Abstract

"Unpaid Debts in Litigation and Law: Economic Transformation in 19th-Century Mexico"

Louise Walker, Northeastern University (louise.e.walker@gmail.com)

On the eve of the independence movements in the early 19th century, the promulgation of the 1812 Cádiz Constitution transformed economic justice for small-scale debtors and creditors by placing magistrates in Mexico City by election instead of appointment. This change directly affected the mediation of the juicios verbales (small claims hearings for cases under 100 pesos), where tens of thousands of debtors and creditors now pressed their claims before elected local magistrates. This paper analyses the economic justice system based on nearly 1,000 small claims records, showing that economic justice was relatively effective for ordinary people from the 1810s to the 1860s. The paper then analyses the small claims disputes in the context of slow-changing laws about unpaid debts. Examining the longue durée of legal codes, from the 13th century Siete Partidas to the 19th century liberal civil code, it shows how jurists attempted to balance the interests of both debtors and creditors. Together, both dimensions of economic justice—courtroom litigation and legal code—functioned as a bulwark of stability in the 19th century as Mexico transitioned from a traditional to a modern economy.