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Legal News

: Fastcase Legal News

The Law of the Lawless: The Pirate Code

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Liberty. Equality. Fraternity. These high-minded ideals may not be the first three words that come to mind when you think about pirates. However, a new book, ?The Invisible Hook? by economist Peter T. Leeson, explains that a desire to maximize profits led pirates to develop an organized and efficient form of self-governance embodying these ideals. Some aspects of these pirate codes, as reported by The New Yorker, may surprise you:

Arrangements for sharing booty that included: a small pay differential between captain and crew; special allocations for professional such as doctors and carpenters; incentive payments; and compensation for injuries.
Prohibitions against gambling and on-board liaisons.
Restrictions on late-night drinking.
A system for electing captains.
Requirement that weapons be kept clean.
Provision of ?good quarter? to victims upon request.

Apparently, The New Yorker was able to publish the Sept. 7 article just in time for Talk Like A Pirate Day, September 19. Source: The New Yorker.

Full post as published by Fastcase Legal News on September 30, 2009 (boomark / email).