Yearbook 2008

The traditional breadwinner model family has changed. European countries currently exhibit different gender role models coupled with a wide range of gender arrangements; especially in case of asymmetrical task allocation these gender arrangements result in different opportunities for women to achieve independent income security in the context of family law and social law. more

The German Federal Ministry of Justice commissioned the Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law to analyze mediation rules and empirical data from nineteen countries in Europe and around the world. The recently published results may foster discussion on the implementation of the European Directive on Mediation. The comparative view on other legal systems reveals successful models of regulation and offers a better understanding of their effects. more

Under the auspices of Rüdiger Wolfrum, Director of the Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law, an initiative was launched in 2004 to compile the Max Planck Encyclopedia of Public International Law (MPEPIL). This work represents a new edition of the Encyclopedia of Public International Law that was published between 1991 and 2001 under Rudolf Bernhardt. more

The division of taxing powers between the German federal government and the German states has been a controversial issue since the establishment of the federal republic in 1949. A research project at the Max-Planck-Institute for Intellectual Property, Competition, and Tax Law scrutinizes whether the German tax system violates the perpetuity clause of the federal constitution. Moreover, the project discusses the federal structure of the U.S. and Canadian tax systems in order to identify options for a reallocation of taxing powers in Germany. more

Most standards of international protection of intellectual property derive from a growing number of free trade agreements. They often promote increasing levels of protection in developing countries, without taking into account the public or private interests they affect. A new generation of European free trade agreements however claims sustainable development as one of its primary goals. Do these agreements offer new approaches for reconciling private rights with conflicting private and public interests? Do they serve as an example for a reform of the multilateral intellectual property regime? more

The economic analysis of the intellectual property law system constitutes an extensive refinement of the research methodology relating to intellectual property rights. The International Max Planck Research School for Competition and Innovation (IMPRS-CI) combines these two most relevant research strands to a new area of research: the economic and legal analysis of intellectual property rights enforcement. more

Ethical objections to modern biotechnology, especially those pertaining to human life, currently generate vivacious public discussions, which naturally flow into Patent Law due to the application of patents to biotechnology. Subsequently, the European Parliament generated a list of examples of the public order exclusion from patentability in the Biopatent Directive. However, these examples were unclear, resulting in not only an unfortunate profusion of different national solutions, but also leading to a constitutional issue by removing decision-making power from the democratic processes. more

The scientific interest of the junior research group Age and Law at the Max Planck Institute for European Legal History is directed towards the legal history of age specific norms and statutory age limits that have structured the life course since the 19th century. Research topics include, amongst others, legislation concerning compulsory schooling or child labour in Prussia, criminal or welfare law addressing the young in early 20th century Europe, as well as retirement regulations or home care for the elderly in the late 20th century. more