Private Law Theory

ABSTRACT
This paper is about whether it makes sense to attribute legal personality to non-sentient entities, such as rivers or idols. First, I argue that the way private law assigns the exercise of legal powers makes it possible to personify a non-sentient entity. Second, I argue that doing so creates a new locus of decision-making authority and may give effect to a partial legal order. Third, I comment on whether this would be justified under a rights-based way of interpreting private law.

Oza, Manish, Personification in Private Law (March 21, 2026). Forthcoming in Christopher Essert, Paul B Miller, and Eva Micheler, eds, Legal Personhood in Private Law (Cambridge University Press, 2026).