159-749: This is a list of characters from the M*A*S*H franchise created by Richard Hooker , covering the various fictional characters appearing in the novel MASH: A Novel About Three Army Doctors (1968) and its sequels M*A*S*H Goes to Maine (1971), M*A*S*H Goes to New Orleans (1974), M*A*S*H Goes to Paris (1974), M*A*S*H Goes to London (1975), M*A*S*H Goes to Vienna (1976), M*A*S*H Goes to San Francisco (1976), M*A*S*H Goes to Morocco (1976), M*A*S*H Goes to Miami (1976), M*A*S*H Goes to Las Vegas (1976), M*A*S*H Goes to Hollywood (1976), M*A*S*H Goes to Texas (1977), M*A*S*H Goes to Moscow (1977), M*A*S*H Goes to Montreal (1977), and M*A*S*H Mania (1977),
318-539: A thing or property for the purpose of gaining title to that property; must be filed in a court where the property is located) and in personam (typically, actions directed against a person; these can affect a person's rights and, since a person often owns things, his property too) used by Bracton had a lasting effect and laid the groundwork for a return of Roman law structural concepts in the 18th and 19th centuries. Signs of this can be found in Blackstone's Commentaries on
477-551: A Commendation Medal, a Purple Heart, an Army of Occupation Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Korean War Campaign Medal, and the U.N. Service Medal. He describes his wife in unflattering terms, having very expensive false teeth, varicose veins, a fistful of credit cards, looking like Frank Burns in drag, and that he only married her because she was a good cook. (These terms are quite unfair; in
636-413: A MASH unit. In an episode earlier in the series, Hawkeye is mistakenly reported dead. He boards a Quartermaster Corps bus/hearse which has dead soldiers aboard, saying he has just about had his fill of war, and admits he is tired of seeing death every day. In one episode, a temporary replacement surgeon from Tokyo General Hospital, who cut his teeth performing meatball surgery under impossible conditions in
795-515: A bathrobe instead of uniform, never polishes his combat boots, and only wears his Class A uniform when he believes appearance can achieve greater good, but does not wear any of the decorations to which he is entitled. (Based on what was told and shown in the course of the series, these would include the World War II Victory Medal, the Army of Occupation Medal, the National Defense Service Medal,
954-533: A broader principle out of these predecessor cases. The facts were almost identical to Cadillac a year earlier: a wheel from a wheel manufacturer was sold to Buick, to a dealer, to MacPherson, and the wheel failed, injuring MacPherson. Judge Cardozo held: It may be that Statler v. Ray Mfg. Co. have extended the rule of Thomas v. Winchester . If so, this court is committed to the extension. The defendant argues that things imminently dangerous to life are poisons, explosives, deadly weapons—things whose normal function it
1113-425: A character inherently that, when applied to the purposes for which it was designed, it was liable to become a source of great danger to many people if not carefully and properly constructed". Yet the privity rule survived. In Cadillac Motor Car Co. v. Johnson (decided in 1915 by the federal appeals court for New York and several neighboring states), the court held that a car owner could not recover for injuries from
1272-475: A commander is his ability to maintain the morale of his unit, which he does through personal loyalty and indulgence of the lunacy that is a hallmark of the 4077th (as well as frequent participation). This success is demonstrated by the unit's outstanding 97.6% casualty survival rate. Blake also shows superior skills in assessing medical talent, when he ignores military rank and appoints Hawkeye Pierce as chief surgeon over Frank Burns. (Although junior in rank, Pierce
1431-497: A decision are often more important in the long run than the outcome in a particular case. This is the reason that judicial opinions are usually quite long, and give rationales and policies that can be balanced with judgment in future cases, rather than the bright-line rules usually embodied in statutes. In common law systems, precedents are maintained over time through court records and historically documented in collections of case law referred to as yearbooks and law reports . After
1590-411: A defective wheel, when the automobile owner had a contract only with the automobile dealer and not with the manufacturer, even though there was "no question that the wheel was made of dead and 'dozy' wood, quite insufficient for its purposes". The Cadillac court was willing to acknowledge that the case law supported exceptions for "an article dangerous in its nature or likely to become so in the course of
1749-538: A dismissive attitude toward his better-trained colleagues, blaming others for his failures. He unjustly accuses a rookie orderly, Boone (Bud Cort in the film), of killing one of his patients and nearly kills another patient, earning him retaliatory assaults from Duke and Trapper John. As Burns holds the same rank as Hawkeye in the novel Blake tries to make sure neither is on duty at the same time, but cannot do so when things get busy. His medical incompetence causes Colonel Blake to instead assign Trapper John as Chief Surgeon. In
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#17330859564011908-457: A dispute over the terms of the original five-year contract, he quit the show shortly before production of the fourth season began; the character of Trapper was abruptly discharged from the Army and sent back to the United States. The character of B.J. Hunnicutt was created to replace him, with the two-part Season Four opener created to explain his absence (the third episode introducing Col. Potter
2067-408: A grudge against him after being passed over for command. In turn, Potter holds Burns's feigned military bearing and subpar medical skills in contempt. Potter takes pride in the competency of the rest of the medical staff despite their antics. Burns's replacement, Major Winchester, has a grudging respect for Potter, even though their personalities are often at odds with one another. Potter initially takes
2226-510: A handful of 1970s television characters to be successfully adapted from situation comedy to drama. Captain B.J. Hunnicutt is played by Mike Farrell in the TV show. He replaced Trapper, both in his position within the unit and as an ally of Hawkeye Pierce and a foil of Frank Burns, appearing in all but one episode of the rest of the series. Although he glibly answers that the initials "B.J." stand for "anything you want", he tells Hawkeye that his name
2385-419: A hard line against Klinger's attempts to get discharged but is convinced to let him continue cross-dressing and eventually assigns him to be his new company clerk after Radar received a hardship discharge. As an indication of their respect for him, in the final episode Hawkeye and B. J. formally salute Potter as he leaves the camp, one of the few times either is shown doing so. The character also appeared as
2544-456: A higher yield of alcohol. He also has his eccentricities, including a love of horses from his cavalry days and an ability to use his Regular Army connections to the unit's advantage. Unlike Blake, he is not afraid to put his foot down when the camp's antics get out of hand, but this is motivated by not wanting to see his troops get into trouble outside of the camp. In addition, Potter, who had been managing administrative work before his assignment to
2703-464: A home movie she sent to him, she is considered more good looking than beautiful). Likewise, when she wrote to him about being tempted to (but not having) an affair with a dentist and that she understood if he was tempted to have an affair, Blake brags to Pierce and Trapper that she had given him permission to have an affair, which she did not. (In fact Blake is a serial adulterer, having interacted with six women, including three M*A*S*H 4077 nurses). Henry
2862-510: A large house, an expensive car, a yacht and being a member of two men's clubs. Burns also has collateral duties as M*A*S*H 4077's Physical Fitness instructor, Food Procurement Officer, Food Inspector (where he came down with a case of food poisoning ), Garbage Officer, and Sanitary Disposal Officer, duties normally performed by the most junior officer of the unit, not a field grade officer . Every Friday he gives boring, nonsensical orientation lectures to newly arrived enlisted personnel about why
3021-410: A line somewhere, a limit on the causal connection between the negligent conduct and the injury. The court looked to the contractual relationships, and held that liability would only flow as far as the person in immediate contract ("privity") with the negligent party. A first exception to this rule arose in 1852, in the case of Thomas v. Winchester , when New York's highest court held that mislabeling
3180-426: A mass of casualties that would just overwhelm us." There were, another surgeon recalled, "'long periods when not much of anything happened' in an atmosphere of apparent safety—plenty of time to play ... When things were quiet we would sit around and read. Sometimes the nurses would have a little dance." Hornberger's later assessment of his unit's behavior was: "A few flipped their lids, but most just raised hell in
3339-530: A means to redress certain challenges to established law. Oliver Wendell Holmes once dissented: "judges do and must legislate". There is a controversial legal maxim in American law that " Statutes in derogation of the common law ought to be narrowly construed ". Henry Campbell Black once wrote that the canon "no longer has any foundation in reason". It is generally associated with the Lochner era . The presumption
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#17330859564013498-451: A medical journal, using a primitive open-chest defibrillator and open-chest heart massage . On another occasion, he gave away a Bronze Star he was awarded because he felt he did not deserve it. He actively avoids the finality of farewells, but when the 4077th is disbanded in the series finale, he is last seen riding his Indian motorcycle away from camp, while Hawkeye sees from a helicopter that B.J. has arranged painted white stones into
3657-738: A new central character in AfterMASH , a spin-off starring the three cast members who had voted (unsuccessfully) to continue the first series. Potter became chief of staff and chief of surgery of the fictional General Pershing VA Hospital in River Bend, Missouri , where he is joined by Klinger and his wife Soon-Lee, and Father Mulcahy. Among the resident in-patients is one of Potter's subordinates from World War I, who addresses him as "Sarge" as opposed to his retired rank of colonel. Major (later Lieutenant Colonel ) Franklin Delano Marion " Frank " Burns
3816-424: A new line in the last sentence quoted above: "There must be knowledge of a danger, not merely possible, but probable." But while adhering to the underlying principle that some boundary is necessary, MacPherson overruled the prior common law by rendering the formerly dominant factor in the boundary, that is, the privity formality arising out of a contractual relationship between persons, totally irrelevant. Rather,
3975-434: A nostalgic look at Maine and its people through Hornberger's eyes. Throughout, the "Swamp Gang" prospers, gets its own way most of the time, and generally becomes more conservative as the years pass. The men play golf and are sometimes thorns in the side of "the summer complaints" (tourists) and local bigwigs. A series of novels based on the franchise was published in between M*A*S*H Goes to Maine and M*A*S*H Mania in which
4134-557: A nurse, and was also similarly tempted into having an affair with a visiting female journalist. The nine months he spends in Korea caused him to have an emotional breakdown because of the separation from his wife and child. He is also more reserved than his predecessor, often serving as the voice of reason when Hawkeye goes too far. Nonetheless, he also participates in and initiates practical jokes, such as secretly switching Major Winchester's clothing for that of other soldiers to make him think he
4293-550: A physician Potter would have been a commissioned officer and so ineligible for it at the time. He also has claimed to be in two different theaters of War during World War II: In the summer of 1944 on Guam; in December 1944 in the Battle of the Bulge . Potter is married to Mildred, and they have only one daughter and one grandson in some episodes, while in others he has multiple children - including
4452-452: A poison as an innocuous herb, and then selling the mislabeled poison through a dealer who would be expected to resell it, put "human life in imminent danger". Thomas relied on this reason to create an exception to the "privity" rule. In 1909, New York held in Statler v. Ray Mfg. Co. that a coffee urn manufacturer was liable to a person injured when the urn exploded, because the urn "was of such
4611-411: A presumption favoring the retention of long-established and familiar principles, except when a statutory purpose to the contrary is evident. Isbrandtsen Co. v. Johnson , 343 U.S. 779, 783 (1952); Astoria Federal Savings & Loan Assn. v. Solimino , 501 U.S. 104, 108 (1991). In such cases, Congress does not write upon a clean slate. Astoria , 501 U.S. at 108. In order to abrogate a common-law principle,
4770-573: A product defect, and if a part was built up out of parts from parts manufacturers, the ultimate buyer could not recover for injury caused by a defect in the part. In an 1842 English case, Winterbottom v Wright , the postal service had contracted with Wright to maintain its coaches. Winterbottom was a driver for the post. When the coach failed and injured Winterbottom, he sued Wright. The Winterbottom court recognized that there would be "absurd and outrageous consequences" if an injured person could sue any person peripherally involved, and knew it had to draw
4929-462: A profound lack of military competence as well. In an early episode, before his character becomes more of a buffoon, he demonstrated himself to be an efficient, though still micromanaging, commander. In another episode, Burns is gullible enough to believe that the US Army Corps of Engineers is going to make MASH hospitals amphibious. In " The Novocaine Mutiny ", Burns is left in temporary command when
List of M*A*S*H characters - Misplaced Pages Continue
5088-485: A psychiatrist that the war "forced me to operate next to a surgeon who can't cut his toenails without committing malpractice"; Trapper John sneers Burns couldn't cut salami without bungling it; B.J. remarked that Hawkeye claimed Burns became a surgeon after washing out of embalming school. Hawkeye taught the Korean ward boys to say, "You tell 'em, Ferret Face!" on cue. Even Hot Lips, when asked by Frank what she thought of him as
5247-695: A pulp". Several of his teeth were knocked out by his German captors, for which he was later awarded a Purple Heart , one of four he holds: two from World War I, one for his teeth being broken by the Germans and another for having been gassed; one from World War II when his illicit still on Guam blew up on him; and one from Korea, for being shot in the buttocks by a sniper. After the Great War, he went to medical school, and began his service as an Army doctor in 1932, serving in World War II . One of his most cherished possessions
5406-541: A rather unremarkable boyhood, by his own admission he had had several experiences he never forgot. Once when young, he fell overboard in a pond and nearly drowned as a result of a cruel practical joke, leaving him with lifelong claustrophobia. When he was 14, his father was angered to find him in bed with a girl and smoking a cigarette. When he was 12, he discovered his father was dating a female bookkeeper; to keep his father's attention all to himself, Hawkeye selfishly ruined their relationship so they couldn't marry. He attended
5565-459: A sidearm as required by regulations when serving as Officer of the Day. When he is ordered by Colonel Potter to carry his issue pistol on a trip to a ROK aid station and they are ambushed on the road, he fires it into the air rather than at their attackers. This was after he told the gun "You're fired." He is also a chronic alcoholic, for three years in Korea drinking every day three times more heavily than
5724-523: A son born in 1926 who is a dentist - and grandchildren. As a " Regular Army " career officer, Potter is a more capable commander than his predecessor, Henry Blake. He is better able to lead the 4077th through a crisis, such as a deluge of wounded soldiers, a "Bug Out" (forced evacuation), a weather-related crisis (such as a rainstorm, windstorm, or a freezing winter with supply shortages), or an outbreak of an infectious disease, such as hepatitis or hemorrhagic fever . Despite his stern military bearing, Potter
5883-601: A strong allegiance to a large body of precedent, parties have less a priori guidance (unless the written law is very clear and kept updated) and must often leave a bigger "safety margin" of unexploited opportunities, and final determinations are reached only after far larger expenditures on legal fees by the parties. This is the reason for the frequent choice of the law of the State of New York in commercial contracts, even when neither entity has extensive contacts with New York—and remarkably often even when neither party has contacts with
6042-492: A surgeon, replied, "Frank, don't you have enough pain?" The MASH surgeons get a big laugh when they see a film of his wedding - even then Burns couldn't hold a knife while cutting his wedding cake. Hawkeye remarked, "Watch the cake die of malpractice!" Frank had a poor relationship with his father, who would strike him at the dinner table if he ever talked out of turn. Furthermore, Burn's father pretended to like his son, but actually hated him. His older brother despised him, pinning
6201-417: A traditional conservative. I mean, he wanted nothing more than to have people leave him alone so he could enjoy his martini, you know? Government should get out of his liquor cabinet". Pierce has little tolerance for military red tape and protocol, feeling they get in the way of his doing his job, and has little respect for most Regular Army personnel. He never wears rank insignia on his fatigues, usually wears
6360-402: A unified system of law "common" to the country through incorporating and elevating local custom to the national, ending local control and peculiarities, eliminating arbitrary remedies and reinstating a jury system—citizens sworn on oath to investigate reliable criminal accusations and civil claims. The jury reached its verdict through evaluating common local knowledge , not necessarily through
6519-562: A variety of ways and degrees." A colleague described Hornberger as "a very good surgeon with a tremendous sense of humor." Hornberger did label his tent "The Swamp" as do the characters in the novel. After the war, Hornberger worked for the U.S. Veterans Administration , qualified for his surgical boards, and went into private practice in Waterville, Maine . Eventually, he settled into practice at Broad Cove in Bremen, Maine . His experiences at
List of M*A*S*H characters - Misplaced Pages Continue
6678-417: Is "the body of law derived from judicial decisions , rather than from statutes or constitutions ." Legal systems that rely on common law as precedent are known as "common law jurisdictions," while those that do not are referred to as " civil law " or " code " jurisdictions. Until the early 20th century, common law was widely considered to derive its authority from ancient Anglo-Saxon customs. Well into
6837-626: Is 28 years old; later when he meets a medical college friend "Practical Joker" it is revealed that BJ has been both married and practicing medicine for 10 years. He is devoted to his wife Peg (née Hayden) who writes many letters to him while he is in Korea. The couple has a daughter, Erin, who was born shortly before B.J. left for Korea. In contrast to the philandering Trapper John, B.J. remains generally faithful to his wife and daughter, saying that it's not because he thinks it's morally wrong to do otherwise, but "I simply don't want to." One time he accidentally had an unplanned one-night stand while comforting
6996-535: Is a bachelor and something of a ladies' man (although he fakes being married to Vanessa Pierce Girlfriend in episode 1/23 "Ceasefire".) He was given the nickname "Hawkeye" by his father, Benjy (Sr.), in the novel and in the series from the character in the novel The Last of the Mohicans , "the only book my old man ever read". His birth name is taken from a member of Hooker's own family named Franklin Pierce. Although he had
7155-403: Is a good man and a capable surgeon but unfocused and often ineffective as a commanding officer . In a letter to his father, Hawkeye Pierce describes Henry's lack of leadership ability: "As a commanding officer, it's like being on a sinking liner, running to the bridge, and finding out the captain is Daffy Duck." Henry often gets flustered when an important decision needs to be made. For example, in
7314-465: Is a relatively relaxed and laid-back commander, not above involving himself in camp hijinks and understanding the need for fun and games to boost morale during wartime, particularly in the high-pressure atmosphere of a MASH. When Hawkeye and B. J. invite Potter to their tent for a post-surgery drink just after his assuming command, he is very affable and complimentary of their brewing skills, even giving them tips on how to improve their gin still and get
7473-498: Is a strength of common law systems, and is a significant contributor to the robust commercial systems in the United Kingdom and United States. Because there is reasonably precise guidance on almost every issue, parties (especially commercial parties) can predict whether a proposed course of action is likely to be lawful or unlawful, and have some assurance of consistency. As Justice Brandeis famously expressed it, "in most matters it
7632-614: Is controlling, and a panel decision may only be overruled by the court of appeals sitting en banc (that is, all active judges of the court) or by a higher court. In these courts, the older decision remains controlling when an issue comes up the third time. Other courts, for example, the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (formerly known as Court of Customs and Patent Appeals) and the US Supreme Court , always sit en banc , and thus
7791-457: Is deeply rooted in stare decisis ("to stand by things decided"), where courts follow precedents established by previous decisions. When a similar case has been resolved, courts typically align their reasoning with the precedent set in that decision. However, in a " case of first impression " with no precedent or clear legislative guidance, judges are empowered to resolve the issue and establish new precedent. The common law, so named because it
7950-513: Is depicted doing this in Hooker's two sequels, M*A*S*H Goes to Maine and M*A*S*H Mania . Captain " Trapper " John Francis Xavier McIntyre appears in the novels, the film (played by Elliott Gould ), the M*A*S*H TV series (played by Wayne Rogers ), and the spin-off Trapper John, M.D. series (played by Pernell Roberts ). He is one of the main characters in the M*A*S*H TV series during
8109-495: Is destruction. What is true of the coffee urn is equally true of bottles of aerated water ( Torgesen v. Schultz , 192 N. Y. 156). We have mentioned only cases in this court. But the rule has received a like extension in our courts of intermediate appeal. In Burke v. Ireland (26 App. Div. 487), in an opinion by CULLEN, J., it was applied to a builder who constructed a defective building; in Kahner v. Otis Elevator Co. (96 App. Div. 169) to
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#17330859564018268-404: Is gaining or losing weight, or filling Frank Burns's air raid foxholes with water and then having the visiting Sidney Freedman yell "Air raid!" . On other occasions, B.J. encourages members of the 4077th to play jokes on each other, starting escalating joke wars for his amusement, with neither side knowing that he is the instigator. Unfortunately, this has often backfired on him when both parties he
8427-408: Is his Good Conduct Medal , an award "only given to enlisted men", Potter explains to Radar while unpacking that he has a "Good Conduct Medal with a clasp." That means he was an enlisted man for at least eight years before he becomes a doctor. It is framed and hung behind his desk during his tenure at the 4077th. However, the earliest a soldier in the army was credited towards this award was 1940, and as
8586-477: Is inferrable as a synthesis of the "thing of danger" principle stated in them, merely extending it to "foreseeable danger" even if "the purposes for which it was designed" were not themselves "a source of great danger". MacPherson takes some care to present itself as foreseeable progression, not a wild departure. Cardozo continues to adhere to the original principle of Winterbottom , that "absurd and outrageous consequences" must be avoided, and he does so by drawing
8745-425: Is introduced in the 1968 novel M*A*S*H , and is also a character in the film (played by Roger Bowen ) and television series (played by McLean Stevenson ). He is a surgeon and the original commanding officer of the 4077th MASH unit. He is beloved for his down-to-earth, laid-back manner by many under his command, especially Hawkeye and Trapper John (with whom he drinks, flouts regulations, and chases women). However, he
8904-539: Is more important that the applicable rule of law be settled than that it be settled right." This ability to predict gives more freedom to come close to the boundaries of the law. For example, many commercial contracts are more economically efficient, and create greater wealth, because the parties know ahead of time that the proposed arrangement, though perhaps close to the line, is almost certainly legal. Newspapers, taxpayer-funded entities with some religious affiliation, and political parties can obtain fairly clear guidance on
9063-580: Is not an initialism , but simply B.J., derived from the names of his parents, Bea and Jay. Hunnicutt resided in Mill Valley, California , before he was drafted. He was educated at Stanford University and was a member of the Tau Phi Epsilon fraternity. He is a third-generation doctor in his family. He went through his military training at Fort Sam Houston . When he arrived at MASH 4077 in September 1952 he
9222-424: Is permanently sent away for psychiatric evaluation in a straitjacket, shot full of tranquilizers. In the novel, the confrontation is less violent, and Burns is simply transferred to a VA hospital stateside. In the film and the subsequent TV series, Frank Burns's rank is that of major. The film version includes elements of the novel's Major Jonathan Hobson, a very religious man who prays for all souls to be saved. In
9381-549: Is scorned for it by those who prefer strict military discipline, such as Frank Burns and Margaret "Hot Lips" Houlihan. In the film and novel, he is a career Army physician, having been commissioned before World War II . In the television series, he is 44 years old and a reservist called up to active duty and taken from his private practice in Bloomington, Illinois . Henry attended the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign , where he
9540-424: Is shown) reinterpret and revise the law, without legislative intervention, to adapt to new trends in political, legal and social philosophy . Second, the common law evolves through a series of gradual steps , that gradually works out all the details, so that over a decade or more, the law can change substantially but without a sharp break, thereby reducing disruptive effects. In contrast to common law incrementalism,
9699-558: Is that legislatures may take away common law rights, but modern jurisprudence will look for the statutory purpose or legislative intent and apply rules of statutory construction like the plain meaning rule to reach decisions. As the United States Supreme Court explained in United States v Texas , 507 U.S. 529 (1993): Just as longstanding is the principle that "[s]tatutes which invade the common law ... are to be read with
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#17330859564019858-491: Is the executive officer and main antagonist in the film (played by Robert Duvall ) and the first five seasons of the television series ( Larry Linville ). Burns first appeared in the original novel, where he had the rank of captain. In the novel, Burns is a well-off doctor who attended medical school, but whose training as a surgeon was limited to an apprenticeship with his father in Fort Wayne, Indiana . Nonetheless, he maintains
10017-464: Is the largest private-sector publisher of law reports in the United States. Government publishers typically issue only decisions "in the raw", while private sector publishers often add indexing, including references to the key principles of the common law involved, editorial analysis, and similar finding aids. Statutes are generally understood to supersede common law. They may codify existing common law, create new causes of action that did not exist in
10176-504: Is to injure or destroy. But whatever the rule in Thomas v. Winchester may once have been, it has no longer that restricted meaning. A scaffold ( Devlin v. Smith , supra) is not inherently a destructive instrument. It becomes destructive only if imperfectly constructed. A large coffee urn ( Statler v. Ray Mfg. Co. , supra) may have within itself, if negligently made, the potency of danger, yet no one thinks of it as an implement whose normal function
10335-605: The High Court of Justiciary has this power instead (except on questions of law relating to reserved matters such as devolution and human rights). From 1966 to 2009, this power lay with the House of Lords , granted by the Practice Statement of 1966. Canada's federal system, described below , avoids regional variability of federal law by giving national jurisdiction to both layers of appellate courts. The reliance on judicial opinion
10494-585: The Pusan Perimeter at the start of the war, does indeed crack under pressure and probably received a Section 8 due to his emotional breakdown that prevents him working as a combat surgeon. When the Korean Armistice Agreement is announced, he states his intention to return to Crabapple Cove to be a local doctor who has the time to get to know his patients, instead of contending with the endless flow of casualties he faced during his time in Korea. He
10653-623: The jury , ordeals , the penalty of outlawry , and writs – all of which were incorporated into the Norman common law – is still a subject of much discussion. Additionally, the Catholic Church operated its own court system that adjudicated issues of canon law . The main sources for the history of the common law in the Middle Ages are the plea rolls and the Year Books . The plea rolls, which were
10812-468: The later decision controls. These courts essentially overrule all previous cases in each new case, and older cases survive only to the extent they do not conflict with newer cases. The interpretations of these courts—for example, Supreme Court interpretations of the constitution or federal statutes—are stable only so long as the older interpretation maintains the support of a majority of the court. Older decisions persist through some combination of belief that
10971-409: The 1180s) from his Curia Regis to hear the various disputes throughout the country, and return to the court thereafter. The king's itinerant justices would generally receive a writ or commission under the great seal. They would then resolve disputes on an ad hoc basis according to what they interpreted the customs to be. The king's judges would then return to London and often discuss their cases and
11130-632: The 13th century to the 17th, can be viewed online at the Anglo-American Legal Tradition site (The O'Quinn Law Library of the University of Houston Law Center). The doctrine of precedent developed during the 12th and 13th centuries, as the collective judicial decisions that were based in tradition, custom and precedent . The form of reasoning used in common law is known as casuistry or case-based reasoning . The common law, as applied in civil cases (as distinct from criminal cases ),
11289-575: The 1970 film adaptation of the novel, the television series M*A*S*H (1972–1983), AfterMASH (1983–1985), W*A*L*T*E*R (1984), and Trapper John, M.D. (1979–1986), and the video game M*A*S*H (1983). M*A*S*H is a media franchise revolving around the staff of the 4077th Mobile Army Surgical Hospital as they attempt to maintain sanity during the harshness of the Korean War . Captain Benjamin Franklin " Hawkeye " Pierce (Jr. in
11448-564: The 19th century, common law was still defined as an ancient, unwritten law in legal dictionaries including Bouvier's Law Dictionary and Black's Law Dictionary . The term "judge-made law" was introduced by Jeremy Bentham as a criticism of this pretense of the legal profession but acceptance of William Blackstone 's declaratory theory of common law was near universal for centuries. Many notable writers, including A. V. Dicey , William Markby , Oliver Wendell Holmes , John Austin , Roscoe Pound , and Ezra Ripley Thayer , eventually adopted
11607-471: The 4077th MASH. The character appeared in all but three of the subsequent episodes. Potter is from Hannibal, Missouri , one-quarter Cherokee and possesses a passion and fondness for horses. In typical M*A*S*H inconsistency, Potter's birth year was variously mentioned as being 1883 (he claimed to have joined Theodore Roosevelt 's "Roughriders" as a marginally legal 15-year-old enlistee in 1898), 1890, or 1900 or 1902. The most plausible date would be 1890. In
11766-465: The 4077th himself and resorts to underhanded means in attempting to achieve this end. Among his underhanded schemes are filing misleading complaints about Blake and unsuccessfully preventing Hawkeye and Trapper from testifying in Blake's defense. When Burns is left in command of the unit (per military regulations), he generally micromanages camp operations, just for the sake of being in command but demonstrates
11925-506: The 4077th is inundated with a deluge of casualties. Burns and Hawkeye recount different versions of the events. Burns claims that he was performing superior work, even going so far as to donate blood to a critically wounded soldier in between treating patients and completing the Last Rites benediction in Latin for the deceased after Father Mulcahy passed out from exhaustion. Burns further asserts that
12084-434: The 4077th with the asset of knowing many of his superiors as personal acquaintances, possesses formidable skills as a surgeon and for keeping morale high in the operating room. Potter is well-liked by his subordinates, especially Radar, who comes to see him as a mentor and father figure after Blake's transfer stateside and subsequent death. Potter receives more respect than Blake did from Major Houlihan, but Major Burns harbors
12243-506: The 4077th. In the film, he has a dry, sardonic, deadpan sense of humor, while in the M*A*S*H television series he is more of a class clown . Trapper spends much of his time on the series engaging in mischief with Hawkeye Pierce, with the two playing practical jokes on Majors Frank Burns and Margaret "Hot Lips" Houlihan, heavy drinking, and trying to seduce women. While Trapper expresses great love for his wife and daughters, he also fraternizes with
12402-449: The 8055th M.A.S.H. were the background for his novel MASH: A Novel About Three Army Doctors (1968), which he worked on for eleven years. In 1956, he began attempting to put his memories into a book. In the 1960s, a visit with a former M.A.S.H. colleague and his wife — a nurse at the unit — led to a session of drinking and storytelling. Hornberger later claimed the evening gave him new motivation to finish his manuscript. MASH
12561-668: The American Revolution, Massachusetts became the first state to establish an official Reporter of Decisions. As newer states needed law, they often looked first to the Massachusetts Reports for authoritative precedents as a basis for their own common law. The United States federal courts relied on private publishers until after the Civil War, and only began publishing as a government function in 1874 . West Publishing in Minnesota
12720-530: The Great Hall of the king's Palace of Westminster , permanently except in the vacations between the four terms of the Legal year . Judge-made common law operated as the primary source of law for several hundred years, before Parliament acquired legislative powers to create statutory law . In England, judges have devised a number of rules as to how to deal with precedent decisions . The early development of case-law in
12879-709: The Great War. Although his career was in the Horse Cavalry until 1924 when he married, he has told stories about being in the Infantry during World War I. During combat in World War I , at the July 1918 Battle of Château-Thierry , he was mustard gassed , leaving him blind for a month in a French hospital. In the September - November 1918 Battle of the Argonne Forest , he was "lost for three days, taken prisoner, head shaved and beaten to
13038-752: The Korean Campaign Medal, the U.N. Service Medal, the Meritorious Unit Commendation , the Commendation Medal, the Purple Heart, and possibly a Legion of Merit ; plus the Combat Medical Badge for his periodic service at battalion aid stations.) On occasion, he assumes temporary command of the 4077th in the absence or disability of Colonels Blake or Potter. As a surgeon, he does not like the use of firearms and he refuses to carry
13197-419: The M.A.S.H. doctors were in their twenties, with few having advanced surgical training. During battle campaigns, units could see "as many as 1,000 casualties a day". "What characterized the fighting in Korea", one of Hornberger's fellow officers recalled, "was that you would have a period of a week or ten days when nothing much was happening, then there would be a push. When you had a push, there would suddenly be
13356-590: The Roman canon law. One of the first and throughout its history one of the most significant treatises of the common law, Bracton's De Legibus et Consuetudinibus Angliae (On the Laws and Customs of England), was heavily influenced by the division of the law in Justinian's Institutes . The impact of Roman law had decreased sharply after the age of Bracton, but the Roman divisions of actions into in rem (typically, actions against
13515-584: The Season 10 episode " Pressure Points ," Potter tells Sidney Friedman that he is 62 years old. (The 1883 birthdate appears unlikely, since this would have made Potter nearly 70 during the Korean Conflict. The 1900 and 1902 birthdates would indicate he would be only around 49–50 during the Korean War.) Throughout his tenure in the series, it is occasionally mentioned that Potter is "close to retirement." Potter joined
13674-535: The South Korean Army. He also failed to become a nurse when he couldn't fold bed sheets with hospital corners , and in his hometown the local funeral director sends him Thank You cards every Christmas. The other doctors of the 4077th have little to no respect for Ferret Face. They looked at him with amused contempt when he once referred to himself as the unit's "Deputy Chief Surgeon". In one episode, one of Burns's patients had to have emergency surgery because Burns
13833-502: The TV series, he is very high-strung, with a penchant for uttering what are often bizarre or redundant cliches and malapropisms; one example is from "The Interview" (season 4, episode 24), in which Burns describes marriage as "the headstone of American society". In the TV series, though by military rank Burns is second-in-command of the unit, he is in fact outranked in medical matters by Hawkeye, who reluctantly accepts appointment by Colonel Blake as Chief Surgeon. Burns longs for command of
13992-539: The US Army cavalry as a private during World War I and subsequently rose to the rank of sergeant. Although never deployed as cavalry, the 6th and 15th Cavalry Regiments were sent to France and served in the American Expeditionary Forces in 1918. As the 15th was dismounted and sent into the trenches as infantry to relieve exhausted doughboys, it seems probable Potter saw combat with this battle-hardened unit in
14151-444: The United States is in the Korean War. Richard Hooker (author) Hiester Richard Hornberger Jr. (February 1, 1924 – November 4, 1997) was an American writer and surgeon who wrote under the pseudonym Richard Hooker . Hornberger's best-known work is his novel MASH (1968), based on his experiences as a wartime United States Army surgeon during the Korean War (1950–1953) and written in collaboration with W.C. Heinz . It
14310-425: The United States' commercial center, New York common law has a depth and predictability not (yet) available in any other jurisdictions of the United States. Similarly, American corporations are often formed under Delaware corporate law , and American contracts relating to corporate law issues ( merger and acquisitions of companies, rights of shareholders, and so on) include a Delaware choice of law clause, because of
14469-548: The United States. Commercial contracts almost always include a "choice of law clause" to reduce uncertainty. Somewhat surprisingly, contracts throughout the world (for example, contracts involving parties in Japan, France and Germany, and from most of the other states of the United States) often choose the law of New York, even where the relationship of the parties and transaction to New York is quite attenuated. Because of its history as
14628-480: The age of 73 on November 4, 1997, of leukemia . Common law Common law (also known as judicial precedent , judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law primarily developed through judicial decisions rather than statutes. Although common law may incorporate certain statutes , it is largely based on precedent —judicial rulings made in previous similar cases. The presiding judge determines which precedents to apply in deciding each new case. Common law
14787-412: The application of law to specific facts. The United States federal courts are divided into twelve regional circuits, each with a circuit court of appeals (plus a thirteenth, the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit , which hears appeals in patent cases and cases against the federal government, without geographic limitation). Decisions of one circuit court are binding on the district courts within
14946-693: The average person [his homemade still; daily tabs at the MASH Officers' Club, and Rosie's Bar] and also drinks 12-year-old Scotch whisky and Seagrams (Canadian whisky) — the latter so heavily that in the episode "Bottle Fatigue" Klinger decides to buy stock in Seagrams. In the series finale, "Goodbye, Farewell, and Amen", Hawkeye experiences a mental breakdown when a Korean woman suffocates her infant child in response to his frantic demand that she quiet her child lest enemy soldiers hear it and discover them. In talking to psychiatrist Sidney Freedman he first says that
15105-422: The boundaries within which their freedom of expression rights apply. In contrast, in jurisdictions with very weak respect for precedent, fine questions of law are redetermined anew each time they arise, making consistency and prediction more difficult, and procedures far more protracted than necessary because parties cannot rely on written statements of law as reliable guides. In jurisdictions that do not have
15264-518: The character is in continuity with the film rather than the TV series, but no other characters from either production appear in this series, making Trapper John the only M*A*S*H character to be depicted on-screen in the present day at the time of airing. In the first season, McIntyre's chief nurse, nicknamed "Starch", is said to have served with/worked for him in Korea, but never appeared in the novel, movie, or TV series. Trapper John, along with The Mary Tyler Moore Show 's Lou Grant , thus became one of
15423-544: The characters quite old, if the descriptions in the first book were to be believed. For instance, Hot Lips would have been in her 60s, having been described as "fortyish" in the first novel. After the success of his book and its screen adaptations, Hornberger continued to practice as a surgeon in Waterville until his retirement in 1988. During the later years of his practice, Hornberger did medical research and published his research in peer-reviewed medical journals. He died at
15582-464: The characters travel to various locations, including Moscow, New Orleans, San Francisco, and Paris. The books were credited to "Richard Hooker and William E. Butterworth ", although they were written entirely by Butterworth. They were hastily written to capitalize on the TV show's popularity and were of dubious literary merit. The action was transposed to the 1970s so that people such as Henry Kissinger could be lampooned, but this would have made some of
15741-399: The circuit and on the circuit court itself, but are only persuasive authority on sister circuits. District court decisions are not binding precedent at all, only persuasive. Most of the U.S. federal courts of appeal have adopted a rule under which, in the event of any conflict in decisions of panels (most of the courts of appeal almost always sit in panels of three), the earlier panel decision
15900-433: The commercial success of the original. While MASH was a fairly faithful reflection of Hornberger's service in Korea, his sequels were diverse representations of the "Swamp Gang's" post-Korea activities in the fictional town of Spruce Harbor, Maine, from 1953 to the 1970s. Attempts to adapt M*A*S*H Goes to Maine into a film met with failure. The sequels are characterized by gentle humour, stereotypical local characters, and
16059-860: The common law, or legislatively overrule the common law. Common law still has practical applications in some areas of law. Examples are contract law and the law of torts . At earlier stages in the development of modern legal systems and government, courts exercised their authority in performing what Roscoe Pound described as an essentially legislative function. As legislation became more comprehensive, courts began to operate within narrower limits of statutory interpretation . Jeremy Bentham famously criticized judicial lawmaking when he argued in favor of codification and narrow judicial decisions. Pound comments that critics of judicial lawmaking are not always consistent - sometimes siding with Bentham and decrying judicial overreach, at other times unsatisfied with judicial reluctance to sweep broadly and employ case law as
16218-415: The consequences to be expected. If to the element of danger there is added knowledge that the thing will be used by persons other than the purchaser, and used without new tests then, irrespective of contract, the manufacturer of this thing of danger is under a duty to make it carefully. ... There must be knowledge of a danger, not merely possible, but probable. Cardozo's new "rule" exists in no prior case, but
16377-516: The decisions they made with the other judges. These decisions would be recorded and filed. In time, a rule, known as stare decisis (also commonly known as precedent) developed, whereby a judge would be bound to follow the decision of an earlier judge; he was required to adopt the earlier judge's interpretation of the law and apply the same principles promulgated by that earlier judge if the two cases had similar facts to one another. Once judges began to regard each other's decisions to be binding precedent,
16536-537: The deep body of law in Delaware on these issues. On the other hand, some other jurisdictions have sufficiently developed bodies of law so that parties have no real motivation to choose the law of a foreign jurisdiction (for example, England and Wales, and the state of California), but not yet so fully developed that parties with no relationship to the jurisdiction choose that law. Outside the United States, parties that are in different jurisdictions from each other often choose
16695-468: The early seasons) to Vermont. His father graduated from medical school and settled as a doctor in Crabapple Cove in 1911. His mother is deceased and he has a sister (like Vermont, they are mentioned in some early episodes and then never again; although, in season 4, he says he was an only child), and he is close to his father. In the novel and film, Hawkeye is married with children, but in the TV series, he
16854-494: The emergence of a consensus from a multitude of particularized prior decisions". Justice Cardozo noted the "common law does not work from pre-established truths of universal and inflexible validity to conclusions derived from them deductively", but "[i]ts method is inductive, and it draws its generalizations from particulars". The common law is more malleable than statutory law. First, common law courts are not absolutely bound by precedent, but can (when extraordinarily good reason
17013-636: The episode " Rainbow Bridge ", he has to decide whether to send his doctors into enemy territory for an exchange of wounded prisoners. He hems and haws before telling his doctors, "Whatever you guys decide is fine with me." (In a fourth season episode, " Quo Vadis, Captain Chandler ," Colonel Flagg complains to Colonel Potter, "The last C.O. in this unit couldn't make a command decision without a month's notice.") Fortunately for Henry, his company clerk, Radar O'Reilly, can usually anticipate his C.O.'s wishes and turn them into efficient military orders. Henry's strength as
17172-505: The fictional Androscoggin College. In the book and the film, Hawkeye had played football in college; in the series, he is non-athletic. After completing his medical residency (possibly in Chicago; he has a familiarity with the city that implies extended time spent there, e.g. , "Adam's Ribs"); he had a common law marriage with a nurse, Carlye Breslin, but they broke up after a year. In 1950 he
17331-559: The film rights for only a few hundred dollars that he never again signed a copy of the book." A TV series was developed, that debuted in 1972 and ran for eleven seasons with great popularity. Hornberger reportedly did not like Alan Alda 's portrayal of Hawkeye in the TV series, favoring the Robert Altman film, in which Pierce was played by Donald Sutherland . Hornberger wrote the sequels to MASH — M*A*S*H Goes to Maine (1972) and M*A*S*H Mania (1977) — neither of which enjoyed
17490-437: The first three seasons and the central character of the latter series. His nickname comes from an incident in which he was caught having sex with a woman in the lavatory aboard a Boston and Maine Railroad train: she claimed in her defense that "he trapped me!" In the book and the film, Trapper John is a graduate of Dartmouth College , having played quarterback on the school's football team, and serves as thoracic surgeon of
17649-454: The government. Eyres (a Norman French word for judicial circuit, originating from Latin iter ) are more than just courts; they would supervise local government, raise revenue, investigate crimes, and enforce feudal rights of the king. There were complaints of the eyre of 1198 reducing the kingdom to poverty and Cornishmen fleeing to escape the eyre of 1233. Henry II's creation of a powerful and unified court system, which curbed somewhat
17808-419: The gradual change that typifies evolution of the common law is the gradual change in liability for negligence. The traditional common law rule through most of the 19th century was that a plaintiff could not recover for a defendant's negligent production or distribution of a harmful instrumentality unless the two were parties to a contract ( privity of contract ). Thus, only the immediate purchaser could recover for
17967-487: The incident to determine if a court-martial is warranted concluded there were no grounds for a court-martial, and indicated that according to Burns' record, "If you hadn't been drafted as a doctor, I think you'd have been assigned as a pastry chef." A borderline-incompetent surgeon (he twice failed the medical exams and only passed by buying the answers the third time - even so it took him seven years to complete medical school), his reputation for incompetence has spread even to
18126-531: The law of England and Wales, particularly when the parties are each in former British colonies and members of the Commonwealth. The common theme in all cases is that commercial parties seek predictability and simplicity in their contractual relations, and frequently choose the law of a common law jurisdiction with a well-developed body of common law to achieve that result. Likewise, for litigation of commercial disputes arising out of unpredictable torts (as opposed to
18285-422: The legislative process is very difficult to get started, as the work begins much earlier than just introducing a bill. Once the legislation is introduced, the process to getting it passed is long, involving the committee system, debate, the potential of conference committee, voting, and President approval. Because of the involved process, many pieces must fall into place in order for it to be passed. One example of
18444-420: The legislature has had the foresight and diligence to address the precise set of facts applicable to a particular situation. For that reason, civil law statutes tend to be somewhat more detailed than statutes written by common law legislatures—but, conversely, that tends to make the statute more difficult to read. The common law—so named because it was "common" to all the king's courts across England—originated in
18603-471: The manufacturer of an elevator; in Davies v. Pelham Hod Elevating Co. (65 Hun, 573; affirmed in this court without opinion, 146 N. Y. 363) to a contractor who furnished a defective rope with knowledge of the purpose for which the rope was to be used. We are not required at this time either to approve or to disapprove the application of the rule that was made in these cases. It is enough that they help to characterize
18762-471: The modern definition of common law as "case law" or ratio decidendi , which serves as binding precedent . In a common law jurisdiction several stages of research and analysis are required to determine "what the law is" in a given situation. First, one must ascertain the facts. Then, one must locate any relevant statutes and cases. Then one must extract the principles, analogies and statements by various courts of what they consider important to determine how
18921-465: The more controversial clauses of the Constitutions of Clarendon . Henry nevertheless continued to exert influence in any ecclesiastical case which interested him and royal power was exercised more subtly with considerable success. The English Court of Common Pleas was established after Magna Carta to try lawsuits between commoners in which the monarch had no interest. Its judges sat in open court in
19080-424: The most important factor in the boundary would be the nature of the thing sold and the foreseeable uses that downstream purchasers would make of the thing. The example of the evolution of the law of negligence in the preceding paragraphs illustrates two crucial principles: (a) The common law evolves, this evolution is in the hands of judges, and judges have "made law" for hundreds of years. (b) The reasons given for
19239-412: The next court is likely to rule on the facts of the present case. More recent decisions, and decisions of higher courts or legislatures carry more weight than earlier cases and those of lower courts. Finally, one integrates all the lines drawn and reasons given, and determines "what the law is". Then, one applies that law to the facts. In practice, common law systems are considerably more complicated than
19398-483: The nickname of "Ferret Face" on him as a boy. When the Swampmen learn of this, it becomes Frank's nickname at the 4077th as well, used by most of the unit and even on occasion by Major Houlihan. The one person who genuinely cares about him is his mother; his parents and brother were his only relations at his wedding. He was scoutmaster of the local Boy Scout troop until he accidentally set fire to himself. He brags about having
19557-636: The novel) was played by Donald Sutherland in the film, and by Alan Alda in the television series. A principal character of the series, where between long sessions of treating wounded patients, he is found making wisecracks, drinking heavily, carousing, womanizing, and pulling pranks on the people around him, especially Frank Burns and "Hot Lips" Houlihan. In the novel, he serves as a moral center and author's alter ego , chiding Trapper John for calling Major Houlihan "Hot Lips", which Pierce never does. Although just one of an ensemble of characters in author Richard Hooker 's MASH: A Novel About Three Army Doctors , in
19716-416: The novel, the extent of the relationship between Burns and Houlihan is unclear and only rumored to be sexual. In the film, it is overtly sexual and broadcast throughout the camp when Radar puts a microphone under Hot Lips' bunk in her tent. After the "Swampmen" learn that Burns is having an affair with Houlihan, Hawkeye taunts him about it, baiting him to attack just as Blake enters the tent. The next day, Burns
19875-449: The nurses a great deal with no pretense of fidelity. He admits frankly that his wife collects his pay for a special fund to pay private investigators who will spy on him, which will begin the second night he gets home from Korea. In the film, Hawkeye and Trapper are given roughly equal focus, but in the TV series, the character devolved to become more of a sidekick to the character of Hawkeye. This frustrated Rogers, and in combination with
20034-512: The official court records for the Courts of Common Pleas and King's Bench, were written in Latin. The rolls were made up in bundles by law term: Hilary, Easter, Trinity, and Michaelmas, or winter, spring, summer, and autumn. They are currently deposited in the UK National Archives , by whose permission images of the rolls for the Courts of Common Pleas, King's Bench, and Exchequer of Pleas, from
20193-579: The old decision is right, and that it is not sufficiently wrong to be overruled. In the jurisdictions of England and Wales and of Northern Ireland , since 2009, the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom has the authority to overrule and unify criminal law decisions of lower courts; it is the final court of appeal for civil law cases in all three of the UK jurisdictions, but not for criminal law cases in Scotland, where
20352-610: The ordinary usage to be contemplated by the vendor". However, held the Cadillac court, "one who manufactures articles dangerous only if defectively made, or installed, e.g., tables, chairs, pictures or mirrors hung on the walls, carriages, automobiles, and so on, is not liable to third parties for injuries caused by them, except in case of willful injury or fraud". Finally, in the famous case of MacPherson v. Buick Motor Co. , in 1916, Judge Benjamin Cardozo for New York's highest court pulled
20511-421: The other surgeons could not keep up with him and complained that he was pushing them too hard. In Hawkeye's presumably far more accurate account, Frank was borderline hysterical and performed his triage duties with singular incompetence, which resulted in the near-deaths of multiple casualties. After being confronted by Hawkeye, Burns was knocked unconscious by the operating room door. The JAG colonel investigating
20670-424: The period from the 13th to the 16th centuries, when the common law developed into recognizable form. The term "common law" is often used as a contrast to Roman-derived "civil law", and the fundamental processes and forms of reasoning in the two are quite different. Nonetheless, there has been considerable cross-fertilization of ideas, while the two traditions and sets of foundational principles remain distinct. By
20829-571: The power of canonical (church) courts, brought him (and England) into conflict with the church, most famously with Thomas Becket , the Archbishop of Canterbury . The murder of the archbishop gave rise to a wave of popular outrage against the King. International pressure on Henry grew, and in May 1172 he negotiated a settlement with the papacy in which the King swore to go on crusade as well as effectively overturned
20988-706: The practices of the courts of the English kings in the centuries following the Norman Conquest in 1066. Prior to the Norman Conquest, much of England's legal business took place in the local folk courts of its various shires and hundreds . A variety of other individual courts also existed across the land: urban boroughs and merchant fairs held their own courts, and large landholders also held their own manorial and seigniorial courts as needed. The degree to which common law drew from earlier Anglo-Saxon traditions such as
21147-420: The pre-Norman system of local customs and law varying in each locality was replaced by a system that was (at least in theory, though not always in practice) common throughout the whole country, hence the name "common law". The king's object was to preserve public order, but providing law and order was also extremely profitable – cases on forest use as well as fines and forfeitures can generate "great treasure" for
21306-528: The presentation of evidence , a distinguishing factor from today's civil and criminal court systems. At the time, royal government centered on the Curia Regis (king's court), the body of aristocrats and prelates who assisted in the administration of the realm and the ancestor of Parliament , the Star Chamber , and Privy Council . Henry II developed the practice of sending judges (numbering around 20 to 30 in
21465-444: The prospective choice of law clauses in contracts discussed in the previous paragraph), certain jurisdictions attract an unusually high fraction of cases, because of the predictability afforded by the depth of decided cases. For example, London is considered the pre-eminent centre for litigation of admiralty cases. This is not to say that common law is better in every situation. For example, civil law can be clearer than case law when
21624-435: The scene was shot. In Richard Hooker's 1977 novel M*A*S*H Mania , which takes place in the early 1970s, Henry Blake has become a General and helps Hawkeye in a scheme to rid Crabapple Cove of a troublesome psychologist. Colonel Sherman Tecumseh Potter appears in the M*A*S*H and AfterMASH television series. He was portrayed by Harry Morgan and replaced the departing character of Henry Blake as commanding officer of
21783-419: The series ended)—B.J. professes stronger moral values. For example, in the episode "Preventative Medicine" he refuses to participate in a scheme to have an overzealous officer relieved of command by performing an unnecessary appendectomy on him. He is a skilled surgeon, willing to take extraordinary measures to save a patient, such as in "Heroes", where he undertakes an experimental procedure he had read about in
21942-442: The show at the end of the third season, his character was scripted to be discharged and sent home as a way to write him out of the series. However, the producers added a final scene to his last episode in which Radar delivers news that Blake's plane has been shot down with no survivors. The characters are shocked by the news; the actors were shocked too, as they were not informed of the script change to have Blake die until just before
22101-726: The simplified system described above. The decisions of a court are binding only in a particular jurisdiction , and even within a given jurisdiction, some courts have more power than others. For example, in most jurisdictions, decisions by appellate courts are binding on lower courts in the same jurisdiction, and on future decisions of the same appellate court, but decisions of lower courts are only non-binding persuasive authority. Interactions between common law, constitutional law , statutory law and regulatory law also give rise to considerable complexity. Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. cautioned that "the proper derivation of general principles in both common and constitutional law ... arise gradually, in
22260-492: The statute did not affirmatively require statutory solemnization and was silent as to preexisting common law. Court decisions that analyze, interpret and determine the fine boundaries and distinctions in law promulgated by other bodies are sometimes called "interstitial common law," which includes judicial interpretation of fundamental laws, such as the US Constitution , of legislative statutes, and of agency regulations , and
22419-411: The statute must "speak directly" to the question addressed by the common law. Mobil Oil Corp. v. Higginbotham , 436 U. S. 618, 625 (1978); Milwaukee v. Illinois , 451 U. S. 304, 315 (1981). As another example, the Supreme Court of the United States in 1877, held that a Michigan statute that established rules for solemnization of marriages did not abolish pre-existing common-law marriage , because
22578-585: The television series, Hawkeye became the center of the MASH unit's medical activity. In the television series, he becomes the Chief Surgeon of the unit early in the first season. Alan Alda is the only actor to appear in all 256 episodes of the series. Pierce was born and raised in New England , most often mentioning Crabapple Cove, Maine, as a place that his family had a summer home and with a few references (primarily in
22737-412: The thirteenth century has been traced to Bracton 's On the Laws and Customs of England and led to the yearly compilations of court cases known as Year Books , of which the first extant was published in 1268, the same year that Bracton died. The Year Books are known as the law reports of medieval England, and are a principal source for knowledge of the developing legal doctrines, concepts, and methods in
22896-501: The time of the rediscovery of the Roman law in Europe in the 12th and 13th centuries, the common law had already developed far enough to prevent a Roman law reception as it occurred on the continent. However, the first common law scholars, most notably Glanvill and Bracton , as well as the early royal common law judges, had been well accustomed with Roman law. Often, they were clerics trained in
23055-405: The trend of judicial thought. We hold, then, that the principle of Thomas v. Winchester is not limited to poisons, explosives, and things of like nature, to things which in their normal operation are implements of destruction. If the nature of a thing is such that it is reasonably certain to place life and limb in peril when negligently made, it is then a thing of danger. Its nature gives warning of
23214-402: The woman had suffocated a chicken, until Freedman led him to admit the repressed memory — the horror of a mother smothering her own baby. He recommended that Hawkeye return to the 4077th for the end of the war to come to terms with what he had endured. In real life, Pierce would have faced a Section 8 discharge due to his emotional breakdown, having serving in Korea for at least two years in
23373-473: The word "GOODBYE", visible from the air. On an episode of St. Elsewhere , it was mentioned and implied by Dr. Mark Craig (portrayed by William Daniels ) that B.J. Hunnicutt had remained in Korea where he was reassigned to another unit following the July 1953 deactivation of the 4077th Mobile Army Surgical Hospital at the end of M*A*S*H's finale and Dr. Craig also mentions serving in Korea with B.J. as his drinking buddy. Lieutenant Colonel Henry Braymore Blake
23532-404: Was drafted into the Korean War and assigned to the 8055 Mobile Army Surgical Hospital (M.A.S.H.). M.A.S.H. units, according to one doctor assigned to the unit, "weren't on the front lines, but they were close. They lived and worked in tents. It was hot in the summer and colder than cold in the winter." The operating room consisted of stretchers balanced on carpenter's sawhorses . Many of
23691-403: Was drafted into the U.S. Army Medical Corps and sent to serve at the 4077th Mobile Army Surgical Hospital (MASH) during the Korean War . He became Chief Surgeon instead of Burns because Hawkeye specialized in cardiothoracic surgery in addition to general surgery, whereas Burns was only qualified in general surgery. Alda said of Pierce, "Some people think he was very liberal. But he was also
23850-472: Was "common" to all the king's courts across England, originated in the practices of the courts of the English kings in the centuries following the Norman Conquest in 1066. It established a unified legal system, gradually supplanting the local folk courts and manorial courts . England spread the English legal system across the British Isles, first to Wales, and then to Ireland and overseas colonies ; this
24009-430: Was a specialist surgeon in chest wounds while Burns was a General Practitioner .) Blake in the TV series is compassionate but pragmatic at times: in the early episode "Sometimes You Hear The Bullet", he bluntly tells Hawkeye "When I went to school as an Army surgeon, they taught me two rules. Rule #1 is that in war, young men die. And Rule #2...is that doctors can't change Rule #1." When McLean Stevenson decided to leave
24168-535: Was continued by the later British Empire . Many former colonies retain the common law system today. These common law systems are legal systems that give great weight to judicial precedent, and to the style of reasoning inherited from the English legal system. Today, approximately one-third of the world's population lives in common law jurisdictions or in mixed legal systems that integrate common law and civil law . According to Black's Law Dictionary , common law
24327-497: Was devised as a means of compensating someone for wrongful acts known as torts , including both intentional torts and torts caused by negligence , and as developing the body of law recognizing and regulating contracts . The type of procedure practiced in common law courts is known as the adversarial system ; this is also a development of the common law. In 1154, Henry II became the first Plantagenet king. Among many achievements, Henry institutionalized common law by creating
24486-423: Was intended to be the premiere episode). The character returned to television in 1979 in the medical drama series Trapper John, M.D. Now played by Pernell Roberts , the character is depicted in the then-present day as the middle-aged Chief of Surgery at a San Francisco hospital. Regarding his family life, he is divorced from his wife; the only mention of his children is that he has a grown son. This version of
24645-449: Was pranking find out and retaliate. B.J. is also an inveterate, bordering on compulsive, punster . While he assumes the same general disregard for military discipline exhibited by both Hawkeye and Trapper — going as far as to grow out a moustache at the start of the 7th season in clear violation of Army uniform guidelines (and would be retained by the character for the rest of the series, though Farrell would shave it off immediately after
24804-519: Was rejected by many publishers. He worked with the famed sportswriter W.C. Heinz to revise it. A year later, the book was acquired by William Morrow and Company . Published under Hornberger's pseudonym, Richard Hooker , the novel was highly successful. MASH was adapted as a film by the same name , directed by Robert Altman and released in 1970. It was nominated for five Academy Awards and won for Best Adapted Screenplay . According to writer John Baxter , Hornberger "was so furious at having sold
24963-642: Was the football team's athletic trainer . He tells Hawkeye he has "a great practice back home", but a "routine" one, and that by serving in Korea, he is doing more doctoring than he would otherwise do in a lifetime. While Henry is in command of the 4077th, his wife – called Mildred in earlier episodes, Lorraine in later ones (the reason is never explained) – gives birth to a son back in Bloomington. Henry would never meet his son. As shown in Episode 2/16, "Henry in Love", Blake holds
25122-414: Was too lazy to exteriorize a patient's colon during an operation. Henry Blake once threatened to bust Burns down to male nurse if he didn't get out of his way. Potter once told Burns his light bulb had been out for as long as he had known him; and on another occasion, told him that his brain had a charley horse. Hawkeye told a court of inquiry that Burns had created more widows and orphans than salmonella, and
25281-893: Was used as the basis for an award-winning, critically and commercially successful movie – M*A*S*H (1970) — and two years later in an acclaimed long running television series (1972–1983) of the same title. Born in Trenton, New Jersey , Hornberger attended the Peddie School in Hightstown . He graduated from Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine , where he was an active member of the Beta Theta Pi fraternity. He went to Cornell Medical School in New York City . After graduating from medical school, he
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