Judicial Recourse to Foreign Law: A New Source of Inspiration?

This book began life as the Eason Weinmann Lecture delivered by Sir Basil Markesinis at the Tulane Law School in March 2005 under the title The Judge as Comparatist. Covering for the first time private as well as public law, Judicial Recourse to Foreign Law analyses in great detail court decisions from the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, South Africa, Canada, and the European Union in order to determine the approach judges follow in the use of comparative law. Drawing on this material, the authors seek to find common ground between radically differing views about the desirability of judicial discourse across national borders and present a methodological framework within which foreign law can make a meaningful contribution to the world of legal practice. The book includes commentaries by Laurie Ackermann (formerly Justice of the Constitutional Court of South Africa), President Aharon Barak (Supreme Court of Israel), Professor Dr Brun-Otto Bryde (German Federal Constitutional Court), M. Guy Canivet (First President of the French Cour de cassation), Sir Sydney Kentridge KCMG, QC, Professor Christos Rozakis (Vice President, European Court on Human Rights), and Judge Konrad Schiemann (European Court of Justice).