Edinburgh Law School, founded in 1707, is a school within the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 1 ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to ...

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...

dedicated to research and teaching in

law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...

. It is located in the historic Old College, the original site of the University. Two of the twelve currently sitting

Supreme Court of the United Kingdom The Supreme Court of the United Kingdom ( initialism: UKSC or the acronym: SCOTUK) is the final court of appeal in the United Kingdom for all civil cases, and for criminal cases originating in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. As the Unite ...

justices are graduates of Edinburgh, including the current

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

and

Deputy President A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on ...

. In 2014, the Research Excellence Framework commissioned by the UK government, ranked the University of Edinburgh 1st in Scotland and 4th in the UK. The 2022 league table rankings from ''The Guardian'' placed Edinburgh at 10th in the UK. The 2022 ''Complete University Guide'' league rankings placed Edinburgh at 8th in the UK. The 2018 ''The Times'' league rankings placed Edinburgh at 11th in the UK.

History

In 1707, the year of the unification of the Kingdoms of

and

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

into the

Kingdom of Great Britain The Kingdom of Great Britain (officially Great Britain) was a sovereign country in Western Europe from 1 May 1707 to the end of 31 December 1800. The state was created by the 1706 Treaty of Union and ratified by the Acts of Union 1707, wh ...

, Queen Anne established the Chair of Public Law and the Law of Nature and Nations in the

, to which Charles Erskine (or Areskine) was appointed; this was the formal start of the Faculty of Law. By 1722 the University had four Professors of Law, and classes—in Civil Law,

Scots Law Scots law () is the legal system of Scotland. It is a hybrid or mixed legal system containing civil law and common law elements, that traces its roots to a number of different historical sources. Together with English law and Northern Ireland ...

and

History History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...

—were usually given in their respective homes or offices. Numbers grew with the expansion of the legal profession in the 19th century, and by 1830 there were over 200 students attending the Scots Law class alone. Scholarship amongst the academics at Edinburgh continued to grow in reputation, with the work of Muirhead, Lorimer and Rankine achieving international renown. The Faculty of Law had moved to Old College, built in 1789, and in 1862 the new degree of LL.B. (Bachelor of Laws) was introduced, following the Universities (Scotland) Act 1858. The degree was only open to graduates, usually those who had studied for the M.A.(Arts) at a Scottish University or the B.A. at Oxford or Cambridge. Students of the LL.B. had to attend courses and be examined in Civil Law,

Conveyancing In law, conveyancing is the transfer of legal title of real property from one person to another, or the granting of an encumbrance such as a mortgage or a lien. A typical conveyancing transaction has two major phases: the exchange of contrac ...

Public law Public law is the part of law that governs relations between legal persons and a government, between different institutions within a state, between different branches of governments, as well as relationships between persons that are of direct ...

Constitutional law Constitutional law is a body of law which defines the role, powers, and structure of different entities within a state, namely, the executive, the parliament or legislature, and the judiciary; as well as the basic rights of citizens and, in fe ...

and History, and Medical Jurisprudence; Edinburgh was the only University to offer this degree for some time. In 1909

Eveline MacLaren Eveline may refer to: * Eveline (given name) * "Eveline" (short story), a short story by James Joyce * Eveline, Missouri, United States * Eveline Street, in Windhoek, Namibia * Eveline Township, Michigan, United States See also * Evelyn (disambig ...

and

Josephine Gordon Stuart Josephine may refer to: People * Josephine (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) * Josephine (singer), a Greek pop singer Places *Josephine, Texas, United States * Mount Josephine (disambiguation) * Josephine Cou ...

became Scotland's first two female law graduates when they each obtained an LL.B degree from Edinburgh. By 1966, the LL.B. had become a full-time

undergraduate Undergraduate education is education conducted after secondary education and before postgraduate education. It typically includes all postsecondary programs up to the level of a bachelor's degree. For example, in the United States, an entry-le ...

course, although many would continue to study for an Arts degree beforehand. In 1981, Edinburgh first offered the Diploma in Legal Practice, for LL.B. students wishing to enter the legal profession. Today, the School of Law is associated both with traditional Scots law and with innovation across a wide range of subjects. The School retains a reputation for scholarship in topics such as Roman Law but is also known as a centre for research in topics such as European law, criminology, commercial law, intellectual property and information technology law, labour law, European private law,

medical law Medical law is the branch of law which concerns the prerogatives and responsibilities of medical professionals and the rights of the patient. It should not be confused with medical jurisprudence, which is a branch of medicine, rather than a br ...

and ethics, international law, comparative law, and human rights law. In 2007 the School celebrated its Tercentenary year, marked by a series of events and of lectures by world-renowned legal experts.

Academics

DSCN4566 Edinburgh University Old College Law School Staircase

Throughout its history the School (or Faculty) of Law has accommodated some of the leading legal scholars in Europe. James Muirhead's work on Roman Law garnered international praise, Professor Erskine's ''Principles'' (1754) became a standard text in Scots Law, as did those of Professor George Joseph Bell. In the 20th-century, the eminent legal theorist Professor Sir

Neil MacCormick Sir Donald Neil MacCormick (27 May 1941 – 5 April 2009) was a Scottish legal philosopher and politician. He was Regius Professor of Public Law and the Law of Nature and Nations at the University of Edinburgh from 1972 until 2008. He was a ...

wrote his seminal texts on legal philosophy as Regius Professor at Edinburgh. Current members of Edinburgh Law School include current

Regius Professor A Regius Professor is a university professor who has, or originally had, royal patronage or appointment. They are a unique feature of academia in the United Kingdom and Ireland. The first Regius Professorship was in the field of medicine, and ...

Neil Walker Neil Martin Andrew Walker (born September 10, 1985) is an American former professional baseball second baseman. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Pittsburgh Pirates (2009–2015), New York Mets (2016–17), Milwaukee Brewers ...

; Lord President Reid Professor of Law Alexandra Braun; Professor of European Union Law Professor Niamh Nic Shuibhne; the academic and novelist Professor

Alexander McCall Smith Alexander "Sandy" McCall Smith, CBE, FRSE (born 24 August 1948), is a British writer. He was raised in Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) and formerly Professor of Medical Law at the University of Edinburgh. He became an expert on medical law an ...

; former Judge at the European Court of First Instance Sir David Edward QC; former Scottish Law Commissioners Emeritus Professor

George Gretton George Lidderdale Gretton WS FRSE (born 1950) is a Scottish lawyer and academic and, from May 2006 to May 2011, was a Commissioner of the Scottish Law Commission. Career Gretton had his early education at West House School and King Edward's, Bi ...

, Professor

Hector MacQueen Hector Lewis MacQueen (born 1956) is a Scottish academic, a senior scholar of Scots law and legal history, and a former member of the Scottish Law Commission. He is Professor of Private Law at the University of Edinburgh and a former Dean of its ...

, Professor

Gerry Maher Gerard 'Gerry' Maher QC is a Scottish lawyer and academic. He was a Law Commissioner at the Scottish Law Commission from 2000 to 2008, and is currently Professor of Criminal Law at the University of Edinburgh. He was Professor of Criminal L ...

QC, Professor Andrew Steven, Professor Kenneth Reid and Emeritus Professor Robert Black QC (architect of the

Pan Am Flight 103 bombing trial The Pan Am Flight 103 bombing trial began on 3 May 2000, 11 years, 4 months and 13 days after the destruction of Pan Am Flight 103 on 21 December 1988. The 36-week bench trial took place at a specially convened Scottish Court in the Netherlands set ...

Student activity

Students of the School of Law are represented by the Law Students' Council. The University of Edinburgh Law Society, known as LawSoc, provides a programme of social events. In addition, there is a Postgraduate Students' Research Committee for doctoral level students, as well as a Graduate Law Students' Society. The University Mooting Society is active, with two internal

competitions Competition is a rivalry where two or more parties strive for a common goal which cannot be shared: where one's gain is the other's loss (an example of which is a zero-sum game). Competition can arise between entities such as organisms, indi ...

and several external competitions running during each academic session, giving students the opportunity to develop the skills of oral legal argument. For graduate-level students there are a number of subject-specific discussion groups which meet on a regular basis. Since 2008, the students have published the '' Edinburgh Student Law Review''.

Research centres

* The Centre for Law and Society * The Centre for Legal History * "SCRIPT" (The AHRC Centre for Studies in Intellectual Property and Technology Law)
The Edinburgh Centre for Legal Theory
* The Edinburgh Centre for Private Law * The Europa Institute * The Scottish Centre for International Law * The Joseph Bell Centre for Forensic Statistics and Legal Reasoning, joint research collaboration with

Glasgow Caledonian University Glasgow Caledonian University ( gd, Oilthigh Chailleannach Ghlaschu, ), informally GCU, Caledonian or Caley, is a public university in Glasgow, Scotland. It was formed in 1993 by the merger of The Queen's College, Glasgow (founded in 1875) and G ...

* The Edinburgh Study of Youth Transitions and Crime * The Centre for Commercial Law, Chaired by The Rt Hon. Lord Reed

Famous graduates

Notable alumni of Edinburgh Law School include: *

Douglas Alexander Douglas Garven Alexander (born 26 October 1967) is a Labour politician who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Paisley and Renfrewshire South, previously Paisley South, from 1997 until his defeat in 2015. During this time, he served as ...

MP, former

Secretary of State for International Development The minister of state for development and Africa, formerly the minister of state for development and the secretary of state for international development, is a senior minister of the Crown within the Government of the United Kingdom. The of ...

* Michael Ancram QC, Marquess of Lothian, former MP and

Chairman of the Conservative Party The chairman of the Conservative Party in the United Kingdom is responsible for party administration and overseeing the Conservative Campaign Headquarters, formerly Conservative Central Office. When the Conservatives are in government, the off ...

* Henry Brougham,

Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain The lord chancellor, formally the lord high chancellor of Great Britain, is the highest-ranking traditional minister among the Great Officers of State in Scotland and England in the United Kingdom, nominally outranking the prime minister. Th ...

, co-founder of the

University College London , mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £143 million (2020) , budget = ...

Joanna Cherry Joanna Catherine Cherry (born 18 March 1966) is a Scottish politician and lawyer serving as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Edinburgh South West since 2015. A member of the Scottish National Party (SNP), she was the party's Shadow Home Secr ...

, current

Scottish National Party The Scottish National Party (SNP; sco, Scots National Pairty, gd, Pàrtaidh Nàiseanta na h-Alba ) is a Scottish nationalist and social democratic political party in Scotland. The SNP supports and campaigns for Scottish independence from th ...

MP for Edinburgh South-West *

James Clyde, Baron Clyde James John Clyde, Baron Clyde, PC (29 January 1932 – 6 March 2009) was a Scottish judge. Biography James John Clyde was born in Edinburgh on 29 January 1932 the only son and youngest child of Margaret Letitia (1901–1974), (daughter of Arth ...

Lord of Appeal in Ordinary Lords of Appeal in Ordinary, commonly known as Law Lords, were judges appointed under the Appellate Jurisdiction Act 1876 to the British House of Lords, as a committee of the House, effectively to exercise the judicial functions of the House o ...

Thomas Campbell Thomas Campbell may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Thomas Campbell (poet) (1777–1844), Scottish poet * Thomas Campbell (sculptor) (1790–1858), Scottish sculptor * Thomas Campbell (visual artist) (born 1969), California-based visual artist ...

, poet *

George Combe George Combe (21 October 1788 – 14 August 1858) was a trained Scottish lawyer and a spokesman of the phrenological movement for over 20 years. He founded the Edinburgh Phrenological Society in 1820 and wrote a noted study, ''The Constitution o ...

, founder of the

Edinburgh Phrenological Society The Edinburgh Phrenological Society was founded in 1820 by George Combe, an Edinburgh lawyer, with his physician brother Andrew Combe. The Edinburgh Society was the first and foremost phrenology grouping in Great Britain; more than forty ph ...

William Cullen, Baron Cullen of Whitekirk William Douglas Cullen, Baron Cullen of Whitekirk, (born 18 November 1937) is a former senior member of the Scottish judiciary. He formerly served as Lord Justice General and Lord President of the Court of Session, and was an additional Lord ...

Lord President of the Court of Session The Lord President of the Court of Session and Lord Justice General is the most senior judge in Scotland, the head of the judiciary, and the presiding judge of the College of Justice, the Court of Session, and the High Court of Justiciary. The L ...

and

* Alistair Duff, former Director of the Judicial Institute of Scotland *

Henry Dundas, 1st Viscount Melville Henry Dundas, 1st Viscount Melville, PC, FRSE (28 April 1742 – 28 May 1811), styled as Lord Melville from 1802, was the trusted lieutenant of British Prime Minister William Pitt and the most powerful politician in Scotland in the late 18t ...

Lord Advocate His Majesty's Advocate, known as the Lord Advocate ( gd, Morair Tagraidh, sco, Laird Advocat), is the chief legal officer of the Scottish Government and the Crown in Scotland for both civil and criminal matters that fall within the devolved p ...

of Scotland, British

Home Secretary The secretary of state for the Home Department, otherwise known as the home secretary, is a senior minister of the Crown in the Government of the United Kingdom. The home secretary leads the Home Office, and is responsible for all nationa ...

, first

Secretary of State for War The Secretary of State for War, commonly called War Secretary, was a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, which existed from 1794 to 1801 and from 1854 to 1964. The Secretary of State for War headed the War Office and ...

and

First Lord of the Admiralty The First Lord of the Admiralty, or formally the Office of the First Lord of the Admiralty, was the political head of the English and later British Royal Navy. He was the government's senior adviser on all naval affairs, responsible for the di ...

Robert Dundas of Arniston, the younger Robert Dundas of Arniston, the younger, FRSE (18 July 1713 – 13 December 1787) was a Scottish judge. He served as Solicitor General for Scotland from 1742 to 1746, as Lord Advocate from 1754 to 1760, and as Member of Parliament for Midlothian ...

of Scotland,

* Sir David Edward QC, former Judge at the

European Court of Justice The European Court of Justice (ECJ, french: Cour de Justice européenne), formally just the Court of Justice, is the supreme court of the European Union in matters of European Union law. As a part of the Court of Justice of the European U ...

Nicholas Fairbairn Sir Nicholas Hardwick Fairbairn, (24 December 1933 – 19 February 1995) was a Scottish politician. He was the Conservative Member of Parliament (MP) for Kinross and Western Perthshire from October 1974 to 1983, and then for Perth and Kinross ...

, Conservative MP for

Perth and Kinross Perth and Kinross ( sco, Pairth an Kinross; gd, Peairt agus Ceann Rois) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland and a Lieutenancy Area. It borders onto the Aberdeenshire, Angus, Argyll and Bute, Clackmannanshire, Dundee, Fife, Highland ...

and Solicitor General for Scotland * Robert J. Faucher, U.S

Assistant Secretary of State for Conflict and Stabilization Operations The Assistant Secretary of State for Conflict and Stabilization Operations is the head of the Bureau of Conflict and Stabilization Operations within the United States Department of State, supporting the department's conflict and crisis-response ...

Brian Gill, Lord Gill Brian Gill, Lord Gill, (born 25 February 1942) is a retired Scottish judge and legal academic. He served as Lord President and Lord Justice General from June 2012 until May 2015. Gill previously served as Lord Justice Clerk from 2001 to 2012, a ...

, former Lord President (Ph.D) *

Peter Goodrich Peter Goodrich is a Professor of Law at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, Yeshiva University. He is the managing editor of ''Law and Literature'' and serves on the editorial board of '' Law and Critique''. He is co-editor of the critical lega ...

, Director of Law and Humanities at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law (Ph.D.) *

Katherine Grainger Dame Katherine Jane Grainger (born 12 November 1975) is a British former rower and current Chair of UK Sport. She is a 2012 Summer Olympics gold medallist, four-time Olympic silver medallist and six-time World Champion. She served as Chancell ...

, 2012 Olympic Gold Medallist *

Arthur Hamilton, Lord Hamilton Arthur Campbell Hamilton, Lord Hamilton, (born Glasgow, 10 June 1942), is a Scottish judge and served as Lord Justice General and Lord President of the Court of Session from November 2005 until 8 June 2012, succeeding Lord Cullen. Early life ...

Lord Hodge Patrick Stewart Hodge, Lord Hodge, PC (born 19 May 1953) is a British lawyer, currently serving as Deputy President of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom. Early life Hodge was educated at Croftinloan School, an independent junior boardi ...

, sitting Justice of the

* Michael Hay, founder of Hay, Kalb & Associates, the first (and to date only) foreign law firm in North Korea * Lord Hope of Craighead, former

and inaugural Deputy President of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom *

Eleanor Laing Dame Eleanor Fulton Laing, (' Pritchard; born 1 February 1958) is a British politician who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for the Epping Forest constituency since 1997. Laing is a member of the Conservative Party and has served as a De ...

Deputy Speaker of the House of Commons The speaker of the House of Commons is the presiding officer of the House of Commons, the lower house and primary chamber of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The current speaker, Sir Lindsay Hoyle, was elected Speaker on 4 November 2019 ...

Lord Mackay of Clashfern James Peter Hymers Mackay, Baron Mackay of Clashfern, (born 2 July 1927) is a British advocate. He served as Dean of the Faculty of Advocates, Lord Advocate, and Lord Chancellor (1987–1997). He is a former active member of the House of L ...

, former

Lord Chancellor The lord chancellor, formally the lord high chancellor of Great Britain, is the highest-ranking traditional minister among the Great Officers of State in Scotland and England in the United Kingdom, nominally outranking the prime minister. Th ...

and

of Scotland * Stuart McDonald, current

MP for Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintilloch East * David McLetchie MSP, former Scottish Conservative leader *

David Mundell David Gordon Mundell, (born 27 May 1962) is a Scottish politician and solicitor who served as Secretary of State for Scotland from 2015 to 2019. A member of the Scottish Conservative Party, he has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Du ...

, current Conservative MP and

Secretary of State for Scotland The secretary of state for Scotland ( gd, Rùnaire Stàite na h-Alba; sco, Secretar o State fir Scotland), also referred to as the Scottish secretary, is a Secretary of State (United Kingdom), secretary of state in the Government of the Unit ...

* Ian Murray, current Labour MP and

Shadow Secretary of State for Scotland The Shadow Secretary of State for Scotland is a member of the UK Shadow Cabinet responsible for the scrutiny of the Secretary of State for Scotland and his/her department, the Scotland Office. The incumbent holder of the office is Ian Murray. ...

* Lord Reed, sitting Justice and current Deputy President of the

* Sir

Malcolm Rifkind Sir Malcolm Leslie Rifkind (born 21 June 1946) is a British politician who served in the cabinets of Margaret Thatcher and John Major from 1986 to 1997, and most recently as chair of the Intelligence and Security Committee of Parliament fro ...

QC MP, former

Foreign Secretary The secretary of state for foreign, Commonwealth and development affairs, known as the foreign secretary, is a Secretary of State (United Kingdom), minister of the Crown of the Government of the United Kingdom and head of the Foreign, Commonwe ...

* Sir

Walter Scott Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet (15 August 1771 – 21 September 1832), was a Scottish novelist, poet, playwright and historian. Many of his works remain classics of European and Scottish literature, notably the novels '' Ivanhoe'', '' Rob Roy ...

, writer and poet, (Sheriff-Deputy of Selkirk) *

Julia Sebutinde Julia Sebutinde is a Ugandan judge serving her second term on the International Court of Justice following her re-election on November 12, 2020. She also is the current chancellor of Muteesa I Royal University a university owned by Buganda k ...

, current member of the

International Court of Justice The International Court of Justice (ICJ; french: Cour internationale de justice, links=no; ), sometimes known as the World Court, is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN). It settles disputes between states in accordan ...

and first African woman to serve as member of the Court *

, Emeritus Professor of Medical Law at the University of Edinburgh, co-founder of the law school at the

University of Botswana The University of Botswana, popularly known as UB, was established in 1982 as the first institution of higher education in Botswana. The university has three campuses: one in the capital city Gaborone, one in Francistown, and another in Maun. Th ...

, adult mystery author *

Matt Soper Matt Soper is a Republican, who represents Colorado House of Representatives District 54, which encompasses parts of Mesa and Delta counties on Colorado's Western Slope. Background Soper holds degrees from Colorado Mesa University, the Univer ...

, current member of the

Colorado House of Representatives The Colorado House of Representatives is the lower house of the Colorado General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Colorado. The House is composed of 65 members from an equal number of constituent districts, with each distr ...

and first Seventh-day Adventist to serve as member of the Colorado Legislature * David Steel, Baron Steel of Aikwood, former Presiding Officer of the Scottish Parliament and former leader of the Liberal Party *

Robert Louis Stevenson Robert Louis Stevenson (born Robert Lewis Balfour Stevenson; 13 November 1850 – 3 December 1894) was a Scottish novelist, essayist, poet and travel writer. He is best known for works such as '' Treasure Island'', ''Strange Case of Dr Jekyll ...

, writer *

Colin Sutherland, Lord Carloway Colin John MacLean Sutherland, Lord Carloway (born 20 May 1954), is a Scottish advocate and judge who has served as the Lord President of the Court of Session and Lord Justice General since 2015. He was previously Lord Justice Clerk from 201 ...

* Simon Taylor, Scottish Rugby Footballer * Lord Wallace QC, former Deputy First Minister of Scotland and Advocate General for Scotland * Sir Thomas Winsor, HM Chief Inspector of Constabulary and former

Rail Regulator The Rail Regulator was a statutory office, created with effect from 1 December 1993 by section 1 of the Railways Act 1993, for the independent economic regulation of the British railway industry. The office was abolished from 4 July 2004, using ...

and International Rail Regulator

Famous faculty

* Sir

, Regius Professor of Public Law and the Law of Nature and Nations *

Harvey McGregor Harvey McGregor CBE QC (25 February 1926 – 27 June 2015) was a British barrister and was Warden of New College, Oxford, from 1985 to 1996. Early life The son of William Guthrie Robertson McGregor and Agnes McGregor (née Reid), McGregor was e ...

QC, visiting professor, Warden of

New College, Oxford New College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1379 by William of Wykeham in conjunction with Winchester College as its feeder school, New College is one of the oldest colleges at ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Edinburgh School Of Law

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

Law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...