Restitution is one of the fastest-growing legal subjects of our time. That this is so is in large part due to the activities of a dedicated and talented band of jurists, whose research has transformed the obscure backwater of quasi-contract into the dynamic frontier land of restitution. In the courts, a number of recent cases have shown how the scholarship of those jurists has influenced the attitudes and language of the judiciary and the legal profession. However, while much attention has been focused on restitution as an object of academic scrutiny and judicial appraisal, little consideration has been given to the role which restitution does, and should, have in the lecture theatres and seminar rooms of our universities. This is surprising, since the future vitality of any subject is conditional on the understanding and enthusiasm of today’s students, who are, after all, the academics, lawyers, and judges of tomorrow. Without that firm foundation, the restitutionary edifice will be much weakened.

Up until recently, restitution was only regularly taught at postgraduate level in England. In the past few years, however, a number of undergraduate courses have developed. It turns out that restitution is an ideal subject for third year undergraduate study. Not only is it a challenging and fascinating area of law in itself, restitution also draws on, and overlaps with, other subjects (such as contract and trusts) which most undergraduates will have covered previously. In addition, studying restitution reminds students of the historical processes which have shaped the modem law, and of