Moot, Hall and Court: a Different Approach to 'Private Justice' in Medieval England

Prof Hyams is the foremost scholar of common law ‘on the ground’ in England and a master
of documentary and legal records. He is best known as a pioneer of social histories of law,
revealing the people behind these tricky records. His written work explores the fissures –
emotional, social, and religious – that gave rise to dispute and the social and cultural
structures that then managed how dispute played out. His books include Rancour and
Reconciliation in Medieval England (2003) and Vengeance in the Middle Ages: emotion,
religion and feud (2010). His work on the Jewish minority in England, and the question of
faith in making bonds, has also been ground-breaking.

Paul would like to have an informal seminar to road test a new idea. He is especially keen to
meet and talk to graduate students of all persuasions. If you have any interest in reading
medieval texts, in medieval people, or in conceptual questions of how to think about human
relations then do come along. This is a chance to see how ideas are made.