New book from Prof. Metzmeier profiles early law reporters

Any student of American history knows of Washington, Jefferson and the other statesmen who penned the documents that form the legal foundations of our nation, but many other great minds contributed to the development of the young republic’s judicial system.

These men were law reporters. They collected and codified America’s earliest judicial decisions, establishing the records that have since become the backbone of American law. 

In his newest book, Writing the Legal Record: Law Reporters in Nineteenth-Century Kentucky, Brandeis Law Professor Kurt Metzmeier profiles the men who helped create a new common law inspired by English legal traditions but fully grounded in the decisions of American judges.

Metzmeier, who is also associate director of the Law Library, will discuss his research at an event hosted by the Filson Historical Society at 6 p.m. Jan. 12. Tickets are free for Filson Society members and $10 for the public. Buy tickets.