Law without a State

MOBILE and the Research Group for Advanced Legal Methods invites to a seminar with Associate Professor Jesper Petersen (University of Copenhagen).

Drawing on the doctoral thesis The Islamic Juridical Vacuum: An Ethnographic Study of How Parallel Legal Institutions Emerged in Denmark, this paper examines how parallel legal practices emerge outside the Danish rule of law. It argues that such practices arise in a juridical vacuum in which state law is formally present yet does not address the concrete legal challenges faced by a segment of Muslim citizens. Within this vacuum, Islamic divorce councils have emerged in Denmark over the past decade. These councils issue religious divorces that are decisive for individuals’ religious-legal status. In some social contexts, this parallel legal order functions as the primary legal reference point, while Danish civil law is regarded as secondary, insufficient, or irrelevant. This dynamic poses particular challenges for Muslim women, who may remain religiously married after a civil divorce until a decision is issued by a parallel legal authority. Through a series of case studies, the paper analyses legislative attempts to regulate these practices through criminal law. It demonstrates that such interventions have had limited effect, largely because lawmakers misrecognize the nature, function, and internal logic of the parallel legal practices they seek to govern.

Please notify morten.broberg@jur.ku.dk of both your attendance and language preference no later than one week before the seminar. The seminar will be held in Danish unless other language preferences are specified. Registration is non-binding and attendance is welcome for non-registered guests.