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Foreign & Comparative Law Research Guide

Introduction

What is foreign law? It is the national (also referred to as domestic or internal) law of any country other than the United States. Comparative law is "the study of the similarities and differences between the laws of two or more countries, or between two or more legal systems. Comparative law is not itself a system of law or a body of rules, but rather a method or approach to legal inquiry." (Berring, How to Find the LawWilliams KF240 .C5383 1989, 9th ed., p. 565).

Research methods will mary depending on the country you are researching. When beginning to research a legal system, you will want to consider the following:

  • Identify what you need
    • Do you need a constitution, a specific statute, a case, or general information?
    • Do you have a citation to the law, case, etc.?
    • What are the dates?
    • Do you need the complete text of the law, a summary, an English translation, or a detailed explanation?
    • Will an electronic version be sufficient?
  • Identify the sources of law for the country
    • Does the country publish codes, compilations of statutes or reporters?
    • A good source for gathering this information is the Foreign Law Guide.
    • Once you have identified a source, check the library catalog or other bibliographic databases to determine if the item is available.
    • The sections in this guide on Legislation, Case Law and Other Sources of Law discuss sources and strategies for finding primary law.
  • Understand the structure of the foreign legal system
    • Is it a civil law system based on codes, a common law system (such as the United States) or a mixed system? Some legal systems are influenced by religious law. See the World Legal Systems site for a quick way to determine the type of legal system for a particular country.
    • You may not need to become an expert on the legal system of the country, but it is very helpful to know the basics. It is also sometimes necessary or useful to have general background information on the country.
    • The sections on Foreign Legal Systems and Country Background Information will give you suggested research sources.
  • Use a secondary source
    • A secondary source, such as a journal article or a book, can help you at any stage of your research.
    • Secondary sources may describe the law or legal issue, provide a citation or include commentary. See the section on Periodical Literature in this guide for more help.

If you have questions, please feel free to contact the Wolff Library reference desk at 202-662-4195 or by email: intlref@law.georgetown.edu. You may also submit your question via this online form.

Foreign Legal Systems: General Sources

These sources will give you an overview of the legal system of a particular country. For a quick answer to the question of whether a jurisdiction is civil, common law, or mixed, see World Legal Systems.

  • Foreign Law Guide - GULC only
    The Foreign Law Guide includes a brief legal-historical overview for every jurisdiction covered.
  • Books in the categories"Introduction to..." and "Doing Business in..." are very useful places to start. Some examples include Doing Business in India INTL KNS78.B87 D65 2004, Doing Business with Ukraine INTL HF3630.9.Z6 D65 2004, Introduction to Turkish Law INTL KKX70 .I57 2005, and Introduction to German Law INTL KK147 .I58 2005. Search the library catalog for more options.
  • International Lawyer's Deskbook, 2nd edition., INTL K48 .I57 2003, edited by Lucinda A. Low, Daniel M. Drory, Patrick Norton.

  • Legal Traditions of the World Sustainable Diversity in Law, INTL K559 .G545 2007, by Patrick H. Glenn. This work offers a major new means of conceptualizing law and legal relations across the world. National laws are placed in the broader context of major legal traditions, those of chthonic (or indigenous) law, talmudic law, civil law, islamic law, common law, hindu law and Asian law. Each tradition is examined in terms of its institutions and substantive law, its founding concepts and methods, its attitude towards the concept of change, and its teaching on relations with other traditions and peoples." This book will be invaluable to law students and lawyers engaged in comparative or transnational work, historians, social scientists, and all those interested in the legal traditions that underpin the world's major cultures and societies.

  • Modern Legal Systems Cyclopedia INTL K530 .M62 1984 (updated regularly)
    If you can't find the country you are researching in other sources, Modern Legal Systems Cyclopedia will most likely have it.
  • Martindale-Hubbell Law Digest INTL REF KF190.M45
    The International Law Digest volumes of this set provide a concise overview of the legal systems of many countries. Also available on Lexis. [Legal > Area of Law - by Topic > International Law > Treatises & Analytical Materials]
  • Germain's Transnational Law Research (updated regularly) INTL REF K85.G47 1991
    Country guides focus on Europe.

Legislation

There are generally two approaches to looking for foreign law - by jurisdiction or by subject. If you are looking for a specific piece of legislation, the Foreign Law Guide is particularly useful because it contains a section of law arranged by subject for each country. Country research guides (see "Research Guides on Individual Countries" at the end of this guide), may not provide guidance for all specific laws, but will provide information on compilations of laws or specific codes. Be sure to also look for subject compilations that group together, for example, laws on copyright. You may want to consider using both approaches - jurisdictional and subject matter - in your research.

When using English translations, keen in mind that they must be used with caution. Usually, they are not authoritative, they may not be up-to-date, and quality of the translation may vary.

There are many English language compilations of foreign legislation, especially in the areas of taxation, trade, commercial and business law. Other areas of law may not have readily available English language translations. Looseleaf services (marked "updated regularly" in this guide) and journals can be a fruitful source for English translations.

By Jurisdiction

  • Foreign Law Guide - GULC only
    The primary source for information on the sources of law for many foreign jurisdictions. It provides the researcher with relevant information on sources of foreign law, including complete bibliographic citations to legislation, the existence of English translations whenever possible, and selected references to secondary sources in English.
  • World Legal Information Institute (WorldLII)
    Access legal materials, including selective legislation, from 86 countries.
  • GLIN - Global Legal Information Network - GULC only
    GLIN is a project of the Library of Congress which includes citations and some full text laws to many countries.
  • Inter-Am Database - GULC only
    Contains legislation and other primary materials - mostly in Spanish - for Mexico, Argentina, Costa Rica, Venezuela and other countries from the region. Some English translations available.
  • Quicklaw - Ask for password at reference desk.
    Quicklaw is a Canadian online service that provides coverage of Canadian legislation. See Case Law section for wider primary law coverage from Quicklaw.
  • Indlaw.com - GULC only
    This database for the Republic of India features, among other primary sources, the Central Acts and Statutes of India (federal, 1883 - current).
  • Isinolaw - GULC only
    A legal database for the People's Republic of China, Isinolaw includes legislation and regulations, case, arbitration awards and legal news.
  • Central & Eastern European Legal Materials (updated regularly) INTL KJC2045.C46 1990
  • Lexis provides coverage of legislation from the following countries: Argentina, Canada, China & Hong Kong, Hungary, Italy, France, Malaysia, Mexico, Russia, South Africa and U.K.
  • Westlaw provides coverage of legislation from the following countries: Bermuda, Canada, Cayman Islands, Hong Kong, Mexico, Spain and U.K.

By Subject

This selective list of online and print resources highlights some of the most frequently researched areas.

Case Law

Foreign case law can be more challenging to locate than foreign legislation. You may not be able to locate an English translation of a foreign decision.

In many countries, court decisions are not considered primary law and there may not be any official publication of decisions. Also, in some countries, only the country's highest court will issue its decisions. Periodicals and journals may be the best source for decisions--in fact, in many countries, legal periodicals act as unofficial sources for case decisions. Periodicals can also be used to find case summaries and citations to new case law.

If you have the citation to a foreign decision and cannot decipher the abbreviation for the case reporter, use one of the sources listed below in the section "Dictionaries and Abbreviations."

Below are selected print and electronic sources for foreign case law.

  • Foreign Law Guide - GULC only
    This is the primary source to find out the name(s) of the official reporter for a country. Choose the jurisdiction, then look under "Court Reports."
  • International Law Reports INTL KZ199.I58
  • Law Reports of the Commonwealth INTL K3165.A495 L38
  • International Labour Law Reports INTL K1704.23.I57
  • Bulletin on Constitutional Case-Law INTL KJC4444.52.B85
  • Lexis has case law from the following countries: Australia, Brunei, Canada, China & Hong Kong, India, Ireland, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Northern Ireland, Singapore, South Africa and U.K.
  • Westlaw has case law from the following countries: Australia, Canada, Hong Kong and U.K.
  • Quicklaw - Ask for password at reference desk.
    Quicklaw is a Canadian online service that includes case law from the following countries: Australia, Canada, Caribbean, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda and U.K.
  • WorldLII : Countries provides links to courts or case law for many jurisdictions.
  • Foreign Law Translations (University of Texas at Austin)
    This site is a resource for case law translated into English from Germany, France, Israel, Austria and Italy.
  • Global Courts is a portal that provides access to Supreme Court decisions of 105 countries, or a way of finding them.
  • Indlaw includes case law from India, along with other sources of law. - GULC only
  • Links to Constitutional Courts and Equivalent Bodies (Council of Europe)
  • World Law Guide: Courts / Cases

Other Sources of Law

Secondary legislation, regulations and administrative decisions are often sought after. These sources may be even more elusive than statutory law and caselaw. Start by using the sources mentioned in the above sections. Secondary sources may be another way to track down relevant sources. If a country publishes an official gazette (as most civil law systems do), you have a better chance of locating regulations, notices, circulars, etc. See the "Major Publications" section for the country in Foreign Law Guide for more information. Sometimes, the materials are only available through the Library of Congress. You may want to check with a reference librarian for more help locating this type of law.

Citing to Foreign Law

Consult The Bluebook INTL REF KF245 .U5 2005, Rule 20 and Table 2, for assistance with citing to foreign law. Rule 20 provides the general guidelines and Table 2 lists the sources for individual jurisdictions. Unfortunately, not all jurisdictions are listed in Table 2, so follow the general guidelines noted in Rule 20. To locate proper abbreviations, consult Noble's Revised International Guide to the Law Reports INTL REF K38 .N63 1998, World Dictionary of Legal Abbreviations INTL REF K89 .K38 1991, or other sources of abbreviations.

Periodical Literature

Want to find out if you can get electronic access to a journal article through the library? Check the E-Journal Finder! From the library homepage, it's the first link under Quick Links. The E-Journal Finder even tells you if a journal is available on Lexis and Westlaw. To use the E-Journal Finder, type in the name of the journal, and see what sources will give you full-text electronic access. If we don't have the journal electronically, check the library catalog for a print version or request the article through interlibrary loan.

Indexes

Periodical literature is a good way to obtain background information, locate the text of a foreign law, a citation, or locate information about a subject. To obtain the best results, use periodical indexes to locate relevant citations.

Below are listed a few of the most commonly used journal indexes. See our journal indexes page for a complete list. If you are new to using indexes to find articles, have a look at our guide, Locating Journal Articles: Foreign & International.

Selected Specialized Journals

  • The American Journal of Comparative Law INTL K1.M4 Available online on Westlaw, Lexis, and HeinOnline (1952-2004) (direct link to journal - GULC only).
  • European Journal of Comparative Law INTL K5.U7215 Available only in print.
  • Tilburg Foreign Law Review INTL K24.I45 Available only in print.

Country Background Information

Often you will need other information about a country, such as its GDP, its political leaders, literacy rates, etc. There are many electronic and print sources for this information.

Dictionaries and Abbreviations

The reference collection in the Wolff library includes many foreign-language dictionaries covering legal, business and general topics. To find one you need, search the library catalog or ask a reference librarian. We also have many sources for deciphering foreign legal abbreviations. Below is a sampling of resources.

Foreign Language Dictionaries

Language
Legal Dictionary
 General Dictionary
French

Dahl's Law Dictionary

INTL REF K52.F7 D35 1995

The Oxford-Hachette French Dictionary

Williams PC2640.O83 2001

German

Dictionary of Legal, Commercial, and Political Terms

INTL REF K52.G4 D54 2000

Collins German-English, English-German Dictionary

Williams PF3640.C68 2004

Spanish

Spanish-English Compendium of Law

INTL REF K52.S6 C66 2005

Collins Spanish-English, English-Spanish Dictionary

Williams PC4640.C53 2004

Russian

Russian-English Legal Dictionary

INTL REF K52.R8 B878 2001

Oxford Russian Dictionary

INTL REF PG2640.W5 1993

Multi-Language

Legal Dictionary in Four Languages

INTL REF K54.L4 1995 (French, Dutch, English, German)

See dictionary for individual language.

Abbreviations Dictionaries

  • Cardiff Index to Legal Abbreviations
    This is a quick first source to check if you have a citation to a foreign case reporter, but can't decipher the abbreviation (e.g. AIR = All India Reporter). Search by abbreviation or by title.
  • World Dictionary of Legal Abbreviations INTL REF K89.K38 1991 (updated regularly) This is the most comprehensive source for world legal abbreviations.
  • Bieber's Dictionary of Legal Abbreviations INTL REF KF246.B46 2001 Although heavily U.S. based, this dictionary includes many U.K. and Commonwealth abbreviations.
  • Index to Legal Citations and Abbreviations INTL REF K85.R3 1993 Focuses primarily on the U.K., Ireland, and the Commonwealth, but includes other jurisdictions.

Research Guides: Individual Country Research & General Guides

This research guide covers general sources for foreign and comparative law research and offers research strategies. It does not discuss the legal system of any one particular jurisdiction.

There are many excellent research guides available online that cover individual foreign jurisdictions. Finding one may be the next step in your research.

The links below all connect to pages listing research guides for individual foreign jurisdictions.

Here are three additional research guides on foreign and comparative law generally:


Revised November 2006 (aeb)