''The Laws of Scotland: Stair Memorial Encyclopaedia'' (commonly referred to as the ''Stair Memorial Encyclopaedia'') is an encyclopaedia of law in Scotland. It incorporates law derived from every source and, while concentrating on the specialities of Scots law, it also covers law common to the whole of the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. Each statement of law is supported by citation of authority, and there are references to sources of further information, both primary and secondary. The Encyclopaedia may be cited with approval before the courts. In 1981, three hundred years after

James Dalrymple, 1st Viscount of Stair James Dalrymple, 1st Viscount Stair (May 1619 – 29 November 1695) was a Scottish lawyer and statesman, and a key influence on the Scottish Enlightenment. He was a leading figure of Scottish law, "and also one of the greatest thinkers on ...

's first publication of his original work, a new encyclopaedia of Scots law was commissioned.Law Society of Scotland Journal Online
/ref> The complete set consists of over 130 titles in 25 volumes and Reissue binders. It covers the whole spectrum of Scots law, from

Administrative Law Administrative law is a division of law governing the activities of government agency, executive branch agencies of government. Administrative law includes executive branch rulemaking (executive branch rules are generally referred to as "regul ...

, through

Criminal Law Criminal law is the body of law that relates to crime. It proscribes conduct perceived as threatening, harmful, or otherwise endangering to the property, health, safety, and Well-being, welfare of people inclusive of one's self. Most criminal l ...

Obligations An obligation is a course of action which someone is required to take, be it a legal obligation or a moral obligation. Obligations are constraints; they limit freedom. People who are under obligations may choose to freely act under obligations. O ...

and

Property Property is a system of rights that gives people legal control of valuable things, and also refers to the valuable things themselves. Depending on the nature of the property, an owner of property may have the right to consume, alter, share, re ...

, to Wills and

Succession Succession is the act or process of following in order or sequence. Governance and politics *Order of succession, in politics, the ascension to power by one ruler, official, or monarch after the death, resignation, or removal from office of ...

. ''Stair Memorial Encyclopaedia'' is also available as a searchable electronic archive on a paid subscription basis.

References

Editions

*''The Laws of Scotland : Stair Memorial Encyclopaedia''. Edinburgh :

Butterworths LexisNexis is an American data analytics company headquartered in New York, New York. Its products are various databases that are accessed through online portals, including portals for computer-assisted legal research (CALR), newspaper search, ...

, 1987-

External links

The Stair Society
Law books Scots law Encyclopedias of law Scottish encyclopedias British online encyclopedias {{Scotland-law-stub