The Illegitimate Child and the Lawyers

Friederike Dorothea Engelhardt of Brettach, Württemberg, gave birth to a daughter in April 1807—the child was born out of wedlock, as the child’s father refused to marry her despite his earlier promises. She sued him for childbirth and baptism expenses, a dowry, and child support. The court in Neustadt referred the case to the Faculty of Law at the University of Tübingen, which deliberated on it in August 1808. A transcript of the Tübingen Faculty’s legal opinion is preserved in the university archives.

Prof. Dr. Stephan Dusil (Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen) will present the process of cataloging expert reports using AI-powered tools such as Transkribus, as well as data extraction using large language models (LLMs). The Lecture will also discuss Lecture legal and historical potential of the “Konsilien” as a source genre.

For more information, visit the LMU Faculty 3 website.