Jürgen Basedow Should Different Types of Methodology in Comparative Legal Research Be Combined into One Method?
Jürgen Basedow is Director of the Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law. He pursued his postgraduate masters degree (LL.M.) at Harvard Law School, before spending seven years as a research fellow at the Max Planck Institute in Hamburg. As Professor of Private, Corporate and International Law, Basedow taught at some of the most renowned European and international institutions, including the University of Oxford, New York University, and The Hague Academy of International Law. With his background in the diverse fields of law (private, corporate, international, European), Basedow seeks to pursue a comparative method to studying legal systems. Given the context of a more and more globalized world, Basedow applies a combination of different analytic lenses in his research.
Area of Research
Private International Law, European Private and Economic Law
since 1997
Director
Max Planck Society (more details)
Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law
since 1997
Professor
University of Hamburg (Universität Hamburg)
2015
Visiting Professor
Moscow State University
2011
Visiting Professor
New York University
2003
Visiting Professor
University of Oxford
2002
Visiting Professor
University of Tunis
2001
Visiting Professor
University of Paris
2000
Visiting Professor
Erasmus University Rotterdam
1999
Visiting Professor
University of Verona
1995-1997
Professor of Private Law, Private International Law and International Economic Law
Free University of Berlin (Freie Universität Berlin)
1993-1994
Dean
University of Augsburg (Universität Augsburg)
Faculty of Law
1993
Visiting Professor
University of Pittsburgh
1992
Visiting Professor
University of Lyon
1991
Visiting Professor
University of Genoa
1991
Visiting Professor
University of Ferrara
1989
Visiting Professor
University of Genoa
1989
Visiting Professor
University of Ferrara
1987-1995
Professor of Private Law, Comparative Law, Private International Law, International Litigation and International Economic Law
University of Augsburg (Universität Augsburg)
1986
Habilitation
University of Hamburg (Universität Hamburg)
1981
LL.M.
Harvard University
Harvard Law School
1979
PhD in Law
University of Hamburg (Universität Hamburg)
1979
Second State Exam in Law
University of Hamburg (Universität Hamburg)
1974
First State Exam in Law
University of Hamburg (Universität Hamburg)
Fellowships
- Foreign Director of the Institute of International Law of the Sea and Maritime Law, School of Law, Shandong University/China (since 2014)
- Commission Expert Group on a European Insurance Contract Law (2013-2015)
- Associate of the Institut de Droit International (since 2011)
- Member of the Board of Trustees of the International Foundation for the Law of the Sea (since 2009)
- Member of the American Law Institute (since 2008)
- Member of the Board of Trustees (since 2007) and of the Executive Board (since 2009) of the Hamburgische Wissenschaftliche Stiftung
- Member of the Scientific Council Barcelona Graduate School of Economics (since 2007)
- Honorary Member of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences (since 2007)
- Advisory Board of the German Supervisory Authority for Financial Services (BAFIN) (2005-2010)
- Member of the Executive Board (2005-2009) and of the Advisory Board (since 2009) of the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationales Recht
- Think Tank on Private Enforcement of DG Competition of the European Commission (2004-2005)
- Member of the Group Européen de droit international privé (GEDIP) (since 2000, 2015-2018 President)
- Member of the Academia Europaea (since 2000)
- Committee on Insurance Law (Federal Ministry of Justice) (2000-2004)
- Member of the German Monopoly Commission (2000-2008), Chairman (2004-2008)
- Member of the German-American Academic Council (1998-2000)
- Member (since 1998) and President (2006-2008) of the International Academy of Commercial and Consumer Law
- Titular Member (since 1998) and Secretary General (2006-2014) of the International Academy of Comparative Law
- Chairman of the Board of the Deutsch-Türkische Juristenvereinigung (1998-2012)
- Advisory Board of the Federal Ministry of Transport (1997-2000)
- Referee of the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (German Research Council) for Comparative Law, Private International Law and International Litigation (1996-2002)
- Committee on Transport Law (Federal Ministry of Justice) (1992-1996)
- Committee on the Licensing of Mass Consignments (Federal Ministry of Post and Communications) (1992-1993)
- German Council of Private International Law (Federal Ministry of Justice) (since 1988)
- Vice Chairman of the German Deregulation Committee (Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs) (1988-1991)
Prizes
- Honorary Doctorate (Dr. jur. h.c.) Awarded by Université Panthéon Assas-Paris II (2016)
- Honorary Doctorate (Dr. jur. h.c.) Awarded by Kyushu University in Fukuoka (2013)
- Honorary Doctorate (Dr. jur. h.c.) Awarded by Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University (2012)
- Honorary Doctorate in Economics (Dr. rer. pol. h.c.) Awarded by Leuphana University, Lüneburg (2012)
- Honorary Professorate at Xi'an Jiaotong University (2008)
- Honorary Doctorate in Law (Dr. jur. h.c.) Awarded by the University of Stockholm (2002)
- Award of the Stinnes Foundation (1989)
- Kurt Hartwig Siemers Award, Hamburg Scientific Foundation (1987)
- Otto Hahn Medal, Max Planck Society (1979)
© Maximilian Dörrbecker
Max Planck Society
"The Max Planck Society is Germany's most successful research organization. Since its establishment in 1948, no fewer than 18 Nobel laureates have emerged from the ranks of its scientists, putting it on a par with the best and most prestigious research institutions worldwide. The more than 15,000 publications each year in internationally renowned scientific journals are proof of the outstanding research work conducted at Max Planck Institutes – and many of those articles are among the most-cited publications in the relevant field." (Source)
Institute
Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law
The Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law in Hamburg is dedicated to performing foundational research and promoting the transfer of knowledge in the fields of comparative and international private law and business law. By analysing similarities and differences in the legal regimes of Europe as well as other parts of the world, the Institute studies the interaction of private rule-making, national legal systems, supranational law and interstate treaties. The research performed at the Institute also serves to lay the groundwork for an international understanding of law and to help develop rules and legal instruments with which the application of national law can be better coordinated in cross-border matters. This is an academic mission of considerable significance particularly within a united Europe and against the background of increasing globalisation and a corresponding internationalisation of law. (Source)
Map
Comparative law, an important legal method, is becoming ever more relevant in a globalized world. Different methods exist in comparative legal research despite the effort of the discipline to combine them. Whereas the so-called functionalists only look at the written law, the “law as culture”-approach demands for taking into consideration also the surrounding factors and conditions such as religion, society or economic situation. Another dispute exists between the micro comparative research, which concentrates on single elements and the macro comparative research considering whole legal systems. JÜRGEN BASEDOW has collected long-time experience regarding comparative law and concludes that the one method is unrealistic, yet not even helpful. In this video he explains why it is rather useful to accept the coexistence of different methodologies, which can be applied depending on the examined problem, its background and the goal of its analysis.
LT Video Publication DOI: https://doi.org/10.21036/LTPUB10300
Comparative Law and its Clients
- Jürgen Basedow
- American Journal of Comparative Law
- Published in 2014
