Law and Method

This book gives an overview of the most relevant disciplines for interdisciplinary research on law. What are the characteristics of these disciplines one really needs to understand in order to do research that combines law with them? The book consists of three parts. The first part addresses general questions about legal scholarship and interdisciplinary research. These are questions of the aims and character of academic research and what it means to regard issues from different disciplinary perspectives. Furthermore, the particular character of the discipline of law and its methods are discussed. The second part consists of chapters exploring the relationship between law and other disciplines. Each chapter addresses questions of the characteristic methods of that discipline, its relevance to law and the problems to be tackled. The disciplines are classified in broadly three categories: empirical social science (sociology, economics, psychology), humanities (history, political theory, ethics, philosophy), and language-oriented disciplines (rhetoric, law and literature, argumentation theory). The third part contains examples of interdisciplinary research in practice: How is it done, what kinds of problems arise when doing such research, and what insights into law does it provide?
The intended audience consists of law students who participate in research master programs or PhD students who are confronted with methodological questions about law in relation to other disciplines. The book will also be of interest to other legal researchers who are looking for an accessible introduction to the main fields of interdisciplinary research.
Part I: General IssuesSanne Taekema and Bart van Klink: On the Border. Limits and Possibilities of Interdisciplinary Research - Sanne Taekema: Relative Autonomy: A Characterisation of the Discipline of Law

Part II: Interdisciplinary Research in Theory
Koen Van Aeken: Law, Sociology and Anthropology: A Liaison Beginning Endlessly - Alessio Pacces and Louis Visscher: Law and Economics: Methodology - Barbara Spellman: Law and Psychology: Problems and Promise - Randall Lesaffer: Law and History: Law between Past and Present - Oliver W. Lembcke: Law and Political Theory: The Other Side of the Story - Wibren van der Burg: Law and Ethics: The Twin Disciplines - David Janssens: Law and Philosophy: The Drama of Question and Answer - Jeanne Gaakeer: Law, Language and Literature: Their Interrelations in Law and Literature - Willem Witteveen: Law and Rhetoric: A Misunderstood Relation - Harm Kloosterhuis and Eveline Feteris: Law and Argumentation Theory: Theoretical Approaches to Legal Justification

Part III: Interdisciplinary Research in Practice
Nienke Doornbos: Dilemmas and Strategies in Research on Migrants: A Case Study in Law and Sociology - Michiel Köhne: Indigenous Land Governance in Bolivia: A Case Study in Law and Anthropology - Hila Nevo: Interdisciplinary Research in the Field of Competition Law: A Case Study in Law and Economics - Nicolle Zeegers: The Mobilizing Force of Legal Rules: A Case Study in Law and Political Science - Eric Tjong Tjin Tai: Duties of Care and Ethics of Care: A Case Study in Law and Ethics - Julen Etxabe: What do the Poets Know about Democracy? A Case Study in Law and Literature - Francesca Dominello: Framing Law at a Different Angle: A Case Study in Law and Film - Henrike Jansen: Analyzing Arguments in Legal Discourse: A Case Study in Argumentation Theory