Product Description

Appropriate for courses in Family Law, one of the most popular options on LLB courses. Also undergraduate and postgraduate courses in children's law, and courses on social work and social policy, where a knowledge of family law is needed.
The primary aim of the textbook is to explain the law, while at the same time informing students of the social reality in which the law operates and outlining the different theoretical perspectives from which to approach the subject. The book is fully up-to-date, and includes topics not covered adequately by existing books, such as the Human Rights Act and family law, the elderly, and the legal regulation of pregnancy.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #984638 in Books
• Published on: 2001-07-17
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 672 pages

Sarah Bainbridge, Law Student
"The tone is approachable, reader-friendly and empathises with the student. It really is a helping hand."

From the Back Cover
Longman Law Series
Editorial Advisory Board
Professor I.H. Dennis (University College London)
Professor R.W. Rideout (University College London)
Professor J.A. Usher (University of Edinburgh)
This wide-ranging new textbook provides comprehensive coverage of family law relating to both children and adults in one volume. The author analyses the key principles of the current law in a context that is informed by the theories and realities of contemporary society. The result is a clear, highly relevant and high-value course book for students who develop a fascination with this contentious and dynamic area of law.
The author includes topics rarely treated in family law textbooks but of growing significance to family lawyers and society in general- in particular the legal regulation of pregnancy, the elderly, and the different forms of state protection of children. Family Law also provides detailed analysis of the significance of the Human Rights Act 1998 on various aspects of family law and discusses international conventions dealing with family issues. Each chapter ends with a summary of the main points covered, providing students with a useful tool for learning and revision. A bibliography is included at the end of the book.
Family Law is essential reading for both LLB and LLM options in family law and child law. Postgraduate students following the Diploma in Social Work and associated Masters level qualifications, as well as undergraduate students studying for the BA in Social Work, should also find the book helpful.
Jonathan Herring is a Fellow of Exeter College, Oxford and was formerly a Fellow in Law and Director of Studies at New Hall, Cambridge. He is a qualified (non-practising) solicitor. His research and academic interests also include criminal and medical law.

Customer Reviews

Absolutely brilliant
This is by far the clearest and easiest to understand law text book I have ever bought! I am in my second year of a law degree and have just started family law. My lecturer recommended this book and I've never looked back. It is clear, well set out and you really feel as thought the author actually wants you to understand, not just dazzle you with his intelligence. Well recommended!

Unrivalled reader-friendly text
This is a must buy for any family law undergraduate.

This book was indispensable to me while I was studying during my LLB for Family law. If you are an undergraduate student, you may remember that some textbooks can be very heavy (in weight) and indecipherable in writing style - maybe because of the topic (EU law etc). Herring manages to deal with a difficult and rapidly developing topic with clarity and sensitivity. You must understand that by the time a textbook is published, often parts of it are obsolete because law moves on. Family law is no exception to this and infact probably changes more radically than other areas. Herring manages to insert a lot of rationale behind the argues surrounding a topic - say upholding marriage as an institution - where law is changing rapidly (to continue with the example, civil partnerships).

Herring text is particularly strong in:

- divorce;
- ancillary relief;
- adoption;
- marriage; and
- mediation/adr

What this book does better than most is not to over simplify but rather to consolidate the law and address the issues responsibly from a sociological perspective while, again, keeping the focus that this is a legal textbook and not a book about society and the family.

I recommend reading this book in conjunction with say the LPC Practice Guide for Family Law. I found that together I had a much clearer understanding of family law in order to get to grips with the bares bones and essentially what the law is. Often a textbook gets so wrapped up in the academic that one can easily be lead astray but that the law actually is.

Not a red one
Jonathon Herrings book on Family Law was invaluable to my 3rd Year law studies. It assisted in the basics of family law as well as the more involved issues. It does require some reading around to be done in other texts but does carry most of the information required in understandable language and layout.