The Courts and the Development of Trade in Upper Canada, 1830–1860

Abstract

The centrality of transportation improvements and financial institutions to the economic development of Upper Canada in the first half of the nineteenth century is well known. In this article, Professor George and Mr. Sworden argue that the evolving legal system and legal institutions also played an important role as part of the infrastructure contributing to increased economic efficiency. In support of their thesis, they draw on court decisions on contract and property law, primarily from the judicial career of Sir John Beverley Robinson, chief justice of the Court of Queen's Bench for Upper Canada from 1829 to 1862.