Open Access
Selected, freely accessible professional literature and materials on international business law (continuously updated).
November 29, 2024
International
Anyone deeply involved with International Economic Law, whether in practice or research, knows the challenges of research. Often, these are time-consuming and costly.
Fortunately, there are now good and freely accessible specialist literature and materials that make access easier.
To support this, I have started compiling a collection of freely accessible sources on International Economic Law. This overview serves as a first point of reference for research and is available to everyone interested. Additional sources will be added continuously. I welcome suggestions for additional open access materials.
Training
Commercial Awareness Program by the World Commerce & Contracting
Case Law Collections
United Nations Commission On International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) – Case Law on UNCITRAL Texts (CLOUT)
Harmonization of international trade law in practice requires that the laws concerned are interpreted in a uniform manner. Many UNCITRAL texts contain the principle that in interpreting the texts concerned, judges and arbitrators should consider the international origin of the law and the need to promote uniformity in its application.
In order to support consistency in decisions and awards on its texts, UNCITRAL established a system in 1988 to collect and disseminate information on court decisions and arbitral awards relating to UNCITRAL texts: the Case Law on UNCITRAL texts, known as CLOUT (Source: https://uncitral.un.org/en/case_law).
1988 – present https://www.uncitral.org/clout/index.jspx
IPRspr
The decision collection published by the Max Planck Institute for Foreign and International Private Law "German Jurisprudence in the Field of International Private Law (IPRspr)" is now available as an online database in open access. The database can be searched by many different parameters and currently comprises around 6,500 decisions (Source: Press release of September 20, 2024).
2004 – present https://iprspr.mpipriv.de
Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) / European General Court (EGC)
The Monthly Case-law Digest is a compilation of the résumés of the decisions of the Court of Justice and the General Court, which, concerning the issues of law involved, merit particular attention. These compilations use a system of thematic classification of the decisions to facilitate the identification of the case law in the area concerned.
2021 – present https://curia.europa.eu/jcms/jcms/p1_3471594/
Case-law Fact Sheets
Clear and concise analyses of key legal subjects, available in all official EU languages
2019 – present https://curia.europa.eu/jcms/jcms/p1_1043150/
Legal Monitoring
Updates on recent legal developments and notable court rulings, including follow-ups to preliminary rulings
2005 – present https://curia.europa.eu/jcms/jcms/p1_2170127/
Studies
Judicial Network of the EU
Access to documents, notes, and studies of a scientific, analytical, or educational nature drawn up and selected by the Court of Justice of the European Union and by the member courts of the RJUE to enhance mutual knowledge of national laws.
2015 – present https://curia.europa.eu/jcms/jcms/p1_2170124/en/
Journals
Rabels Zeitschrift für ausländisches und internationales Privatrecht / The Rabel Journal of Comparative and International Private Law
Founded in 1927. Areas of specific interest are comparative law and foreign law, the conflict of laws, the law of international transactions, and the unification of law, including the law of the European Union (Source: https://www.jstor.org/journal/rabezeitauslinte).
1961 – 2023 https://www.jstor.org/journal/rabezeitauslinte
1927 – 1960 https://www.jstor.org/journal/zeitauslintepriv
1919 – 1921 https://www.jstor.org/journal/auslandsrecht
Journal of Foreign Public Law and International Law / Heidelberg Journal of International Law
The ZaöRV has been published since 1929 under the direction of the Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law, Heidelberg. Its English name is the Heidelberg Journal of International Law (HJIL). The journal is a forum for the discussion of fundamental and current problems of international law, European Union law, comparative law, and occasionally topics of public law in EU member states and beyond. Its goal is to reflect a geographical, substantive, and methodological diversity in these fields. The journal is bilingual (German and English) (Source: https://doi.org/10.17104/0044-2348).
2021 – present https://doi.org/10.17104/0044-2348
Contracting Excellence Journal
The journal provided by World Commerce & Contracting (formerly IACCM) features articles and insights from the WorldCC team and their membership of over 70,000 members from 180 countries worldwide.
KAS African Law Study Library
KAS African Law Study Library is an open access journal which publishes articles written by young scholars from the African continent. The journal deals with practical aspects important for the development of the Rule of Law in an African context (Source: https://doi.org/10.5771/2363-6262).
2014 – present https://doi.org/10.5771/2363-6262
International Journal of Digital Law and Governance
International Journal of Digital Law and Governance (IJDLG) is a fully peer-reviewed forum for theoretical and applied research in digital law and governance. The journal is international in scope, aiming to cover topics relating to digital law and governance throughout the world (Source: https://www.degruyter.com/journal/key/ijdlg/html).
2024 – present https://www.degruyter.com/journal/key/ijdlg/html
RiA Law in Africa
The journal Law in Africa is the journal founded in 1998 by the African Law Society e.V., which has been published online since 2014. The journal is an information and discussion forum for practical and theoretical legal topics of importance for the development of the rule of law on the African continent (Source: https://doi.org/10.5771/2363-6262).
2014 – present https://doi.org/10.5771/2363-6270
VRÜ Verfassung und Recht in Übersee
"Verfassung und Recht in Übersee" (VRÜ) analyzes developments in public law in states and overseas constitutional and legal systems. The publication appears four times a year and contains articles in English, and in exceptional cases in German, Spanish, and French (Source: https://doi.org/10.5771/0506-7286).
2014 – present https://doi.org/10.5771/0506-7286
ZEuS Journal of Comparative Legal Studies
The ZEuS Journal embraces a wide range of topics pertaining to current and fundamental issues of European integration, European law, and international law. Articles are published in English, and occasionally in French and German (Source: https://doi.org/10.17104/1435-9262).
2000 – present https://doi.org/10.17104/0044-2348
ZEuS Journal of African Law / RiA Law in Africa / Droit en Afrique
The journal Law in Africa is the journal of the Society for African Law e.V., founded in 1998, which has been published online since 2014. It is an information and discussion platform for practical and theoretical legal subjects of significance for the development of law on the African continent. The journal emphasizes issues of current legal developments (Source: https://www.zchinr.org/index.php/zchinr).
1919 – 1921 https://www.jstor.org/journal/auslandsrecht
VRÜ Constitutional and International Public Law Overseas
"Constitutional and International Public Law Overseas" (VRÜ) analyzes developments in public law in overseas states. This quarterly publication contains articles in English, and in exceptional cases also in German, Spanish, and French (Source: https://doi.org/10.5771/0506-7286).
2015 – present https://doi.org/10.17104/0044-2348
Books
Ostendorf, Interpretation and Validity of Exculpatory Clauses in Domestic, Swiss, and English Commercial Law (2025), available at https://doi.org/10.1628/rabelsz-2025-0015
Kiefner, Possession as Relative Ownership? History and Doctrine of Possession Protection as Relative Protection in Common Law and Foreign Law (2024), available at https://doi.org/10.1628/978-3-16-163873-2