Law and Religion

Over the last few years, debates concerning the wearing of Islamic dress, the relationship between religious liberty and free speech and the enforcement of religious law have barely been far from the headlines. In the United Kingdom, a number of legal changes have altered the interaction between law and religion. The piecemeal and passive accommodation provided by the common law has been replaced by the active protection of religious liberty as a positive right. Looking at the Human Rights Act 1998, the new laws on religious discrimination and religious hatred, the Civil Partnership Act 2004 and developments at EU and devolved levels, this collection examines the legal changes that have occurred and how this affects law and religion as an academic discipline. Law and Religion: New Horizons includes thirteen previously unpublished essays by experts in the field and a detailed conclusion by the two editors, examining the changing interaction between law and religion and the new horizons.