The Master Servant Doctrine: How Feudal Law Still Shapes Modern Work | Elizabeth Tippett

Nov 4, 2025

Elizabeth Tippett, an employment law scholar from the University of Oregon, delves into the lingering impact of the Master Servant Doctrine on today’s work environment. They dissect how feudal ideas of control and obligation persist, influencing at-will employment and HR policies. Elizabeth highlights the historical roots of these concepts, the moral legacy intertwined with labor law, and how employer-provided benefits create dependency. They also discuss the necessity for a modern social contract to reshape labor relations for the better.

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INSIGHT

Feudal Law Still Shapes Employment

The master–servant doctrine endures as the legal background of U.S. employment law inherited from Britain.
It bundles employer rights to control the workplace with an obligation to provide for workers, shaping modern employer authority.

INSIGHT

Legal Control Extends To Daily Work

The right to control gives employers authority over where, when, and how employees work, plus dismissal power under at-will doctrine.
This legal control persists unless limited by unions or specific statutes like disability accommodations.

INSIGHT

Handbooks Act As Corporate Legislation

The right to govern lets employers write workplace 'legislation' via handbooks and policies that persist like sedimentary layers.
These governance choices often outlast individual leaders and become entrenched corporate norms.

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Modern work is haunted by an idea that began in feudal Europe. The Master Servant Doctrine gave employers the right to command and control workers while imposing a duty to provide for them. That ancient logic still shapes the modern workplace — from “at-will” employment and HR policies designed to protect companies, to benefits that bind people to their jobs. In this episode, Dart and Elizabeth explore how feudal ideas of control and obligation still structure employment today, and what it would take to build something better.

Elizabeth Tippett teaches employment law and legal ethics at the University of Oregon School of Law. She is the author of The Master Servant Doctrine, and her research examines how historical legal frameworks continue to influence the modern workplace.

In this episode, Dart and Elizabeth discuss:
- How feudal law still shapes modern work
- The three pillars of the Master Servant Doctrine
- Why “at-will” employment persists in the U.S.
- How HR became a modern tool of control
- Why employee benefits reinforce dependency
- The moral legacy of servitude in labor law
- How law and culture preserve inequality at work
- What a modern social contract for labor might look like
- And other topics…

Elizabeth Tippett is Professor and James O. and Alfred T. Goodwin Senior Fellow at the University of Oregon School of Law. She teaches courses on employment law, torts, negotiation, and dispute resolution, and her research examines how historical legal doctrines continue to shape modern employment practices. She is the author of The Master Servant Doctrine: How Old Legal Rules Haunt the Modern Workplace, forthcoming from Stanford University Press in 2025.

Resources Mentioned:
The Master–Servant Doctrine: How Old Legal Rules Haunt the Modern Workplace, by Elizabeth Tippett: https://www.amazon.com/Master-Servant-Doctrine-Legal-Modern-Workplace/dp/0520382323

Connect with Elizabeth:
Website: https://liztippett.com

Work with Dart:
Dart is the CEO and co-founder of the work design firm 11fold. Build work that makes employees feel alive, connected to their work, and focused on what’s most important to the business. Book a call at 11fold.com.