The Stories We Tell Ourselves – About Nordic Law in Specific

Abstract

Legal families, legal cultures, legal traditions and other similar macro-concepts are stories about law forged and used by comparatists. These stories do not only describe the reality but also effect on our understanding of that reality. In this paper the Nordic law is discussed specifically. The point is not to tell what Nordic law is or what it is not truly about. Instead, the Nordic law serves as an example of typical macro-construct of modern comparative law. According to the author legal families, such as Nordic law, ought to be regarded as discourses which do not only describe the reality but also construct our mental pictures of reality and, thus, take part in constructing that reality.

Keywords: Nordic law, legal families, comparative law