Comparative law is the study of differences and similarities between the law of different countries. More specifically, it involves the study of the different legal "systems" in existence in the world, including the common law, the civil law, socialist law, Canon law, Jewish Law, Islamic law, Hindu law, and Chinese law. It includes the description and analysis of foreign legal systems, even where no explicit comparison is undertaken. The importance of comparative law has increased enormously in the present age of internationalism, economic globalization, and democratization.
Comparative literature studies is an academic field dealing with the study of literature and cultural expression across linguistic, national, geographic, and disciplinary boundaries. Comparative literature "performs a role similar to that of the study of international relations but works with languages and artistic traditions, so as to understand cultures 'from the inside'". While most frequently practised with works of different languages, comparative literature may also be performed on works of the same language if the works originate from different nations or cultures in which that language is spoken.
UNIDROIT is an intergovernmental organization whose objective is to harmonize private international law across countries through uniform rules, international conventions, and the production of model laws, sets of principles, guides and guidelines. Established in 1926 as part of the League of Nations, it was reestablished in 1940 following the League's dissolution through a multilateral agreement, the UNIDROIT Statute. As of 2023 UNIDROIT has 65 member states.
The University of Pennsylvania Journal of International Law is a scholarly journal focusing on issues of international law, international relations, transnational law and comparative law. The Journal is published quarterly by an organization of second and third year law students at the University of Pennsylvania Law School. The journal is one of seven major scholarly journals at the University of Pennsylvania Law School and one of the top ten international law journals in the United States both based on citations and by impact.
Transnational crimes are crimes that have actual or potential effect across national borders and crimes that are intrastate but offend fundamental values of the international community. The term is commonly used in the law enforcement and academic communities. Transnational organized crime (TOC) refers specifically to transnational crime carried out by crime organizations.
The Max Planck Institute for Legal History and Legal Theory, situated in Frankfurt/Main, is one of 83 institutes and research facilities of the Max Planck Society (MPG).
The Tulane Journal of International and Comparative Law was founded at Tulane University Law School, in New Orleans, Louisiana, as an outgrowth of that institution's historical tradition as a signpost in the academic world for international and comparative law. The Journal is dedicated to discussing and debating all facets of international law, from human rights to transnational commerce to the historical evolution of current global law. The Journal is one of the leading law reviews in international and comparative law and, in terms of citation, is in the top quarter of all journals in the nation.
The Journal of Transnational Law & Policy is a law review that was established in 1991 as a scholarly forum for discussion of legal developments within the international community. Its articles span a variety of topics within the field of international law, including human rights, comparative law, and U.S. foreign policy.
Thomas W. Wälde, former United Nations (UN) Inter-regional Adviser on Petroleum and Mineral Legislation, was Professor & Jean-Monnet Chair at the Centre for Energy, Petroleum and Mineral Law and Policy (CEPMLP), Dundee.
The American Journal of Comparative Law (AJCL) is a quarterly, peer-reviewed law journal devoted to comparative and transnational legal studies—including, among other subjects, comparative law, comparative and transnational legal history and theory, private international law and conflict of laws, and the study of legal systems, cultures, and traditions other than those of the United States. In its long and rich history, the AJCL has published articles authored by scholars representing all continents, regions, and legal cultures of the world. It is published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the American Society of Comparative Law. As of 2014, it is co-hosted and administered by the Institute of Comparative Law and the Georgetown University Law Center. It has been hosted in the past by institutions such as University of California, Berkeley School of Law, Columbia Law School, and the University of Michigan Law School. The current Editors-in-Chief are Georgetown University Law Center’s Franz Werro, and McGill University's Helge Dedek.
Steven R. Rosefielde is professor of comparative economic systems at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is also a member of the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences.
The Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law is a legal research institute located in Heidelberg, Germany. It is operated by the Max Planck Society.
Alec Stone Sweet is an American political scientist and jurist. He is Professor and Chair of Comparative and International Law at The University of Hong Kong.
The International Law Institute, also known as the ILI, was founded as part of Georgetown University in 1955. The ILI provides training and technical assistance for the legal, economic and financial problems of developing countries and emerging economies. Since 1983, the ILI has been an independent, non-profit educational institution serving government officials, legal and business professionals and scholars from its headquarters in Washington, D.C. To date, the ILI and its global affiliates have trained over 39,400 officials, managers, and practitioners- from 186 countries- since it held its first seminar in 1971.
Larry Catá Backer is a Cuban-American legal scholar and professor of law and international affairs. He holds a professorship at the Penn State University, and is the W. Richard and Mary Eshelman Faculty Scholar Professor of Law and International Affairs, Penn State Law and School of International Affairs, Pennsylvania State University (2001–), Ashgate Publishing Globalization Law & Policy Series editor (2010–), and the executive director of the Washington-based NGO Coalition for Peace and Ethics (2006–).
Richard Münch is a German sociologist and, as of 2013, emeritus of excellence at the University of Bamberg. He graduated from the Hebel Gymnasium Pforzheim in 1965. He studied sociology, philosophy, and psychology at the University of Heidelberg from 1965 to 1970, earning the degrees of Magister Artium in 1969 and Dr. phil. in 1971. His habilitation in the field of sociology took place at the University of Augsburg in 1972 where he was employed as a research assistant at the Chair of Sociology and Communication Studies from 1970 to 1974. From 1974 to 1976 he taught as Professor of Sociology at the University of Cologne, from 1976 to 1995 as Professor of Social Science at the Heinrich Heine University of Düsseldorf, and from 1995 to 2013 as Professor of Sociology at the Otto Friedrich University of Bamberg where he was appointed Emeritus of Excellence in 2013. Since 2015, he has been a senior professor of social theory and comparative macrosociology at Zeppelin University in Friedrichshafen, Lake Constance.
Hannah L. Buxbaum is vice president for international affairs at Indiana University. She is a professor at the Indiana University Maurer School of Law in Bloomington, Indiana, where she holds the John E. Schiller Chair in Legal Ethics. She was appointed vice president for international affairs in 2018. From 2015-2018, she served as the inaugural academic director of the IU Europe Gateway in Berlin.
