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Academic Resources |
Online Legal
Research Resources
Law-Related Academic Journals
Law Reviews
A comprehensive list of 1,345 law reviews, with links to the journals' homepages and tables of contents. Nearly all law reviews are student-edited.
A guide that compiles word limit policies for law reviews.
An electronic service that submits articles to law reviews (for a fee).
The Socio-Legal Studies Association (SLSA -UK) has a list of law-related journals in Britain, organized by research area.
Refereed or Faculty-Edited Journals on Law-Related Subjects
Law and Society Review
Peer-reviewed, official journal of the Law and Society Association
Law and Social Inquiry
Peer-reviewed journal of the American Bar Foundation
Journal of Law and Society (UK)
The leading British journal for socio-legal studies
Judicature
Journal of the American Judicature Society
Law, Culture and Humanities Journal
A publication of the Association for the Study of Law, Culture and the Humanities, co-sponsored by the Socio-Legal Research Centre at Griffith University (Australia) and Amherst College (USA)
Journal of Empirical Legal Studies
Published by Cornell Law School
Law and Policy
Peer-reviewed journal published in association with the Baldy Center for Law and Social Policy at the State University of New York at Buffalo Law School
Psychology, Public Policy and Law
Official journal of the American Psychological Association
Journal of Law, Economics and Organization
Interdisciplinary journal focusing on the intersection of law, economics and organizations
Journal of Law and Economics
Published in conjunction with the University of Chicago Law School and Graduate School of Business
Journal of Legal Studies
Interdisciplinary journal on law and social sciences
European Journal of Law and Economics
Studies in law and economics with an emphasis on European and European Community law
Journal of Legal History (UK)
The only British journal devoted solely to legal history
Law and History Review
Official journal of the American Society for Legal History
Legal Theory
Specializing in analytical and normative jurisprudence, doctrinal theory, policy analyses of legal doctrines and critical theories of law
Oxford Journal of Legal Studies
Published on behalf of the faculty of law at Oxford University
Ratio Juris
An International Journal of Jurisprudence and Philosophy of Law
Law and Philosophy
An International Journal for Jurisprudence and Legal Philosophy
Canadian Journal of Law and Jurisprudence
An international journal of legal thought
Archiv für Rechts- und Sozialphilosophie
Archives for Philosophy of Law and Social Philosophy
Res publica
A Journal of Legal and Social Philosophy, co-published with the U.K. Association of Legal and Social Philosophy
American Journal of International Law
Official journal of the American Society of International Law
European Journal of International Law
Leading journal of international law featuring European and international approaches
American Journal of Comparative Law
Official journal of the American Society of Comparative Law
I-Con: International Journal of Constitutional Law
Published in association with the New York University School of Law, I-CON is dedicated to international and comparative constitutional law
The Law and Politics Book Review
Official listserv-based publication of the Law and Courts Section of the American Political Science Association offering speedy reviews of books on all law-and-politics-related subjects
Law and Courts: The Newsletter of the Law and Courts Section
Official publication of the Law and Courts Section of the American Political Science Association
Constitutional Commentary
Published by the University of Minnesota Law School
Journal of National Security Law and Policy
Official journal of the National Security Law section of the Association of American Law School, published with the University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law
Law and Contemporary Problems
Interdisciplinary journal published at Duke Law School
Journal of Ethics and Social Philosophy
On-line peer-reviewed journal of moral, political and legal philosophy, sponsored by the University of Southern California School of Law
Jurimetrics
The Journal of Law, Science, & Technology, published at the Sandra Day O'Connor School of Law at Arizona State University
Law Text Culture
Trans-continental peer reviewed journal which publishes critical thinking and creative writing across a range of genres - from artwork and fiction to the traditional scholarly essay
Legal Studies Forum
Faculty-edited journal that seeks to promote trans-disciplinary, humanistic, critical scholarship
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Professional Associations
Law and Society Association
Association for the Study of Law, Culture and Humanities
American Law and Economics Association
Empirical Legal Studies
Section on Law and Courts
American Political Science Association
American Society of Criminology
American Psychology-Law Society
American Psychological Association
American Society for Legal History
American Society of International Law
Sociology of Law Section
American Sociological Association
Association for Political and Legal Anthropology (POLAR)
American Anthropological Association
Research Committee on the Sociology of Law
International Sociological Association
Socio-Legal Studies Association (UK)
European Network on Law and Society
American Judicature Society
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Other Centers
This list is intended to help users find research centers and
interdisciplinary programs that concentrate on law. Some of the programs
listed below grant advanced degrees; others house teams of interdisciplinary
researchers. Please check the websites of each center for current information.
The American Bar Association maintains a list of undergraduate legal studies programs in the United States.
The European Journal on Criminal Justice Policy and Research maintains a list of
centers involved in criminological research in Europe
American Bar Foundation
Established in 1952, the American Bar Foundation is an independent,
nonprofit national research institute committed to objective empirical research
on law and legal institutions. This program of sociolegal research is conducted
by an interdisciplinary staff of Research Fellows trained in such diverse
fields as law, sociology, psychology, political science, economics, history,
and anthropology. The American Bar Foundation is the preeminent resource for lawyers, scholars,
and policy makers who seek insightful analyses of the theory and functioning of
law, legal institutions, and the legal profession. The Foundation's work is
supported by the American Bar Endowment, by The Fellows of the American Bar
Foundation, and by grants for particular research projects from private
foundations and government agencies.
Oxford Centre for Socio-Legal Studies
Since its foundation within the University of Oxford in 1972 the Centre for
Socio-Legal Studies has become a world leader in conducting innovative,
inter-disciplinary research into the interaction of law and society. The Centre
consists of a group of scholars and researchers from complementary backgrounds
in the law and social sciences with a view to of generating new insights and
practical direction on both enduring and cutting edge issues. As a further aim
the Centre seeks to disseminate this knowledge to the widest possible audience
internationally, to encourage the study of law, legal institutions and wider
society, and to develop their practical applications. These activities are
complemented by the commitment to the supervision and training of research
students. The research staff at the Centre are drawn from the disciplines of
Law, Sociology, Anthropology and Political Science. The larger research
programmes are currently: Administrative Law and Rights of Citizens; Regulation
and Discretion; Business Finance and Law; Human Rights; Comparative Media Law
and Policy; and Public Interest Law.
Jurisprudence and Social Policy Program, University of California at Berkeley
The School of Law (Boalt Hall) at the University of California at Berkeley
offers a unique program of graduate study in law and society, leading to the
Ph.D degree in Jurisprudence and Social Policy (JSP). The program promotes the
study of legal and political institutions through the perspectives and methods
of criminal justice, economics, history, philosophy, political science and
sociology. The JSP program core faculty accordingly consists of humanists and
social scientists who combine scholarship and teaching in their own disciplines
with the study of law. The general Boalt faculty also contributes
significantly to the JSP Program. The Boalt faculty is exceptionally strong in
public and environmental law, law and economics, law and technology, and
critical race and gender theory, and many members hold doctoral degrees in such
fields as American studies, economics, history, and philosophy.
NYU Law and Society Program
New York University's Institute for Law and Society is a center for faculty,
graduate students and law students studying law and legal institutions from a
transdisciplinary perspective. Scholars at the Institute explore a broad range
of law-related issues both domestically and globally. Law and politics, legal
anthropology, economic analyses of law, sociology of law, criminology,
psychology and law, and legal history are areas of particular focus.
Connecting the School of Law with the Graduate School of Arts and Science at
New York University, the Institute's Law and Society Program offers a Ph.D.
degree in Law and Society. Students in the Program may also pursue J.D./Ph.D.
and J.D./M.A. dual degrees, and NYU undergraduates can enter the Minor in Law
and Society. The Law and Society Program is designed for students who are
pursuing academic careers in the social sciences and/or law; who seek to work
in public policy and policy analysis; and who want to do applied research on
law-related issues.
Oñati International Institute for the Sociology of Law
The International Sociological Organisation's Research Committee on the
Sociology of Law and the Government of the Basque Country established the
International Institute for the Sociology of Law in Oñati, Gipuzkoa, Spain in
1988. From the outset, the Institute created academic links and collaborative
relations with various European and non-European universities by providing
facilities for seminars, workshops, visiting scholars and library research. The
Institute has as a result grown into an important base for the global network
of scholars who work on law and social science issues. A major activity of the
Institute is its year long course leading to an MA degree in the sociology of
law. The course now includes 20-25 students annually from about a dozen
countries in Europe, Africa, Asia and North, Central and South America. To
date, students have come from thirty-eight countries. Faculty members, who each
provide two weeks of instruction in their special areas of interest, have come
from twenty-six different countries.
The Comparative Law and Society Studies Center, University of Washington,
The Comparative Law and Society Studies Center at the University of
Washington is committed to promoting interdisciplinary research and teaching as
well as community service regarding law, justice, and human rights throughout
the world. At its core CLASS is constituted by an intellectual community of
faculty, staff, graduate students, and undergraduate students dedicated to
cutting-edge socio-legal inquiry. This community is structured around four
primary types of endeavor: (1) individual and collaborative academic research;
(2) an interdisciplinary Graduate Fellows program; 3) the undergraduate Law,
Societies, and Justice program; and 4) community outreach and service.
Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law
The Institute was founded in Berlin in 1924 as the Kaiser-Wilhelm-Institut
für ausländisches öffentliches Recht und Völkerrecht
(Kaiser Wilhelm Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law)
within the framework of the Kaiser-Wilhelm Gesellschaft (Kaiser Wilhelm
Society). It was re-established in 1949 by the Max-Planck-Gesellschaft (Max
Planck Society) as the Max-Planck-Institut für ausländisches
öffentliches Recht und Völkerrecht (Max Planck Institute for
Comparative Public Law and International Law) in Heidelberg. Presently, 45
scholars employed under a joint directorship are engaged in researching basic
issues and current developments in the areas of public international law,
European law, comparative public law and German public law. Their work serves
to promote the formulation and development of positive law as well as its
conceptual and theoretical permeation. Attention focuses not only on particular
substantive questions, but also on the interplay among public international
law, European law and national public law. The Institute has intentionally
avoided departmental structuring. Instead, it aims at a scholarly elaboration
of legal questions, treating their international, European and national
components as a functional unity.
The Swiss Institute for Comparative Law
The Institute's practice areas include both questions in private
international law (conflicts of law) and the laws of a specific country (e.g.,
contract, commercial, tort, family, constitutional, administrative, and
criminal law). Experts of the Institute perform research and analysis for
clients from Switzerland and abroad. The Institute offers training and
research opportunities for young jurists and lawyers through the van Calker
Scholarship Program, as well as visitors from Switzerland and abroad.
Baldy Center for Law and Social Policy, University of Buffalo
The Baldy Center is an internationally recognized institute that supports
the interdisciplinary study of law and legal institutions. Over 100 UB faculty
members from 17 academic departments participate in Baldy Center research and
teaching activities as do an increasing number of graduate students.
Institute for Legal Studies, University of Wisconsin Law School at Madison
In establishing the Institute, the Law School sought to expand and
institutionalize its longstanding law in action approach, which dates
back to the early part of the twentieth century and remains vital to its
mission. The Institute was created to foster the interdisciplinary study and
teaching of law not only by providing support for its own faculty, but also by
explicitly connecting to other departments on campus and by cultivating a
network of scholars with similar interests worldwide. The Institute acts as a
catalyst and facilitator for scholarly work on sociolegal topics carried out by
faculty and graduate students, and supports related studies in dual degree
graduate programs and in the undergraduate Legal Studies Program. Over the
years, it has promoted and assisted independent and collaborative research in a
wide variety of substantive areas in sociolegal studies. Well known work done
under the Institute's umbrella includes seminal work on the social context
of contractual relationships, litigation and disputing, comparative
institutional analysis, poverty law and administrative agencies, family law,
feminist legal theory, the legal history of the family, the implementation of
law in organizations, Critical Race Theory, the legal profession, and emerging
issues in international law and globalization. The Institute currently serves
as the base of operations for the Global Legal Studies Initiative and for
the Legal History and Law and Humanities programs.
Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek- en Documentatiecentrum (Research and Document Centre - Dutch Ministry of Justice)
WODC (the Dutch abbreviation for Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek- en
Documentatiecentrum, in English: Research and Documentation Centre) can best be
characterised as an international criminal justice knowledge centre. The centre
aims to make a professional contribution to development and evaluation of
justice policy set by the Netherlands Ministry of Justice.
Department of Criminology, Law and Society, University of California at Irvine
The Department of Criminology, Law and Society (CLS) has established itself
as one of the nation's top programs in criminology, criminal justice, and legal
studies. Established as a formal department with its own Ph.D. program in 1992
within the School of Social Ecology, CLS faculty have trained numerous
undergraduate and graduate students over almost three decades. Graduates work
in both the public and private sectors, and at colleges and universities around
the country. The CLS curriculum offers a broad array of topics for both
undergraduate and graduate study which are central to crime and its control,
social policy, and the law. In keeping with one of the main tenets of Social
Ecology, faculty and students approach these subjects from a multidisciplinary
perspective.
Carr Center for Human Rights Policy, Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University
The mission of the Carr Center, like the Kennedy School, is to train future
leaders for careers in public service and to apply first-class research to the
solution of public policy problems. Our research, teaching and writing are
guided by a commitment to make human rights principles central to the
formulation of good public policy in United States and throughout the world.
Since its founding in 1999 through a gift from Kennedy School alumnus Greg
Carr, the Center has developed a unique focus of expertise on the most
dangerous and intractable human rights challenges of the new century, including
genocide, mass atrocity, state failure and the ethics and politics of military
intervention. In approaching such challenges, we seek to lead public policy
debate, to train human rights leaders and to partner with human rights
organizations to help them respond to current and future challenges. We also
recognize that the solutions to such problems must involve not only human
rights actors, but governments, corporations, the military and others not
traditionally conceived of as "human rights" efforts. Thus, we seek to
expand the reach and relevance of human rights considerations to all who
influence their outcomes.
The Rand Institute for Civil Justice
The RAND Institute for Civil Justice is an independent research program
within the RAND Corporation. The Institute's mission is to help make the civil
justice system more efficient and more equitable by supplying government and
private decision-makers and the public with the results of objective,
empirically based, analytic research. The ICJ facilitates change in the civil
justice system by analyzing trends and outcomes, identifying and evaluating
policy options, and bringing together representatives of different interests to
debate alternative solutions to policy problems. The Institute builds on a long
tradition of RAND research characterized by an interdisciplinary, empirical
approach to public policy issues and rigorous standards of quality,
objectivity, and independence.
The Academy of European Law
The Academy of European Law (ERA) promotes the awareness, understanding and
good practice of EU law by providing legal professionals with training and a
forum for debate. ERA enables judges, lawyers in private practice, business
and public administration, academics and others who encounter legal issues in
their work to gain a wider and deeper knowledge of the diverse aspects of
European law. Through conferences, seminars, study visits, language courses,
training projects and publications, it serves as an interface between the
European legal profession and the decision-making centres of Brussels,
Luxembourg and Strasbourg. The ERA team consists of a dozen lawyers
specialising in different areas of EU law, supported by a competent and
experienced administrative and technical staff. The speakers at ERA events are
drawn from a Europe-wide network of experts, leading professionals and
lawmakers. Founded in 1992 on the initiative of the European Parliament, ERA
is a public foundation whose members include the majority of EU member states.
It is based in Trier, Germany and supported by the European Union.
The British Institute of International and Comparative Law
The British Institute of International and Comparative Law exists to advance
the understanding of international and comparative law, and to promote the rule
of law in international affairs, and to be a leading research institute of
international and comparative law and to promote its practical application by
the dissemination of research through publications, conferences and discussion.
The Institute was created by the merger in 1958 of the Society of Comparative
Legislation (founded in 1895) and the Grotius Society (founded in 1915).
The European Academy of Legal Theory
This institute offers summer courses in legal theory in English and French.
The institute also publishes proceedings of its congresses and workshops.
Tilburg Faculty of Law and Schoordijk Institute for Jurisprudence and Comparative Law
The Tilburg Faculty of Law and its research institute, the Schoordijk
Institute for Jurisprudence and Comparative Law, enjoy a strong reputation in
both research and education. For many years now, the national Elsevier ranking
has rated both research and education either first or second in the
Netherlands. It offers a number of one-year master's programs in English,
in fields such as International and European Public Law, International and
European Business Law, and Law and Technology. It also offers a two-year MPhil.
program for a Research Master in Law, with a special focus on comparative law,
legal research methods and interdisciplinary studies.
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Funding for Sociological Research
Law and Social Sciences Program, National Science Foundation
The Law and Social Science Program at the National Science Foundation
supports social scientific studies of law and law-like systems of rules,
institutions, processes, and behaviors. These can include, but are not limited
to, research designed to enhance the scientific understanding of the impact of
law; human behavior and interactions as these relate to law; the dynamics of
legal decision making; and the nature, sources, and consequences of variations
and changes in legal institutions. The primary consideration is that the
research shows promise of advancing a scientific understanding of law and legal
process. Within this framework, the Program has an"open window" for diverse
theoretical perspectives, methods and contexts for study. For example, research
on social control, crime causation, violence, victimization, legal and social
change, patterns of discretion, procedural justice, compliance and deterrence,
and regulatory enforcement are among the many areas that have recently received
program support. In addition to standard proposals, planning grant proposals,
travel support requests to lay the foundation for research, and proposals for
improving doctoral dissertation research are welcome.
Law School Admissions Council, Research Grant Program
The Law School Admission Council Research Grant Program funds empirical
research on legal training and legal practice broadly viewed. This includes the
study of precursors to legal training (including demographic variables), all
varieties of legal training itself and the work that lawyers, judges, law
teachers, and other legal professionals do after they complete their training
(law jobs). The program welcomes proposals for comparative research
proceeding from any of a variety of methodologies, a potentially broad range of
topics, and varying time frames. Proposals will be judged on the importance of
the questions addressed, their relevance to the mission of LSAC, and the
quality of the research designs. Eligible investigators need not be members of
law school faculties. Proposals from interdisciplinary teams of law faculty and
empirical researchers are strongly encouraged.
MacArthur Foundation, Grants Program for Juvenile Justice
The Foundation supports research, model programs, policy analysis, and
public education related to juvenile justice. The goal of this work is to
promote an effective juvenile justice system that is linked to relevant
agencies, is acknowledged to play a critical role in the community, and is held
accountable for public safety and the rehabilitation of young offenders.
Fellowships for new law school graduates
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Law-Related Blogs
Metablogs
The Law Professor Blogs Network
Resources, News & Information for Law School Professors
The Jurisdynamics Network
Exploring law amid societal and technological change
Law Blog Central
A gateway to the Jurisdynamics Network and other leading law-related weblogs
Blogs
American Constitution Society blog
The American Constitution Society for Law and Policy (ACS) is one of the nation's leading progressive legal organizations
Althouse
Ann Althouse, Wisconsin Law School
Balkinization
Jack Balkin, Ian Ayres, Mark Graber, Stephen Griffin, Scott Horton, Marty Lederman, Sanford Levinson, David Luban, Kim Scheppele, Dan Solove, Brian Tamanaha, Mark Tushnet
Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law
Blog of the Judge David L. Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law
Becker-Posner Blog
A Blog by Gary Becker and Richard Posner
Bench Memos
The National Review Legal Blog
Brian Leiter's Law School Reports
News about law schools
Chinese Law Prof Blog
Edited by Donald C. Clarke, George Washington School of Law
Concurring Opinions
The Law, the Universe, and Everything
Conflict of Laws .NET
In association with the Journal of Private International Law
Disability Law
Sam Bagenstos writes periodic updates on developments in disability law and related fields
Election Law Blog
The law of politics and the politics of law
Empirical Legal Studies
Bringing Methods to Our Madness
Essentially Contested America
Robert Justin Lipkin, Widener Law School
EU Law Blog
About European Union law for students, academics, practitioners and anyone else who may be interested
Feminist Law Professors
Group blog featuring dozens of feminist law professors
First Movers
Tomorrow's legal scholars ... today.
Georgetown University Law Faculty Blog
Group blog of the Georgetown Law faculty
Grotian Moment
International war crimes trial blog
How Appealing
The Web's First Blog Devoted to Appellate Litigation
Human Rights Blog
Human rights news, actions, announcements, opinions and
miscellanea
Intel-Dump
Military life and military law
IntLawGrrls
Women's voices on international law, policy, practice
Is That Legal?
Eric Muller, UNC Law School
Law and Econ Prof Blog
Blog emphasizing law and economics topics
Law and Society Blog
Notes from the intersection of law, society, technology, economics, and culture
LawCulture
Law, culture, politics and life inside and outside the legal academy
Legal History Blog
Mary Dudziak: scholarship, news and new ideas in legal history
Legal Theory Blog
Gary Solum: All the theory that fits!
Discourse.net
Michael Froomkin, Miami Law School
Mirror of Justice
A blog dedicated to the development of Catholic legal theory
National Security Advisors
A national security law blog
Obsidian Wings
"This is the Voice of Moderation. I wouldn't go so far as to say we've actually SEIZED the radio station . . ."
Prawfsblawg
"Where Intellectual Honesty Has (Almost Always) Trumped Partisanship Since 2005"
Ratio Juris
Empirical, analytical, and comparative perspectives on judicial decisionmaking and the legal process
SCOTUSblog
Supreme Court of the United States Blog
Sentencing Law and Policy
Edited by Douglas Berman, Moritz College of Law at The Ohio State University
University of Chicago Law School Faculty Blog
Group blog by the faculty of the University of Chicago Law School
The Volokh Conspiracy
Dale Carpenter, David Kopel, David Bernstein, David Post, Erik Jaffe, Eugene Volokh, Ilya Somin, Jim Lindgren, Jonathan Adler, Kevan Choset, Orin Kerr, Randy Barnett, Russell Korobkin, Sasha Volokh, Stuart Benjamin, Todd Zywicki, Tyler Cowen
Wall Street Journal Law Blog
On law and business and the business of law
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Sites for Legal News
JURIST Legal News and Research
FINDLAW News for Legal Professionals
FINDLAW US Legal News
FINDLAW Legal Commentary
FINDLAW Terrorism-related News
Above the Law legal gossip about lawyers and judges
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Working Paper Series
SSRN Legal Scholarship Network
The largest working paper series on law-related topics
List of American law school working paper series
Compiled by the University of Pittsburgh Law School
Notre Europe
Working papers on Europe (in French and English)
Jean Monnet Program
Working papers on Europe
NBER Papers in Law and Economics
National Bureau of Economic Research archive
International Institute for Law and Justice (NYU) working papers
NYU School of Law
Center for Human Rights and Global Justice (NYU) working papers
NYU School of Law
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