2000

CK -- Law and Administration

Based on the Bibliographisches Handbuch der Rechts- und Verwaltungswissenschaften (see RREA 5:205), the first continuation, citing 39 titles, included not only bibliographies but other types of reference books as well. This second continuation is even more inclusive, and has 109 titles, with brief annotations. It cites publications from all regions of the world and all legal systems, as well as electronic and Internet publications. This is an indispensable resource for all experts in the subject. [sh/mrh]
 
 

The first two volumes of this new subseries of supplements to the journal Ius commune make a somewhat disjointed impression, as the title implies a bibliographic function that just isn't there. They are actually catalogs, and the announced--but not yet published--third volume will apparently be a union catalog of several libraries (including the National Library of Naples). The present volumes document the extensive print holdings of Frankfurt's Max Planck Institute for the History of European Law for the periods indicated, each volume containing somewhat over 2,000 titles. (Reproductions are excluded, as are most dissertations, which are being covered in another project.) The titles are accorded detailed descriptions of the sort useful to book collectors.

Each volume contains a long introduction devoted in large part to an attempt to refute the compiler's opponents in the areas of both method and theory. In any case, Osler's alternative view of European legal history (that of the independent development of national legal systems from the 16th century onward) demands the kind of knowledge of older sources which these volumes offer for the first time. [sh/gw]
 
 

Among the many legal dictionaries available, the work known familiarly as Creifelds stands out as an essential source. First published in 1968, and now in its 15th edition, it serves as a standard reference tool for lawyers, and offers those outside the profession a quick and dependable overview of all legal topics. It also provides explications of Latin phrases used in the law, and of the legal aspects of general terms such as "theater" or "mosque," as well as information about government institutions and famous jurists. In the current edition, the presence of such terms as Cybergeld (cyber money) shows a welcome commitment to being up-to-date. Its more than 10,000 entries balance very successfully the needs of succinctness and fullness of explanation, with most terms receiving a sentence or two, but major topics such as "divorce" and "rent" covering several columns. Other features include: numerous cross-references; introductions to the development of the German legal, legislative, and judicial systems; and references to important laws. [krb/gw]
 
 

The complete text of Creifelds is also available on CD-ROM, with access through either a table of contents (a list of the entries in the sequence in which they appear in the book) or an index mode with two options: an overview of keywords and a list of internal references (from one article to another). Use of the latter is hampered by sorting that places terms beginning with brackets or quotation marks at the head of the list. Moreover, switching back and forth between the two index modes is unnecessarily complicated, and the computing power necessary to support it may not be available on many machines. The "reference" index does provide access to citations of laws, and direct links to these laws in other Beck CD-ROM products are supported, assuming they are mounted on the same machine. Full-text searching is available, but is somewhat complicated within a single article. The table of contents works well, although its advantage over using the print product is unclear. The price differential vis-à-vis the book is refreshingly small, but a high networking surcharge (up to 100 percent) negates this inducement for libraries. [krb/gw]
 
 

Köbler's dictionary, aimed at students, is in its way as much a standard work as Creifelds. Its roughly 5,000 entries (including relevant terms that are not legal or judicial in the strict sense) are written concisely and at an introductory level. Entries for the more important concepts also offer numerous citations to further reading (in contrast to Creifelds), more than making up for the relative lack of detail in definition. [krb/gw]
 
 

This newly minted reference work emphasizes political theory and institutions, as well as constitutional law. Topics in civil law are not included. Government agencies are covered, although here the selection is (perhaps unavoidably) somewhat random. Even with a professionally diverse group of 157 coauthors, the editors have maintained a remarkable unity of scope. Articles are concise and emphasize basic information; most also provide plentiful citations to the literature. The citations, along with a key to journal abbreviations, enable the user to find helpful further reading and largely make up for the lack of a bibliography. All in all it should prove a useful tool for political scientists and others interested in political institutions or current affairs. [krb/gw]
 
 

Following a volume on Austria, Grundliteratur zum österreichischen Recht (1988), this is another bibliography on the legal literature of a neighboring country. The compilers, who work in Milan, have brought together 800 titles without annotations, organized by areas of law and then by types of literature: legislation, general works, commentaries, bibliographies, systematic presentations, textbooks, journals, decisions. The entries are brief but adequate, and always include the price, so one can assume that the volumes were in print in 1996, when the list was compiled. No reason is given for the three-year delay in publication. This and the lack of annotations limit the usefulness of the volume. (To update its information, a more recent work is available: Italian Law Publications: A Selection 1997-1998, published under the auspices of the International Association of Law Libraries.) An asterisk by an entry number indicates a recommended title. The introduction (it is much too short and contains linguistic and orthographic errors) mentions at the end two introductory works in German which should be kept at hand: Peter Kindler's Einführung in das italienische Recht: Verfassungsrecht, Privatrecht und internationales Privatrecht (München, 1993) and Gerhard Luther's Einführung in das italienische Recht (Darmstadt, 1968). [sh/gh]
 
 

As a supplement to its two collections of documents, Die große Politik der europäischen Kabinette 1871-1914: Sammlung der diplomatischen Akten des Auswärtigen Amtes (Berlin, 1922-1927) and Akten zur deutschen auswärtigen Politik 1918-1945: aus dem Archiv des Auswärtigen Amtes (Göttingen, 1950-1995), the Historical Service of the Foreign Office published the first of five volumes of this collective biography of career diplomats in August, 2000. The other volumes are scheduled to appear at two-year intervals. The selection criteria, sources, and structure are clearly and conclusively laid out: (1) in addition to the foreign ministers, all officials of the higher diplomatic service and comparable employees are included; (2) primary sources are the personnel files of the Foreign Office; (3) the structure of the biographies is limited to factual data and is standardized (name, dates, citizenship, religion, family, education and activities before entry into the Foreign Service, party membership, political offices, career in the Foreign Service, activities after leaving the Foreign Service, bibliography and papers, and photo if available). Indispensable for the understanding of careers are the section on the organization and personnel structure of the Foreign Service and the list of abbreviations.

A comparison of the article on Otto Abetz (the ambassador in Paris during the German occupation) in this book with the one in Dictionnaire historique de la France sous l'occupation (see RREA 6:306 below) shows the advantages of a biography drawn from the archives (it allows some corrections to the French article), but also leads to a certain frustration at reading a life reduced to factual data. However, it is an adequate approach for most of the persons listed here. [sh/gh]

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