The American model of medical malpractice liability has been the subject of lively public and scientific debate for years. This system is characterized by a large number of lawsuits against doctors and very high damages awarded in such cases. In turn, these phenomena contribute to the occurrence of so-called medical malpractice crisis. It seems that an important place in the proper understanding of the American model of physicians’ liability for medical malpractice may be the historical analysis of legal norms regulating this matter. The text claims that the modern specificity of the system of liability for medical malpractice is closely related to the development of American law in its formative period in the nineteenth century. The article indicates four features of the legal system developed at that time, which today are identified as responsible for a large number of lawsuits and high compensation in malpractice trials. These include, in particular, linking medical liability to the tort law regime, domination of the civil law dimension of liability for medical errors, the role of the jury in lawsuits for medical malpractice, and the method of remuneration of attorneys in such cases.

* The article was prepared thanks to the funds that the author received to prepare a doctoral dissertation on the development of medical malpractice liability in the United States of America from the National Science Center as part of financing a doctoral scholarship on the basis of decision number DEC-2015/16/T/HS5/00432.

The Application of the Law of Succession of the Code civil by the Judiciary of the Free City of Kraków – the Sawiczewscy Case

The aim of this paper is to present the in-depth study of the only one piece of the adjudication activity of the judiciary in the Free City of Cracow (1815–1846) – the Sawiczewscy case. Named after its subject, the division of the estate of well-known Cracow’s pharmacist and university professor Józef Sawiczewski, the case is the example of rich source of material for the researcher in the field of the application of the French law of succession in the Republic of Cracow. In its first part the article describes the case proceedings including written pleadings lodged by the parties, rulings of the Cracow’s courts: the Tribunal of First Instance, the Court of Appeal, the Court of Third Instance and also the opinion of the Professors and Doctors of the Faculty of Law of the Jagiellonian University. Due to that detailed analysis, the process of the interpretation of the Code civil regulations by the Cracow’s lawyers can be fully understood and properly evaluated. The comparative base for that evaluation is presented in the second part of the paper, which outlined the nineteenth century French interpretation of institutions of the law of succession applied in the case, i.e. the restitutions (rapports) and the disposable proportion (quotité disponible). As regards this base the outcomes are unsatisfactory since the members of the judiciary of the Free City of Kraków failed to meet not only the original intent but also the contemporary French understanding of the law of succession of the Code civil.

* Artykuł został przygotowany w ramach projektu badawczego Narodowego Centrum Nauki nr 2017/27/B/HS5/01308.

Bronisław Wróblewski and Stefan Glaser. The Case of the Departments of Criminal Law and Criminal Procedure at the Faculty of Law and Social Sciences of the Stefan Batory University in Vilnius

The article sets out to present the history of the departments of Law and Criminal Procedure at the Faculty of Law and Social Sciences of the Stefan Batory University in Vilnius through the prism of the two professors Bronisław Wróblewski and Stefan Glaser. They differed in almost everything (except the place of employment); place of birth, almae matres, and above all the way of pursuing academic passion. Unfortunately, their relationship was significantly affected by their differences in the field of politics too. Wróblewski adamantly believed that criminal law and procedure should be lectured and researched separately, whereas Glaser felt otherwise, perhaps on account of his practical experience. The disputes between both of them concerned inter alia Glaser’s professorship appointment and his election to be dean, the reassignment of the academic tasks of their departments, and last but not least – granting them full professorships.

On the Usefulness of Research into Roman Law – Some Reflections on the Joanna Kruszyńska – Kola’s Dissertation Ratio przedawnienia [The ratio of prescription]

In this paper I present my personal opinion on the role of present-day research into the history of law, especially into Roman law, referring to the wider issue of the usefulness of Roman law in the future development of private law. I emphasize the clear deficit of communication between historians and proponents of modern law doctrine. This shortcoming is manifested in the lack of interest that lawyers tend to display in achievements in the field of legal history, and is proved more concretely by the fact that the references to the history in monographs on civil law are often only superficial and fragmentary. Unfortunately, legal historians rarely try to initiate any real dialogue with the practitioners of civil law doctrine. This approach offers a profound and compelling study, which both takes the present point of view into consideration and tackles many of the questions that are important and interesting today.

I intend to indicate at least some basic issues that should be taken into consideration by legal historians who want to pique other lawyers’ interest in their works. In my opinion, the most important aspects are the choice of an attractive topic, that is not confined only to history; proper identification of the detailed issues, including such issues as are crucial and interesting today; and in-depth analysis of both current law and the discourse held in modern doctrine. It is significant to combine the appropriate historical methodology with the need for an attractive and communicative presentation of the research and its results.

In her dissertation on the ratio of prescription Joanna Kruszyńska-Kola proposes an excellent method for improving communication with proponents of modern law doctrine. I am convinced that her work brings substance to the vision of research into the history of law which is described in my paper, for that reason I demonstrate how the author managed to achieve the purpose that legal historians should be pursuing.

Some Remarks on Oskar Kanecki’s Book Sądy kapturowe Wielkiego Księstwa Litewskiego (1572–1764) [Interregnum courts of law in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania (1572–1764)], Sopot: Wydawnictwo Arche Marek Tokarczyk, 2020, pp. 341

Oskar Kanecki’s book considerably broadens the state of knowledge of the judiciary of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania during the interregnum periods (16th–18th century). The work deals with the genesis, organisation and process before these courts in an interesting and wide-ranging way. It seems that a drawback of the book is the incomplete use of the Statute of Lithuania and legislation.

The Academic Portrait of the Creator of the Pure Theory of Law was written by Thomas Olechowski, a professor of the University of Vienna, and a historian of law with an established academic position, having outstanding expertise in the field of the history of the system of law in Austria in the 19th and 20th centuries. Olechowski collected impressive source material - mainly archival, including Kelsen’s extensive correspondence, university and administrative files connected with all the stages of his life and academic activity, and interviews with still-living persons (oral history) who had met Kelsen directly or indirectly. Owing to the obtained material, often secured through detailed source query in Austrian, Czech, German, and American archives, the author managed to correct and complete many details from his subject’s life and works. Hence, the reviewed biography of Kelsen provides a great deal of new information, which presents a view of his life and academic achievements through a multithreaded method. Various examples of little-known or completely unknown facts from H. Kelsen’s biography will be presented in the review.

* This overview is based on the Rechtshistorische Courant, a monthly newsletter from the Institute for Legal History at Ghent University, from January to December 2020 and on the websites of the Belgian universities and of several organizations, notably of the Institute for Legal History (http://www.rechtsgeschiedenis.be; accessed: 31.03.2021).

Report from the International Scientific Conference, A Lost World? Jewish International Lawyers and New World Orders (1917–1951), Jerusalem, May 24th–25th, 2021

The report presents the international scientific conference “A Lost World? Jewish International Lawyers and New World Orders (1917–1951)”, which was organized in Jerusalem, May 24th–25th, 2021, by the International Law Forum of the Faculty of Law at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, together with the Leibniz Institute for Jewish History and Culture – Simon Dubnow (Leipzig University) and the Jacob Robinson Institute at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. The main topic was the contribution of Jewish international lawyers to the significant developments in international law in the first half of the 20th century.

 Professor Witold Wołodkiewicz (1929–2021) in memoriam

This text presents an outline of the academic and professional path of the late Professor Witold Wołodkiewicz (1929–2021). Wołodkiewicz was born in Warsaw and died there. He was an outstanding Polish scholar, lawyer, and humanist, and as an eminent expert and teacher in Roman law and ancient culture, he was a co-founder of the post-war Romanist studies in Poland. Wołodkiewicz was the author of many publications, such as Materfamilias and Obligationes ex variis causarum figuris. He was also a student and collaborator of the famous Italian Romanist Edoardo Volterra and initiated extensive Polish-Italian academic cooperation.