Abstract:The most important contribution to comparative law in Montesquieu's Esprit des Lois was the development of a quasi-sociological approach. He focused on extralegal factors to account for differences between legal orders. For contemporary readers, the most surprising among these factors is the climate. In reality, such a climate theory originated in antiquity and can be traced into the 19 th century, to some extent beyond. The article traces the history of this idea until our time and discusses both why it was a… Show more
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