Civil Law: From Political Will to Social Demand
A Tentative Assessment Over Two Centuries
- By Jean-Paul Jean
- and Jean-Pierre Royer
Pages 127 to 142
Cite this article
- JEAN, Jean-Paul
- and ROYER, Jean-Pierre,
- Jean, Jean-Paul.
- et al.
- Jean, J.-P.
- and Royer, J.-P.
https://doi.org/10.3917/pouv.107.0127
Cite this article
- Jean, J.-P.
- and Royer, J.-P.
- Jean, Jean-Paul.
- et al.
- JEAN, Jean-Paul
- and ROYER, Jean-Pierre,
https://doi.org/10.3917/pouv.107.0127
Is it possible to determine, around a few major themes, whether civil law has changed, over two centuries, in harmony with, in advance of or behind its epoch? In 1804 the Civil Code represented a consistent document, focused on property rights. French society has been moving, at an accelerated pace in the more recent period, from a system of structured state law, developed by a single legislator and based on national values changing with political or intellectual majorities, to a fluctuating law increasingly created by judges basing themselves on European references. Despite the efforts of jurists to maintain its consistency, the Civil Code has been strongly affected by the new development of individual and collective rights, as well as the emergence of new social groups and their demands.