Building Transnational Sociolegal Scholarship: Established Problems in New Contexts

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Title: Building Transnational Sociolegal Scholarship: Established Problems in New ContextsPI: Sally Merry, et al. Proposal Number: 0647809Over the last two decades, scholarship in the law and society field has changed dramatically in its engagement with transnational and international sites, frameworks and perspectives. US scholars, for example, are looking at the same issue, such as the way courts operate, in different societies instead of only in the United States. Moreover, sociolegal scholars are studying the nature of transnational and international legal practices and institutions along with global processes such as the spread of human rights or the operation of international law. Much of this work is being done by scholars in the US, Canada, and Europe, but understanding global phenomena requires participation from scholars all over the world. Researchers from less affluent countries often find traveling to and attending conferences in the global North prohibitively expensive. In order to facilitate the development of global scholarship on law and society, the Law and Society Association developed international collaborative research networks to link scholars from Europe and North America with those from Latin America, Africa, Asia, and Eastern Europe. These international research collaboratives were established over a year ago with seed money provided by the Law and Society Association, and already met last summer at the 2006 conference of the Association. The National Science Foundation grant to the Association will enable about forty scholars in these networks who come from poorer regions to travel to an international law and society meeting in Berlin in 2007. This meeting is sponsored by the Law and Society Association and four other law and society associations. Thus, the funds will dramatically expand and enhance these international research networks.Both NSF-supported scholars and non-supported ones will benefit from the exchange. Supported scholars mostly come from countries that lack a strong tradition of sociolegal scholarship and will learn about current issues and debates in the field. At the same time, scholars from wealthier countries will learn new perspectives, insights, and theories developed in other parts of the world. These funds offer an exceptional opportunity to build a more global intellectual community. Sharing theories and research findings dramatically improves our understanding of the world. And joining the perspectives of colleagues around the world produces better policy recommendations involving law and legal institutions for international organizations and national governments, both of the US and those of our international colleagues. Understanding more fully the research of scholars situated in different societies and world regions will produce more nuanced and effective forms of engagement with the global community.