Providence and Instrumentality

Paper Summary:

The paper explores the decision-making process informing John Beverley Robinson's 1830 judgment in Dean v. McCarty. The paper examines the socio-cultural factors that influenced Robinson in his decision and suggests that he was better suited for the preceding century than the one in which he operated. The paper also examines the rise of American jurisprudential activism in the early nineteenth century.

From the Paper:

"Understanding the development of man-made law - and the creation and evolution of legal precedent - is a sometimes daunting task. This paper examines why John Beverley Robinson perceived the property damage at the center of Dean v. McCarty as an act of providence and eschewed American "instrumentality" in assessing the culpability of the defendant in the aforementioned case. The paper also examines the relationship between law and society and touches upon the gradual transformation of jurisprudence from a strictly formalistic exercise to an exercise that aggressively advanced social policy change. With that in mind, it should be noted that this paper has found it necessary to draw upon certain works during the exploration of this challenging topic."

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