An island's law

A bibliographical guide to Ireland’s legal past

W.N. Osborough

‘A lucid and invaluable guide to a field of study that can seem arcane and intimidating to non-practitioners, and will surely be of interest to a wide range of readers', History Ireland (Jan/Feb 2014).

‘An Island’s Law could be seen as Professor Osborough’s annual book contribution to legal history … His themes are well selected and his short introductions address legal history as perceived by lawyers and those fascinated by the development of the legal codes … Osborough also has a fascination with unusual and quirky topics that make interesting reading … This volume will be the first port of call for the historian wondering if there is a legal history study dealing with her or his topic and it will certainly provide readers with many suggestions as to how they should progress’, Timothy P. O'Neill, Irish Economic and Social History (2016).

‘It is impossible to reflect on the study of Irish legal history over the last 40 years or so without acknowledging the contribution made by Niall Osborough – a scholar with a vast knowledge of the field … there is no one better qualified or equipped to provide a bibliographical guide to Ireland’s legal past. Osborough proves to be a wise and discriminating guide … The book consists of three essays writing in 1986, 2008 and 2012, which offer wide-ranging and authoritative overviews of the field as it has developed over the last three decades … It also provides a very useful index to authors, which allows the reader to trace the development of individual scholars over time and the variety of their work … this is an excellent guide to existing scholarship', Richard McMahon, The Irish Jurist (2014).

‘This work attempts to compensate for the absence of a general textbook by creating a complete bibliography of works written in a field that has seen astonishing growth in recent decades … it will be a useful resource to scholars with broad and narrow interests in Irish legal history. The utility of this bibliographical guide is enhanced by the inclusion of an index of authors in addition to a general index dealing with subject matter', Cambridge Law Journal (November 2013).