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Jonathan Brown

@sartoriusdoctor

Lecturer in Scots Private Law. Legal scholar/historian/theorist and teacher of Scots/Roman law. A fun fellow, in spite of every single word that has preceded this sentence.

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Latest posts by Jonathan Brown @sartoriusdoctor

The most depressing thing about the Scrubs revival is that it clearly means that JD's script for Dr. Acula never got picked up by a network and so their universe, as ours, was robbed of that majestic artistry.

08.03.2026 00:20 πŸ‘ 8 πŸ” 3 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
Engaging with Engagement | Anthem Press Analysing the Formation of Promises, Contracts and Voluntary Obligations in Scots Law

World book day, is it?

I suppose it's too late to convince you and your children to dress up as 'Engaging with Engagement
Analysing the Formation of Promises, Contracts and Voluntary Obligations in Scots Law'?

Oh well, you can at least buy yourself a copy here:

anthempress.com/books/engagi...

05.03.2026 10:54 πŸ‘ 4 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

He isn't getting ousted until, at least, May, and that's just too long for us all to have to put up with him and his supine arrogance.

01.03.2026 22:10 πŸ‘ 4 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

He's genuinely dogshit at being a lawyer, most people don't seem to realise that because he held high office and that makes a lot of people think that he must be good at the lawyering, but really he ain't. Worthless simulacrum of a person.

01.03.2026 22:09 πŸ‘ 5 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Simply determined to be the worst Prime Minister of the past century, and he's got real stiff competition.

01.03.2026 22:04 πŸ‘ 3 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

This Prime Minister? Yes.

01.03.2026 21:27 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Ironically, he isn't even a real Dr. But yes.

28.02.2026 23:36 πŸ‘ 3 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

2003?

28.02.2026 07:27 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

wut

27.02.2026 22:05 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Some might well have died from not having a liver, which just goes to show that moderation in all things is the true path to wisdom.

27.02.2026 21:16 πŸ‘ 2 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

If it can kill FIFTY humans just imagine what it'll do to one polar bear.

27.02.2026 21:12 πŸ‘ 3 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

Someone put croutons in his latte, help the poor boy.

27.02.2026 18:40 πŸ‘ 3 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Unironically, I have to agree because I know that he's reading every single one and seething.

27.02.2026 09:01 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

My prophesies, unfortunately, tend to have much in common with those of Cassandra. The fact that you believe this one might be a safeguard against its veracity!

27.02.2026 05:25 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Nah, Labour's going to look at this and think: those 10,000 Reform votes could have been ours if only we had capitulated to the right just a little bit more! Time to double down again!

27.02.2026 05:18 πŸ‘ 3 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

That'll be the lesson Labour take from this: those 10,000 Reform votes could have been theirs if only they had capitulated more to the right!

27.02.2026 05:17 πŸ‘ 12 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

The present Labour party is good at one thing and one thing only: factional infighting.

Starmer has negative political nous and a propensity for stepping on rakes. There is a non-zero chance his 'friends' in the party are setting him up to fail.

23.02.2026 16:47 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

The blatant disrespect shown to 'Clowns Farting in the Basement'.

19.02.2026 23:07 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

by, e.g., the declaration of a court recognising it as law, or the codification of the tacit law by a legislature.

19.02.2026 14:22 πŸ‘ 2 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

as soon as custom is changed into formal or positive law by judicial decision or by statute it ceases to be custom. Authority is given to the law by the decision of the court or by the statute’.
Snell v Beadle [2001] UKPC 5, para.17 per Lord Hope.

So what is tacit law can be and is made positive

19.02.2026 14:21 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

Lord Hope summarised the paradox of customary law quite well in Snell v Beadle (2001): "Broadly speaking, custom may be said to be the product of generally accepted usage and practice. It has no formal sanction or authority behind it other than the general consensus of opinion within the community…

19.02.2026 14:21 πŸ‘ 3 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

sufficiently authoritative declaration that '[x] is the correct interpretation of the law' is, in a sense, imbued with the force of legislation.

19.02.2026 14:19 πŸ‘ 3 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

Legislation 'in the conventional sense' is actually a very modern idea - a product of the 'positivisation' of laws and the emergence of the nation-state.
There is a very interesting dividing line between 'interpreting the law' and 'making law' as you say re: Judges - the issue being that any

19.02.2026 14:18 πŸ‘ 4 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

So? Is it true or a joke? Don't leave us hanging.

19.02.2026 09:41 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

Unfortunately, 419 people beat Itchy_Snatch_Rimjob to the perfect username, so he was left with the weed number despite not partaking.

19.02.2026 07:49 πŸ‘ 2 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Tom Bombadil was in league with Old Man Willow and nothing can convince me otherwise.

18.02.2026 23:54 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

What? That can't be Sting he isn't wearing the mask.

17.02.2026 20:12 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

I literally use that comic in my lectures on the Corpus Iuris Civilis to demonstrate how drastically language can change within a century.

17.02.2026 20:06 πŸ‘ 17 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

Umberto Eco once said that Newspeak is the ultimate tool of fascism and when I read that 15 years ago I thought 'hmm, not convinced' but now I'm sorry Umberto you were right and I was very obviously fucking wrong.

17.02.2026 19:32 πŸ‘ 2 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Allowed? No. Taking without consent? Well, there's a track record there, innit?

17.02.2026 18:11 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0