Decoding the Code
starting September 2026
Project objective
The aim of the project is to provide a historical-comparative analysis of the Austrian Civil Code (ABGB) by illuminating the historical roots of the individual provisions as well as their later transformations from a comparative perspective in the form of a compact commentary and by making the original sources accessible at a low threshold through an online platform. At the same time, individual aspects are deepened in conferences and through qualification theses written in the course of the project.
Head of Research
Lisa Isola
Head of Research
University of Vienna,
Institute for Roman Law and Ancient Legal History
Lisa Isola - Profile
National cooperation partners
Gregor Albers
Johannes Kepler University Linz
Institute for the Roman Foundations and Comparative History of European Private Laws
Gregor Albers - Profile
Nikolaus Benke
University of Vienna
Institute for Roman Law and Ancient Legal History
Nikolaus Benke - Profile
Peter Bydlinski
WU (Vienna University of Economics and Business)
Institute for Civil Law and Civil Procedure Law
Peter Bydlinski - Profile
Gregor Christandl
Karl Franzens University Graz
Institute for Civil Law, Foreign and Private International Law
Gregor Christandl - Profile
Walter Doralt
Karl Franzens University Graz
Institute for Civil Law, Foreign and Private International Law
Walter Doralt - Profile
Johannes W. Flume
Paris Lodron University Salzburg
Department of Private Law
Johannes W. Flume - Profile
Florian Heindler
Sigmund Freund Private University Vienna
Associate Professor of Civil Law, Private International Law and Comparative Law
Florian Heindler - Profile
Lukas Klever
Johannes Kepler University Linz
Institute for Civil Law
Lukas Klever - Profile
Georg E. Kodek
WU (Vienna University of Economics and Business)
Institute for Civil and Civil Procedure Law
Georg E. Kodek - Profile
Franz-Stefan Meissel
University of Vienna,
Institute for Roman Law and Ancient Legal History
Franz-Stefan Meissel - Profile
Martin Pennitz
Leopold Franzens University Innsbruck
Institute for Roman Law and Legal History
Martin Pennitz - Profile
Kamila Staudigl-Ciechowicz
University of Vienna
Institute of Legal History
Kamila Staudigl-Ciechowicz - Profile
Christiane Wendehorst
University of Vienna
Institute for Civil Law and Institute for Innovation and Digitalisation in Law
Christiane Wendehorst - Profile
International cooperation partners
Aleksander Grebieniow
Uniwersytet Warszawski
Faculty of Law
Institute of Legal History, Chair of European Legal Tradition
Aleksander Grebieniow - Profile
Javier Rodríguez Diez
Pontifica Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago
Departamento de Derecho Privado
Javier Rodríguez Diez - Profile
Reinhard Zimmermann
Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law, Hamburg
Reinhard Zimmermann - Profile