotius writes Mare Liberum - freedom of the seas doctrine, foundation of international law
ID: 2203
1609
ID: 2298
Bank of Amsterdam begins registering partnership agreements - creating public record of partnership terms and partners' authority
ID: 2298
1610
ID: 2204
Bonham's Case - Coke suggests common law can void acts of Parliament, early judicial review concept
ID: 2204
1611
ID: 2205
Dutch develop wisselbank system - negotiable bills of exchange with endorsement, creating commercial paper law
ID: 2205
1612
ID: 2206
Case of Monopolies - void restraints of trade at common law, foundation of antitrust principles
ID: 2206
1615
ID: 2207
Coke dismissed as Chief Justice for opposing royal prerogative - conflict over law versus sovereign will
ID: 2207
1620
ID: 2208
Francis Bacon's Novum Organum - empirical method influences legal proof and fact-finding
ID: 2208
1621
ID: 2209
Dutch West India Company chartered - innovations include dividend policy and director liability rules
ID: 2209
1623
ID: 2210
Statute of Monopolies - patents limited to new inventions for 14 years, foundation of modern patent law
ID: 2210
1623
ID: 2299
English statute requires creditor consent for bankruptcy discharge - 4/5ths in number and value must agree to certificate
ID: 2299
1625
ID: 2211
Grotius publishes De Jure Belli ac Pacis - systematic international law based on natural law and consent
ID: 2211
1628
ID: 2212
Petition of Right - Parliamentary declaration against forced loans and arbitrary imprisonment, constitutional milestone
ID: 2212
1629
ID: 2213
Massachusetts Bay Company charter - joint-stock company becomes self-governing commonwealth, corporation as government
ID: 2213
1635
ID: 2214
Ship Money Case - courts uphold royal prerogative taxation, contributing to Civil War
ID: 2214
1641
ID: 2215
Abolition of Star Chamber - common law triumphs over prerogative courts, due process protected
ID: 2215
1642
ID: 2216
English Civil War begins - fundamental conflict over source of law: king or Parliament
ID: 2216
1649
ID: 2217
Charles I executed - regicide justified by law above king, revolutionary legal principle
ID: 2217
1649
ID: 2300
Hanseatic League cities develop konkursordnung - priority rules for creditor payment, secured creditors first, then wages, then general creditors
ID: 2300
1651
ID: 2218
Hobbes publishes Leviathan - social contract theory, law as sovereign command, positivist foundation
ID: 2218
1653
ID: 2219
First written constitution in England (Instrument of Government) - Cromwell's protectorate, separation of powers
ID: 2219
1660
ID: 2220
Restoration of monarchy - Charles II returns but accepts Parliamentary limits, constitutional monarchy emerging
ID: 2220
1662
ID: 2301
Colbert establishes société en commandite in France - limited partnership form spreading from Italy, sleeping partners risk only investment
ID: 2301
1666
ID: 2221
Great Fire of London leads to Fire Court - special tribunal using summary procedure, early disaster law
ID: 2221
1670
ID: 2222
Bushel's Case - jury independence established, jurors cannot be punished for verdict, foundation of jury rights
ID: 2222
1670
ID: 2302
Hudson's Bay Company uses partnership within corporation - factors trade as partners but within corporate structure
ID: 2302
1672
ID: 2223
Stop of the Exchequer - Crown defaults on debt, leading to development of public debt law
ID: 2223
1673
ID: 2224
Test Act - religious requirements for office holding, linking civil rights to religious conformity
ID: 2224
1673
ID: 2303
French Ordinance of Commerce (Code Savary) - comprehensive commercial code including bankruptcy and partnership rules, model for Europe
ID: 2303
1676
ID: 2225
Lord Nottingham begins systematizing equity - transforming Chancellor's conscience into predictable legal rules
ID: 2225
1677
ID: 2226
Statute of Frauds - requiring written evidence for certain contracts and trusts, formalizing commercial transactions
ID: 2226
1679
ID: 2227
Habeas Corpus Act - statutory protection against arbitrary detention, procedural safeguards strengthened
ID: 2227
1680
ID: 2228
Duke of Norfolk's Case - Rule against Perpetuities emerging, limiting dead hand control of property
ID: 2228
1681
ID: 2304
French Code de Commerce distinguishes three partnership types - société générale (general), en commandite (limited), and anonyme (by shares)
ID: 2304
1682
ID: 2229
Lord Nottingham decides Cook v. Fountain - establishing modern trust principles distinguishing legal and equitable ownership
ID: 2229
1685
ID: 2230
Revocation of Edict of Nantes - Huguenot refugees bring commercial law expertise to England and Netherlands
ID: 2230
1688
ID: 2231
Glorious Revolution - Parliamentary supremacy established, Bill of Rights limits crown, rule of law triumphs
ID: 2231
1689
ID: 2232
English Bill of Rights enacted - catalogue of rights and liberties, parliamentary control of taxation and army
ID: 2232
1690
ID: 2233
John Locke's Second Treatise - property rights from labor, government by consent, influences legal thought
ID: 2233
1692
ID: 2305
Daniel Defoe imprisoned for bankruptcy - owes £17,000, writes Essay on Projects proposing bankruptcy reform while in Fleet Prison
ID: 2305
1694
ID: 2234
Bank of England founded - joint-stock company managing national debt, merger of public and private law
ID: 2234
1696
ID: 2235
Board of Trade established - regulating colonial commerce, developing imperial commercial law
ID: 2235
1697
ID: 2236
Last execution for blasphemy in Scotland - Thomas Aikenhead hanged, showing waning of religious criminal law
ID: 2236
1697
ID: 2306
First bankruptcy commissioners' manual published in England - standardizing procedures for asset collection and distribution
ID: 2306
1698
ID: 2237
London Stock Exchange informally begins at Jonathan's Coffee House - self-regulating market emerges
ID: 2237
1700
ID: 2238
Act of Settlement - Protestant succession secured, judges removable only by Parliament, judicial independence
ID: 2238
1701
ID: 2239
Yale College charter - corporation for education with self-perpetuating board, academic corporation model
ID: 2239
1703
ID: 2240
Ashby v. White - right to vote is property right enforceable at law, expanding property concept
ID: 2240
1703
ID: 2307
Scottish bankruptcy law allows discharge after 5 years - more liberal than English law, reflecting Roman cessio bonorum tradition
ID: 2307
1705
ID: 2241
Lord Chief Justice Holt modernizes commercial law - negotiable instruments recognized at common law
ID: 2241
1705
ID: 2308
English statute makes bankruptcy discharge permanent - previously could be revoked if debtor acquired new property
ID: 2308
1707
ID: 2242
Act of Union creates Kingdom of Great Britain - Scotland retains separate legal system, legal pluralism
ID: 2242
1710
ID: 2243
Statute of Anne - first copyright statute, authors' rights for 14 years renewable, birth of copyright
ID: 2243
1711
ID: 2244
South Sea Company chartered - joint-stock company for government debt conversion, financial innovation
ID: 2244
1715
ID: 2245
Riot Act - reading proclamation makes assembly unlawful, expanding state power over public order
ID: 2245
1718
ID: 2309
English partnership law recognizes implied partnership - acting as partners creates legal partnership even without agreement
ID: 2309
1719
ID: 2246
Transportation Act - systematic deportation of convicts to colonies as criminal punishment
ID: 2246
1720
ID: 2247
South Sea Bubble collapse - speculation scandal leads to Bubble Act restricting joint-stock companies
ID: 2247
1720
ID: 2248
Bubble Act - prohibits joint-stock companies without charter, reaction to South Sea Bubble
ID: 2248
1721
ID: 2310
Law of Copartnership by Giles Jacob published - first English treatise on partnership law, attempts to systematize common law rules
ID: 2310
1723
ID: 2249
Waltham Black Act - creates 50 new capital crimes, harsh criminal law for property protection
ID: 2249
1726
ID: 2250
Lord Hardwicke becomes Lord Chancellor - begins 20-year transformation of equity into systematic jurisprudence
ID: 2250
1726
ID: 2311
Lex Mercatoria by Gerard Malynes establishes partnership principles - mutual agency, fiduciary duties, profit sharing presumptions
ID: 2311
1729
ID: 2251
Lord Hardwicke establishes modern mortgage law - equity of redemption protected, 'once a mortgage always a mortgage'
ID: 2251
1732
ID: 2252
Georgia charter - trusteeship model for colony, charitable corporation for debtors and poor
ID: 2252
1732
ID: 2312
English Bankruptcy Act reforms - Lord Chancellor gains supervisory power over commissioners, beginning of judicial control
ID: 2312
1735
ID: 2253
John Peter Zenger trial - truth as defense to seditious libel, foundation of press freedom
ID: 2253
1736
ID: 2254
Porteous Riots in Edinburgh - crowd justice against captain who fired on smugglers, legitimacy crisis
ID: 2254
1737
ID: 2255
Lord Hardwicke develops doctrine of part performance - oral trusts of land enforceable if relied upon
ID: 2255
1737
ID: 2313
Stop of the Exchequer cases establish partnership by estoppel - holding out as partner creates liability to third parties
ID: 2313
1738
ID: 2256
Lord Hardwicke's rule in Gee v. Pritchard - equity acts in personam, foundation of equitable remedies
ID: 2256
1740
ID: 2257
Frederick the Great abolishes torture in Prussia - Enlightenment reforms of criminal procedure
ID: 2257
1743
ID: 2258
Lord Hardwicke decides Penn v. Lord Baltimore - equity enforces agreements between sovereigns, expanding jurisdiction
ID: 2258
1744
ID: 2314
Prussian bankruptcy code allows rehabilitation after 10 years - bankrupt can return to full civil rights, influenced by Enlightenment
ID: 2314
1747
ID: 2259
Lord Hardwicke's decision in Burgess v. Wheate - trustee holds legal title but no beneficial interest, modern trust structure
ID: 2259
1748
ID: 2260
Montesquieu's Spirit of the Laws - separation of powers doctrine, profoundly influences constitutional design
ID: 2260
1750
ID: 2261
Iron Act restricts colonial manufacturing - mercantile system using law to control colonial economy
ID: 2261
1751
ID: 2262
Murder Act - denying burial to murderers, bodies given for dissection, exemplary punishment
ID: 2262
1751
ID: 2315
English courts develop doctrine of partnership dissolution by death - partnership automatically ends on partner's death unless agreed otherwise
ID: 2315
1753
ID: 2263
Jewish Naturalization Act passed then repealed - religious minorities and citizenship rights debated
ID: 2263
1754
ID: 2264
Lord Mansfield appointed Chief Justice - begins modernizing commercial law with law merchant principles
ID: 2264
1756
ID: 2265
Lord Mansfield establishes marine insurance law in Carter v. Boehm - uberrimae fidei (utmost good faith) doctrine
ID: 2265
1757
ID: 2316
Lord Mansfield begins reforming commercial law - treats partnership as mercantile institution, applies law merchant principles
ID: 2316
1758
ID: 2266
Emerigon publishes Traité des Assurances - systematizing maritime insurance law, international influence
ID: 2266
1759
ID: 2317
Grace v. Smith - Lord Mansfield rules partnership property held in trust for partnership purposes, not individual partners
ID: 2317
1760
ID: 2267
Lord Mansfield modernizes consideration doctrine - moral obligations can support contracts in some cases
ID: 2267
1762
ID: 2268
Rousseau's Social Contract - general will theory, law as expression of popular sovereignty
ID: 2268
1764
ID: 2269
Beccaria's On Crimes and Punishments - proportionality, deterrence, opposing torture and death penalty
ID: 2269
1764
ID: 2318
Amsterdam creates eerste kamer (first chamber) for bankruptcy - specialized commercial court with merchant judges
ID: 2318
1765
ID: 2270
Stamp Act triggers colonial resistance - 'no taxation without representation' as legal principle
ID: 2270
1765
ID: 2271
Blackstone's Commentaries begin publication - systematic exposition of English law, enormous influence
ID: 2271
1766
ID: 2272
Declaratory Act - Parliament claims right to legislate for colonies 'in all cases whatsoever'
ID: 2272
1767
ID: 5995
Catherine the Great convenes Legislative Commission - attempts Enlightenment legal reform, writes Nakaz instruction
ID: 5995
1769
ID: 2273
Lord Mansfield protects customary rights in Millar v. Taylor - early intellectual property theory
ID: 2273
1770
ID: 2274
Lord Mansfield decides Somerset's Case - slavery has no support in common law, must be established by positive law
ID: 2274
1771
ID: 2319
English Bankruptcy Act allows trading debtor to petition for own bankruptcy - previously only creditors could initiate
ID: 2319
1772
ID: 2275
Somerset v. Stewart decided - slave freed on English soil, 'the air of England is too pure for a slave to breathe'
ID: 2275
1773
ID: 2276
Boston Tea Party - property destruction as political protest, challenging legal authority
ID: 2276
1774
ID: 2277
Quebec Act - French civil law preserved in Quebec, legal pluralism in British Empire
ID: 2277
1775
ID: 2278
American Revolution begins - fundamental challenge to legal authority, natural rights versus positive law
ID: 2278
1776
ID: 2320
Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations criticizes limited liability - argues unlimited liability ensures prudent management
ID: 2320
1776
ID: 2279
July 4, 1776
Declaration of Independence - natural rights philosophy becomes revolutionary legal document, government by consent
ID: 2279
1777
ID: 2321
French establish juridiction consulaire - merchant courts for bankruptcy with elected merchant judges
ID: 2321
1783
ID: 2322
Fox's India Bill proposes partnership model for empire - East India Company as partnership between Crown and Company
ID: 2322
1787
ID: 2323
French Royal Edict allows société en commandite par actions - limited partnership with tradeable shares, hybrid of partnership and corporation
ID: 2323
1790
ID: 2324
First U.S. partnership case - Willet v. Willet establishes American partnership law follows English common law
ID: 2324
1793
ID: 2325
Lord Loughborough establishes modern partnership accounting - partners entitled to full accounting on dissolution
ID: 2325
1794
ID: 2326
Jay Treaty includes bankruptcy provisions - reciprocal recognition of bankruptcy proceedings between Britain and United States
ID: 2326
1797
ID: 2327
Robert Morris imprisoned for debt - financier of American Revolution spends 3 years in debtors' prison, sparking bankruptcy law debate
ID: 2327
1800
ID: 2328
First U.S. Bankruptcy Act passed - applies only to merchants and traders, allows voluntary and involuntary bankruptcy, discharge available
ID: 2328
1803
ID: 2329
U.S. Bankruptcy Act repealed - Federalist law seen as favoring merchants over farmers, states resume control
ID: 2329
1807
ID: 2330
French Commercial Code (Code de Commerce) - Napoleon systematizes bankruptcy and partnership law, influence spreads across Europe
ID: 2330
1808
ID: 2331
Gow v. Berry - English case establishes partnership at will can be dissolved by any partner at any time
ID: 2331
1813
ID: 2332
English Insolvent Debtors Act - allows non-traders to obtain release from debtors' prison after surrendering property
ID: 2332
1815
ID: 2333
Story's partnership treatise draft - Joseph Story begins work on first American partnership law treatise (published 1841)
ID: 2333
1819
ID: 2334
Sturges v. Crowninshield - U.S. Supreme Court upholds state bankruptcy laws in absence of federal law
ID: 2334
1825
ID: 2335
English Bankruptcy Consolidation Act - comprehensive reform, codifies 11 previous statutes, creates modern bankruptcy framework
ID: 2335
1827
ID: 2336
Ogden v. Saunders - Supreme Court rules state bankruptcy laws cannot impair contracts made before enactment
ID: 2336
1831
ID: 2337
English Bankruptcy Court established - specialized court with dedicated judges replaces commissioner system
ID: 2337
1837
ID: 2338
Registration of partnerships required in France - public registry of partnership agreements, partners, and capital contributions
ID: 2338
1841
ID: 2339
Story publishes Commentaries on Partnership - first comprehensive American treatise, synthesizes common law and equity
ID: 2339
1844
ID: 2340
Joint Stock Companies Act - first general incorporation in England, registration without special charter, but unlimited liability remains
ID: 2340
1848
ID: 2341
Cox v. Hickman - House of Lords rules profit-sharing alone doesn't create partnership, intention required
ID: 2341
1849
ID: 2342
Limited Partnership Act (New York) - first American limited partnership statute, based on French commandite
ID: 2342
1849
ID: 2343
English Insolvent Debtors Act extended - all persons can petition for insolvency, not just traders
ID: 2343
1852
ID: 891
Massachusetts implements first compulsory education law
ID: 891
1855
ID: 2344
Limited Liability Act - shareholders' liability limited to unpaid share amount, revolution in corporate finance
ID: 2344
1856
ID: 2345
Joint Stock Companies Act consolidation - general incorporation with limited liability by simple registration
ID: 2345
1861
ID: 2346
English Bankruptcy Act - abolishes debtors' prisons except for fraud, bankruptcy becomes economic not moral issue
ID: 2346
1862
ID: 2347
Companies Act consolidates English corporate law - model for Commonwealth countries, spreads limited liability globally
ID: 2347
1865
ID: 2348
Pooley v. Driver - partnership creditors have priority over partners' individual creditors in partnership assets
ID: 2348
1867
ID: 2349
Second U.S. Bankruptcy Act - passed after Civil War, applies to all persons not just traders, involuntary and voluntary
ID: 2349
1869
ID: 2350
Debtors Act abolishes imprisonment for debt in England - except for deliberate refusal to pay when able
ID: 2350
1874
ID: 2351
U.S. Bankruptcy Act amended - allows compositions with creditors, 50% can bind all if court approves
ID: 2351
1878
ID: 2352
U.S. Bankruptcy Act repealed again - opposition from agrarian interests, states resume control
ID: 2352
1883
ID: 2353
English Bankruptcy Act - Official Receiver created, public official supervises all bankruptcies
ID: 2353
1888
ID: 2354
German Partnership Code (HGB) - distinguishes OHG (general), KG (limited), and stille Gesellschaft (silent) partnerships
ID: 2354
1889
ID: 2355
Salomon v. Salomon litigation begins - test case for one-man company and corporate personality
ID: 2355
1890
ID: 2356
English Partnership Act - Pollock's draft codifies partnership law, defines partnership as 'relation between persons'
ID: 2356
1892
ID: 2357
German GmbH Act - creates new limited liability company form for small business, spreads across Europe
ID: 2357
1897
ID: 2358
Salomon v. Salomon decided - House of Lords upholds one-man company, separate corporate personality absolute
ID: 2358
1898
ID: 2359
U.S. Bankruptcy Act (Nelson Act) - permanent federal bankruptcy law, creates referee system, allows voluntary bankruptcy
ID: 2359
1901
ID: 2360
Australian Bankruptcy Act - federal law for new Commonwealth, combines English and American features
ID: 2360
1907
ID: 2361
Limited Partnership Act (England) - finally allows limited partnerships after resistance from unlimited liability tradition
ID: 2361
1908
ID: 2362
Companies (Consolidation) Act - requires disclosure of financial statements, beginning of mandatory transparency
ID: 2362
1914
ID: 2363
Uniform Partnership Act (UPA) promulgated - American uniform law treats partnership as aggregate of individuals
ID: 2363
1916
ID: 2364
Uniform Limited Partnership Act - American standardization of limited partnership across states
ID: 2364
1919
ID: 2365
German Bankruptcy Code reform - allows discharge without creditor consent, social view of bankruptcy
ID: 2365
1925
ID: 1331
Denmark passes sterilization law
ID: 1331
1926
ID: 2366
English Bankruptcy Act - consolidates Victorian reforms, official receiver system mature, discharge liberalized
ID: 2366
1933
ID: 1403
Nazi Law for the Prevention of Defective Progeny - 400,000 Germans immediately targeted
ID: 1403
1933
ID: 2367
U.S. Securities Act - disclosure requirements for public companies, response to 1929 crash
ID: 2367
1934
ID: 2368
Corporate bankruptcy reorganization in U.S. - Section 77B allows companies to restructure not just liquidate
ID: 2368
1938
ID: 2369
Chandler Act reforms U.S. bankruptcy - creates Chapter X (corporate reorganization) and Chapter XI (arrangements)
ID: 2369