Brexit, the possible break-up of the UK, pandemics, this is a country in crisis. In crises the law sets the boundaries of what the government can and should do. But in a country without a written constitution such as the UK, the precise limits between legal obligation and convention can be hazy. Conventions, such as the Prime Minister being an MP, can not be enforced in the same way as laws.

What are the limits of law in politics? What is the relationship between law and the constitution? Is not having a constitution a hindrance or a help in time of crisis? Former supreme court judge Jonathan Sumption wrestles with past, current and potential crises that this increasingly divided country faces. From the role of the Supreme Court to the uses of referenda to the rise of nationalisms within the United Kingdom, Sumption exposes the subtleties, uses, and abuses of legal and judicial interventions. With razor sharp intelligence and far-reaching analysis he counsels caution both in our impulse to radically upend the system and to challenge results that we may not be what we want.

'Thoughtful, stimulating and even entertaining ... Lord Sumption's opinion is always worth listening to, even - or especially - if one disagrees with it.' Daily Telegraph

'Time spent on Law in a Time of Crisis is time spent in the company of a brilliant mind considering interesting things' The Times

Brexit, the independence referendum, the pandemic: the UK is a country in crisis. And, in crises, we turn to the law to set the boundaries of what the government can and should do. However, in a country with no written constitution, what sounds like a simple proposition is in fact anything but.

Based on his 2019 Reith lectures, former Supreme Court Judge Jonathan Sumption asks: what are the limits of law in politics? Is not having a constitution a hindrance or help in times of crisis? From referenda to the rise of nationalisms, Law in a Time of Crisis exposes the uses and abuses of legal intervention in British crises - past, present, and potential.

'Thoughtful, stimulating and even entertaining ... Lord Sumption's opinion is always worth listening to, even - or especially - if one disagrees with it.' Daily Telegraph

'Time spent on Law in a Time of Crisis is time spent in the company of a brilliant mind considering interesting things' The Times

Brexit, the independence referendum, the pandemic: the UK is a country in crisis. And, in crises, we turn to the law to set the boundaries of what the government can and should do. However, in a country with no written constitution, what sounds like a simple proposition is in fact anything but.

Based on his 2019 Reith lectures, former Supreme Court Judge Jonathan Sumption asks: what are the limits of law in politics? Is not having a constitution a hindrance or help in times of crisis? From referenda to the rise of nationalisms, Law in a Time of Crisis exposes the uses and abuses of legal intervention in British crises - past, present, and potential.