Current News

We mourn the passing of Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Frank Münzel, who died on 10 July 2020 at the age of 83. The legal scholar and sinologist worked from 1969 to 2002 as an expert on East Asia at our Institute. With the establishment of the China Unit, he laid an important cornerstone for research on Chinese law in Germany. more

Staff members and guests of the Institute are continuing to work within the limited on-site operation framework. Changes to the rules on restricted entry to the Institute and for public and internal events at the Institute apply from 1 July 2020. Scholarships for 2021 have been suspended. more

The lead article of ZJapanR 49/2020 examines the current status of Japan vis-à-vis comparative law in Europe and outlines the many intriguing activities being undertaken in the field. Thereafter, a number of authors analyse the different legal institutions existing at the intersection of traditional structures, social change and legal reform. more

In a joint project, Knut Benjamin Pißler, head of the Centre of Expertise on China and Korea at the Max Planck Institute for Private Law, and Katja Levy (TU Berlin) examine for the first time the situation of charitable foundations in China, exploring in particular their role in China’s authoritarian system. The findings of this study have been published in a work titled “Charity with Chinese Characteristics”. more

The Max Planck Society has awarded Jakob Gleim, former research assistant at the Institute, the Otto Hahn Medal for his doctoral dissertation on testamentary arbitration clauses (“Letztwillige Schiedsverfügungen: Geltungsgrund und Geltungsgrenzen”). The study was published recently in the series Studien zum ausländischen und internationalen Privatrecht with Mohr Siebeck. more

Friedrich Wenzel Bulst, former research associate at the Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law, has been appointed honorary professor at Law Faculty of the University of Bielefeld as of 6 May 2020. Dr. Bulst has been giving courses on economic law at the university since 2014, with a focus on digitisation. more

Following accusations of antisemitism raised in Germany against Achille Mbembe, a heated debate has ensued regarding the persona and work of the Cameroonian historian and post-colonial theoretician – a debate that also touches on the German culture of remembrance (Erinnerungskultur). Recently, Institute Director Ralf Michaels has examined the debate from the perspective of de-coloniality. The essay printed below appeared first in the Frankfurter Allgemeinen Zeitung on 8 June 2020. more