Who defines what law is? Is there a specific or presumed real context in which legal models find a perfect correspondence? In tribunals, who has the power to mediate? In which ways is this power conditioned? Can competing legal repertoires provide local actors with more room for manouevre towards state agents? How does the modern state change the work of the law? How did (and do) interacting legal orders affect the legal options of particular groups (women, religious groups, ethnic minorities etc.)? How did (and do) the state legal system and alternative legal forums work together? Where did (and do) they complement each other, and where did (and do) they clash?
Starting out from a rich variety of case studies, Rechtskulturen Fellows Antonio de Lauri, Will Hanley, Stefan Kirmse and Edyta Roszko will take us on a journey through times and spaces – from 19th century Crimea, turn-of-the-century Egypt and communist Vietnam to today’s Afghanistan. The colloquium invites a discussion about the law and its features and alternatives, its limits and possibilities. Crossing times and areas, transcending disciplinary and regional boundaries, we will explore the law as a concept and a reality.
