Deciphering a Civil Code, by Alain A. Levasseur

Carolina Academic Press just published

Deciphering a Civil Code

Sources of Law and Methods of Interpretation

by Alain A. Levasseur

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The primary purpose of this book is to dispel some misunderstandings —  or even erroneous views — on what a “code” is and, more specifically, how one can work with a “civil code.” The text explains that in a civil law system, codification is the product of the combination of three sources of law: legislation, jurisprudence or court cases, and doctrine or legal scholarship. It then analyzes the many different methods of reasoning and interpretation that can be used under a civil code and illustrates these methods as applied to code articles and to three decisions of the Louisiana Supreme Court. Thus, the book explains and justifies the “long lasting life” of civil codes, particularly the French Civil Code of 1804 (also referred to as the Code Napoléon) and the Louisiana Civil Code of 1825.

Related title:

Dictionary

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Welcome to the 2016 LL.M. Class!

The LSU Law Center proudly welcomes the 2016 LL.M. in Comparative Law Class, composed of seven candidates from France, Nigeria, Romania, Russia, and Sri Lanka. We wish them all a fulfilling year, full of success.

LLM Class of 2016

From left to right, Marina Biragova (Russia), Alina Ciortea (Romania), Sara Vono (France), Thakshila Jayasinghe (Sri Lanka), Amalia Ciolpan (Romania), Modupe Iyun (Nigeria), Prof. Olivier Moréteau (LL.M. Director), and Alexandru Gociu (Romania).

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The seven LL.M. Candidate in the Senate, Louisiana State Capitol (Baton Rouge).

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Professor Emeritus Robert A. Pascal Turned 100

Professor Emeritus Robert Anthony Pascal celebrated his 100th birthday on July 5, 2015. A long time LSU law professor, his scholarship spanned over 72 years, with a first article in the very first issue of the Louisiana Law Review in 1938 and an electronic book in 2010: see Robert Anthony Pascal, A Priest of Right Order (O. Moréteau ed.), including a selection of his best articles and a so-far unpublished memoir (Recollection of a Life Studying and Teaching Law).

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Prof. Moréteau visiting with Prof. Pascal on the occasion of his 100th birthday

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The 4th Worldwide Congress of the World Society of Mixed Jurisdiction Jurists in Pictures

McGill University, Faculty of Law, June 24-26, 2015.

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Prof. Melissa (Missy) Lonegrass giving her remarks

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L’Honorable Nicholas Kasirer, Justice of the Court of Appeal of Quebec, delivering his keynote speech

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Prof. Olivier Moréteau and Paul Baier with Justice Kasirer

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Prof. Paul & Mrs. Barbara Baier with Justice Nicholas Kasirer

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Three LSU Faculty to Present at the Fourth Worldwide Congress of The World Society of Mixed Jurisdiction Jurists

The World Society of Mixed Jurisdiction Jurists

Fourth Worldwide Congress

McGill University Faculty of Law, Montreal, Canada

June 24-26, 2015

“The Scholar, Teacher, Judge, and Jurist in a Mixed Jurisdiction”

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Professors Paul Baier, Missy Lonegrass and Olivier Moréteau are presenting papers:

  • Teaching Justinian’s Code, Scalia’s Constitution, and François Gény, Louisiana and Beyond: Par la Constitution, mais au-delà de la Constitution – Paul R. Baier
  • Code and Commentary in a Mixed Jurisdiction—The Louisiana Experience – Melissa T. Lonegrass
  • Teaching the Civil Law in Louisiana: Should the Professor Be System-Neutral or Militant? – Olivier Moréteau

BaierPaul-Bio LonegrassMissy-Bio MoreteauOlivier-Bio

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History of Codification in Louisiana and Quebec

John Cairns (Edinburgh)’s Codification, Transplants and History: Law Reform in Louisiana (1808) and Quebec (1866) (The Lawbook Exchange, 2015) is now available:

CairnsWhen Louisiana enacted its Digest of the Civil Laws in 1808 and Quebec its Civil Code of Lower Canada in 1866, both jurisdictions were in a period of transition economic, social and political. In both, the laws had originally been transplanted from European nations whose societies were in many ways different from theirs.

This book offers the first systematic and detailed exploration of the two new codes in light of social and legal change. Cairns examines the rich, complex, and varying legal cultures French, Spanish, Civilian and Anglo-American on which the two sets of redactors drew in drafting their codes. He places this examination in the context surrounding each codification, and the legal history of both societies.

Cairns offers a detailed analysis of family law and employment in the two codes, showing how their respective redactors selected from a defined range of sources and materials to construct their codes. He shows that they acted relatively freely, attempting to inscribe into law rules reflecting what they understood to be the needs of their society from an essentially intuitive and elite perspective. While not propounding a universal theory of legal development, Cairns nonetheless shows the types of factors likely to influence legal change more generally. xlv, 559 pp.

(Posted by Sean Patrick Donlan on Juris Diversitas)

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L’équipe de choc du CCLS / The CCLS Summer Team

Sarah Charlat, Delphine Drouard and Sara Vono are ending this weekend a very fruitful and enjoyable three-month internship, a crown on their Master’s Program in Trilingual Legal Studies at University of Nantes. The translation of the Louisiana Civil Code into French has gone a long way and will be completed next year, with the financial support of the Partner University Fund (PUF).

The CCLS is also hosting two French doctorate candidates, Julie Grangeon (Lyon) and Florian Thomas (Nantes). The top floors of the Old Law Building have truly become the French Floors!

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From left to right, Jennifer Lane, Delphine Drouard, Sarah Charlat, Sara Vono, Olivier Moréteau

CCLS Summer 2015

From left to right, Jennifer Lane, Delphine Drouard, Florian Thomas, Sarah Charlat, Sara Vono, Julie Grangeon

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The New Orleans sound of legal translation

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Au Mémorial acadien, Saint Martinville

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Avec Elaine Clément, Directrice du Mémorial et Muséee acadien à St Martinville

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Swamp tour on Lake Martin: we outsource for Photoshop

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Ready for a swamp tour on Lake Martin

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LSU at Maastricht University

On June 1, Prof. Olivier Moréteau gave a presentation at the Maastricht University European Private Law Institute as part of the M-EPLI Talks. 2 former LSU Distinguished Foreign Visitors, 3 LSU LL.M. graduates, 2 former CCLS Research Associates, 3 current CCLS Contributing Fellows were in attendance: Prof. Jan Smits, M-EPLI Director, Prof. Michael Faure, METRO Director, Dr. Agustin Parise, Julieta Marotta-Parise, Alexandru-Daniel On, and Dr. Matthias Martin (visiting from Nancy, a former M-EPLI speaker).

Prof. Moréteau jokingly said, before presenting on How Codes Connect to Legal Systems: Revisiting the Concept of Code through a Study of Peripheral Provisions (a draft chapter of his forthcoming Comparative Legal History research book), that it felt as if the Director of the LSU CCLS Baton Rouge annex was visiting the LSU CCLS headquarters in Maastricht!

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Prof. Jan Smits, M-EPLI Director and LSU Distinguished Visitor 2006, introduces Prof. Olivier Moréteau

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From left to right, Julieta Marotta (LLM 2007), Dr. Agustin Parise (LLM 2006, former CCLS Research Associate), Dr. Matthias Martin (CCLS Foreign Researcher 2014), Alexandru-Daniel On (LLM 2013, former CCLS Research Associate) and Dr. Olivier Moréteau (CCLS Director)

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Olivier Moréteau, Christa and Jan Smits

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Il Codice Civile, The First Translation of the French Civil Code

Sara V. Pic, Reference Librarian at the Law Library of Louisiana (400 Royal Street, New Orleans), assembled a unique exhibition on the Italian translation of the Napoleonic Code. The Il Codice Civile exhibition can also be visited online.

Italian Translation Nap Code

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Juris Diversitas Annual Conference, Limerick, Ireland, June 2-4, 2015

 

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ANNUAL CONFERENCE 

University_of_Limerick

School of Law, University of Limerick, Ireland

THE STATE OF/AND COMPARATIVE LAW

 

 

Tuesday, June 2, 2015

14:00                     Registration

14:30                     Welcoming Address

In memoriam Roderick A. Macdonald (1948-2014) and H. Patrick Glenn (1940-2014)]

14:45                     Plenary – Keynote

Chair: Seán Patrick Donlan

  • A Theoretical Basis for Comparative Legal Pluralism, Brian Z. Tamanaha, Washington University School of Law (United States)

16:00-16:30         Break

16:30-18:00         Parallel Sessions I

I.A          Legal Pluralism in Africa

  • The Dominance of Legal Pluralism in a Post-Colonial South Africa: Where do We Stand almost Three and a Half Centuries after Western Legal Transplantation?, Christa Rautenbach, North-West University (South Africa)
  • The Relevance of Comparative Jurisprudence in the Namibian Legal System, Samuel Amoo, University of Namibia (Namibia)
  • Mapping or Codifying? The Project on the Ascertainment of Customary Law in Somaliland, Salvatore Mancuso, University of Cape Town (South Africa)

I.B           Views of Law and the Cities

  • The Interaction between Non-Judicial Mechanisms of Conflict Resolution and the State: the Case Study of Maputo, Concetta Tina Lorizzo, University of Cape Town (South Africa)
  • Plurality and the City, Julian Sidoli del Ceno, Birmingham City University (United Kingdom)

I.C           New Dimensions of Constitutionalism

  • Constitutions beyond the State: a Miracle or a Mirage?, Ekaterina Yahyaoui Krivenko, National University of Ireland, Galway (Ireland)
  • An Approach to Comparative Environmental Constitutionalism, Francois Venter, North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus (South Africa)
  • La démocratie moderne au miroir de la pensée chinoise, Frédérique Rueda-Despouey, University of Bordeaux (France)

18:00-19:00         Reception – Juris Diversitas Book Series Launch

Wednesday, June 3, 2015

9:00-10:30           Parallel Sessions II

II.A         Law, Religion and Tradition

  • The British Religious and Secular Courts in Historical and Comparative Perspective, Martin Sychold, Swiss Institute of Comparative Law (Switzerland)
  • Interaction between Common Law and Islamic Law in Nigeria: a study of the application of the doctrine of Stare-Decisis in some Islamic Law cases in Northern Nigeria, Ahmed S. Garba, Bauchi State University, Gadau (Nigeria)
  • Traditio Canonica and Legal Tradition: The Role of the Canon Law in Contemporary Legal Debate, Lorenzo Cavalaglio, University of Udine (Italy)

II.B         Interaction and Convergence: Mixed Approaches

  • Liability for Losses Caused by Administrative Action in South Africa and the Netherlands, Rolien Roos, North-West University (South Africa)
  • The Convergence of Defamation in English Tort and French Criminal Law, Mathilde Groppo, King’s College London, Dickson Poon School of Law (United Kingdom)
  • Public or Private? Comparing the German and British Approaches to Enforcing Consumer Protection, Shane Patrick McNamee, University of Bayreuth (Germany)

10:30-11:00         Break

11:00-12:00         Parallel Sessions III

III.A        Legal Cosmopolitanism in Territorialized and De-Territorialized Law

  • Resorting to International Instruments for the Interpretation of European Private Law, Isabelle Rueda, University of Sheffield (United Kingdom)
  • International Commercial Arbitration, lex mercatoria, UNIDROIT Principles and Models Laws: Legal Cosmopolitanism within the World of Affairs?, Matteo Dragoni, University of Pavia (Italy)

III.B        Of Elites and their Influence

  • On Legal Elites and the Legal Profession in Cyprus, Nikitas Hatzimihail, University of Cyprus (Cyprus)
  • Anglo-Phone Legality: Ciceronian, Socratic and Derridian, Joseph P. Garske (United States)

III.C        Structuring Mixed Legal Systems

  • The Political Purpose of a Mixed Legal System Conception: The Case of Scotland, Andreas Rahmatian, University of Glasgow (Scotland)
  • Quebec’s “droit commun” as its Basic General Law, Matthieu Juneau, Université Laval, Québec (Canada)

12:00-14:00         Lunch

14:00-15:30         Parallel Sessions IV

IV.A       Comparative law, Circulation and Transplants

  • Comparative Law in Russia and CIS, Irina Moutaye, Institute of Legislation & Comparative Law, Moscow (Russia)
  • Legal Transplants and European Private Law, Domitilla Vanni di San Vincenzo, University of Palermo (Italy)
  • The Circulation of Legal Arguments among Courts : The Case of Brown v. Board of Education, Maria Chiara Locchi, University of Perugia (Italy)

IV.B        Intercultural Integration: Cosmopolitism and Pluralism

  • Errant Law: Spaces and Subjects, Mario Ricca, University of Parma, (Italy)
  • Living Together in a Critical, Pluralist and Cosmopolitan State?, Emma Patrignani, University of Lapland (Finland)
  • Comparing Hybrid Legal Systems in India: Similarities in Diversity, Andrea Borroni and Marco Seghesio, Seconda Università degli Studi di Napoli (Italy)

IV.C        Justified and Unjustified Enrichment

  • Unjustified Enrichment: Should South Africa Venture into the Thick Forest of Passing on Defence?, Aimite Jorge, University of Namibia (Namibia)
  • Unjust or Unjustified? A German-English Picture Puzzle, Nathalie Neumayer, University of Vienna (Austria)
  • Contract Formation in Context of Morality, Customs and Praxeology, Jakub Szczerbowski, University of Social Sciences and Humanities (Poland)

15:30-16:00         Break

16:00-17:15         Plenary – Keynote

  • Forms of Combined Comparative Research: Synchronised or Restricted?, Katharina Boele-Woelki, University of Utrecht (The Netherlands)

19:00                     Conference Dinner

Thursday, June 4, 2015

9:00-10:30           Parallel Sessions V

V.A         Indigenous Law and State Law

  • Explicit-Implicit Legal Pluralism, Elina Moustaira, University of Athens (Greece)
  • Critical Legal Pluralism in Afghanistan, Nafay Choudhury, American University of Afghanistan (Afghanistan)
  • Implications of an Adaptation Theory of Indigenous Law on Legal Pluralism in Africa, Anthony C. Diala, University of Cape Town (South Africa)

V.B         Shifts in Transmitting Property and Nationality

  • Remodeling Values Protected by the Law of Succession in the European Union, Elwira Macierzynska-Franaszczyk, Kozminski University (Poland)
  • Comparative Analyses of Testamentary Capacity, Linda Schoeman, University of Pretoria (South Africa)

10:30-11:00         Break

11:00-12:00         Parallel Sessions VI

VI.A       Challenging Legal Traditions

  • Socio-Cultural Challenges to Comparative Legal Studies in Mixed Legal Systems, Esin Örücü, University of Glasgow (Scotland)
  • From Law as a Legal Tradition to Traditions Invented Through Law: a European Perspective, Lorenzo Bairati, University of Pollenzo (Italy)

VI.B        Pluralistic Views on Land Issues in Indonesia

  • Controversies on the Existences of Indigenous Lands in Indonesia, Rina Shahriyani Shahrullah and Elza Syarief, Universitas Internasional Batam (Indonesia)
  • Legal Pluralism and Land Administration in West Sumatra: The Implementation of the Regulations of both Local and Nagari Governments on Communal Land Tenure, Hilaire Tegnan, Andalas University, Padang (Indonesia)

VI.C        Clash or Balance? Cyber Security v. Privacy, DNA v. Presumption of Innocence

  • A Vague Balance between Cyber Security and Right of Privacy: Israeli, International and Italian Law in a Comparative Perspective, Paola Aurucci, University of Milan (Italy)
  • A Clash of Icons? Is DNA Evidence Posing Threats to Presumption of Innocence in Ireland and France?, Michelle-Thérèse Stevenson, University of Limerick (Ireland)

12:00-14:00         Lunch

14:00-15:30         Parallel Sessions VII

VII.A      Panel – Buddhist Legal Traditions

  • Buddhist Tradition(s) on Law and Governance, Ignazio Castellucci, University of Trento (Italy)
  • Tibetan Epiphanies of Buddhist Law, Andrea Serafino, Università del Piemonte Orientale (Italy)
  • Tort Law in Buddhist Legal Traditions, Lukas Heckendorn Urscheler, Swiss Institute of Comparative Law (Switzerland)

VII.B      Everyday Life, Gender and Happiness

  • Cryptotypes and Implicits in Gender Issues, Barbara Pasa (paper prepared with Lucia Morra), University of Turin (Italy)
  • Ethnographic Study of the Everyday Legal Pluralism in India, Karine Bates, University of Montreal (Canada)
  • Love and Happiness in Law, Angelo Parisi, University of Rome Tor Vergata (Italy)

15:30-16:00         Break

16:00-17:00         Juris Diversitas General Meeting

17:00-17:30         Plenary – Closing Panel

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