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 civil law reform in the areas of private family law, trusts and property law, tort, contract law and private international law. The site provides details of current projects, online versions of consultation papers and reports downloadable in PDF, links to related documents such as legislation and a page of related web links.

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 has developed from the Central European and Eurasian Law Initiative (CEELI) originally set up in 1990 by the American Bar Association (ABA) as its first international technical legal assistance program. Today there are programs in more than 20 countries in the region "furnishing technical assistance on a wide range of issues essential for further consolidation of the rule of law". There are news features from the Program as a whole, as well as links to work in each individual country.

Asia Pacific Judicial Forum

The Asia Pacific Judicial Reform Forum (APJRF) is a network of superior courts and justice sector agencies seeking judicial reform in the region. Its website provides details of meetings, workshops, projects and other events. Currently the APJRF is developing a Judicial Reform Handbook; draft chapters of the handbook are available on the site. A discussion forum and list of member courts and organisations, with links to websites where available, are also provided.

Trust Law Committee

The Trust Law Committee is an organisation of academics and practitioners devoted to improving the law of trusts in England and Wales. The organisation was set up in 1994 and its website is hosted at King's College, London. The site gives the names of members of the Committee and outlines the process that has to be undergone to improve the law. Consultation papers and reports published by the Committee can be freely downloaded from the site.

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