This book explores the tension in East Asia between, on the one hand, the trend towards a convergence of legal practices in the direction of a universal model, and, on the other hand, a reassertion of local cultural practices, including those which define different group identities, and which give substance to different ideas about what constitutes justice. The trend towards convergence arises in part from globalisation, from rule of law programs promulgated by institutions such as the International Monetary Fund and the Asian Development Bank, who are keen to ensure a reasonable level of...

This book examines biblical and rabbinic law as a coherent, continuing legal tradition. It explains the relationship between religion and law and the interaction between law and morality. Abundant selections from primary Jewish sources, many newly translated, enable the reader to address the tradition directly as a living body of law with emphasis on the concerns that are primary for lawyers, legislators, and judges. Through an in-depth examination of personal injury law and marriage and divorce law, the book explores jurisprudential issues important for any legal system and displays the...