Justice? Equality? Efficiency? Professor Essert and Professor Niblett disagree about private law.

They disagree about what private law is.

They disagree about what purpose private law serves.

They disagree about what private law should be.

They disagree about what private law should do.

And they disagree about how these other disagreements are related.

Legal scholars take different theoretical approaches to the cases and legal doctrines that students learn in property law, contract law, and tort law. They have different views about the importance of different legal institutions that administer private law.

In this course, students will revisit material from their first-year courses from different theoretical, philosophical, and practical perspectives. Students will critically examine these different approaches to private law, exploring how these approaches have different normative implications.