Missed or Misguided? Formality, Land Contracts and the Statute of Frauds

The rights which a person claims over something capable of ownership are a central element in any system of rules concerned with the regulation of society. Indeed, many legal theorists, including the 17th century philosopher John Locke, ¹ have taken the view that perhaps the chief reason for people imposing rules upon themselves in any civilised society was to protect their property.