Global law

International investment agreements navigator

Free database of around 2,800 international investment agreements (IIAs), compiled by the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD). Covers both bilateral investment treaties (BITs) and multilateral agreements. Users may browse by 'economy' (meaning 'country') or by international organisation; there is also a search facility. Dates of signature and entry into force are available, together with the text of each agreement; many are available in English even where there are no English-speaking parties. (At the time of writing, the interactive map on this site did not appear to work.)

Jurist: World Law

The World Law page of the Jurist website offers a set of guides to the legal systems of the world. Each country’s guide covers the Constitution, government and legislation, courts and judgments, human rights, the legal profession and law schools. Links to key websites for each country are also provided. Jurist is a legal education website provided by the University of Pittsburgh School of Law.

Doing business: law library

Gateway to business laws and regulations from all over the world, compiled by the World Bank’s Doing Business project. Gives links to official sources as far as possible, and many of the texts are in English translation. Can be browsed by country or region. The areas of law covered are: banking, bankruptcy, civil codes, civil procedure, commercial and company law, constitutional law, employment law, land and building law, privacy, securities, tax and trade.

Gender-Lex

Collection of country profiles and national and international legal instruments / policy documents regarding gender equality, maintained by the Food and Agriculture Organization. Can be browsed by country, or searched. The site is available in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Spanish and Russian.

Canon Law

Article on canon law, as published in the Catholic Encyclopedia online, made available on the New Advent website. The article was written by A. Boudinhon, and transcribed by David DeWolf. It discusses the differences between canon law and ecclesiastical law, and describes the sources and divisions of the body of laws of the Christian Church. It outlines the historical development of collections of canon law texts from the early Christian Church to modern times, and describes the different types of text (bulls, briefs, concordats, etc).

LLRX.com

LLRX.com (Law Library Resource Exchange) is a free legal technology e-journal for information professionals specialising in law. It provides resource guides, feature articles and columns on legal research and technology issues. Articles can be browsed by date, author, or subject, and there is a search facility. Many articles focus on US law, but foreign law is also covered, and most of the technology articles are not limited to a particular jurisdiction.

Swiss Institute of Comparative Law

The Swiss Institute of Comparative Law (Institut suisse de droit comparé, or ISDC) was established in Lausanne in 1982. Its primary task is to prepare legal opinions in respect of foreign law for the Federal authorities, courts, lawyers and other individuals. It also produces studies in comparative law, holds colloquia and carries out research projects. The Institute has an extensive law library, whose catalogue is available via the website. A set of legal links for countries from Afghanistan to Zambia is available on the Law Online page, annotated in English.

Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law

The Max-Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law is a research institute carrying out research in the following areas: public international law; comparative constitutional and administrative law; international environmental law; European constitutional law and administrative law. The site has information on the history and organisation of the Institute. It also provides working papers and other publications, a blog and the library's online catalogue. The site is in English and German.

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