This “Special Research Issue” of the Journal of Law and Society (formerly the British Journal of Law and Society), “Law’s Reality: Case Studies in Empirical Research on Law,” edited by Martin Partington, provides 12 articles in which

. . . experienced researchers tell us how they went about their research, the principal challenges they faced, and how they endeavoured to overcome them, offer a practical introduction to work that is important, challenging, and enlightening.  They can also be used as case studies by those who are developing workshops or other forms of training in empirical research in law.

. . .

Much discussion about empirical research on law focuses on the United Kingdom.  In this collection a number of papers have an international dimension: Perry-Kessaris on the relationship between foreign investment decisions and local legal systems; Outhwaite and her colleagues on the effectiveness of international frameworks for dealing with biosecurity risks; and Vogel’s study of United States plea-bargaining.