Professor Emeritus Shael Herman (Tulane Law School) recently published Civil Recodification in an Anglophone Mixed Jurisdiction: A Bricoleur’s Playbook in 58 Loyola Law Review, 487-558 (2012). The article describes the process of the revision of the law of obligations in 1984, with a nuanced analysis of the remarkable role the late Saúl Litvinoff (1925-2010) played, as Committee Reporter for the Louisiana State Law Institute, in the revision process. Don Saúl is depicted as a master of “bricolage,” adjusting to the unique mentality of the Louisiana legal community (one may revise the code without changing the law), and bringing in foreign elements without making them visible. The article highlights the rich cross-fertilization between Louisiana and other civil law jurisdictions across the globe, regrettably ignored by the other United States. It is a must-read, especially for those interested in Obligations, and law making in mixed jurisdictions.
Read also: Essays in Honor of Saúl Litvinoff (Olivier Moréteau, Julio Romañach, Jr., & Alberto Zuppi eds., 2008)
Photos depict Don Saul receiving the Essays in Honor of Saúl Litvinoff from the three editors, first in his office, and then at a reception.
