Fifty Years of the Law Commissions

This book brings together past and present law commissioners, judges, practitioners, academics and law reformers to analyse the past, present and future of the Law Commissions in the United Kingdom and beyond. Its internationally recognised authors bring a wealth of experience and insight into how and why law reform does and should take place, covering statutory and non-statutory reform from national and international perspectives. The chapters of the book developed from papers given at a conference to mark the fiftieth anniversary of the Law Commissions Act 1965.

1. Introduction Matthew Dyson, James Lee and Shona Wilson Stark2. Fifty Years of the Law Commissions: The Dynamics of Law Reform Now, Then and Next Lady HalePart 2: The First Half-Century of the Commissions3. Introduction Lord Hodge4. Strategies of the Early Law Commission Paul Mitchell5. Fifty Years of Law Reform-A Note on the Northern Ireland StyleNeil Faris6. Working on the Larger Canvas-Law Reform in a Federal System: Thoughts on Forty Years of the Australian Law Reform Commission Kathryn Cronin7. Law Reform and Social Policy Eric ClivePart 3: Institutions, Commissions, Committees, Codifiers8. Introduction Lord Beith9. Memoir of a Reforming Chairman Sir Terence Etherton10. The Duty to Make the Law More Accessible?The Two C-Words George L Gretton11. The Former Law Commission of Canada: The Road Less Travelled Yves Le Bouthillier12. The Law Commission and the Criminal Law: Reflections on the Codification Project Ian DennisPart 4: The Many Faces of Law Reform13. Introduction Lord Carnwath14. Democracy, Law Reform and the Rule of Law Lord Toulson15. Promoting Law Reform: By Means of Draft Bills or Otherwise Shona Wilson Stark16. Law Commissions, Courts and Society: A Sceptical View William Binchy17. A Good Name, a Long Game Laura DunlopPart 5: Implementation by Statute18. Introduction Dame Mary Arden19. The Legislative Implementation of Law Reform Proposals Sir Grant Hammond 20. Post-legislative Scrutiny, Legislative Drafting and the 'Elusive Boundary' Andrew Burrows21. Reflections on Statutory Implementation in the Law Commission Nicholas Paines22. Implementation by Statute: What the Future Holds Hector MacQueenPart 6: How Law Commissions Work23. Introduction Sir James Munby24. The Law Commission Method: Exportable to the EU? Hugh Beale25. How Law Commissions Work: Some Lessons from the Past David Johnston 26. Challenges for Independent Law Reformers from Changing External Priorities and Shorter Timescales Sir Jack Beatson27. The Bill's Progress Stephen LewisPart 7: Courts and Commissions28. Introduction Lord Drummond Young29. The Etiquette of Law Reform James Lee30. Law Reform in Private Law: The Role of Statutes in Supplementing or Supplanting the Common Law Barbara McDonald31. The Refiner's Fire Charles Harpum32. Reflections on the Courts and the Commission David OrmerodPart 8: Commissioning the Future33. Introduction Elizabeth Cooke34. The Scottish Law Commission and the Future of Law Reform in Scotland Lord Pentland35. Looking to the Future Sir David Lloyd Jones36. Commissioning the Future-A Chief Executive's Perspective Elaine Lorimer37. Implementation of Law Reform Reports: Developments in ScotlandMalcolm McMillan38. The Future is a Foreign Country, They Do Things Differently There Matthew Dyson39. Making Law-Who, How and What? KJ Keith