Page "Property law" Paragraph 4

James Wilson, U. S. Supreme Court Justice and professor of law at the University of Pennsylvania, in 1790 and 1791, undertook a survey of the philosophical grounds of American property law.

He proceeds from two premises: “ Every crime includes an injury: every injury includes a violation of a right .” ( Lectures, III, ii.

) The government ’ s role in protecting property depends upon an idea of right.

Wilson traces the history of property in his essay " On the History of Property.

" In his lecture, " Of the natural rights of individuals " ( Lectures II, xii ), he articulates related contemporary theory.