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1 - The Contract Controversy

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  04 May 2023

Giuliana Perrone
Giuliana Perrone
Affiliation:
University of California, Santa Barbara
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Summary

A deeply contentious judicial debate over the enforcement of contracts for the sale or hire of enslaved people erupted as one of legal Reconstruction’s central battles. This chapter explains the doctrinal approaches favored by judges, analyzes their underlying legal rationales, and explores the consequences of choosing one rationale over the others. It argues that a fundamental disagreement about the meaning of the Thirteenth Amendment caused the judicial discord. The outcome of that disgreement – the enforcement of contracts – permanently weakened the power and potential of the Thirteenth Amendment.

Keywords

contractcontract doctrinenatural lawpositive lawproperty lawcommercial doctrine
Type
Chapter
Information
Nothing More than Freedom
The Failure of Abolition in American Law
 , pp. 11 - 37
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2023

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  • The Contract Controversy
  • Giuliana Perrone, University of California, Santa Barbara
  • Book: Nothing More than Freedom
  • Online publication: 04 May 2023
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009219181.002
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  • The Contract Controversy
  • Giuliana Perrone, University of California, Santa Barbara
  • Book: Nothing More than Freedom
  • Online publication: 04 May 2023
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009219181.002
Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • The Contract Controversy
  • Giuliana Perrone, University of California, Santa Barbara
  • Book: Nothing More than Freedom
  • Online publication: 04 May 2023
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009219181.002
Available formats
×