law reform

American Tort Reform Association

The Washington D.C.-based American Tort Reform Association (ATRA) is dedicated to reforming the law of tort and liability. Documents available on the site include a record of tort reform in individual states and facts about the tort system and its impact on the US economy. The ATRA's annual report is also provided, detailing litigation abuse in US states. The site also features background information about class actions, medical liability and punitive damages. There are also press releases and a section providing brief summaries of 'loony lawsuits'.

Center for Legal Policy

The Center for Legal Policy (CLP) forms part of the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research, a think-tank based in New York. The CLP is concerned with reform of the US civil justice system and its work includes publishing books, papers and reports and hosting conferences, forums and seminars for lawyers and policy makers. Recent publications cover areas such as class actions and mass torts, judicial selection, contingency fees, personal responsibility and the asbestos litigation industry. Most of the CLP's reports are made freely available on the website in PDF.

Civil Law Reform Division

Website of the Civil Law Reform Division (CLRD) of the Department of Finance and Personnel in Northern Ireland. This department is responsible for reform of private family law, trusts and property law, tort, contract law and private international law. The site provides details of current projects, downloadable consultation papers and reports and links to related documents such as legislation.

Hong Kong Law Reform Commission Publications

A HKLII database containing reports and consultation papers from the Hong Kong Law Reform Commission in full-text in a range of formats. The service offers options to browse documents separately in reverse date order, supported by full publication and title search facilities. Data is provided by the Law Reform Commission of Hong Kong and is also freely available on the internet in the reports and papers section of the Commission's official website.

Center for the Study of Democracy

The Center for the Study of Democracy is an independent, interdisciplinary institute which aims to foster democracy and reform in Bulgaria. Its website includes links to current projects, publications, and papers (some in Bulgarian, some in English), covering Law, Europe, Economy, Judicial Reform, Corporate Governance, and Book Donation. There is a section about Vitosha Research, which covers the market, social, political, advertising and media issues. There is also a 'News and Events' section, covering current activities of the centre, and a section profiling centre staff.

Irish Law Reform Commission Papers and Reports

A BAILII database containing reports and consultation papers published by the Irish Law Reform Commission. The database presents documents from 1976 onwards in HTML format. Full search options are supported by browse options, alphabetically by title of paper or chronologically by date of issue. BAILII is a collaborative service aiming to provide public access to primary legal materials for the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland. The service is hosted in the UK by the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies and in Ireland by the Law Faculty, University of Cork.

Jersey Law Commission

The Jersey Law Commission is responsible for the review and development of law and the legal justice system in the Channel Island of Jersey. Research topics have covered areas such as: the Law of Real Property, Law of Contract and Law of Tutelles. The site contains a number of online documents in HTML format, including selected Consultation Papers from 1998 onwards, Topic Reports, and Annual Reports from 1996 onwards.

Europe and Eurasia Program

The Europe and Eurasia Program is an initiative of the American Bar Association's Center for Global Programs. It gives technical legal assistance to countries in Central and Eastern Europe and Eurasia, with a view to strengthening the rule of law, with projects focusing on internet freedom, commercial law, combating corruption and strengthening judicial systems. The Program's website provides news, research papers and details of activities in each country.

Justice Project

The Justice Project (TJP) is a Washington-based independent campaigning organisation which seeks to foster fairness and accuracy in criminal cases and advocates reform of the death penalty. The website has information on the staff and activities work of the TJP and provides its reports and recommendations, related publications and case studies. The National page has information and guidance on the Innocence Protection Act, which forms part of the Justice for All Act 2004 (HR 5107), and other federal matters. The States page covers TJP work in Texas, Georgia, Illinois and Tennessee.

Justice for the Poor

Website of Justice for the Poor (J4P), a World Bank research and development program concerned with the promotion of legal reform in Kenya, Sierra Leone, Indonesia, Cambodia, Timor-Leste, Vanuatu and the Solomon Islands. There is information on the different aspects of law covered by the program including land and natural resources, conflict, crime and violence, local governance, gender, customary law and labour disputes. There are also pages detailing the work being done in each country. Briefing papers and reports can be downloaded from the site.

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