“Law as a Science”
Rhenish Graduate School
Rhenish-Westphalian Graduate School
Graduate Training in Legal History in Bonn, Cologne, and Münster
Signs are multiplying everywhere that the scientific nature of law is in danger: The long-standing erosion of foundational disciplines, coupled with the new legal education system, is leading to a reinterpretation of the field as a form of legal studies whose new foundational disciplines are internet research and teamwork. With the threat of BA/MA programs also taking hold in jurisprudence, there is a risk that the “unified jurist” as an educational goal—and thus the foundation of the German legal order—will be abandoned.
To assess the extent of this threat, legal historians from universities in the Rhineland have joined forces. As part of graduate training in legal history, the aim is to explore the significance of the scientific nature of law in its historically diverse forms.
The following colleagues, with their respective areas of specialization, are participating:
Prof. Dr. iur. Martin Avenarius, Cologne
Antiquity – History of Private Law
Prof. Dr. iur. Hans-Peter Haferkamp, Cologne
Modern Era – History of Private Law
Prof. Dr. phil. Eberhard Isenmann, Cologne
Middle Ages – History of Municipal Law
Prof. Dr. iur. Nils Jansen, Münster/Westphalia
Modern Era – Legal Theory
Prof. Dr. iur. Peter Oestmann, Münster/Westphalia
Modern Era – History of Private Law
Prof. Dr. Sebastian Lohsse, Münster/Westphalia
Roman Law
Prof. Dr. iur. Martin Schermaier, Bonn
Antiquity – History of Private Law
Prof. Dr. iur. Mathias Schmoeckel, Bonn
Medieval Period – History of Procedural Law
Since the 2004/05 winter semester, a joint doctoral seminar has been held three times a year as a first step.
In general, all doctoral students of professors participating in the Rheinisch-Westfälische Graduate School may give a presentation twice during the course of their dissertation project: once at the beginning and again at the end of the research period. In the first instance, the focus is more on defining the research question—specifically, its precise scope—and establishing the methodological premises; in the second instance, the focus is more on presenting the findings.
In all cases, the doctoral students are generally at the beginning of their careers. They can therefore more easily afford to ask more questions rather than having to provide ready answers. They should pay attention to three elements:
1. Clearly define your research question so that, by the end, the results clearly relate to the initial question and it is evident from the content that the presentation has reached its conclusion.
2. Explain the contextual, theoretical, or historical connections! You are explaining everything, especially to your fellow students, who cannot possibly know everything about how things work in your specialized field.
3. With all your own questions, try to convey new insights to the audience: an author or a text the listeners were not previously familiar with, or a new insight, and so on.
Then everyone can leave the presentation enriched and enjoy the feeling of having taken something home with them. It is very helpful to support the presentation with a PowerPoint presentation and a handout. Neither should be overloaded! Less is more here! - The handout should not exceed one page and should contain a brief outline and a few important, short texts or sources. - The slides in the handout must be formatted in a sufficiently large font and should therefore contain only a small amount of text. A closing slide thanking the audience for their attention is a sure sign of a poor-quality presentation. It is perfectly sufficient to express this gratitude verbally!