EBOOK Oxford Handbook of Empirical Legal Research

The empirical study of law, legal systems and legal institutions is widely viewed        as one of the most exciting and important intellectual developments in the modern        history of legal research. Motivated by a conviction that legal phenomena can and        should be understood not only in normative terms but also as social practices of        political, economic and ethical significance, empirical legal researchers have used        quantitative and qualitative methods to illuminate many aspects of law'smeaning,        operation and impact.In the 43 chapters of The Oxford Handbook of Empirical Legal        Research leading scholars provide accessible and original discussions of the        history, aims and methods of empirical research about law, as well as its        achievements and potential. The Handbook has three parts. The first deals with the        development and institutional context of empirical legal research. The second - and        largest - part consists of critical accounts of empirical research on many aspects        of the legal world - oncriminal law, civil law, public law, regulatory law and        international law; on lawyers, judicial institutions, legal procedures and evidence;        and on legal pluralism and the public understanding of law. The third part        introduces readers to the methods of empirical research, and its place in the law        schoolcurriculum.