Reviews

"Hoffer outlines the main features of English law and legal institutions, describes their transmission to New England and Virginia, and argues for the emergence of 'an American way of law, a style of keeping order and resolving disputes' that was more open and less formalistic than that of England... Legal and social historians will applaud the appearance of this synthesis, and, in a decade's time, will demand a revised edition."

"A synthetic essay of considerable grace and scope... An excellent overview of the field."

"This book more than succeeds in achieving its goal of helping students understand and appreciate the cultural and intellectual environment of the Anglophone world."