Global and Comparative Law (Spring 2025)

Introduction 

This course introduces students to the legal institutions, systems, and traditions significant to Japan within the broader context of globalization. It is not just a course on foreign law; instead, you will learn about the functions of various legal institutions from a global perspective, transcending national boundaries. Topics will include courts, judicial review, criminal justice, and the legal professions. The course will also introduce you to the key features of major legal systems worldwide, examining their historical traditions and contemporary practices, including the Chinese and Islamic legal systems, the common law system, and the European legal order. Furthermore, we will explore the structure and operation of international institutions and their role in the era of globalization.

1. Introduction to the course / Why does law vary?  

Excerpt from Baron Charles de Secondat Montesquieu, The Spirit of the Laws (will be distributed beforehand)

2. Legal Institutions in Stateless Societies

David Friedman, Law’s Order, Chapter 17

3. Courts, Dispute Resolution and Social Control

Martin Shapiro, Courts: A Comparative and Political Analysis Download Courts: A Comparative and Political Analysis pp.1-20, 28-32

4. Law and Society in Imperial China

Derk Bodde and Clarence Morris, Law in Imperial China, pp. 1-27

5. Modern Chinese Legal System

Taisu Zhang and Tom Ginsburg, Legality in Comparative Chinese Politics, Virginia J. Int'l L.  pp. 1-14, 24-36, skim pp. 46-64

6. Islamic Legal Institutions

Haider Ala Hamoudi and Mark Cammack, Islamic Law in Modern Courts, Chapter 2

7. Introduction to the Common Law Tradition

Uwe Kischel, Comparative Law, Chapter 5: The Context of Common Law, pp. 227-232, 238-246, 246-252.

8. The Common Law Tradition (Continued)

Uwe Kischel, Comparative Law, Chapter 5: The Context of Common Law, pp. 266-287.

9. The European Legal Order

Jens C. Dammann, Introduction to European Union Law, pp. 17-19; pp. 33-49

10.  Legal Institutions and Economic Development

Daniel Berkowitz, Katarina Pistor, and Jean-Francois Richard, “The Transplant Effect” 51 Am. J. Comp. L. pp. 163-83; pp.188-90

11.  Constitutions and Comparative Judicial Review

Denis J. Galligan and Mila Versteeg, Theoretical Perspective on the Social and Political Foundations of Constitutions, pp. 8-43, skim pp. 33-37

12.  Criminal Justice and Punishment

Excerpt from Cesare Beccaria, On Crimes and Punishments (pages will be announced in class)

David T. Johnson, “War in a Season of Slow Revolution: Defense Lawyers and Lay Judges in Japanese Criminal Justice.” (Japan Focus, June 29, 2011, pp.1-11). https://apjjf.org/2011/9/26/david-t-johnson/3554/article

Optional: Paul Murphy, “Late in Life: Japan’s Elderly Behind Bars” (Japan Focus, October 1, 2016, pp. 1-17), at https://apjjf.org/2016/19/murphy

13.  Legal Professions and Lawyers

John Merryman and Rogelio Pérez-Perdomo, The Civil Law Tradition, Chapter 15

14.  Introduction to International Law

Statute of the International Court of Justice, Art. 36 & Art. 38

Paquette Habana and discussion of Customary Law in Ratner et al, Custom and Soft Law, pp. 78-87