Comparative Law has a rich tradition. Indeed, the comparative approach was used in Plato’s The Republic and Aristotle’s classic work Politics. In Politics, Aristotle reviewed over 150 constitutions of Greek and other city-states to identify (what he believed to be) the best form of government. The comparative approach can also be found in such classic works as Thomas Hobbes’ Leviathan, John Locke’s Two Treatises of Government, and Alexis de Tocqueville’s Democracy in America. There has been scholarship on the influence that the Iroquois played on the specific individuals now called the “"Founding Fathers”" and the similarities shared with the structure of the Iroquois Confederation, probably completed by 1525, by the U.S. Constitution.

We trace humankind’s attempt to weaves together a “"mosaic of history”".

The field of Comparative Law is quite diverse. It includes the study of macro-level systems such as international law, the law of the North American Free Trade Agreement and other bilateral and regional trade agreements around the globe (numbering more than 300) as well as European law. It also includes the study of micro-level systems such as common law and civil law approaches, Islamic law, and indigenous legal systems. Despite this diversity,

the goal of Comparative Law remains constant - to provide a basis fcritical comparisons between legal systems. Comparative Law is unique among law school courses because it is a method of study rather than a body of rules. Fthis reason, it has been described as an intellectual activity with law as its object and comparison as its process. Its underlying methodology involves the use of comparative analysis - that is, how to look at diverse norms, rules, and institutions from a comparative perspective. Because it provides a point of comparison, the study of comparative law is useful to students, practitioners, legislators, and judges. This course has several goals. It seeks to teach students about the comparative method. It then seeks to introduce students to a number of different legal systems. Through this course, students will gain a greater awareness of the diversity of law and legal institutions. They will

also gain a better understanding of our national law