Category: Banking Law

Mann and Proctor on the Law of Money by Charles Proctor
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Edition: 8th Edition (January 2023)
ISBN: 978-0-19880492-5
Price: £295.00
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More than ten years have passed since the last edition of Mann and Proctor on the Law of Money was published. Since then, there have been significant developments. These include the impact of Brexit on monetary law, the development of cryptocurrencies (including Bitcoin) and whether such currencies constitute money and not property, the continuing role of the International Monetary Fund and the European Central Bank on the Greek crisis and the effect of hyperinflation in countries like Zimbabwe. All of these changes have been seamlessly incorporated into this latest edition.

This eighth edition is split into six parts: the concept of money and monetary systems; the private law of monetary obligations; the principle of nominalism; exchange, controls, exchange rates and sanctions; public international law of money; and monetary unions and other forms of monetary organisation. Each part then includes a number of chapters. For example, Part I includes chapters on: the concept of money; the organisation of the monetary system; the role of the central bank; and payment systems.

Like earlier editions, Mann and Proctor on the Law of Money provides an indispensable and coherent account of the law of money. It is both thought-provoking and accessible. It tackles the latest developments in a clear and comprehensible way. For example, it makes the point that “a virtual currency has no monetary status does not mean that it has no legal status at all – the status of Bitcoin as a form of property in the eyes of English law has provisionally been confirmed by the High Court“. It also clearly explains to the reader that a “further set of problems may arise where cross-claims in different currencies have to be determined and settled by means of a single judgment” and provides clear and practical guidance.

For anyone looking for a clear, accessible and comprehensive account of the law of money, they should make sure a copy of Mann and Proctor on the Law of Money remains close to hand. It is littered with extremely detailed footnotes which provide a treasure-trove of materials for further research: an invaluable inclusion. It also provides an excellent and clear analysis of some of the more tricky topics from Brexit to hyperinflation to cryptocurrencies. It will no doubt continue to be a favourite of practitioners for years to come.

Reviewed on 9 July 2024

In these current economic times, it is perhaps unsurprising that there is an increase in disputes involving financial institutions.  Whether it is domestic issues like payment protection insurance, or international issues like the collapse of long-standing financial institutions, practitioners and students need sound judgment to predict how the Court will resolve any conflicts.  Principles of International Financial Law aims to provide readers with a sound foundation to allow those judgments to be made.

Written by Colin Bamford, a barrister and former solicitor of more than twenty years’ experience, Principles of International Financial Law is split into eleven chapters: introduction; money; payment; personal and property rights; intangibles as property; the legal nature of the international bond market; fiduciary duties and how they arise; fiduciary duties in financial markets; credit support in financial markets; security interests; and the construction of financial contracts.  While it puts financial law into an international context, Principles of International Financial Law expertly considers English law.

Bamford’s writing style is both engaging and accessible.  He expertly considers the important foundations of the law with the key decisions from the Courts.  Of particular interest to anyone dealing with domestic payment protection insurance disputes are two excellent chapters on fiduciary duties.  It has often been baldy argued by borrowers that the broker or the lender owes a generic fiduciary duty to borrowers.  Bamford rightly points out that fiduciary duties are generally the exception rather than the rule.  He does not, however, make it clear that breaches of the Financial Services Authority’s Principles for Business are excluded from Section 150 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 by PRIN 3.4.4.

For anyone studying international or domestic financial law, or practising in this area of law, Bamford’s Principles of International Financial Law is an excellent addition to their library.  It expertly covers the main topics in a thought-provoking way.  Publishing a student edition, which at less than £50 is around half of the price of the hardback version, should mean that students who may otherwise find this text out of their price range will have chance to read it.  Those that do will have a better understanding of financial law, how it works in practice and, importantly, be in a good position to judge how the law will be shaped in the future.

Reviewed on 29 August 2011

From a practical perspective, a banker’s right to set-off debts is extremely important in both retail and wholesale banking.  Without it, customers may retain large balances on some accounts and large liabilities on others.  Sheelagh McCracken’s The Banker’s Remedy of Set-Off, now in its third edition, aims to provide an invaluable analysis of the law of set-off, its origins and its practical application.  It largely achieves this aim.

Written by an experienced academic, The Banker’s Remedy of Set-Off has been around for some time.  It has, however, been seventeen years since the second edition was published in 1993.  It is split in to five parts: the relevance of set-off under the banking contract; the concept of set-off; the nature of set-off; the scope of set-off as a remedy; and the application of set-off as a remedy.  Each part (except for the first and last) is then split into a number of chapters.  This is very much a cradle to the grave approach and gives readers and excellent insight into the law and its development.

As McCracken candidly admits, the origins of the text are in her doctoral thesis undertaken at the University of Sydney.It therefore means that The Banker’s Remedy of Set-Off is fantastically detailed and meticulously tackles the difficult issues of principle.  It is therefore ideal for academics or those wanting an in-depth analysis of this important area of law.  Practitioners who want a quick answer may, however, find the text somewhat frustrating: it often takes longer than one expects to really hone in to the answer to a specific question.

The Banker’s Right of Set-Off does exactly what it says on the tin: it provides a thorough and comprehensive analysis of this important area of law.  At times it does, however, get somewhat bogged down in theoretical principles meaning practitioners may find it not as helpful as one would expect.  It can also be, at times, somewhat wordy meaning the impact of a point can sometimes be lost.  These are, however, relatively minor issues on a thorough and important analysis of the banker’s right to set-off debts.

Reviewed on 20 March 2011

Financial services law has never been a slow moving area of law. However, since the last edition was published in 2005, a lot more than expected has happened in the banking industry: the fall of Northern Rock, the increase in state ownership of lending institutions and the review of lending supervision.  So this new edition of Financial Services Law, edited by Michael Blair QC, George Walker and Robert Purves, could not be more timely and is extremely welcome.

Financial Services Law is divided into three parts: Financial Services and Markets; Financial Services Regulation; and Financial Sectors and Activities.  Each part then includes a number of chapters.  For example, the first part includes chapters on the Financial Services Authority and the Financial Services and Markets Act.  The second part includes chapters on the (important) FSA Handbook and High-Level Standards, Financial Redress – Complains, Disputes and Compensation and Misleading Statements and Practices.  The third part includes chapters on Investment Firms – Wholesale Sector, Home Finance Transactions and Insurance Regulation.  This is a rather comprehensive coverage of the key areas of financial services law.

As you would expect for a text edited by three expert lawyers, Financial Services Law is wonderfully and engagingly written.  From time to time it does, however, go into too much detail for practitioners and sways more towards an academic text.  Whilst there is nothing wrong with this, it is perhaps an endemic issue for a text like this which tries to straddle these two worlds.  Financial Services Law is thoroughly researched meaning no stone is left unturned by the authors in their quest of providing a key text for financial services lawyers.  Being a banking litigation lawyer, I found the chapters on FSA Handbook, High-Level Standards and Financial Redress – Complains, Disputes and Compensation extremely useful and practically written.

Self-respecting financial services lawyers will welcome this new edition of Financial Services Law with open arms.  It should, however, be remembered that this area of law is constantly changing meaning developments towards the end of 2009 have not made it into this edition.  This will, no doubt, require the editors to regularly invest time in updating this important text.  It is, however, one of the most authoritative texts on the markets and, whilst the price may understandably put some people off, those who do invest in Financial Services Law will not regret it – having expert guidance on hand is certainly no bad thing in these interesting times.

Reviewed on 20 August 2010

Banking law continues to be a technical but interesting area of law.  With recent events, it is also becoming more regulated with legislation being enacted to allow the Government to acquire a shareholding and further legislation being proposed to regulate the banking industry.  It is therefore more important than ever to have a comprehensive guide to banking law: Butterworths Banking Law Handbook provides exactly this.

Written by two experienced banking barristers, Butterworths Banking Law Handbook is separated into four parts: statutes, statutory instruments, other materials and European legislation.  Separating the material in this way and using a coloured edge to the text to show the separate parts means that the relevant material can be quickly found.  Like other handbooks, navigation is also helped by each distinct provision being allocated a unique paragraph number which is cross-referenced to the contents and index.

Butterworths Banking Law Handbook has been fully updated to include the latest legislative developments including the Banking (Special Provisions) Act 2008 and the Banking Code 2008.  Handbooks like these sometimes have problems when material has not be expertly selected.  Fortunately, the editors’ experience in banking law means that Butterworths Banking Law Handbook does not suffer from this issue.

Anyone looking for a comprehensive collection of banking law statutes, statutory instruments, other materials and European materials should look no further than Butterworths Banking Law Handbook.  The material is expertly selected meaning it is both an indispensible and authoritative guide to the provisions that most banking lawyers will consider in their working lives.

Reviewed on 5 April 2009

Banking and finance law plays an important role in practice.  Butterworths Banking Law Guide, edited by Mark Howard QC & Roger Masefield, aims to provide a succinct summary of English banking law.  To my mind, it easily achieves this aim although I would certainly welcome an updated version following the substantial changes since publication.

Edited by two experienced banking law barristers together with a team of experienced authors, Butterworths Banking Law Guide is separated into the main areas of retail banking, namely bank regulation, banks, customers and third parties, payment and payment systems, the bank as lender, the regulation of consumer credit, trade finance and the law relating to internet banking.  To succinctly cover all of these areas is an ambitious aim but the contributors’ expertise, combined with the accessible writing style, means this aim is achieved making it an important text for retail banking lawyers.

Butterworths Banking Law Guide is impressively written: each chapter is sub-divided into a number of small and manageable section with (where relevant) detailed footnotes.  Because of my particular interest in consumer credit, I was pleased by the contributors’ coverage on this area of law.  I would have, however, like a little more coverage of important banking issues like prescribed terms and prescribed information and the Court’s power to make an enforcement order.  Instead, the reader is referred to specialist texts.

For many banking lawyers, Butterworths Banking Law Guide should be a text which remains close to hand.  More experienced lawyers may, however, prefer to tackle more specialised texts.  That said, lawyers looking for a succinct overview of the law, its application and its principles should look no further than Butterworths Banking Law Guide which is likely to become a favourite for years to come.

Reviewed on 5 April 2009