Private Law Theory

Abstract:
This short piece, to be published in a special issue of Property Law Review, aims to provoke interest in thinking about the spatial dimensions of property (particularly in land). This reflects the burgeoning interest in the geographies of law more generally. While there are many ways in which one can “think spatially”, it is important to begin by noting that “space” itself is capable of at least two meanings. An “absolute” view regards space as a priori and asocial, and thus calculable and geometric. A relational view, conversely, regards space as meaningful only in relation to human practices. Both these views of space, I suggest, can be discerned when thinking about property. Indeed, they often collide in important ways.

Blomley, Nicholas, Property, Law, and Space (January 19, 2014).

First posted 2014-01-20 20:59:32