40 years of research on Japanese law
Together with the German-Japanese Association of Jurists (DJJV), the Australian Network for Japanese Law (ANJeL), and the Ca’ Foscari University in Venice, the Institute hosted a conference titled “1985–2025: 40 Years of Research on Japanese Law at the MPI. Time to Add New Voices” from 13 to 15 November 2025. The conference featured the participation of speakers from numerous Asian countries and addressed the role and relevance of Japanese law in the region.
“After decades of exchange between Japan and countries somewhat coarsely labelled as ‘the West’, it was important for us to enter into a multilogue and to give a forum to voices thus far rarely heard in Europe,” said the head of the Centre of Expertise on Japan at the Institute, Ruth Effinowicz, who also oversaw the organization of the hybrid conference.
When the Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law first initiated a dedicated unit for Japanese law in 1985, the East Asian island country was at the highpoint of its economic ascent. Under the leadership of Harald Baum, a hub of academic knowledge was founded that has developed into one Europe’s most important contact points for legal questions relating to Japanese civil, commercial, and entrepreneurial law.
Today, the Centre of Expertise on Japan is woven into a top-level network of international scholars and practitioners possessing expertise in all areas of the law. The network features, in particular, extensive contacts with leading Japanese universities and entities. Numerous Institute alumni who conducted research at the Centre of Expertise are now successfully engaged in academia and practice, with some holding professorships in Germany and Japan.
The Zeitschrift für Japanisches Recht / Journal of Japanese Law, established by Baum in 1996, has established itself as a unique platform dedicated to making scholarly information on Japanese law available in Western European languages. The Journal is published by the Institute in partnership with the DJJV and is prepared under the editorial guidance of Effinowicz, who succeeded Baum as the head of the Centre of Expertise after he stepped down from the position and assumed an emeritus role.
Images: © Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law
