This unexpected journey started with a suggestion that one of my best friends (Geoge) made for the topic of a second year university module essay.
The module was called “Legal Writing and Communication” and for our essay, we had to write a legal blog that communicated an area of law that we had not studied to someone who was not familiar with legal terminology. Everyone around me had found a subject to write about; George does photography, and decided to write a blog about photography in public and the right to privacy.
Personally, I struggled, I loved Lord Of The Rings and golf, and other things but those two were my main passions. So, one late night library session, George turned round and said something along the lines of:
“Why don’t you write about The Hobbit?”
“What? You’re joking.” I replied.
“No, I’m serious, you could write about whether Smaug the Dragon had squatters rights of The Lonely Mountain.”
Bingo.
One slight problem, we had studied squatters rights (adverse possession) in Land Law, which was being taught in the same semester. So, I got clever. Perhaps Smaug the Dragon trespassed over the Lonely Mountain?
And the rest of that module is history (and also in my first blog post!).
Some years passed and the idea lingered in my head, and truthfully I didn’t have the courage to try it out of fear of being judged by my peers, and the fear of getting the law wrong… however, I have a knack of wanting to make a difference in my little corner of the world.
So, this blog serves not only as form of academic commentary entertainment for the lovers of Tolkien and Middle-Earth, but also as a legal education for law students, nerds, and ordinary people (if you happen to be one) which you will not get in many other places.
Disclaimer
This blog is written for educational and commentary purposes only and reflects my own views and analysis. It does not constitute legal advice and should not be relied upon as such.
References to The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and related features are made for the purposes of criticism, review, and academic discussion.
All rights in the original literary works belong to the Tolkien Estate and their respective rights holders.