Law
The Hatcher Library law collection is primarily a collection about law and how it relates to society. The Law Library has a more comprehensive collection developed for legal scholars and practitioners
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Foreign Law vs. International Law
Foreign Law refers to the law of another country
- One nation's domestic law is another nation's foreign law. Speaking from the point of view of the United States, the laws of China, France, and Nigeria are all "foreign law."
- Since this guide is for students in the U.S., "foreign law" will be used to refer to the laws of countries and states outside the U.S.
International Law refers to the legal system governing the relationships between countries and other participants in international relations, including international organizations and individuals. Also known as "the law of nations."
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Treaties, international agreements, and intergovernmental organizations like the United Nations, are all examples of public international law.
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Involves laws outside the creation of a single jurisdiction.
From the University of Michigan Law Library's Foreign, Comparative, and International Law: Definitions
Introduction to Researching Foreign Law
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GlobaLex: Introduction to Researching Foreign LawThis guide describes basic strategies for finding the laws of countries other than the U.S, primarily in English. The emphasis is on codes and laws rather than cases. The guide will also help you find secondary materials that describe other countries' laws. It includes links to websites and to other guides.
Finding Sources of Foreign Law
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Foreign Law GuideAn online database continuing the reference work created by Reynolds and Flores this database provides information on sources of foreign law, including complete bibliographic citations to legislation, the existence of English translations and selected references to secondary sources. Approximately 190 jurisdictions are systemically covered.
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GlobaLex Foreign Law ResearchFreely available online resources for researching a country's law
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WorldLII: CountriesLinks to freely available websites with legal information for many of the countries of the world
Foreign Law Documents
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LLMC DigitalDigitized collection of the Law Library Microfiche Consortium. Jurisdictions include: Canada, China, Cyprus, Egypt, Ghana, Iraq, Israel, Jamaica, Jordan, Malaysia, Malta, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, France, India, Oman, and the U.K. Access limited to authorized U-M users (through validated sign-on).
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Nations of the WorldLinks to foreign law documents from the Law Library of Congress.
Constitutions of the World
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World Constitutions Illustrated (HeinOnline)Contains the current constitution of every country in the world (193 countries) in its original language. For countries where multiple original-language versions exist, each language is provided. At least one English translation will also be provided.
Last Updated: Oct 9, 2025 11:51 AM
Subjects: Government, Politics & Law, Social Sciences
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