Seminar Sophus Lie is a joint Seminar of a group of German mathematicians interested in the theory of Lie groups and their wider horizon. It was founded around 1989-90 when, during the Volkskammer Government of the German Democratic Republic in 1989, open contacts between mathematicians in East- and Westgermany became a reality for the first time since 1961. Several mathematicians located at the Technische Hochschule Darmstadt, the University of Erlangen, the University of Greifswald, and the University of Leipzig organized informally the Seminar with financial support by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft and met for the first seminar session at the University of Leipzig in January 1991.

For three years, the seminar published proceedings in the format of a journal, called Seminar Sophus Lie, two issues per year. This series was converted into an international journal called Journal of Lie Theory in 1994. This journal is electronically available via its homepage at the European Mathematical Information System.

Journal of Lie Theory is a journal for speedy publication of information in the following areas: Lie algebras, Lie groups, algebraic groups, and related types of topological groups such as locally compact and compact groups. Applications to representation theory, differential geometry, geometric control theory, theoretical physics, quantum groups are considered as well. The principal subject matter areas according to the Mathematics Subject Classification are 14Lxx, 17Bxx, 22Bxx, 22Cxx, 22Dxx, 22Exx, 53Cxx, 81Rxx.

Journal of Lie Theory primarily publishes research articles. Survey articles on a topical area inside the scope of the journal are considered.