International Encyclopedia of Comparative Law

The International Encyclopedia of Comparative Law appears under the auspices of the UNESCO-sponsored International Association of Legal Sciences. Representing the work of hundrets of lawyers and scholars throughout the world, the Encyclopedia is the most extensive and thorough treatment of comparative law on an international level ever to be published. Intensive research and preparation preceded the publication of this 17-volume Encyclopedia. Now, national and international legislators and lawyers, as well as students, teachers and scholars of comparative law, will have access to the first broad, systematic and international compendium of comparative law. The Encyclopedia incorporates not only detailed description of the legal systems of more than 140 countries but above all thoroughly documented comparative analyses of the main issues in civil and commercial law and related areas covering the whole world.

Each volume of the International Encyclopedia of Comparative Law is divided into 6–20 chapters, each written by a specialist in the field. Rather than delaying publication of a given volume until all the chapters are ready, every chapter is published upon completion in paper bound form. Several of the chapters, not necessarily of the same volume, are sent to subscribers  in single instalments.

Once all the chapters of a given volume are ready they are indexed, updated where necessary, possible, and dispatched to subscribers in high-quality hardback form. Thus, the timely availability of information is ensured with the additional advantage of providing researchers and libraries with the Encyclopedia in two forms – chapters that can be borrowed as needed and volumes to be kept in the library for reference. The great majority of costs incurred by this project derive from  the essential research, organization, initial production and indexing. The dual method of publication adds very little to these basic overall costs or to the price.