The Law of the United States

Peter Hay's book is a standard work on U.S. law. I have used previous editions many times to refresh my memory on certain aspects or for getting a first introduction into areas I did not know. The book is informative, makes references to further literature and helps to understand the context which is not always clear to a foreign lawyer.

Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. mult. Jürgen Basedow, LL.M. (Harvard University)

Professor Peter Hay’s deep engagement with Comparative Law and Private International Law provides him with an unmatched set of qualifications to prepare an Introduction to the Law of the United States for a readership of English and Commonwealth students and legal professionals.

The cliché that the United Kingdom (and for that matter the English-language Commonwealth family) and the United States are divided by a common language has genuine salience when it comes to the language of law. Today, of course, Brexit notwithstanding, the engagement with the law and legal system of the European Union has reshaped these UK/Commonwealth legal systems in new ways, which distance its students and practitioners from the U.S. branch of their common ancestry. That alone makes the arrival of this book important. But the divergence of the U.S. from its common ancestry is older and deeper than that.

The existence alone of 50 intra-U.S. jurisdictions with continuing dominance, but also still-continuing substantive differences within the classic fields of Contracts, Torts, Property, Criminal Law, Procedure and Evidence, creates a fluidity that to an outsider can seem chaotic. Added to that, the complex overlay and even more complex preemptive effects of federal law within a vague Constitutional system and the distinctions from other English-language jurisdictions become even more mystifying.

This situation requires a lucid and magisterially authoritative guide. Peter Hay’s book is that guide. Any attorney, any academic and any student preparing for an engagement with U.S.-related situations will find it essential.

Richard Buxbaum, Jackson H. Ralston Professor of International Law (Emeritus), Berkley Law, University of California

The career of Professor Hay has enabled him to undertake a scrutiny of U.S. law from a unique position. He is both an inside expert, and a highly qualified outside observer. His scholarship has strong roots both in the United States and in Europe – which allows perspective, and at the same time, a full understanding of intricate details.

Tibor Várady, Professor Emeritus, Central European University