A deceased can by means of a testamentary will or an inheritance contract determine who is to inherit his or her property and to what extent. Where there is no last will, the rules of intestate succession apply. Yet the freedom of testation is limited. What is today known as the “compulsory portion” is based on a long tradition.

Testamentary freedom versus family solidarity – What is the origin of the compulsory portion?

News


Coronavirus: Protective Measures Update

July 08, 2020

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.

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Sorrow for the loss of Frank Münzel

July 28, 2020

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.

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The State of Japanese Legal Studies in Europe – Theme of ZJapanR 49/2020

July 03, 2020

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.

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Events


Responses to the Coronavirus in Japanese and German law

A virtual conference in times of the pandemic
Aug 19, 2020 08:00 - Aug 20, 2020 12:00

The Institute


About Us

From the European Single Market to the global interweaving of multi-national businesses or financial firms to our increasingly international everyday lives, the world around us is steadily converging. At the same time, our laws are encountering the limits of their application. The Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law embraces the task of critically studying the social, economic and legal challenges of globalisation.

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Library profile and holdings

The Institute library is Europe’s largest library specialising in foreign and international private law and is recognised worldwide for its scope and services. It has a collection of specialist literature from more than 200 countries around the world. The library has a particular focus on acquiring literature from countries that are not easily accessible, such that these can be gathered and made available at one location.

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New Releases


MPG.PuRe
Jürgen Samtleben, El divorcio de extranjeros en la República Dominicana, in: Santiago Álvarez González, Rafael Arenas García, Pedro-Alberto de Miguel Asensio, Sixto-Alfonso Sánchez Lorenzo, Gonzalo Stampa (eds.), Relaciones transfronterizas, globalización y derecho. Homenaje al Prof. Dr. José Carlos Fernández Rozas, Civitas, Cizur Menor (Navarra) 2020, 489–497.
MPG.PuRe
Holger Fleischer, Matthias Pendl, Verschwiegenheitspflicht und Pflicht zum Geheimnismanagement von Geschäftsleitern, Zeitschrift für Wirtschaftsrecht 2020, 1321–1330.
MPG.PuRe
Full
Knut Benjamin Pißler, Lay Judges in China under the New People's Assessors Law: The Shaping of a Legal Institution, Tsinghua China Law Review 12 (2020), 235–257.
MPG.PuRe
Full
Stefan Korch, Delisting und Insolvenz, BKR - Zeitschrift für Bank- und Kapitalmarktrecht 2020, 285–290.

MPG.PuRe
Jürgen Samtleben, Internationale Handelsschiedsgerichtsbarkeit in Lateinamerika – Eine Skizze, in: Christoph Benicke (ed.), National, International, Transnational, Harmonischer Dreiklang im Recht, Festschrift für Herbert Kronke zum 70. Geburtstag, Gieseking, Bielefeld 2020, 1529–1542.
MPG.PuRe
DOI
Stefan Korch, Yannick Chatard, Reichweite und Grenzen des Anspruchs auf Erhalt einer Kopie gem. Art. 15 Abs. 3 DSGVO, Computer und Recht 36 (2020), 438–447.
MPG.PuRe
DOI
Reinhard Zimmermann, Pflichtteil und Noterbenrecht in historisch-vergleichender Perspektive, Rabels Zeitschrift für ausländisches und internationales Privatrecht 84 (2020), 465–547.
MPG.PuRe
DOI
Konrad Duden, Richterwahl und parteipolitische Einflussnahme – Vergleichende Anregungen zum Schutz der Unabhängigkeit des Bundesverfassungsgerichts und der obersten Bundesgerichte, Rabels Zeitschrift für ausländisches und internationales Privatrecht 84 (2020), 637–665.
List of Publications

In the Spotlight


The philosophical foundations of Private International Law

TopThema

Private International Law (PIL) is seen by many as the most technical of all legal disciplines. Whereas theoretical questions and debate over the appropriate methodology tend to determine the issues addressed in the field, its philosophical underpinnings are mostly neglected. In a parallel manner, PIL plays only a minimal role in legal philosophy. Addressing and closing this gap is the aim of a new interdisciplinary project.

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Corporate Social Responsibility

April 22, 2020
TopThema

The question of how to reconcile profitability with social responsibility is a key issue that has long been discussed across disciplines. Amidst growing public attention to social and environmental standards as well as the fight against corruption in third countries, the issue of corporate social responsibility (CSR) also raises important legal questions.

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Fundamental European values under pressure – Protecting the judiciary from partisan influence

May 06, 2020
TopThema

Assaults on the rule of law can presently be observed in many democratic countries, including, amongst others, Member States of the European Union. Frequently it is the courts that are under attack. Judicial reforms undertaken by Poland’s ruling national-conservative Law and Justice (PiS) party have led to ongoing dispute in Brussels.

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Social Media & Videos


Covid-19: implications for the application of family law in MENA countries

Video July 01, 2020

Afternoon Talks on Islamic Law: Moderated by the Research Group on Family and Succession Law in Islamic Countries, the Chief prosecutor for personal status at the Sharia Court, Palestine, and judge of the Sharia Court of Appeal, Ramallah, Somoud Damiri, gave a Palestinian perspective on Covid-19 and its implications for the application of family law. Watch her talk here.

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