Dr Andrew Steven is a Senior Lecturer in the Law School. In August 2011 he was appointed to the Scottish Law Commission for five years where he is the Commissioner responsible for property law reform.
His research work has focussed particularly on rights in security. His monograph on pledge and lien was published by the Edinburgh Legal Education Trust in 2008. In October 2010 he gave the keynote address on real security rights at the International Property Law Conference held at UNISA in Pretoria. He has also researched the landlord's hypothec from a comparative perspective and presented a paper on this at the Second Worldwide Congress on Mixed Jurisdictions in Edinburgh in 2007 which was published in the Electronic Journal of Comparative Law and the Stellenbosch Law Review in 2008. He has analysed critically the recent reform of this security in Scotland.
He is the author along with Professor George Gretton of Property, Trusts and Succession which was published by Tottel in 2009 and which is the first student text to treat the three subjects in the same volume. He has also collaborated with Scott Wortley on a volume of Scots Property, Trusts and Succession Law Statutes published by Avizandum, which is now in its eighth edition.
Since 2004 he has taught at the annual European Private Law Summer School at the University of Salzburg and in 2009 became one of the founding members of the Akademie für Europäisches Privatrecht of Salzburg.
A comprehensive account of the law of pledge and lien in Scotland, tracing the historical development of the two securities and examining Roman, English and other influences in the context of Scotland as a mixed legal system.
The seventh edition of a standard Scottish conveyancing text. It is extensively revised to take account of feudal abolition, the reform of title conditions and the law of the tenement and many other matters.
A comparative account of the landlord's hypothec with particular reference to its third party effect, considering the extent to which the remedy is still available in other systems.
A comparative account of the landlord's hypothec with particular reference to its third party effect, considering the extent to which the remedy is still available in other systems.
Andrew J. M. Steven 'Options to Purchase and Successor Landlords' (2006) Edinburgh Law Review 432-437
On 28 November 2004, Scottish land law will be subject to a radical overhaul. The feudal system of landholding, now unique in the developed world, will finally be swept away. This major reform, however, has necessitated substantive changes in the law relating to perpetual conditions affecting land. The law on real burdens will effectively be codified and the law on servitudes amended. The final piece of the revolution is to place the Scottish law of the tenement (apartment ownership) onto a statutory footing. This article gives an overview of the changes and concludes that they should be of great interest to those involved in developing and reforming the law in other jurisdictions
Andrew J. M. Steven 'Implied Enforcement Rights in relation to Real Burdens in terms of the Title Conditions Scotland Act 2003' (2003) Scottish Law Gazette 146-153
A comparative study of the contractual effect of moveable security with reference to various EU jurisdictions, considering the difficulties with regard to harmonisation.
An analysis of Onyvax Ltd v Endpoint Research (UK) Ltd in relation to excluding lien and lien as an equitable right. The lien was being asserted over the results of medical research.
Andrew J. M. Steven 'Missing the Boat: Lien for Damages' (2008) Edinburgh Law Review 270-275
An analysis of the Bankruptcy and Diligence (Scotland) Bill s 194 which amends the law on the landlord's hypothec and abolishes sequestration for rent.
Andrew J. M. Steven 'Title Conditions : Servitudes and Real Burdens Compared' (2005) Scottish Law Gazette 81-84
An overview of the Scottish Law Commission's proposals for reform of the law of the tenement.
Andrew J. M. Steven 'Keeping the Goalposts in Sight: An Analysis of Optical Express (Gyle) Limited v Marks and Spencers plc' (2000) Scots Law Times pp.143-146
This paper analyses the extent to which real security over land in Scotland complies with the accessoriness principle.It takes both a historical and a comparative approach and also considers accessoriness in the context of the proposed Euromortgage.
Papers and Presentations
Andrew J. M. Steven 'Security Rights: Scotland and the Netherlands Compared' presented at Centre for the Study of European Contract Law Seminar Series, University of Amsterdam, 2011
This papers compares and contrasts the main forms of asset security in Scotland and the Netherlands. Security over immovable property and corporeal and incorporeal movable property is considered. Reference is made to particular rules which are different in the two jurisdictions, as well as fundamental principles such as accessoriness and specificity.
Andrew J. M. Steven 'Rights in Security' presented at Private Law and Human Rights in Scotland and South Africa, Stellenbosch, 2011
A comparison of human rights law in Scotland and South Africa in the area of security rights.
Andrew J. M. Steven 'Property Law in Scotland: contrasts with Québec?' presented at Quid Juris? Midi Conférences 2009-2010 Hors Série, Université de Sherbrooke, Québec, 2010
A summary of the development of Scottish property law as contrasted with Québec.
Andrew J. M. Steven 'Real security rights - time for Cinderella to go to the ball?' presented at International Property Law Conference, UNISA, Pretoria, 2010
A historical and comparative account of the extent to which heritable securities in Scotland are accessory, including observations on the proposals for a Euromortgage.
Andrew J. M. Steven 'Standard Securities, Standard Conditions and Standard Variations' presented at University of Aberdeen Centre for Property Law Biennial Conference, Glasgow, 2008
An assessment of the standard variations made by lenders to the standard conditions in standard securities.
Andrew J. M. Steven 'Lien: Lessons from Scotland?' presented at Aktuelle Stunde, Max Planck Institut für ausländisches und internationales Privatrecht, Hamburg, 2008
A discussion of the Scottish law of lien, comparing it with German law, focussing on the recent case of Onyvax Ltd v Endpoint Research (UK) Ltd.
Andrew J. M. Steven 'Lien: An Underdeveloped Security in Scots Law?' presented at University of Aberdeen School of Law Research Seminar Series, Aberdeen, 2008
An analysis of the extent to which lien is an underdeveloped security in Scotland, with reference to its juridical nature, types of property and types of obligation.
Andrew J. M. Steven 'Lien: Scotland and the Netherlands in Comparative Perspective' presented at 13th Ius Commune Congress, Amsterdam, 2008
A comparative study of the lessor's hypothec and equivalent remedies in civil law. common law and mixed jurisdictions.
Andrew J. M. Steven 'Reform of the Landlord's Hypothec' presented at University of Aberdeen Centre for Property Law Second Biennial Conference, Aberdeen, 2006
An analysis of the Scottish Executive's proposals to reform the landlord's hypothec and abolish sequestration for rent.
Andrew J. M. Steven 'Effects of security rights inter partes' presented at Divergences of Property Law, an obstacle to the internal market?, Leiden, 2005
A comparative account of the European law in this area, considering the key areas which need to be addressed if there is to be harmonisation.
Andrew J. M. Steven 'Overview of the Abolition of Feudal Tenure etc Scotland Act 2000 and the Title Conditions Scotland Act 2003' presented at CLT Rural Property Law Conference, 2004
The effect of the European Convention on Human Rights on Scottish property law.
Andrew J. M. Steven 'Pledge and other express securities over corporeal moveables' presented at Scotland and The Netherlands: Workshops on Private Law and the Ius Commune, Old College, Edinburgh University, 2003
Synopsis