This volume provides an overview of the state of internationalisation of legal education (IOLE)
in many civil law and common law countries. It provides a picture of the status of the debate
about the shape and degree of internationalisation in the curriculum in the different countries
and the debates surrounding the adoption of a more international approach to legal education in
the contemporary world. It is a compilation of the National Reports submitted for the August
2014 Congress of the IACL held at Vienna and contains an introductory general report. Together
the reports examine such questions as: Why is the topic of internationalization of legal
education on the agenda now? Why is it a relevant subject for examination today? Does the topic
generate the same level of interest everywhere in the world? Is enthusiasm for IOLE mainly
driven by the academic sector by government by multinational corporations? Is the interest
closely linked with the globalization of the practice of law? Or is globalisation of law itself
something of a myth or a reality reserved for only a very small percentage of practising
lawyers around the world? The general and national reports make clear that there is indeed
widespread interest in IOLE and numerous disparate initiatives around the world. Nonetheless
some National Reporters state that the topic is simply not on the agenda at all. All in all
the volume shows that the approaches to internationalisation are many and varied but every
jurisdiction recognises the importance of introducing aspiring lawyers to a more integrated
global environment.
