Folk Law, a comprehensive two-volme collection of essays, examines the meeting place of folklore - the unwritten law of obligations and prohibitions that are understood and passed on - and jurisprudence. The contributors explore the historical significance and implications of folk law, its continuing influence around the globe, and the conflicts that arise when folk law diverges from official law. -- Taken from publisher's site

Wael Hallaq's magisterial overview of Shari'a examines the doctrines and practices of Islamic law from the seventh century to the present. In a compelling narrative, the author unravels the complexities of his subject to reveal a deep knowledge of the law which will engage and challenge both student and scholar.

Compilation Series: A Brief History of Malaysia: Texts and Materials is a solid, application-oriented text for students taking law subjects. Many new features make this edition a richer and stronger learning resource for students. Several factors motivated the authors to write this book. After having the experience in legal field and teaching for more than 17 years, it became clear that there was a definite need for more detail materials in this area. In addition, there was need for a book which would give full recognition to an easier method and the authors felt it was time for a text which would develop the ideas and methods with this in mind. This book covers a thorough discussion of the development of law in Malaysia; beginning from the establishment of the Melaka Empire until the recent issues. A major audience for the book will be students studying the law subjects. The order of topics, however, provides a degree of flexibility, so that the book can be of interest to different readers through basic concepts until the advanced concepts (i.e. the discussion of the cases). The purpose of this book is to take the readers on an introduction to Malaysian legal history journey, by which, the meaning of such subject at basic level is better understood. Hopefully, this book can be benefited by the readers in their journey to success.

This book offers a comparative analysis of traditional Asian legal systems. It combines methods from legal history, legal anthropology, legal philosophy, and substantive law, pursuing a comprehensive approach that offers readers a broad perspective on the topic. The geographic regions covered include the Near East, Middle East, Central Asia, India, China, Japan, and Southeast Asia. For each region, the book first provides historical and political context. Next, it discusses major milestones in the region’s legal history and political institutions, as well as its forms of government. Readers are then presented with fundamental principles and terms needed to understand the legal arguments discussed. The book begins with the Ancient Near East and important topics such as Jewish law. The next part considers Islamic law, while also exploring modern issues. The third part focuses on Hindu and Buddhist law, while the fourth part covers China and Japan. The book’s closing section examines tribal societies, e.g. Mongols, Pashtuns and Malays. Topics covered include the interaction of legal systems within a legal circle, inter-systemic interactions, reasons for the failure and success of legal modernization, legal pluralism, and its effects on Asian societies. Family law, law of obligation, criminal law, and procedural law are also explored.

This book surveys the growth and development of Islam in Malaysia from the eleventh to the twenty-first century, investigating how Islam has shaped the social lives, languages, cultures and politics of both Muslims and non-Muslims in one of the most populous Muslim regions in the world. Khairudin Aljunied shows how Muslims in Malaysia built upon the legacy of their pre-Islamic past while benefiting from Islamic ideas, values, and networks to found flourishing states and societies that have played an influential role in a globalizing world. He examines the movement of ideas, peoples, goods, technologies, arts, and cultures across into and out of Malaysia over the centuries. Interactions between Muslims and the local Malay population began as early as the eighth century, sustained by trade and the agency of Sufi as well as Arab, Indian, Persian, and Chinese scholars and missionaries. Aljunied looks at how Malay states and societies survived under colonial regimes that heightened racial and religious divisions, and how Muslims responded through violence as well as reformist movements. Although there have been tensions and skirmishes between Muslims and non-Muslims in Malaysia, they have learned in the main to co-exist harmoniously, creating a society comprising of a variety of distinct populations. This is the first book to provide a seamless account of the millennium-old venture of Islam in Malaysia.

First Published in 2004. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

Michael Likosky examines the continuities and discontinuities between colonial and present-day high tech transnational legal orders. His concern is specifically with the colonial characteristics of the legal order which underpins the global high tech economy. He distinguishes the democratic and human rights rhetoric of this economy from a reality wherein the legal order is often used to reproduce colonial-type relationships. Just as in the colonial period, the expansion of trans-border commerce overlaps with democratic demands and human rights in complex, multifaceted and paradoxical ways. Through a case study looking at Malaysia's Multimedia Super Corridor, a high tech national development plan and foreign direct investment scheme, he examines how the transnational leaders of the high tech economy along with the Malaysian political elite react when human rights problems threaten to derail commercial plans.