معرفی
Marcelo da Costa Pinto Neves is a Professor W-3 at the University of Brasilia (UnB) in Brazil, affiliated with the Faculty of Law. He is a leading international scholar in the Sociology of Law with significant contributions to Constitutional Theory and the Theory of Democracy, having received the prestigious Humboldt Research Award in 2019.
His research focuses on fundamental aspects of law and jurisprudence, particularly examining concepts such as world society, democratic theory, transdemocracy, central versus peripheral modernity, and constitutional theory. Professor Neves is renowned for developing the concepts of trans-constitutionalism and peripheral modernity, which have significantly influenced the Sociology of Law and legal regulation theory. His work bridges legal philosophy with sociological perspectives to analyze how legal systems function within complex global societies.
Analysis of his publications reveals a consistent scholarly trajectory examining the philosophical foundations of law and its relationship to democracy. His research explores the tension between justice (Themis) and state power (Leviathan), investigates legal systems through systems theory (autopoiesis to allopoiesis), and develops frameworks for understanding democracy beyond traditional Western models, particularly through his concept of peripheral modernity.
- Humboldt Research Award (2019)
Professor Neves has maintained strong international collaborations since 1996 through the Humboldt Foundation, working with scholars at Goethe University Frankfurt am Main, Bielefeld University, and Free University Berlin. His research has inspired scholars globally in the Sociology of Law and legal regulation theory. His current work continues the comparative sociological study of constitutions on a global level, examining how different legal systems navigate democratic challenges in both central and peripheral contexts of modernity.
His academic approach represents a significant integration of legal theory with sociological analysis, offering frameworks for understanding constitutional development outside traditional Western centers of legal thought. This comparative perspective on constitutionalism across different cultural and political contexts forms a distinctive contribution to contemporary legal scholarship.
