In this book, based on the 47th series of Hamlyn Lectures, The Honourable Lady Justice Hale examines the choices the law allows us in managing our private and family lives.

Focusing on three aspects - having a child, making relationships, and the end of life - it discusses the greater freedom we now enjoy and the serious questions raised by the rapid legal change of the last thirty years.

Issues covered include: How far should we take child protection when there are also very good reasons for leaving families to bring up children as they please?

Where do same sex relationships fit into changing attitudes towards marriage and divorce?

Does anyone owe anyone else a duty to stay alive?