NCJ Number
108161
Date Published
1987
Length
23 pages
Annotation
This chapter traces the changing forms of social order and patterns of dispute settlement from early, small-scale societies to the complex arrangements of the modern era.
Abstract
Small communities based on self-restraint and mutual dependence evolved into large industrial states where social life is controlled by political and economic power. The nature of dispute settlement has undergone dramatic transformations, from small-scale societies in which every member had direct access to redress, to the present, in which not everyone can afford to seek court remedies. The concentration of social power has seen the emergence of the state, which has come to play a central role in dispute settlement. Since Tudor times, the administration and control of the legal process has been the state's prerogative. In Western industrial societies, the merchant class has been given a special place in law to the cost of the interests of other groups. Some have argued convincingly that states lack the ability to regulate such powerful organizations as the transnational corporations that have come to dominate the social landscape in the past 50 years. 6 annotated references. (Author summary modified)