The author covers each of the legal traditions (brehon, canon, roman, and common law) that have helped to shape Irish law over several centuries in this collection of published essays. However, he emphasizes the influence of common law with discussions of topics such as the histories of law reporting, parliamentary legislation, and the organization of attoorneys and solicitors. He also recounts the dramatic changes to the Irish legal system between 1796 and 1926, and examines the penal laws directed at Catholics in the last several centuries.