A Brief History of Legal Comparison: A Lesson from the Ancient to Post-Modern Times
Author(s)
Roberto Scarciglia
ABSTRACT
This essay offers a reconstruction of the historical evolution of legal comparison from the ancient to post-modern times. In particular, the author wishes to focus on the most important legal scholars and their contribution to the creation and development of comparative law and its methodology. Comparison of rules or constitutions has ancient origins and every age has left a legacy. For this reason, the Author has divided this essay into nine periods: the Ancient World, the Middle Ages, the Renaissance, the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries, the Nineteenth Century, from the Congress in Paris, 1900, to the first half of the Twentieth Century; the second half of the Twentieth Century. To claim legal comparison as the result of its history is also to acknowledge that most of the today’s scholars have learned the lesson of the ancients masters of legal comparison.
This essay offers a reconstruction of the historical evolution of legal comparison from the ancient to post-modern times. In particular, the author wishes to focus on the most important legal scholars and their contribution to the creation and development of comparative law and its methodology. Comparison of rules or constitutions has ancient origins and every age has left a legacy. For this reason, the Author has divided this essay into nine periods: the Ancient World, the Middle Ages, the Renaissance, the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries, the Nineteenth Century, from the Congress in Paris, 1900, to the first half of the Twentieth Century; the second half of the Twentieth Century. To claim legal comparison as the result of its history is also to acknowledge that most of the today’s scholars have learned the lesson of the ancients masters of legal comparison.
Cite this paper
Scarciglia, R. (2015) A Brief History of Legal Comparison: A Lesson from the Ancient to Post-Modern Times. Beijing Law Review, 6, 296-310. doi: 10.4236/blr.2015.64026.
Scarciglia, R. (2015) A Brief History of Legal Comparison: A Lesson from the Ancient to Post-Modern Times. Beijing Law Review, 6, 296-310. doi: 10.4236/blr.2015.64026.
References
[1] Amari, E. (1857). Critica di una scienza delle legislazioni comparate (A Critiqueof a Science of Comparative Legislation), Vol. I-II. Genoa: R.I. de’ Sordomuti, repr. (1969). Palermo: Edizioni della Regione siciliana, 139. [2] Bognetti, G. (1994). Introduzione al diritto costituzionale comparato. Il metodo (p. 26). (Introduction to Comparative Constitutional Law: The Method). Turin: Giappichelli. [3] Constantinesco, L. J. (1972). Die rechtsvergleichende Methode (p. 82). (Comparative Law: Comparative Method). Koln: Karl Heymanns. [4] Croce, B. (1943). Teoria e storia della storiografia (5th ed., p. 12). (Theory and History of Historiography). Bari: Laterza. [5] Esmein, A. (1899). éléments de droit constitutionnel francais et comparé (Elements of Frenchand Comparative Constitutional Law), repr. (2001). Paris: éditions Panthéon-Assas. [6] Esquirol, J. L. (2001). René David: At the Head of the Legal Family. In A. Riles, Ed., Rethinking the Masters of Comparative Law (p. 234). Oxford and Portland OR: Hart. [7] Franklin, J. H. (1977). Jean Bodin and the Sixtenth-Century Revolution in the Methodology of Law and History (2nd ed., p. 116). New York: Columbia University Press. [8] Friedman, L. H. (1973). History of American Law (p. 98). New York: Simon & Schuster.
http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/845101 [9] Gerber, D. J. (2001). Sculpting the Agenda of Comparative Law: Ernst Rabel and the Facade of Language. In A. Riles (Ed.), Rethinking the Masters of Comparative Law (p. 190). Oxford and Portland OR: Hart. [10] Gilmore, G. (1977). The Ages of American Law (p. 10). New Haven and London: Yale University Press. [11] Gorla, G. (1964). Diritto comparato [Comparative Law]. In Enciclopedia del Diritto [Encyclopedia of Law] (Vol. XII, p. 930, nt. 5). Milan: Giuffrè. [12] Gutteridge, H. C. (1949). Comparative Law. An Introduction to the Comparative Method of Legal Study and Research. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. [13] Hazeltine, H. D. (1910). Selden as Legal Historian. Harvard Law Review, 24, 105-118.
http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/1324818 [14] Hirschl, R. (2009). Montesquieu and the Renaissance of Comparative Constitutional Law. In R. E. Kingston (Ed.), Montesquieu and His Legacy (pp. 199-220). Albany, NY: State University of New York Press. [15] Hug, W. (1932). The History of Comparative Law. Harvard Law Review, 45, 1027-1070.
http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/1332143 [16] Husa, J. (2015). A New Introduction to Comparative Law (p. 104). Oxford and Portland, OR: Hart. [17] Launay, R. (2001). Montesquieu: The Specter of Despotism and the Origins of Comparative Law. In A. Riles (Ed.), Rethinking the Masters of Comparative Law (pp. 22-38). Oxford and Portland, OR: Hart. [18] Le Goff, J. (1979). Les intellectuels au Moyen Age [Intellectuals in the Middle Ages] (p. 70). Paris: Seuil. [19] Lupoi, M. (2001). Sistemi giuridici comparati. Traccia per un corso [Comparative Legal Systems: Course Tracks] (p. 15). Rome: Istituto Poligraficodello Stato. [20] Maine, H. S. (1861). Ancient Law: Its Connection with the Early History of Society, and Its Relations to Modern Ideas (p. 2). Repr. 1982, Birmingham, AL: The Legal Classic Library. [21] Maitland, F. W. (1908). The Constitutional History of England: A Course of Lectures (p. 198). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. [22] Maitland, F. W. (1911). Why the History of English Law Is Not Written. In H. A. L. Fisher (Ed.), The Collected Papers of Frederic William Maitland (Vol. 1, p. 488). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. [23] Markesinis, B. (2003). Comparative Law in the Courtroom and the Classroom: The Story of the Last Thirty-Five Years (pp. 62). Oxford and Portland, OR: Hart. [24] Mattei, U. (2011). The Comparative Jurisprudence of Schlesinger and Sacco: A Study in Legal Influence. In A. Riles (Ed.), Rethinking the Masters of Comparative Law (p. 239). Oxford and Portland, OR: Hart. [25] Pollock, F., & Maitland, M. (1898). History of English Law (2nd ed., p. 207). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. [26] Rheinstein, M. (1956). In Memory of Ernst Rabel. The American Journal of Comparative Law, 5, 185-196. [27] Riles, A. (1999). Wigmore’s Treasure Box: Comparative Law in the Era of Information (p. 228). Paper 1036, Ithaca, NY: Cornell Law School. [28] Riles, A. (2001). Rethinking the Masters of Comparative Law (p. 2). Oxford and Portland, OR: Hart. [29] Riles, A. (2014). From Comparison to Collaboration: Experiments with a New Scholarly and Political Form. Law and Contemporary Problems, 77, 1-25. [30] Sacco, R. (1991). Legal Formants: A Dynamic Approach to Comparative Law (Installment I of II). American Journal of Comparative Law, 39, 1-34.
http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/840669 [31] Sarfatti, M. (1933). Introduzione allo studio del diritto comparato [Introduction to the Study of Comparative Law] (p. 2). Turin: Giappichelli. [32] Scarciglia, R. (2015). Comparative Methodology and Pluralism in Legal Comparison in a Global Age. Beijing Law Review, 6, 42-48.
http://dx.doi.org/10.4236/blr.2015.61006 [33] Stevens, L. C. (1954). The Contribution of French Jurists to the Humanism of the Renaissance. Studies in the Renaissance, 1, 92-105.
http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/2856954 [34] Van Caenegem, R. C. (1987). Judges, Legislators and Professors: Chapters in European Legal History (p. 58). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/cbo9780511599361 [35] Verger, J. (1999). Les gens de savoir dans l’Europe de la fin du Moyen Age [Men of Learning in Europeat the End of the Middle Ages] (p. 70). Paris: PUF. [36] Yntema, H. E. (1958). Comparative Law and Humanism. American Journal of Comparative Law, 7, 493-499.
http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/837261 [37] Zucca, L. (2009). Montesquieu, Methodological Pluralism and Comparative Constitutional Law. European Constitutional Law Review, 5, 481-500.
http://ssrn.com/abstract=1512494
http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s1574019609004817
[1] Amari, E. (1857). Critica di una scienza delle legislazioni comparate (A Critiqueof a Science of Comparative Legislation), Vol. I-II. Genoa: R.I. de’ Sordomuti, repr. (1969). Palermo: Edizioni della Regione siciliana, 139. [2] Bognetti, G. (1994). Introduzione al diritto costituzionale comparato. Il metodo (p. 26). (Introduction to Comparative Constitutional Law: The Method). Turin: Giappichelli. [3] Constantinesco, L. J. (1972). Die rechtsvergleichende Methode (p. 82). (Comparative Law: Comparative Method). Koln: Karl Heymanns. [4] Croce, B. (1943). Teoria e storia della storiografia (5th ed., p. 12). (Theory and History of Historiography). Bari: Laterza. [5] Esmein, A. (1899). éléments de droit constitutionnel francais et comparé (Elements of Frenchand Comparative Constitutional Law), repr. (2001). Paris: éditions Panthéon-Assas. [6] Esquirol, J. L. (2001). René David: At the Head of the Legal Family. In A. Riles, Ed., Rethinking the Masters of Comparative Law (p. 234). Oxford and Portland OR: Hart. [7] Franklin, J. H. (1977). Jean Bodin and the Sixtenth-Century Revolution in the Methodology of Law and History (2nd ed., p. 116). New York: Columbia University Press. [8] Friedman, L. H. (1973). History of American Law (p. 98). New York: Simon & Schuster.
http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/845101 [9] Gerber, D. J. (2001). Sculpting the Agenda of Comparative Law: Ernst Rabel and the Facade of Language. In A. Riles (Ed.), Rethinking the Masters of Comparative Law (p. 190). Oxford and Portland OR: Hart. [10] Gilmore, G. (1977). The Ages of American Law (p. 10). New Haven and London: Yale University Press. [11] Gorla, G. (1964). Diritto comparato [Comparative Law]. In Enciclopedia del Diritto [Encyclopedia of Law] (Vol. XII, p. 930, nt. 5). Milan: Giuffrè. [12] Gutteridge, H. C. (1949). Comparative Law. An Introduction to the Comparative Method of Legal Study and Research. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. [13] Hazeltine, H. D. (1910). Selden as Legal Historian. Harvard Law Review, 24, 105-118.
http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/1324818 [14] Hirschl, R. (2009). Montesquieu and the Renaissance of Comparative Constitutional Law. In R. E. Kingston (Ed.), Montesquieu and His Legacy (pp. 199-220). Albany, NY: State University of New York Press. [15] Hug, W. (1932). The History of Comparative Law. Harvard Law Review, 45, 1027-1070.
http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/1332143 [16] Husa, J. (2015). A New Introduction to Comparative Law (p. 104). Oxford and Portland, OR: Hart. [17] Launay, R. (2001). Montesquieu: The Specter of Despotism and the Origins of Comparative Law. In A. Riles (Ed.), Rethinking the Masters of Comparative Law (pp. 22-38). Oxford and Portland, OR: Hart. [18] Le Goff, J. (1979). Les intellectuels au Moyen Age [Intellectuals in the Middle Ages] (p. 70). Paris: Seuil. [19] Lupoi, M. (2001). Sistemi giuridici comparati. Traccia per un corso [Comparative Legal Systems: Course Tracks] (p. 15). Rome: Istituto Poligraficodello Stato. [20] Maine, H. S. (1861). Ancient Law: Its Connection with the Early History of Society, and Its Relations to Modern Ideas (p. 2). Repr. 1982, Birmingham, AL: The Legal Classic Library. [21] Maitland, F. W. (1908). The Constitutional History of England: A Course of Lectures (p. 198). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. [22] Maitland, F. W. (1911). Why the History of English Law Is Not Written. In H. A. L. Fisher (Ed.), The Collected Papers of Frederic William Maitland (Vol. 1, p. 488). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. [23] Markesinis, B. (2003). Comparative Law in the Courtroom and the Classroom: The Story of the Last Thirty-Five Years (pp. 62). Oxford and Portland, OR: Hart. [24] Mattei, U. (2011). The Comparative Jurisprudence of Schlesinger and Sacco: A Study in Legal Influence. In A. Riles (Ed.), Rethinking the Masters of Comparative Law (p. 239). Oxford and Portland, OR: Hart. [25] Pollock, F., & Maitland, M. (1898). History of English Law (2nd ed., p. 207). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. [26] Rheinstein, M. (1956). In Memory of Ernst Rabel. The American Journal of Comparative Law, 5, 185-196. [27] Riles, A. (1999). Wigmore’s Treasure Box: Comparative Law in the Era of Information (p. 228). Paper 1036, Ithaca, NY: Cornell Law School. [28] Riles, A. (2001). Rethinking the Masters of Comparative Law (p. 2). Oxford and Portland, OR: Hart. [29] Riles, A. (2014). From Comparison to Collaboration: Experiments with a New Scholarly and Political Form. Law and Contemporary Problems, 77, 1-25. [30] Sacco, R. (1991). Legal Formants: A Dynamic Approach to Comparative Law (Installment I of II). American Journal of Comparative Law, 39, 1-34.
http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/840669 [31] Sarfatti, M. (1933). Introduzione allo studio del diritto comparato [Introduction to the Study of Comparative Law] (p. 2). Turin: Giappichelli. [32] Scarciglia, R. (2015). Comparative Methodology and Pluralism in Legal Comparison in a Global Age. Beijing Law Review, 6, 42-48.
http://dx.doi.org/10.4236/blr.2015.61006 [33] Stevens, L. C. (1954). The Contribution of French Jurists to the Humanism of the Renaissance. Studies in the Renaissance, 1, 92-105.
http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/2856954 [34] Van Caenegem, R. C. (1987). Judges, Legislators and Professors: Chapters in European Legal History (p. 58). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/cbo9780511599361 [35] Verger, J. (1999). Les gens de savoir dans l’Europe de la fin du Moyen Age [Men of Learning in Europeat the End of the Middle Ages] (p. 70). Paris: PUF. [36] Yntema, H. E. (1958). Comparative Law and Humanism. American Journal of Comparative Law, 7, 493-499.
http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/837261 [37] Zucca, L. (2009). Montesquieu, Methodological Pluralism and Comparative Constitutional Law. European Constitutional Law Review, 5, 481-500.
http://ssrn.com/abstract=1512494
http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s1574019609004817