Publisher's Synopsis
Legal certainty has always been equated with efficient legal regulation and effective enforcement of law. In the international sphere, states and international organizations have developed legal structures (unified laws and conflict of laws rules) for regulating cross-border legal interactions between businesses or individuals. Yet, globalization processes of today seem to create almost insurmountable obstacles. Political science assumes a decreasing role of the state, sociology points to self-regulation in some areas of global communication and exchange. However, little empirical research has been carried out so far in order to put these theoretical assumptions to a rigid test. The contributions to this book aim at filling this gap. Legal as well as self-regulatory mechanisms for coordinating cross-border interactions are studied in the areas of debt collection, international banking, the reinsurance business, international migration, maintenance claims for children and the support given to internationally active business people by chambers of commerce and consular services. The concluding chapters of the book discuss theoretical issues which follow from these rich empirical observations. They point to a new concept of legal certainty emerging from the present globalization processes which is mainly based on professional roles and personal relations rather than norms and regulations. -
