Sir George Caswall Vs. The Duke of Portland: Financial Contracts and Litigation in the Wake of the South Sea Bubble

CDMA Working Paper No. 06/05

53 Pages Posted: 27 Apr 2006

Date Written: August 2007

Abstract

An investigation into the legal wrangles between the first Duke of Portland and his financial antagonists, in particular Sir George Caswall, helps illustrate the nature of private financial contracting during the South Sea Bubble. It also illustrates the special costs of enforcing such contracting after the Bubble. This paper is but a beginning to a wider study of the legal aftermath of the Bubble and the contribution of early modern financial contracting to the general law of contract.

Keywords: South Sea Company, Bentinck family, Financial Revolution, Bubble Act, legal history

JEL Classification: G13, N23

Suggested Citation

Shea, Gary S., Sir George Caswall Vs. The Duke of Portland: Financial Contracts and Litigation in the Wake of the South Sea Bubble (August 2007). CDMA Working Paper No. 06/05, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=898562 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.898562

Gary S. Shea (Contact Author)

University of St. Andrews ( email )

Castlecliffe
St Andrews, Fife, KY16 9AL
United Kingdom
+44-1333-730177 (Phone)
+44 0 1334 462444 (Fax)

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