Earlier this year the Federal Ministry of Justice released the second edition of the brochure, Law - Made in Germany. For those readers who do not know the brochure, it is the product of an umbrella group of German professional organizations known as the Bündnis für das deutsche Recht. A purpose of the Bündnis, as stated at its founding in 2008, and of the brochure, is to improve the position of German law in the ― "international competition of legal systems" (internationalen Wettbewerb der Rechtsordnungen). Catalyst for founding of the Bündnis and for publication of Law - Made in Germany was the 2007 publication by The Law Society of England and Wales of the brochure England and Wales: The jurisdiction of choice — dispute resolution.

The issue of the second edition of Law - Made in Germany is an appropriate moment to consider what improving the position of German law in international competition means. I see at least two different, but not mutually exclusive, goals. The one stems from the brochure’s origin as counterpoint to the English brochure: to encourage non-Germans to bring their commercial disputes to Germany to be decided (forum shopping) and, related to that goal, to locate their businesses in Germany (location decision). The other goal is to raise appreciation of German law abroad and thereby, perhaps, to encourage voluntary adoption, adaptation or approximation abroad of some of its elements (reception of law).