Johan Castberg

Johan Castberg was born on September 21, 1860, in Brevik. A progressive jurist and member of the Radical People's Party, he served multiple terms as Minister of Justice, Minister of Trade, and President of the Storting (Parliament).

Castberg was Scandinavia's boldest social reformer. In 1915, despite furious conservative opposition, he enacted the Castbergian Child Laws (De Castbergske barnelover), which granted children born out of wedlock equal rights to bear their father's name, inherit his estate, and receive child support—the first legislation of its kind in world history. He also drafted concession laws preserving Norway's waterfalls and natural resources in public ownership.