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Scottish Court of Session

Digital Archive Project

A Multi-Institutional Collaborative Research Initiative

into Early America and the British Atlantic World

Explore the ArchiveProject Overview

 

The Scottish Court of Session Digital Archive Project is an initiative to explore everyday life in early America and the British Atlantic world of the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries through Session Papers. These printed materials were submitted to Scotland's supreme civil court as part of the litigation process. As a court of appeal and of first instance, the Court of Session in this period held jurisdiction over contract and commercial cases, matters of succession and land ownership, divorce proceedings, intellectual property and copyright disputes, and contested political elections. Scottish women, Virginia merchants, aristocratic Highland proprietors, famous authors, enslaved laborers, soldiers, American Loyalists, and many more individuals sought justice before the Court of Session in this era.

The documents offered in this archive date from the late 1750s to the late 1830s, a period encompassing the Seven Years' War in North America and the Great Reform Act in Scotland. They are held by the Arthur J. Morris Law Library at the University of Virginia School of Law and the Library of Congress. The combined digital collection will eventually include approximately 10,000 printed petitions, answers, replies, and case summaries, many of which have contemporary annotations. Supplemental case materials appended to these documents include maps, building plans, and printed copies of correspondence, wills, financial accounts, and census reports. These documents, along with the research-driven metadata included with the digital records, offers scholars and the public new ways to explore our transatlantic past.

This website will be updated as new material is added to the database. Please see our progress page to track planned additions and migrations.

Pathways into Early America and the British Atlantic World

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Entry Points

Explore Cases Curated By Theme

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People and Organizations

Search For People And Organizations In The Session Papers

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Legal Geography
View Locations Identified In The Session Papers
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Scholarship

Read The Latest Project Updates and Research

Session Papers Consortium By The Numbers

3502
Cases in the Archive
4363
Case Documents Processed
29399
Total Number of Pages Uploaded
5
Repositories
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Scottish Court of Session Digital Archive

The Scottish Court of Session Digital Archive is a multi-institutional collaborative initiative featuring Session Papers held by the Arthur J. Morris Law Library at the University of Virginia School of Law and the Library of Congress. The documents are hosted by the Centre for Research Collections at the University of Edinburgh. 

The project is made possible with generous investments from the Horatio and Florence Farmer Fund at the University of Virginia School of Law and the William Nelson Cromwell Foundation. 

Support SCOS with a tax deductible gift.

Latest News and Posts

SCOS Project Awarded Omohundro Institute Fellowship

The SCOS team is delighted to announce, in partnership with The Centre for Research Collections…

Feb 24, 2021

Transcription and Cataloguing Workshop

 Your presence would be warmly welcomed at our upcoming trans-national workshop discussing…

Feb 16, 2021

Window in the British Atlantic, 1759-1834

In early February 1776, Scottish advocate James Boswell…

Apr 18, 2019
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© 2021 by the Rector and Visitors of the University of Virginia
© 2021 by the Rector and Visitors of the University of Virginia