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Full-Text Articles in Law
China Must Not "Wait Until The Evening": Resisting Mass Motorization's Assault On Bicycles And Mass Transit, Adam Karp
Washington International Law Journal
China, and other developing nations, stand at a transportation planning crossroads—whether to follow the American highway/privatized motorization model or to optimize their existing mass transit/nonmotorized transportation model. This Comment charts the history of transportation development in China and indicates its destination in light of China's recent embrace of the car industry as a "pillar" of the nation's economy. It then considers motor vehicles' adverse effects, and assesses the value of mass and nonmotorized transportation as viable alternatives. In order to stall or reverse a process not supported wholeheartedly by the Chinese citizenry, this Comment determines whether China's internal city planning …
Why Taiwan Is Not Hong Kong: A Review Of The Prc's "One Country Two Systems" Model For Reunification With Taiwan, Sean Cooney
Why Taiwan Is Not Hong Kong: A Review Of The Prc's "One Country Two Systems" Model For Reunification With Taiwan, Sean Cooney
Washington International Law Journal
This article critically examines the "One Country Two Systems" model (OCTS) developed by the People's Republic of China (PRC) for achieving the reunification of Taiwan. The model is in many respects the same as that already applied in Hong Kong. The PRC promises that under OCTS, the Taiwanese will enjoy a "high degree of autonomy", be "masters in their own house" and maintain their way of life. However, in contrast to the people of Hong Kong, who have never enjoyed full democracy, the Taiwanese have achieved a much greater degree of autonomy and accountability than is possible under OCTS. The …
Cultural Differences In The Crusade Against International Bribery: Rice-Cake Expenses In Korea And The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, Joongi Kim, Jong Bum Kim
Cultural Differences In The Crusade Against International Bribery: Rice-Cake Expenses In Korea And The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, Joongi Kim, Jong Bum Kim
Washington International Law Journal
The expanding global movement against overseas bribery has emerged as one of the foremost issues in international trade. This paper explores the complex issues surrounding this multilateral anti-bribery movement, particularly focusing on one of the central concerns at the heart of this debate: what type of different cultural perspectives and legal traditions exists regarding questionable payments and whether they need to be respected. This study approaches this subject by discussing how the Korean legal system distinguishes between permissible gifts such as "rice-cake expenses" and illicit payments. In the process, the new legal interpretations that were developed by the Korean judiciary …
The Hiv Litigation And Its Settlement [In Japan], Awaji Takehisa, Keisuke Mark Abe
The Hiv Litigation And Its Settlement [In Japan], Awaji Takehisa, Keisuke Mark Abe
Washington International Law Journal
As early as 1983, Japan's Health and Welfare Ministry had reason to know that the use of unheated blood products by hemophiliacs was infecting them with HIV, the AIDS virus. Although heated-and safe-blood products were already available from the United States, government approval in Japan was deliberately delayed for almost three years while local pharmaceutical companies developed the products. By the time the unheated blood products were all withdrawn from the market, many of Japan's hemophiliacs had contracted HIV. A number of them, or their survivors, sued the government and the pharmaceutical companies. At the end of the consolidated trials, …
The Garbage Smuggling Case: Judgment Of Division One Of The Shanghai Municipal Intermediate Level People's Court January 13, 1997, Janice Wingo
Washington International Law Journal
The American press has reported on the arrest and trial of William Ping Chen for the importation of garbage into China, alleging that he is a pawn in Sino-American relations. Whatever the political background, the decision of the Shanghai Municipal Intermediate Level People's Court shows that this case was decided according to established rules of law.
Patent Term Extension Of Pharmaceuticals In Japan: So You Say You Want To Rush That Generic Drug To Market In Japan . . . Good Luck!, William T. Christiansen Ii
Patent Term Extension Of Pharmaceuticals In Japan: So You Say You Want To Rush That Generic Drug To Market In Japan . . . Good Luck!, William T. Christiansen Ii
Washington International Law Journal
With the passage of the Drug Price Competition Act of 1984 in the United States, the recent German Supreme Court decision allowing for experimental use of patented pharmaceuticals, and indirectly through the adoption of the Supplemental Protection Certificate in Europe, Japan seems to be the lone large pharmaceutical market which does not allow in some way for the experimental use of patented drugs to gain regulatory approval for a generic equivalent. Japanese generic pharmaceutical manufacturers had, until recently, operated under the assumption that the testing of a generic equivalent to a patented drug to gain regulatory approval was allowable as …
Environmental Regulation Of Russia's Offshsore Oil & Gas Industry And Its Implications For The International Petroleum Market, Deborah K. Espinosa
Environmental Regulation Of Russia's Offshsore Oil & Gas Industry And Its Implications For The International Petroleum Market, Deborah K. Espinosa
Washington International Law Journal
Due to Northeast Asia's increasing energy demand, the Russian Far East's immense oil and gas reserves, and the close physical proximity between the two regions, international petroleum companies are exploring Russia's offshore petroleum reserves in the Far East. The Russian offshore industry, however, presents foreign investors with many legal uncertainties including exposure to environmental liabilities. This Comment suggests that Russia's environmental regulatory system, which includes a constitutional right to a healthy environment, presents international petroleum companies with a new set of circumstances to which they must adapt if Russian reserves are to satisfy Northeast Asia's rising energy needs. To do …
Domestic Child Abuse Under The U.N. Convention On The Rights Of The Child: Implications For Children's Rights In Four Asian Countries, Paula C. Littlewood
Domestic Child Abuse Under The U.N. Convention On The Rights Of The Child: Implications For Children's Rights In Four Asian Countries, Paula C. Littlewood
Washington International Law Journal
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child is the first binding treaty to endorse children's rights as separate from both adults and the family, and is thus an important step in international law toward recognition of children as rights bearers. An inquiry into the extent to which children enjoy human rights logically begins with Article 19 of the Convention which guarantees a child's right to freedom from abuse and neglect by any party. While most literature in this area concentrates either on the rights guaranteed by the Convention or issues raised by studying child abuse across cultures, …
The Taxation Of Gifts And Bequests In Australia: A Prototype For Transfer Tax Reform In The United States?, Jeffrey S. Kinsler
The Taxation Of Gifts And Bequests In Australia: A Prototype For Transfer Tax Reform In The United States?, Jeffrey S. Kinsler
Washington International Law Journal
Australian tax law presents a possible prototype for the reform of gift taxation in the United States. Unlike the United States, Australia does not impose a separate transfer tax on gifts and bequests. Rather, gratuitous transfers of appreciated property are treated as capital gains under Australian tax law, exposing donors to income taxation. In an effort to interject the Australian model of taxation into the already robust debate over how best to reform the U.S. transfer tax system, this article examines the advantages and disadvantages of the Australian system and the Australian Income Tax Assessment Act ("ITAA").
New Developments In Environmental Law And Policy In Taiwan, Dennis Te-Chung Tang
New Developments In Environmental Law And Policy In Taiwan, Dennis Te-Chung Tang
Washington International Law Journal
This article provides a critical review of the important developments of the environmental laws and policies of the Republic of China on Taiwan since 1993. The article also supplements the author's 1990 and 1993 publications. Section II briefs the reader on background political and economic changes. Section III analyzes three new environmental statutes, including the Environmental Impact Assessment Act of 1994. Section IV investigates the problems encountered in some environmental initiatives, including the collection of air pollution control fees and the newly launched "four-in-one" recycling program. Section V summarizes important environmental decisions by the Administrative Court. Section VI suggests strategies …
Regulations Restricting Internet Access: Attempted Repair Of Rupture In China's Great Wall Restraining The Free Exercise Of Ideas, Scott E. Feir
Regulations Restricting Internet Access: Attempted Repair Of Rupture In China's Great Wall Restraining The Free Exercise Of Ideas, Scott E. Feir
Washington International Law Journal
The People's Republic of China is in a paradox: While China needs computer networks to assist its plans for modernization, the government fears the uncontrolled exchange of information between China and the rest of the world. Therefore, the People's Republic of China enacted restrictive regulations controlling Internet usage. This comment examines China's attempt to control Internet use in light of these regulations and current censoring technology viewing China as a test case for other countries. Ifa combination of an authoritarian government, restrictive regulations, and physical network controls cannot prevent users in China from accessing and supplying prohibited information, then similar …
The Dissolution Of Aum Shinri Kyô As A Religious Corporation, Thomas Leo Madden
The Dissolution Of Aum Shinri Kyô As A Religious Corporation, Thomas Leo Madden
Washington International Law Journal
Because of Aum Shinri Kyô's terrorist attacks using sarin nerve gas, the Japanese government sought to revoke the religious cult's status as a religious corporation under the Religious Corporation Law. The Tokyo District Court found that, in setting up a sarin production facility, Aum had deviated from its purpose as a religious organization and had endangered the public welfare, thereby justifying an order of dissolution. The Tokyo High Court affirmed, but did not reach the issue of whether the dissolution order violated Aum's followers' right to freedom of religion as guaranteed by the Japanese Constitution. In affirming the dissolution order, …
A Cultural Exchange: Singapore And The United States Can Learn From Each Other In Restructuring Social Security Plans, Ken J. Moyle
A Cultural Exchange: Singapore And The United States Can Learn From Each Other In Restructuring Social Security Plans, Ken J. Moyle
Washington International Law Journal
Singapore and the United States approach the concept of retirement income replacement from different directions. The United States relies on the OASDI component of the Social Security Act, a tax-based intergenerational transfer program, while Singapore operates under the Central Provident Fund Act, which requires workers and their employers to contribute to a compulsory savings scheme. Elements of each program conflict with the cultural values of the society it serves, and each society could benefit from adopting certain components and underlying concepts of the other's national retirement plan.
Martial Lawlessness: The Legal Aftermath Of Kwangju, James M. West
Martial Lawlessness: The Legal Aftermath Of Kwangju, James M. West
Washington International Law Journal
On August 26, 1996, two former presidents of the Republic of Korea, Chun Doo-Hwan and Roh Tae-Woo, were convicted of insurrection, treason, and corruption. The charges arose out of their December 1979 coup and the ruthlessly violent suppression of a democratic protest in the city of Kwangju in May 1980. This article recounts the origins and analyzes the progress of this dramatic criminal trial, which has attracted worldwide attention. The current South Korean head of state, President Kim Young-Sam, has depicted the conviction of his predecessors as a historic juncture opening a new era of constitutionalism for Korea. Despite the …
The Sanctity Of Life And The Right To Die: Social And Jurisprudential Aspects Of The Euthanasia Debate In Australia And The United States, Roger S. Magnusson
The Sanctity Of Life And The Right To Die: Social And Jurisprudential Aspects Of The Euthanasia Debate In Australia And The United States, Roger S. Magnusson
Washington International Law Journal
This paper reviews social and legal issues in the current euthanasia debate. Focusing on Australia and the United States, the author argues that the legalization of physician-assisted suicide ("PAS") and/or active voluntary euthanasia ("AVE") is inevitable within the short to medium term, given recent developments which have undermined the sanctity of life ethic. Legal factors supporting this assessment include the changing definition of death, the growth of a legallyrecognized right to self-determination extending to the withdrawal of life-support, and the recognition by some courts that life support may be withdrawn without consent because life is considered to be futile. The …
The Taiwan Consumer Protection Law: Attempt To Protect Consumers Proves Ineffective, Carol T. Juang
The Taiwan Consumer Protection Law: Attempt To Protect Consumers Proves Ineffective, Carol T. Juang
Washington International Law Journal
Consumer protection is a relatively new social issue in Taiwan. With the passage of the Taiwan Consumer Protection Law ("CPL"), the government of Taiwan has taken a tremendous step towards the protection of its consumers' rights. However, industry leaders as well as consumers have voiced concerns over many of the provisions and terms in the CPL. Consumers have not taken advantage of the CPL as a means of legal recourse for product-related injuries, and industry groups have asked the government to reexamine particular aspects of the CPL. Such reaction has essentially rendered the CPL an unproductive piece of legislation.
Exclusivity And The Japanese Bar: Ethics Or Self-Interest?, David Hood
Exclusivity And The Japanese Bar: Ethics Or Self-Interest?, David Hood
Washington International Law Journal
The Japanese bar maintains that ethical considerations mandate a low admission rate. However, the bar's limit on the number of lawyers in Japan has socioeconomic effects that extend beyond the legal profession. Also, because there are too few Japanese lawyers, "quasi-lawyer" legal substitutes have emerged to satisfy pent-up demand for legal services. This comment suggests that the Japanese bar should expand its membership in order to address the shortage of legal services in Japan. An expanded bar could also address many of Japan's hidden socioeconomic ills.
Reducing Malapportionment In Japan's Electoral Districts: The Supreme Court Must Act, William Somers Bailey
Reducing Malapportionment In Japan's Electoral Districts: The Supreme Court Must Act, William Somers Bailey
Washington International Law Journal
Japan's Constitution does not expressly mandate periodic census and reapportionment of electoral districts. The Election Law only suggests reapportionment. Consequently, rapid population shifts in postwar Japan created endemic voter imbalances. The Japanese Supreme Court has made some attempts to prod the national parliament to take ameliorative action, but the result has always been "too little, too late." Nevertheless, the evidence shows that the parliament does heed the Court's decisions. This Comment urges the Court to tighten the three to one ratio it has developed for allowable voter imbalances to two to one or better, and to abandon doctrines like the …