Codes,
In general terms a collection of laws, the most notable of which in modern times is the
Code Napoleon, which was promulgated between 1803 and 1810, and has since been adopted in large part by various countries.
In the
United States the most notable codes are those prepared by
Judge Stephen J. Field (q. v.) for use in
California.
at the time of its admission into the
Union, and the
Codes of Civil and criminal procedure prepared by his brother,
David Dudley field (q. v.), for the
State of New York.
The latter, after completing the abovementioned work, was appointed by the legislature chairman of a commission to prepare a political code, a penal code, and a civil code, which, with the codes of procedure alluded to, were designed to take the place of the common law, and to cover the entire range of American law. A number of the States have adopted in whole or in part this last class of codes.
Mr. Field also actively urged the preparation of a code of international law, and personally prepared
Outlines of an international code, which was highly commended by jurists and statesmen in all countries.
One of
Mr. Field's principal objects in his projected international code was to secure a general adoption of the principle of arbitration in international disputes, an end approximately reached in the international agreement at the Peace Conference at
The Hague, in 1899.
See
arbitration, international Court of.
