Governance by regulation - rules propounded and enforced by bureaucracies - is taking a growing share of the sum total of governance. Once thought to be an American phenomenon, it is now a central form of state action in every part of the world, including Europe, Latin America, and Asia, and it is at the core of much international lawmaking. In Comparative Law and Regulation, original contributions by leading scholars in the field focus both on the legal dimension of regulation and on how this dimension operates in those places that have turned to regulation to meet their obligations.

Today the regulation of everything from e-commerce and product safety to air quality is global. To understand how regulation is made and enforced in the multiple domestic and international jurisdictions involved, it is necessary to move beyond conventional sub-fields of law like administrative law and international law. Drawing on contributions from leading scholars with diverse subject and country expertise, Comparative Law and Regulation introduces a new field of legal research geared at understanding the operation of the global regulatory process. The book affords cutting-edge analysis of...