In this provocative new study, Iain McLean argues that the traditional story of the British constitution does not make sense. It purports to be both positive and normative: that is, to describe both how people actually behave and how they ought to behave. In fact, it fails to do either; it is not a correct description and it has no persuasive force. The book goes on to offer a reasoned alternative.
The position that still dominates the field of constitutional law is that of parliamentary sovereignty (or supremacy). According to this view, the supreme lawgiver in the United Kingdom is...

The Church of England's claim that "marriage has been understood to be, always and exclusively, between a man and a woman" is contestable on a number of grounds. Debates about marriage have a direct influence on people's everyday lives, and it is a fundamental matter of equality and human rights. Yet the debates about same-sex marriage in the UK and the US are taking place in an informational vacuum too often filled by emotion and rhetoric. Legally Married looks at the claims made on both sides of the debate, placing them in their historical context, and contributes to the debate in a...

Has marriage "been understood to be, always and exclusively, between a man and a woman"--as the Church of England and many other religious and political institutions claim? Or is this claim contestable? Debates about marriage have a direct influence on people's everyday lives, and it is a fundamental matter of equality and human rights. Yet the debates about same-sex marriage in the UK and the US are taking place in an informational vacuum too often filled by emotion and rhetoric. Legally Married looks at the claims made on both sides of the debate, placing them in their historical context,...