Today, May 1, 2015, is Law Day, and this year it marks the 800th anniversary of the Magna Carta. Pace Law School will host the ABA/Library of Congress exhibit on the Magna Carta October 12-26, 2015. In preparation for the exhibit, Professor Nicholas Robinson unveiled a limited edition authorized copy issued in commemoration of its 800th anniversary, and gave the keynote address at Pace Law School’s National Law
Day Observance. He also displayed his personal copy of the first edition of Blackstone Commentaries on Magna Carta and the Charter of the Forest, published in 1759.
In his address, titled Magna Carta – Your Rights, Your Legacy, Professor Robinson reminded us why the Magna Carta is still important today:
Magna Carta’s DNA marks every struggle to uphold honest governance. When today’s contentious battles about liberties are resolved and recede, tomorrow’s strivings for justice take center stage. The quest to live by the rule of law is likely to be eternal. Remembering what we humans together have achieved since 1215 emboldens us to keep approaching this receding horizon.
In addition to the exhibit, Pace Law Library will display a wide variety of books related to the Magna Carta and the Charter of the Forest, and the Law School will host several lectures on its themes.
Related readings:
- Magna Carta at the Law Library of Congress, Gail Whittemore
- Magna Carta and the American Legacy, National Records and Archives Administration.
- Celebrating 800 Years of the Magna Carta, British Library
- Magna Carta: Enduring Legacy, 1215-2015, American Bar Association