Wolfgang Friedmann

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Wolfgang Gaston Friedmann (born January 25, 1907 in Berlin ; † September 20, 1972 in New York ) was a German-American lawyer and professor of international law at Columbia University who made a name for himself in the field of international business law . The Wolfgang Friedmann Memorial Award , which is presented by Columbia University for outstanding achievements in the field of international law, is named after him.

Life

Wolfgang Friedmann was born in Berlin in 1907. He grew up in Germany and completed his law degree at the University of Berlin in 1930 . He then practiced initially as a lawyer and from 1933 as a judge at a labor court . After he was released after the Nazis came to power , he emigrated to London in 1934 and took British citizenship. Two years later, he obtained a Master of Laws (LL.M.) degree from the University of London and a doctorate in 1947 . He specialized in international law and has worked as a lecturer at the University of London and as a professor at the University of Melbourne and the University of Toronto . From 1955 until his death he was Professor of International Law and Director of International Legal Research at Columbia University in New York (USA). In 1961 he was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences .

Wolfgang Friedmann was killed by three teenagers in an armed robbery on the street in 1972 , an event which, due to its circumstances, attracted a great deal of public attention in New York. The New York Times commented on the death of Friedmann, to whom several passers-by did not help and who consequently bled to death in the immediate vicinity of Columbia University's Morningside Heights campus, in an editorial with the words “The jungle could not be more unfeeling towards its creatures “(Even the jungle couldn't be more numb to its creatures). Just two weeks before his death, one of his students, the Israeli weightlifter David Mark Berger, was killed in the hostage-taking of Munich during the 1972 Summer Olympics .

Wolfgang Friedmann was married from 1937 and has three sons.

Act

Wolfgang Friedmann's research activities focused in particular on international commercial law as well as economic problems in developing countries and the effects of development aid . Other areas in which he distinguished himself were legal sociology and comparative law . He saw the law above all as a means to improve the condition of mankind, to eliminate the inadequacies of human society and to achieve a universal order of peace and prosperity.

Commemoration

The Law Faculty of Columbia University has presented the Wolfgang Friedmann Memorial Award for outstanding achievements in the field of international law since 1975 in memory of Wolfgang Friedmann . Previous winners include former US Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor (2007), former Swedish Foreign Secretary and Director of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Hans Blix (2002), former US Secretary of State James Baker (1996) and the former UN Secretary General Boutros Boutros-Ghali (1995).

Works (selection)

  • Legal Theory. Stevens & Sons, London 1953
  • The Changing Structure of International Law. Columbia University Press, New York 1964
  • Joint International Business Ventures in Developing Countries: Case Studies and Analyzes of Recent Trends. Columbia University Press, New York 1971

literature

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Friedmann, Wolfgang
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Friedmann, Wolfgang Gaston (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German-American lawyer in the field of international business law
DATE OF BIRTH January 25, 1907
PLACE OF BIRTH Berlin
DATE OF DEATH 20th September 1972
Place of death New York City