Debating the Field Civil Code 105 Years Late

Abstract

The State of Montana enacted the Field Code in 1895 without a great deal of debate. My research led me to the conclusion that this codification of the common law has done nothing but harm to Montana Law. Prof. Andrew Morriss, an authority on the Field Code, graciously agreed to introduce a debate between myself and Justice James C. Nelson of the Montana Supreme Court on the issue of whether the Field Code has been beneficial to Montana. This article contains Morriss’s introduction and a footnoted transcript of the debate.