Thinking Global Law

Statement about the conference “Areas and Disciplines” by Morag Goodwin

The phrase “global law” (despite requests, for example by Twining, to avoid “g-words”) is increasingly to be seen on law school curricula, in summer school programmes and even the name of law schools. It of course forms part of the trend within a certain strand of legal scholarship of considering law in the context of globalisation but appears to signify a step beyond institutional internationalisation efforts and/or the limiting of such scholarship to certain areas of law, such as economic law or international law. In the context of efforts to establish a book series dedicated to global law, I will attempt to articulate what global, legal scholarship may be. I will then pick up these thoughts in the context of legal education and discuss three initiatives underway within Tilburg Law School: the new Bachelor programme in Global Law; the LL.M. programme in Victimology; and the EDOLAD project, which is working towards the establishment of a joint doctoral programme in the field of Law & Development. I will, as time allows, consider critically what these programmes hope to achieve and the difficulties attendant in getting them off the ground. Finally, I will look to draw a few lessons that other institutions might wish to learn from my own institution’s (early stage) efforts at “globalizing” law.