In the Spotlight

Former students of Reinhard Zimmermann, his colleagues at the Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law, and others who accompanied him on his journey at one time or another came together on 14 October 2022 to join in celebrating the internationally renowned legal scholar and long-time director at the Institute. They showered him with standing ovations. more

A common bond for legal scholars around the globe is their reliance on words as a legal tool and academic instrument. This is axiomatic also for research undertaken at the Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law. But the language of law is expressed not only in words. It also calls upon concrete numbers, a fact vividly shown by our Institute profile.   more

Private Law Gazette 1/2022 - Is the Internet of Things undermining property rights? In his habilitation monograph, Konrad Duden, senior research fellow at the Institute, examines the extent to which a connected device’s digital use is protected by virtue of that user’s owning or possessing the device. more

Private Law Gazette 1/2022 - Emojis and their legal significance: As we come to rely more and more on digital communications, it is impossible to image doing without emojis. Though sometimes the bias still sticks that emojis are only for informal messaging, today their use is immensely popular – even in work and business settings. more

It is not only politicians for whom climate change poses a challenge. German and international firms are increasingly confronted with questions surrounding the protection of the climate. Thus, headlines are made when claims for damages are filed against companies like Shell, BMW, Mercedes, or Volkswagen. But what is the situation with the regulatory mechanisms found in company law, accounting law, and capital markets law? Institute director Holger Fleischer has made a point of studying the extent to which these specialized disciplines can contribute in combating climate change. more

Every year, International Women’s Day invites us to reflect on the social status of women, in particular their career opportunities. So we asked some of our women researchers about their formative experiences and motivation for going this route. more

The political, economic and personal ties between Turkey – as well as its predecessor state, the Ottoman Empire – and the countries of Europe have a long history. Today, Turkey is one of the European Union’s largest trading partners. For legal practice in Germany and the EU, Turkish law stands as one of the most relevant foreign legal systems. With this significance in mind, the Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law has created a special platform dedicated to researching legal developments in Turkey. more

Traditional notions of family, marriage, and parenthood around the world have changed significantly in recent decades. The result is often that black-letter law is at odds with both actual practices and the social reality. Since 2009, the research group “Changes in God’s Law” at the Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law has been studying developments in the civil law of Muslim jurisdictions. The group is led by Nadjma Yassari. One of its current focuses is the law of succession. more

Legislation in the field of company law arrived on the scene only at a relatively late stage. For centuries, it was articles of incorporation and contracts which ensured that the rules essential to the existence of a company were set out in a binding manner. From accounting and non-competition clauses to the structuring of management and supervisory bodies, these instruments served as models for the later creation of statutory rules. more

Allowing all people to live in dignity while at the same time protecting our natural environment is one of the globe’s greatest challenges. This aim is expressed in the 17 Sustainable Development Goals set out in the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda. The law stands as an important vehicle for their implementation. In cooperation with Veronica Ruiz Abou-Nigm and Hans van Loon, Institute Director Ralf Michaels has launched a research project that examines the role of private international law in realizing the UN goals. more