The comparative law of climate change : a research agenda

Mehling, Michael (2015) The comparative law of climate change : a research agenda. Review of European, Comparative and International Environmental Law, 24 (3). pp. 341-352. ISSN 2050-0394 (https://doi.org/10.1111/reel.12141)

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Abstract

Climate change defies traditional models of academic enquiry; its scale and complexity strain the explanatory power of established thought, prompting the espousal of new, fluid concepts and calls for greater interdisciplinarity. Law, with its rigid doctrines and insistence on binary categories, appears particularly unsuited as a framework of analysis. However, as this article submits, the legal method offers a unique vessel to infer collective understandings of the climate challenge, helping bridge the divide between fact and norm that characterizes other intellectual paradigms. A shifting focal point from international to domestic climate action suggests the particular utility of comparative law, which can identify policy barriers and drivers, and add a vital dimension to the study of policy design and transfer. Invoking the epistemic value of legal exegesis, this article proposes a research agenda for comparative analysis in a rapidly evolving issue area, which, although not yet a field of law in its own right, offers ample opportunities for study: the law as it relates to climate change.

  • Item type:Article
    ID code:63170
    Dates:
    Date
    Event
    16 November 2015
    Published
    Notes:This is the pre-peer reviewed version of the following article: Mehling, M. (2015). The comparative law of climate change: a research agenda. Review of European, Comparative and International Environmental Law, 24(3), 341-352., which has been published in final form at https://doi.org/DOI: 10.1111/reel.12141. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Self-Archiving
    Subjects:Law > Law of Nations
    Department:Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences (HaSS) > Strathclyde Law School > Law
    Depositing user: Pure Administrator
    Date deposited:05 Feb 2018 11:27
    Last modified:13 Apr 2024 10:20
    URI:https://strathprints.strath.ac.uk/id/eprint/63170
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