John Fabian Witt: Nationalism, Cosmopolitanism and the Evolution of American Law

Conversations with History: John Fabian Witt

John Fabian Witt; Allen H. Duffy Class of 1960 Professor of Law, Yale Law School
Abstract: 

Conversations host Harry Kreisler welcomes Yale Law School Professor John Fabian Witt for a discussion of the craft of legal history. Topics covered include: understanding context in legal narratives; nationalism and cosmopolitanism in the evolution of civil liberties and tort law; and the importance of slavery, emancipation, and the established laws of nations in the making of Lincoln’s Code, a revolutionary change in U.S. laws of war.  The conversation concludes with thoughts on how legal history could inform a discussion of the sharing economy’s impact on the law. 

Key Words: Historians, Law, Civil Rights, Civil Liberties, Laws of War, Cosmopolitanism, Lincoln, International Law, Presidents, U.S. Presidents
Author: 
John Fabian Witt
Publication date: 
September 16, 2015
Publication type: 
Conversations with History