Gerhardus (Gerard) Diephuis (6 February 1817,

Farmsum Farmsum (; ) is a village in the Dutch province of Groningen. It is a part of the municipality of Eemsdelta. History The village was first mentioned in the 10th or 11th century as "de Fretmarashem", and means "settlement of Fretmar". Farmsum w ...

– 4 November 1892,

Groningen Groningen ( , ; ; or ) is the capital city and main municipality of Groningen (province), Groningen province in the Netherlands. Dubbed the "capital of the north", Groningen is the largest place as well as the economic and cultural centre of ...

) was a Dutch jurist. After studies in

, he was a judge with the

arrondissement An arrondissement (, , ) is any of various administrative divisions of France, Belgium, Haiti, and certain other Francophone countries, as well as the Netherlands. Europe France The 101 French departments are divided into 342 ''arrondissem ...

court in

Winschoten Winschoten (; ) is a city with a population of 18,518 in the municipality of Oldambt (municipality), Oldambt in the northeast of the Netherlands. It is the largest city in the region of Oldambt (region), Oldambt in the province of Groningen (prov ...

and later with a higher court in Groningen. In 1840 he married Alagonda Geertruida Hemmes, with whom he had ten children. In 1859 he became a full professor at the

university of Groningen The University of Groningen (abbreviated as UG; , abbreviated as RUG) is a Public university#Continental Europe, public research university of more than 30,000 students in the city of Groningen (city), Groningen, Netherlands. Founded in 1614, th ...

. During the period 1864–1865 he was the

rector magnificus A rector (Latin for 'ruler') is a senior official in an educational institution, and can refer to an official in either a university or a secondary school. Outside the English-speaking world, the rector is often the most senior official in a u ...

of this institution. Diephuis was a leading proponent of legism and of the primacy of

legislation Legislation is the process or result of enrolling, enacting, or promulgating laws by a legislature, parliament, or analogous governing body. Before an item of legislation becomes law it may be known as a bill, and may be broadly referred ...

. Influenced by French teachings, he wrote numerous textbooks on Dutch civil law. He was also instrumental in further diminishing the influence of Roman and

customary law A legal custom is the established pattern of behavior within a particular social setting. A claim can be carried out in defense of "what has always been done and accepted by law". Customary law (also, consuetudinary or unofficial law) exists wher ...

in favour of codified legislation.

References

* 1817 births 1892 deaths Dutch jurists Rectors of universities in the Netherlands University of Groningen alumni Academic staff of the University of Groningen People from Delfzijl 19th-century Dutch people {{Netherlands-law-bio-stub