Law & Social Inquiry
The ABF sponsors Law & Social Inquiry (LSI), a multidisciplinary quarterly publication of original research articles and review essays that analyze law, legal institutions, and the legal profession from a sociolegal perspective.
LSI contributors examine law and society issues across multiple disciplines, including anthropology, criminology, economics, history, philosophy, political science, sociology, and social psychology. The journal’s combination of empirical and theoretical scholarship and critical appraisal of the latest sociolegal scholarship makes LSI an indispensable source for legal scholars and practitioners.
For more information and submission guidelines, please visit the journals’ page at Cambridge University Press.
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"Registries, Records, and the Making of Emancipation in Pennsylvania”
Laura Nelson
“Registries, Records, and the Making of Emancipation in Pennsylvania” examines how Pennsylvania’s 1780 Gradual Abolition Act transformed slavery and freedom into matters of documentation. Drawing on county registries, Pennsylvania Abolition Society records, and historical correspondence, Nelson argues that emancipation unfolded through evolving documentary practices rather than legislative decree alone. Her work shows how enslaved and free Black Pennsylvanians navigated a system in which freedom was often established through the absence of records, while documents became critical tools for asserting and preserving claims to liberty.
Nelson is a PhD candidate in the Department of History at Princeton University.
Editorial Staff
All inquiries regarding the journal or submission criteria can be directed to lsi@abfn.org.
Editorial Board
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International Book Essay Editorial Panel
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