Comparative Law: An Introduction explores the position and nature of comparative law in a world in which contacts among different countries and cultures are increasing at an ever more rapid pace. Curran discusses the various goals of comparative legal analysis, including the problems of language and translation — problems that operate on a multitude of levels, endangering, limiting, and defining mutual understanding.

The book explores the meaning of comparing; comparison’s fundamental role in cognition; and its potentials for use in legal analysis beyond the field of comparative law. It spans topics such as comparative law’s ability to challenge and debunk entrenched assumptions; the role of history and culture in forming the legal establishment’s optic; and issues of validity and verifiability concerning the findings of comparative legal analysis.

Comparative Law: An Introduction is designed to open the reader’s mind to the complexities of comparative law, to present helpful ideas for engaging in comparative legal analysis, and to suggest the great adventures of the mind that await and reward comparatists.

"Teachers of comparative law should take a look at this book."
—Bimonthly Review of Law Books Sept/Oct 2002