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Chinese Real Estate Mortgage Law, Patrick A. Randolph Jr., Lou Jianbo
Chinese Real Estate Mortgage Law, Patrick A. Randolph Jr., Lou Jianbo
Washington International Law Journal
This Article reviews the developing Chinese law pertaining to real estate mortgage loans with a focus on the questions that an American practitioner might have about the Chinese system. It identifies those areas of difference between the American and Chinese systems that might raise concerns for an American practitioner. Attention is given to issues of concern both to parties functioning as lenders and to parties functioning as borrowers or investors in mortgaged property. Although Chinese lawmakers have made major steps in recent years to provide clarity and predictability in the laws pertaining to mortgages, some of these laws have minor …
The Erorsion Of Refugee Rights In Australia: Two Proposed Amendments To The Migration Act, Andrew N. Langham
The Erorsion Of Refugee Rights In Australia: Two Proposed Amendments To The Migration Act, Andrew N. Langham
Washington International Law Journal
The Australian government has proposed two amendments to the Migration Act. The first excludes judicial review of administrative determinations in the immigration context. The second severely limits how and when detained refugees can access information regarding their rights as asylum seekers. Refugees arrive in Australia vulnerable and wholly ignorant of the legal system, and must make their claims for asylum in a politically hostile atmosphere. Current immigration laws protect the integrity of the system by making judicial review of immigration determinations possible in some cases and by giving refugees access to information on the refugee determination process. The proposed amendments …
Legalization Of The Birth Control Pill In Japan Will Reduce Reliance On Abortion As The Primary Method Of Birth Control, Evy F. Mcelmeel
Legalization Of The Birth Control Pill In Japan Will Reduce Reliance On Abortion As The Primary Method Of Birth Control, Evy F. Mcelmeel
Washington International Law Journal
The United Nations has decreed that access to a variety of methods of birth control is a basic human right, that prevention of pregnancy, not termination, is the goal of birth control, and that abortion is an unacceptable method of birth control. Until recently, condoms and the rhythm method were the only legal forms of contraception in Japan. The high failure rates of these methods, coupled with access to abortion on demand, made abortion the de facto primary method of birth control in Japan. The Japanese government's recent decision to end the ban on oral contraceptives will reduce the number …
Criminalizing Money Laundering As A Method And Means Of Curbing Corruption, Organized Crime, And Capital Flight In Russia, Sam Chung
Washington International Law Journal
In the wake of the post-Soviet privatization in the Russian Federation, corruption and organized crime have flourished, contributing to capital flight, economic instability, and the collapse of Russia's financial system. Over the same period, Russian legislators have worked to reform the legal system in order to facilitate their country's transition to democracy and the rule of law. In 1997, legislative efforts led to the enactment of a new criminal code that emphasizes the rights of the individual as opposed to the power of the government. More recently, several draft bills targeting money laundering activities and banking reform have been introduced …
Law And Discretion In The Contemporary Chinese Courts, Margaret Y.K. Woo
Law And Discretion In The Contemporary Chinese Courts, Margaret Y.K. Woo
Washington International Law Journal
The last twenty years of Chinese legal reforms have been particularly interesting to scholars and activists alike. During this period, Chinese legal reforms have moved from purely substantive changes in economic laws to the realm of domestic structural reforms of the court system. Today, legal reformers are discussing the use of open trials, adversarial advocacy, and even judicial independence. This Article explores how far some of these reforms may go by considering the path of structural and procedural changes adopted by the Chinese courts in the past twenty years. It includes an analysis of the tension faced by all legal …
The Erorsion Of Refugee Rights In Australia: Two Proposed Amendments To The Migration Act, Andrew N. Langham
The Erorsion Of Refugee Rights In Australia: Two Proposed Amendments To The Migration Act, Andrew N. Langham
Washington International Law Journal
The Australian government has proposed two amendments to the Migration Act. The first excludes judicial review of administrative determinations in the immigration context. The second severely limits how and when detained refugees can access information regarding their rights as asylum seekers. Refugees arrive in Australia vulnerable and wholly ignorant of the legal system, and must make their claims for asylum in a politically hostile atmosphere. Current immigration laws protect the integrity of the system by making judicial review of immigration determinations possible in some cases and by giving refugees access to information on the refugee determination process. The proposed amendments …
An Inquiry Into Several Difficult Problems In Enacting China's Uniform Contract Law, Wang Lliming, Keith Hand
An Inquiry Into Several Difficult Problems In Enacting China's Uniform Contract Law, Wang Lliming, Keith Hand
Washington International Law Journal
Translator's Forward: In March of 1999, China's Ninth National People's Congress ("NPC") passed the Contract Law of People's Republic of China. The new law is the product of nearly six years of drafting work by China's Legislative Affairs Commission and contains over 400 articles, including 129 general contract provisions and 299 articles dealing with specific types of contracts. When the law takes effect on October 1, 1999, it will unify China's contract law by replacing the three principal contract statutes currently in force, the Economic Contract Law, the Foreign-related Economic Contract Law, and the Technology Contract Law. The passage of …
Arbitration Fails To Reduce Foreign Investors' Risk In China, Charles Kenworthey Harer
Arbitration Fails To Reduce Foreign Investors' Risk In China, Charles Kenworthey Harer
Washington International Law Journal
Arbitration is often perceived as a fair and efficient method of reducing risk associated with business transactions and investments. In China, Arbitration is constrained by statute and local protectionism such that arbitration can fail to live up to the expectations of foreign investors. Arbitration in China divides all disputes into domestic or foreign-related disputes, with different procedures for each, and different standards for enforcement and judicial review of those awards. Local protectionism presents a substantial risk to foreign parties involved in arbitration. A general lack of expertise in foreign-related disputes law, and difficulty in enforcing arbitration awards in favor of …
Are You My Mommy, Or My Big Brother? Comparing Internet Censorship In Singapore And The United States, Lewis S. Malakoff
Are You My Mommy, Or My Big Brother? Comparing Internet Censorship In Singapore And The United States, Lewis S. Malakoff
Washington International Law Journal
Governments across the globe are grappling to find an appropriate and effective way to regulate Internet activity. Singapore's experience with Internet regulation is particularly instructive, illustrating the inherent tension when a government simultaneously champions the Net's commercial, educational, and social potential while attempting to protect its population from material that offends the community's normative sensibility. Singapore has enacted regulations that require Internet Service Providers to filter content at the network level through the use of proxy servers. In addition, Singapore has issued an Internet Code of Practice that establishes the framework for acceptable speech in cyberspace. In the United States, …
A Look At Damage Awards Under Japan's Trademark Law And Unfair Competition Prevention Law, Masumi Anna Osaki
A Look At Damage Awards Under Japan's Trademark Law And Unfair Competition Prevention Law, Masumi Anna Osaki
Washington International Law Journal
Although the United States and Japan have similarly worded intellectual property statutes, significant differences in the stated statutory objectives as well as the substantive rights protected by those laws give rise to concern over the scope and quality of intellectual property protection offered in Japan. Collectivist values that frown upon personal gain have contributed to the less-than-adequate enforcement of individual intellectual property rights in Japan, and this socio-judicial ethic has been consistently reflected in the minimal damage awards granted by the courts. The courts' traditionally narrow construction of damage provisions in the intellectual property arena has resulted in the limitation …
The 1997 Deregulation Of Japan's Holding Companies, Andrew H. Thorson, Frank Siegfanz
The 1997 Deregulation Of Japan's Holding Companies, Andrew H. Thorson, Frank Siegfanz
Washington International Law Journal
In 1947, Japan enacted the Act Concerning Prohibition of Monopolization and Maintenance of Fair Trade ("AMA"), known to some as the "Economic Constitution of Japan" because of its fundamental role in structuring Japan's economy. Among the most profound legislative provisions the 1947 AMA introduced to Japanese economic law are an absolute prohibition on pure holding companies and strict regulations upon stockholding by certain other types of companies. The legislature established these provisions as part of a plan to de-concentrate excessive economic power then wielded in the Japanese economy by large integrated enterprise complexes known as the zaibatsu. Fifty years …
A Unitary Asean Patent Law In The Aftermath Of Trips, Christian H. Nguyen
A Unitary Asean Patent Law In The Aftermath Of Trips, Christian H. Nguyen
Washington International Law Journal
Members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations ("ASEAN") have come to recognize that rigorous protection for industrial and technological innovations is essential to the economic viability of the Southeast Asian region. This recognition has heightened since the inception of the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights ("TRIPs"). TRIPs imposes minimum standards for patent protection upon signatories to the World Trade Organization, which includes most of the ASEAN member countries. Strict compliance with TRIPs standards can severely aggravate the administrative deficiencies in national patent systems, but such deficiencies can be considerably alleviated with the institution of a regional …
The 1997 Deregulation Of Japan's Holding Companies, Andrew H. Thorson, Frank Siegfanz
The 1997 Deregulation Of Japan's Holding Companies, Andrew H. Thorson, Frank Siegfanz
Washington International Law Journal
In 1947, Japan enacted the Act Concerning Prohibition of Monopolization and Maintenance of Fair Trade ("AMA"), known to some as the "Economic Constitution of Japan" because of its fundamental role in structuring Japan's economy. Among the most profound legislative provisions the 1947 AMA introduced to Japanese economic law are an absolute prohibition on pure holding companies and strict regulations upon stockholding by certain other types of companies. The legislature established these provisions as part of a plan to de-concentrate excessive economic power then wielded in the Japanese economy by large integrated enterprise complexes known as the zaibatsu. Fifty years …
Potential Disregard Of The Corporate Entity & U.S. Subsidiary Invocation Of Japanese Parent's Treaty Rights, Eric K. Kawabata
Potential Disregard Of The Corporate Entity & U.S. Subsidiary Invocation Of Japanese Parent's Treaty Rights, Eric K. Kawabata
Washington International Law Journal
U.S. corporate subsidiaries of Japanese parent companies enjoy the same advantages of incorporation (e.g., liability limited to the amount of investment) and the same legal protections extended to domestically-held U.S. corporations (e.g., access to courts and various legal remedies). Thus, it would be a natural and logical assumption that U.S. subsidiaries of Japanese parent companies are required to comply with U.S. law in the same manner as domestically-held corporations. However, some U.S. subsidiaries, by asserting that they are, in reality, inseparable from their Japanese parent companies, have been allowed to avail themselves of exceptions to U.S. law under the U.S.-Japan …
Federal Maritime Commission Sanctions On Japanese Carriers: A Call For Fairer Methods Of Resolving Disputes, Randy L. Baldemor
Federal Maritime Commission Sanctions On Japanese Carriers: A Call For Fairer Methods Of Resolving Disputes, Randy L. Baldemor
Washington International Law Journal
On February 26, 1997, the U.S. Federal Maritime Commission imposed sanctions upon Japanese shipping carriers for allegedly restrictive port practices that existed in Japan. The Federal Maritime Commission imposed the sanctions under Section 19 of the Merchant Marine Act of 1920. Section 19 gives the Federal Maritime Commission authority to make rules and regulations where conditions unfavorable to shipping in the foreign trade exist. However, the Japanese Government does not control the port practices in Japan. The Japan Harbor Transportation Authority, a private conglomeration of labor unions, shippers, and other shipping entities in Japan, regulates port practices through collective-bargaining negotiations. …
Corporate Governance Reform In Russia: The Effectiveness Of The 1996 Russian Company Law, Gregory Wolk
Corporate Governance Reform In Russia: The Effectiveness Of The 1996 Russian Company Law, Gregory Wolk
Washington International Law Journal
During Post-Soviet privatization, widespread abuses of power in Russian corporations contributed to the economic malaise in that country. These abuses are attributed to the domination of firms by senior management. In January 1996, the Russian Company Law went into effect with very strong protections for minority shareholders as a means to curb these abuses. This Comment analyzes the effectiveness of the Russian Company Law in this regard over the past three years. It concludes that the law has been moderately successful given the extremely hostile conditions at the time of enactment, and thus, it is a model for other transitional …
Communities Take Control Of Crime: Incorporating The Conference Model Into The United States Juvenile Justice System, Amanda L. Paye
Communities Take Control Of Crime: Incorporating The Conference Model Into The United States Juvenile Justice System, Amanda L. Paye
Washington International Law Journal
Juvenile crime is one of the preeminent concerns of many Western societies today, yet the current retributive styles of justice that purport to "get tough" on youth crime have not been effective. In defiance of the "get tough" rhetoric, and despite the lack of meaningful legislative recognition, communities are adjudicating juvenile cases through alternative programs based on the Restorative Justice theory. Because of the promising effects of Restorative Justice on youth crime, New Zealand and Australia have taken the bold step of restructuring their juvenile justice systems via landmark legislation that incorporates an innovative "conferencing" model. The model is a …
The "Comfort Women" Case: Judgment Of April 27, 1998, Shimonoseki Branch, Yamaguchi Prefectural Court, Japan, Taihei Okada
The "Comfort Women" Case: Judgment Of April 27, 1998, Shimonoseki Branch, Yamaguchi Prefectural Court, Japan, Taihei Okada
Washington International Law Journal
This court hereby issues the following judgment on the Plaintiffs' claim for an official apology and compensation for "Comfort Women and female Teishintai forced laborers from the city of Pusan, and an official apology and compensation for all female Teishintai forced laborers and "Comfort Women," based on proceedings in this court concluding September 29, 1997.
Commentary On A Victory For "Comfort Women": Japan's Judicual Recognition Of Military Sexual Slavery, Etsuro Tutsuka
Commentary On A Victory For "Comfort Women": Japan's Judicual Recognition Of Military Sexual Slavery, Etsuro Tutsuka
Washington International Law Journal
Despite international condemnation, Japan has done little to recognize its responsibility for forcing over 200,000 "Comfort Women" into sexual slavery for the Japanese Imperial Army during the Second World War. However, in a landmark April 1998 decision, a Japanese court ordered Japan to compensate three Korean "Comfort Women." This was the first time that a Japanese court found in favor of foreign plaintiffs in a postwar compensation case. The court held members of the Diet negligent under the State Liability Act for failing to enact a compensation law for the "Comfort Women." Although the judgment will almost certainly be overturned, …
Towards A Market Economy: Security Devices For China, Guanghua Yu
Towards A Market Economy: Security Devices For China, Guanghua Yu
Washington International Law Journal
From 1949 to 1978, China's economy was centrally directed under a very rigid system of state planning. Under the planning system, security devices were not widely used. The government drew specific plans for enterprises and the Ministry of Finance used banks to allocate the funds to enterprises or projects. The banks, however, did not have to screen projects and monitor the use of funds after disbursements. They merely distributed the money to enterprises and collected the profits. Recognizing the shortcomings of central planning based almost exclusively on public ownership over the means of production, China embarked on an economic reform …