Making the Case for Case Studies in Empirical Legal Research

This is a contribution to the scholarly discussion concerning the limited use of the case study qualitative method in support of legal research. It demonstrates the use of the case study qualitative method in the context of an empirical legal research project, which examines stakeholder participation in the governance of social enterprises. Initially, a scholarly discussion concerning the content of interdisciplinarity and the foundations of empirical legal research sets the scene. The theoretical discussion reflects on the continuing discourse relating to the perceived advantages and limitations of the case study method in qualitative research. The article proceeds by illustrating the most important issues of validity and rigour in relation to the use of the case study method in qualitative research. The discussion extends to a thorough explanation of the techniques applied by the author in order to mitigate the perceived limitations and advance the perceived opportunities of the case study qualitative method.