The Completion of the Classical Common Law and Its Transformation : Historical Backgrounds of the Achievement of W.Blackstone

黑石在日本的法律的史学家和审慎思想家中并没有得到很高的评价，反而受到公开的批评。我相信英国也有类似的趋势。他们说，布莱克斯通是一个不分青红皂白地为所有既定事物辩护的人，作为一个审慎的思想家，他是软弱和困惑的，我回顾了这种对黑石及其著作《评注》的流行评价，并与W.霍尔兹沃思爵士，特别是S.F.C.米尔索姆一起得出以下结论。首先，黑石总结了法律的主要原则，这些原则是19世纪世纪法律改革者的基础和出发点。其次，黑石的工作有助于使英国法律的编纂变得没有必要。第三，英国的普通法之所以成为美国的普通法，在很大程度上要归功于《评注》。第四，黑石是倡导大学法学教育的先驱。最后，作为现代法律制度最显著特征之一的法律实体化，正是由黑石为法律的非专业人士解释法律的努力促成的，因此，笔者认为，黑石的影响比边沁的影响更为深远和持久。

W.Blackstone has not been valued highly, rather openly criticized among the legal historians and the jurisprudential thinkers in Japan. I believe there is the similar tendency in England. They say that Black-stone was an indiscriminate apologist for all things established, and, as a jurisprudential thinker, he was weak and confused.I have reviewed this popular valuation against Blackstone and his work, the Commentaries, and concluded with Sir W.Holdsworth and especially S.F.C.Milsom the following. First, Blackstone summed up the main principles of the law which were the basis and starting-point of the law-reformers of the 19th century. Secondly, Blackstone's work helped to render unnecessary a codification of English law. Thirdly, it was largely due to the Commentaries that English common law became also the common law of the United States. Fourthly, Blackstone was the pioneer who suggested the university teaching of law. And last but not least, the transformation of the law into a substantive system, that is one of the most characteristics of the modern law system, was precipitated by Blackstone's effort to make sense of law for laymen.Therefore, I believe that it may be maintained that Blackstone's influence has been more far-reaching and more permanent than that of Bentham.