Textbook on road traffic law
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• The twelth edition of Wilkinsons Road Traffic Offences (Longman Professional, 21/27 Lambs Conduit Street, London WC1N 3NJ; £132.50) is a considerable improvement with the text separated from the legislative sources by the use of two volumes. Its price reflects the fact that it is a legal textbook, primarily designed for those who have day to day concern with the application of the law. The content reflects a belief that those who read it will have an adequate working knowledge of the legal process and some knowledge of current road traffic legislation The book is detailed and in some areas exhaustive in its examination of the law. To that extent it is not likely to be particularly suitable for a transport manager who is looking for a quick and easy guide whether or not a certain situation or exercise is lawful. In fact one would wish that it dealt in more detail with some of those areas of transport law which relate to specialised operations. By way of example, it will be found that there is only one reference to the definition of an "abnormal load" and that that is by way of a brief and somewhat unhelpful reference to a decided case. The specialised lawyer needs more assistance on these matters. If a prosecuted operator went to a solicitor who had no real knowledge of transport matters then that lawyer might well find Wiikinsons of assistance, although, in the end, this person will not be put in the same position as a specialised lawyer. But this book is particularly good in its consideration of "Special Reasons" in disqualification cases and other technical matters of that sort relating to specific road traffic matters.
However, the major problem for those concerned for anyone concerned with road transport law is the sheer volume of legislation. Succeeding governments have added to a complex area of legislation by adding regulation to regulation and section to section. Wilkinsons when it was first published, was a brave attempt to produce a book which, on the one hand was specifically directed to providing guidance through the maze of transport law without, on the other hand, drowning the reader in this mass of legislation The success of that endeavour is apparent from the fact that Wilknisons is now recognised by all courts as an authoritative textbook on road traffic law