Jürgen Basedow (Herausgegeben von) (1949-2023):was Director at the Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law, Hamburg, and Professor of Law at the University of Hamburg; Membre associé de l'Institut de droit international; Titular Member and Secretary General of the International Academy of Comparative Law; member of numerous advisory bodies at the German and EU level, inter alia, Chairman of the German Monopolies Commission; member of the Groupe européen de droit international privé; and member of the Deutscher Rat für Internationales Privatrecht.Toshiyuki Kono (Herausgegeben von) is Professor for International Legal Studies and Private International Law at Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan.

• IntroductionJürgen Basedow: Boosting the Economy. Special Economic Zones or Nationwide DeregulationI. FoundationsRen Yatsunami: Historical Perspective on Special Economic Zones in Japan - Toshiyuki Kono / Kazuaki Kagami: Structure and Functions of Special Economic Zones - Hideaki Shiroyama: Political Dimensions of Science, Technology, and Innovation Policy and the Importance of Local ContextsII. Special Economic Zones and the Legal EnvironmentTom Ginsburg: Special Economic Zones: A Constitutional Political Economy Perspective - Carsten Herresthal: Protection of Freedom of Contract by Private Law after (Local) Deregulation - Wolfgang Wurmnest: Special Economic Zones, Deregulation and Competition LawIII. Areas of Law AffectedČaslav Pejović: Japanese Labor Law: Hurdles on the Road to Abenomics - Shinto Teramoto: How Industrial Policy Affects the Nurturing of Innovation. From the Perspective of Intellectual Property Rights