David Ibbetson

For the pilot named David Ibbotson, see 2019 English Channel Piper PA-46 crash.

David John Ibbetson FBA is a British legal historian and academic who served as Regius Professor of Civil Law at the University of Cambridge from 2000 to 2022, and President of Clare Hall, Cambridge from 2013 to 2020.^[1] A specialist in English legal history and Roman law, he is known for his work on the historical relationship between English Common Law and European legal systems.

David Ibbetson FBA
8th President of Clare Hall, Cambridge
In office August 2013 – August 2020
Preceded by	Sir Martin Harris
Succeeded by	C. Alan Short
Regius Professor of Civil Law University of Cambridge
In office 2000–2022
Preceded by	David Eric Lothian Johnston
Succeeded by	Helen Scott
Personal details
Born	David John Ibbetson
Citizenship	United Kingdom
Alma mater	Corpus Christi College, Cambridge
Awards	Fellow of the British Academy (2003)

Ibbetson spent twenty years at Magdalen College, Oxford as a Fellow and Tutor in Law. He was elected Fellow of the British Academy in 2003. During his time at Cambridge, he served as chairman of the Faculty of Law (2009-2012) and General Editor of the Cambridge Law Journal (2003-2009).^[2]

Biography

David Ibbetson obtained his MA and PhD in Law at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, the latter supervised by Professor Sir John Baker. In 1980, he became a Fellow and Tutor in Law at Magdalen College, Oxford. He returned to Corpus Christi in 2000, following his appointment as Regius Professor of Civil Law at the Faculty of Law in the University of Cambridge. He was elected to the British Academy in 2003.^[3] In 2004, he became Warden of Leckhampton House, the College's site for postgraduate students. In August 2013, Ibbetson left Corpus Christi College when he became the eighth President of Clare Hall, Cambridge, succeeding Sir Martin Harris.^[4] He was succeeded by Alan Short as head of Clare Hall in August 2020.^[5]

Ibbetson is originally and primarily an English legal historian, but he is also expert in Roman law and has written comparative works relating to the history of European law. Whilst he has published on a wide range of subjects, his focus has been on the historical relationship between English Common Law and the legal systems and legal thought of the rest of Europe.

Bibliography

• Oxford International Encyclopedia of Legal History [editor] (2009)
• Sir William Jones, Essay on the Law of Bailments [editor] (2007)
• Common Law and Ius Commune (Selden Society) (2001)
• A Historical Introduction to the Law of Obligations (1999)
• The Roman Law Tradition [editor] (1994)