Top of page
Posted by: Jenny Gesley
In preparation for the upcoming Independence Day celebration tomorrow, we thought it might be interesting to show that there is also an international dimension to this national holiday. The Declaration of Independence is regarded as one of the milestone documents that shaped America, but it also had a major influence abroad. After the Continental Congress approved the …
Posted in: Collections, Global Law, Law Library
Posted by: Jenny Gesley
The following is a guest post by Micaela DelMonte, a lawyer from the European Parliamentary Research Service who volunteered at the Law Library of Congress during May 2017. News about Brexit and the so-called Article 50 procedure have dominated the news about the European Union (EU) lately. If you are interested in researching these or …
Posted in: Global Law, Guest Post, Research Guide
Posted by: Jenny Gesley
International tribunals have been around for some time, but the creation of international courts and tribunals to deal with international crimes is a relatively recent occurrence, with the first international criminal tribunal established just after World War II. The Max Planck Encyclopedia of Public International Law defines “international courts and tribunals” as ”permanent judicial bodies made up of independent …
Posted in: Global Law, Law Library
Posted by: Margaret Wood
The following is a guest post from Nicolas Boring, foreign law specialist covering French speaking jurisdictions at the Law Library of Congress. France has just finished its election season! French citizens elected Emmanuel Macron as their new president earlier in May, and they returned to the voting booths on June 11 and June 18 for parliamentary …
Posted in: Global Law, Guest Post
Posted by: Kelly Buchanan
This post is part of a series highlighting the Law Library’s foreign law collections. A couple weeks ago, Jenny wrote about Germany’s “Day of the Basic Law,” which is celebrated on the anniversary of Germany’s constitution coming into force. I have also previously written about Syttonde Mai (May 17), the National Day or Constitution Day in …
Posted in: Global Law
Posted by: Ruth Levush
Last week I blogged about Israeli legislative and judicial efforts to assist Jewish women who cannot divorce their husbands (עגונות, agunot, literally “chained”; עגונה, agunah in singular). In accordance with Jewish law, which applies to matters of marriage and divorce of Jewish residents and citizens of Israel, a valid divorce requires the consensual delivery by the husband and receipt …
Posted in: Global Law
Posted by: Jenny Gesley
Every year on May 23, Germany celebrates the “Day of the Basic Law.” The Basic Law, Germany’s constitution, lays down fundamental rights, establishes the structure and administration of the Federal Republic of Germany, and sets out the legal framework of the three branches of government. Furthermore, it establishes the Federal Republic of Germany as a democratic, federal, …
Posted in: Global Law, In the News
Posted by: Ruth Levush
In the movie Gett: The Trial of Viviane Amsalem, the late actress Ronit Elkabetz plays Vivian Amsalem, an Israeli woman who wishes to divorce her husband because she does not love him anymore. Without his consent to deliver a get (גט, a Jewish writ of divorce) to her however, her marriage cannot be dissolved and she is …
Posted in: Global Law
Posted by: Kelly Buchanan
In Polynesian culture, myths and legends illustrate approaches to different matters, and these are also reflected in customary law.
Posted in: Global Law, Law Library, Pacific Islander History