CALL FOR PAPERS: The State and/of Comparative Law

CALL FOR PAPERS

JURIS DIVERSITAS

ANNUAL CONFERENCE  

2-4 June 2015

School of Law, University of Limerick

Limerick, Ireland

THE STATE AND/OF COMPARATIVE LAW

[Note that the Irish Society of Comparative Law annual conferences will be held in Limerick immediately afterwards. Its theme is ‘Comparative Law: From Antiquity to Modernity’ and the same proposal may be submitted for both conferences. See here.]

While any proposal on comparative law (broadly conceived) will be considered, the conference’s primary theme is the relationship between social and legal norms and social and legal institutions. In memory of Roderick A Macdonald (1948-2014) and H Patrick Glenn (1940-2014), both former members of our Advisory Council, particular attention will be given to the diverse themes of their scholarship: for example, ‘common laws’, ‘constitutive polyjurality’, ‘critical legal pluralism’, ‘everyday law’, and ‘legal cosmopolitanism’.

As with our past conferences, proposals on a wide variety of topics will be accepted: comparative jurisprudence and legislation, legal philosophy, legal education, law reform, etc. Presentations may be theoretical analyses or case studies on the past or present, North or South, East or West ….

Panel proposals and interdisciplinary presentations are strongly encouraged, as is the participation of doctoral students and scholars from outside of the discipline of law. While parallel sessions of three twenty-minute presentations will be used, we welcome more original session structures.

Proposals should be in English or French. Proposals of c250 words (or 1000 words for panel proposals) should be submitted to Olivier Moréteau at moreteau@lsu.edu by 15 January 2015, with a short biography or resume (c250 words). Please send Word documents only, with minimal formatting.

Registration fees are €200 (€125 for Juris Diversitas members paid up for 2015). Membership and fee payment information is available on the Juris Diversitas Blog (http://jurisdiversitas.blogspot.ie/). Note that fees don’t cover travel, accommodation, or the conference dinner (€50).

BOOK (Forthcoming): Husa's New Introduction to Comparative Law

Coming later this year (July 2015): A New Introduction to Comparative Law
Jaakko Husa
This thought provoking introduction to the study of comparative law provides in-depth analyses of all major comparative methodologies and theories and serves as a common sense guide to the study of foreign legal systems. It is written in a lively and accessible style and will prove indispensable reading to advanced students of the subject. It also contains much that will be of interest to comparative law scholars, offering novel insights into commonplace methodological and theoretical questions and making a significant contribution to the field. "Professor Jaakko Husa is one of the very few people who is able to act as a reliable guide in the vigorous debates in comparative legal scholarship. In this volume he provides the legal scholar with a sensible and sensitive overview of the schools, themes, problems and challenges when 'doing' comparative law. He objectively examines the themes and problems in comparative law in a way that both elevates the scholarly debate and provides an illuminating introduction for beginners. We should be very grateful to him for that!" Maurice Adams, Full Professor of Law at Tilburg University. "Jaakko Husa's new book presents a major contribution to modern comparative law. It benefits from the author's profound knowledge in matters of comparative law, both in terms of the method of comparison and examples from many parts of the world. The book also has a strong didactic element: it is the best one on the market that explains core discussions to aspiring comparative lawyers. An important innovation is that it firmly puts the concept of legal culture to the centre of a comparative law textbook. It is to be applauded that this is done in a diplomatic way, not trying to impose a particular position but rather to convince the readers that the author's approach is a beneficial way forward. This book will certainly be well received by both students and scholars." Mathias Siems, Professor of Commercial Law at Durham University. "Jaakko Husa’s new book provides a delightful and fresh approach to the comparative study of law. Written by one of the world’s leading comparatists, Husa shows the way to how to do meaningful and stimulating comparative legal work. A must-read for any legal academic." Jan Smits, Chair of European Private Law, Maastricht University

CALL FOR APPLICATION: French speaking international legal expert trainer

The Central African Regional Program for Justice (AJC), administered by the American Bar Association Rule of Law Initiative (ABA ROLI), is organizing a regional workshop in Bujumbura, Burundi entitled “Economic Development and Justice” on 26 and 27 January 2015. The workshop will focus on capacity building on legal mechanisms, Promotion of Investments, and Comparative Law on International Arbitration, as an alternative method of resolving commercial disputes.

In order to deliver this training, ABA ROLI is seeking the services of a French speaking, international legal expert trainer to develop introductory presentations and conduct training sessions for thirty participants and serve as the trainer/facilitator for this workshop. Click on the following links for Terms of Reference in English, and French that includes application instructions. The deadline for applications is 7 January 2015. 

Applications should be sent to Jean Lavoie (jean.lavoie@abaroli.org and jhlavoie@hotmail.com) Please also cc: Khalil.Ali@americanbar.org.

CALL FOR PAPERS: IUAES Inter-Congress 2015

IUAES (International Union of Anthropological and Ethological Sciences) has just published a call for papers for its annual conference in Bangkok.  You can find here the full text of the call. The deadline is on February 15th 2015.

JURIS DIVERSTIAS: President's Message 2014

All, 

I hope this finds each of you well.

I write on behalf of the Juris Diversitas Committee (me, Olivier, Ignazio, Salvatore, Lukas, and Christa) with an update on our activities. My apologies for the length of this message. It's been another busy year. 

We have many new members and our Annual Conference, held at Aix-Marseille University (France) in July, was a great success. I’m especially thankful for the work of Olivier and the local organisers. In addition to other events being planned for the new year, our 2015 Conference will be held here in Limerick (immediately before the Irish Society of Comparative Law Conference). I hope that many of you can make it.

REMINDER - CALL FOR PAPERS: Juris Diversitas Annual Conference (Limerick, Ireland - 2-4 June 2015)

CALL FOR PAPERS

JURIS DIVERSITAS

ANNUAL CONFERENCE  

2-4 June 2015

School of Law, University of Limerick

Limerick, Ireland

THE STATE AND/OF COMPARATIVE LAW

[Note that the Irish Society of Comparative Law annual conferences will be held in Limerick immediately afterwards. Its theme is ‘Comparative Law: From Antiquity to Modernity’ and the same proposal may be submitted for both conferences. See here.]

While any proposal on comparative law (broadly conceived) will be considered, the conference’s primary theme is the relationship between social and legal norms and social and legal institutions. In memory of Roderick A Macdonald (1948-2014) and H Patrick Glenn (1940-2014), both former members of our Advisory Council, particular attention will be given to the diverse themes of their scholarship: for example, ‘common laws’, ‘constitutive polyjurality’, ‘critical legal pluralism’, ‘everyday law’, and ‘legal cosmopolitanism’.

As with our past conferences, proposals on a wide variety of topics will be accepted: comparative jurisprudence and legislation, legal philosophy, legal education, law reform, etc. Presentations may be theoretical analyses or case studies on the past or present, North or South, East or West ….

Panel proposals and interdisciplinary presentations are strongly encouraged, as is the participation of doctoral students and scholars from outside of the discipline of law. While parallel sessions of three twenty-minute presentations will be used, we welcome more original session structures.

Proposals should be in English or French. Proposals of c250 words (or 1000 words for panel proposals) should be submitted to Olivier Moréteau at moreteau@lsu.edu by 15 January 2015, with a short biography or resume (c250 words). Please send Word documents only, with minimal formatting.

Registration fees are €200 (€125 for Juris Diversitas members paid up for 2015). Membership and fee payment information is available on the Juris Diversitas Blog (http://jurisdiversitas.blogspot.ie/). Note that fees don’t cover travel, accommodation, or the conference dinner (€50).

SPD: Best Wishes

Best wishes from me (and my traditions) to you and yours!

ARTICLE ANNOUNCEMENT: "Tracing an Outline of Legal Complexity"

From: Ratio Juris, Vol. 27, Issue 4, pp. 477-495, 2014 (click here to buy this article from SSRN)

by: TOM WEBB, Lancaster University Law School
Email: t.webb@lancaster.ac.uk

Autopoiesis and systems theory are terms often treated as synonymous by lawyers. This sleight‐of‐phrase elides the space between autopoiesis and systems theory, removing its content. Within this eliminated space there exist numerous understandings of systems approaches in law; one such understanding is complexity theory. Complexity theory entails a very different systems view of law to that of autopoiesis. In this paper I explore the concepts of complexity and their relevance to law. In tracing an outline of complexity, a number of contradictions, paradoxes, and additional questions are exposed which require further detailed analysis in the future.

JURIS DIVERSITAS (BOOK): Palmer, Mattar, and Koppel (eds) on Mixed Legal Systems, East and West

Advance publication information is now available on an upcoming Juris Diversitas title:  Vernon Valentine Palmer, Mohamed Y Mattar, and Anna Koppel (eds), Mixed Legal Systems, East and West

Advancing legal scholarship in the area of mixed legal systems, as well as comparative law more generally, this book expands the comparative study of the world’s legal families to those of jurisdictions containing not only mixtures of common and civil law, but also to those mixing Islamic and/or traditional legal systems with those derived from common and/or civil law traditions.

With contributions from leading experts in their fields, the book takes us far beyond the usual focus of comparative law with analysis of a broad range of countries, including relatively neglected and under-researched areas. The discussion is situated within the broader context of the ongoing development and evolution of mixed legal systems against the continuing tides of globalization on the one hand, and on the other hand the emergence of Islamic governments in some parts of the Middle East, the calls for a legal status for Islamic law in some European countries , and the increasing focus on traditional and customary norms of governance in post-colonial contexts. 

This book will be an invaluable source for students and researchers working in the areas of comparative law, legal pluralism, the evolution of mixed legal systems, and the impact of colonialism on contemporary legal systems. It will also be an important resource for policy-makers and analysts.

Advance reviews include the following:

‘Globalization is leading to the convergence of legal systems and traditions - from all across the world. Helping us to understand what the future of the law may look like, this book presents findings from those living legal laboratories - the “Mixed Legal Systems”. The book presents findings from the usual civil/common law mixed systems and the non-western, religious and philosophical-based legal systems. Such a comprehensive approach provides the reader with a sophisticated appreciation of the real mixing that is taking place and consequently provides a better feel for what might be the future of the law on Earth.’
Colin Picker, the University of New South Wales, Australia

‘Many of the legal systems discussed in the present volume have not been the subject of academic analysis in the past, and in that sense, it constitutes an original and refreshing contribution to the history and jurisprudence of mixed legal systems. The focus on the indigenous, customary and religious systems of the East, with special emphasis on Islamic law, is highly relevant to contemporary developments all over the world as the legal boundaries between West and East shift, and mixed systems become more prevalent. This book provides an indispensable guide to what is rapidly becoming one of the most important fields in this branch of comparative legal studies.’
Tamar Gidron, The College of Management Academic Studies, Israel

JURIS DIVERSITAS: Ashgate Publishing - Special offer to Juris Diversitas members

Ashgate Publishing - Special offer to Juris Diversitas members

In addition to hosting our book series and a partner page, Ashgate Publishing is delighted to offer members of Juris Diversitas a special discount of 20% on all Ashgate’s titles. 

How to claim your Ashgate discount.