Elon law professor Eric Fink, whose research examines legal problems, institutions, and practices from a sociological perspective, recently began posting a series of essays on "The Faculty Lounge," a blog devoted to conversations about law, culture, and academia.
Among Fink’s recent posts is an essay examining network ties in the academic legal blogosphere. In the post, Fink analyzes the frequency of web links to law professor blogs. Fink describes the significance of the research, writing, “Inbound links are of interest because, like citations in legal writing, they indicate some type of ‘authoritative’ status on the part of the receiving site.”
Fink’s posts on “The Faculty Lounge” reveal how a sociological approach to the study of legal institutions can illuminate aspects of legal history and practice that otherwise are left unanalyzed in legal education.
In writing about the relationship between fly fishing and the law, for instance, Fink writes, “My interest in social norms and informal order led me to think about fly fishing customs and innovations in socio-legal terms, as a sort of ‘folk law.’ My interest in administrative law led me to think about the evolution of recreational fishing regulations in relation to the transition from agrarian to industrial to post-industrial society, and to the emergence of the environmentalist movement. My interest in business organizations and market regulation led me to think about business practices and competition among tackle manufacturers, fly fishing shops, and guide services.”
Click here to read more about Elon Law professor Eric Fink.
Click on the links below to read Fink’s most recent posts on “The Faculty Lounge.”
The Case of the Framed Fly-Fisher?