Under the headings of “Rechtssoziologie” in Germany and “socio-legal studies” in the UK, scholarly traditions have developed that relate law to its social environment. The paper identifies key stages in the development the subject took in both countries and the directions of travel. The author takes his description of the German Rechtssoziologie (Machura 2012) as a starting point to find comparative milestones and directions in the UK. This includes the institutionalization of the subject along the lines of programmatic texts, inclusion into university education, establishment of research institutes, academic associations and specialised journals. Does the development tell something beyond sociology of law/socio-legal studies, namely about the relation of law and sociology, the parent subjects themselves, as well as about academic studies and professional/institutional practice?
Machura, Stefan (2012). The German Sociology of Law: A Case of Path Dependency. International Journal of Law in Context, 8, 506-523.