Reinhard Zimmermann, emeritus director at the Institute, has received the Cross of Merit First Class of the Federal Republic of Germany. The award, bestowed by Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, recognizes Zimmermann’s outstanding contributions as an innovative thinker and successful leader in multiple fields. The Cross was presented to him on 5 April 2024 during an award ceremony at the Rathaus in Hamburg, with Katharina Fegebank, senator for the sciences and deputy mayor for the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg, officiating. more

Marco Speranzin is full professor of business law at the University of Padua and attorney at law. He was a guest researcher at the Institute from mid-February to mid-March. more

Elke Heinrich-Pendl, former Institute research fellow, has received the Josef Krainer Prize for her post-doctoral dissertation (Habilitationsschrift). The award is bestowed each year for exceptional academic performance based on international criteria. more

Matthias Pendl, senior research fellow at the Institute, has received post-doctoral funding from the Heinrich Graf Hardegg’sche Stiftung, a Viennese foundation. more

Institute director Anne Röthel has co-edited a volume in which five legal scholars explore the current significance of sex and gender in family law. more

What makes a family? The answer is shifting and expanding to accommodate growing diversity. Senior research fellow at the Institute Denise Wiedemann and senior research fellow alumnus Konrad Duden have edited a collection of articles devoted to examining these shifts. more

From 1857 until 1970, there was a peculiar cause of action in English law that foreign observers regarded with incredulity. On the basis of a statutory provision, husbands whose wives had taken a paramour could sue the other man for money damages. Former senior research fellow at the Institute Eike Götz Hosemann wrote his doctoral thesis on this infamous tort. more