You are faced with a comparative research task. The sheer amount of material to cover makes you feel dizzy. You need a plan, but you do not know where to start… Here is some help. Professor Örücü has written an article [see the end of this post for the complete reference] outlining an extremely useful step-by-step approach that should get you started. Here is the gist of it:
Preliminary Step: Determine the Scope
How far shall your comparison go? Shall it encompass all legal systems of the world or only a subset of them? Do you want to compare whole legal systems or only specific legal issues? There is no given answer as to which scope to choose. It all depends on your personal strategic goals.
First Step: Get a Concept
Shall your comparison be intra- or cross-cultural? What legal aspects do you want to compare: structures, institutions, functions? At this point, I would also decide what comparative methodology (e.g. functionalism or comparative law and economics) to apply.
Second Step: Describe your Data
Now is the moment to compile your factual research. Again, it is a matter of personal choice whether you want to focus on hard facts (e.g. norms) or soft issues (e.g. socio-economic problems). At this point, however, a proper classification scheme is indispensable.
Third Step: Identify Similarities/Differences
Time for a lineup! Based on the data gathered during the previous step, you can now juxtapose all the similarities and differences that you have found.
Fourth Step: Explain Similarities/Differences
This phase probably depends most on the exact methodology that you have chosen for your work. Yet, in any event, according to Professor Örücü, “[f]or the explanation to be accurate a sociocultural overview is essential” [p. 449].
Fifth Step: Confirm Your Theory
The final step of your comparative study should consist of some generalized statement. Usually, such a statement will formulate a suggestion for improvement or it would demonstrate the general applicability of your study.
I hope this post will help you tackle your next comparative research problem. Please feel free to contact me in case you have any questions or concerns. And if you would like to receive similar posts on a regular basis consider subscribing to CompareLex!
——
Source
Esin Örücü, Methodology of comparative law, in ELGAR ENCYCLOPEDIA OF COMPARATIVE LAW 442-454 (Jan M. Smits 2006).
