374 THE EDINBURGH LAW REVIEW Vol 2 1998

the railway system had an observable impact on many areas of law: one thinks of
delict, joint stock companies and the like. The problem has been that the tendency
to approach legal history from the perspective of the autonomous development of
legal doctrine leads either to rather jejune remarks about the impact of capitalism
and technology on the law or to the treatment of legal history as an overly autonomous
development. Kostal's study (noticed here because of its welcome appearance in
inexpensive paperback form) avoids these problems by focusing on the railways in
their totality. This permits him to demonstrate the complex inter-relationship between
the law, the legal profession, and this industry. One gains a most revealing insight
into the difficult issues of law, economy, and society in the nineteenth century. This
is a book that can be recommended to all.

E L R Vol 2 p 374

DIRITTO PRIVATO EUROPEO. Ed by Nicolö Lipari

Padua: CEDAM, 1997. Two volumes continuously paginated, xxii, xxii and 1050 pp.
ISBN 88 13 19982 1 (pb); 88 13 20061 7 (pb). Lire 122.

In this country the best-known proponents of the new ius commune for Europe are
from the northern littoral of the Continent. That the movement is also strong in the
south is amply demonstrated by this substantial work from Italy. Nicolö Lipari has
brought together a team of Italian contributors who find their main inspiration for
the idea of a European private law in the development of the European Union. The
two volumes are systematically divided into seven books, covering first the basis for
a European private law before moving on to consider the subjects of the law (that is,

persons), property, actions (which includes general contract law and enrichment),
particular contracts, civil responsibility (i.e. delict) and tutory. Despite this traditional
grouping of topics, throughout the work the emphasis is on the contemporary scene
and in particular those areas in which the legislation of the European Union points
towards a common law for its member states. Thus for example under the subjects
of the law there are chapters on the person as consumer, employee, self-employed
and professional, while under particular contracts there is coverage of consumer
credit and package holidays. Property extends to intellectual and cultural property,
and civil responsibility embraces product liability. The utility of the work is further
enhanced by the bibliographies which follow each chapter. Any library with readers
interested in the new ius commune and its European Union context should have
these impressive volumes.
Hector L MacQueen
Professor of Private Law
University of Edinburgh