What happens when law students are asked to build a legal concept out of LEGO® bricks? This pedagogical exercise, featured in a 2026 article of The Law Teacher turns an apparently playful classroom activity into an encounter with the constraints and social assumptions underlying legal meaning-making. The exercise focuses on public order, a vague legal concept lacking a single, universally accepted or authoritative definition. Rather than trying to explore its...
Since the financial crash of 2008, housing has emerged as a central issue of a great many urban and rural spaces. In many major cities, practices of 'land banking' by developers, often involve hoarding unused and/or derelict housing stock until market conditions, availability of finance, building costs or the political context is conducive to developing the site. In the mean time, the property lies vacant, sometimes falling into states of disrepair and dereliction. The developer will often...