Family Law Volume 1 - Family Laws And Constitutional Claims

Family law in India has a complex legal structure where different religious communities are guided by their own personal laws, each of which historically evolved under various social, religious, political, and legal influences. In two comprehensive and lucid volumes, Flavia Agnes, a leading activist and advocate in the area, examines family law in the light of social realities, contemporary rights discourse, and the idea of justice.

What is unique in these volumes is that the ground level litigation practices around women's rights are interwoven with the critical analyses of the statutory provisions. Relying extensively upon case law, Volume 1 examines: the evolution of the personal laws of Hindus, Muslims, Christians, Parsis, and Jews during the colonial and post-colonial periods how these laws are applied in contemporary questions of marriage, divorce, property rights, and succession, and whether it is possible to bring the law in conformity with modern changes through and in both the formal, and statutory law and the pluralistic and fluid community-based practices. It also extensively examines the role of the judiciary, the political and academic debates around the issue of uniform civil code, and women's citizenship claims in a stratified and hierarchical social order.

Foreword, Acknowledgements; List of Abbreviations; Introduction

Chapter 1. Personal Laws and Women's Rights

A. Hindu Law of Marriage and Property,
B. Islamic Law of Marriage and Succession.
C. Christian Law of Marriage and Succession,
D. Parsi Law of Marriage and Succession,
E. The Jewish Law of Marriage and Divorce,
F Civil Law of Marriage and Divorce-The Special Marriage Act, 1954,

Chapter 2. Constitutional Claims and Gender Justice

A. Locating Women's Claims Within the Constitutional Domain,
B. Uniform Civil Code: Contesting Claims and Communal Hues,
C. Attempts at Formulating the Uniform Civil Code, Bibliography; Case Index; Subject Index