Law Commons^™

Foreword--Comparative Corporate Law & Governance, Dan W. Puchniak, Randall S. Thomas

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

Despite the challenges posed by Covid-19, especially for the student editors of the Journal, this special issue has been published on time and has been superbly edited. On behalf of the authors, NUS Law, and the Law & Business Program of Vanderbilt Law School, we would like to express our sincere appreciation to the editor in chief, Joshua D. Minchin, and the entire editorial team of the Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law for their remarkable skill, effort, and dedication in these challenging times. Your performance gives us great hope that the future is extremely bright.

Why China Should Unsign The International Covenant On Civil And Political Rights, Margaret K. Lewis

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

In March 2019, the United Nations Human Rights Council finalized its periodic review of China's human rights record just as human rights in China were under intensified attack. As during prior reviews, China was criticized for its human rights practices. And, once again, China was urged to ratify the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which China signed over twenty years ago. It is time to reevaluate this approach.

This Article argues that the international community should change tack and instead call on China to remove its signature from this foundational human rights treaty. While this would be …

Hold The High-Water Line: A Transnationally Informed Coastline Protection Scheme In The United States, Charlie Spencer-Davis

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

Climate change and sea level rise degrade the environment, infrastructure, and private property along US coastlines. The magnitude of these harms will only accelerate unless the United States improves its coastal protection scheme. Informed by approaches in Israel, the United Kingdom, and China, this Note offers a dynamic solution to coastline protection by way of a federal Rolling Coastal Conservation Easements Act. The act would authorize states to develop and implement rolling easements on private coastal properties. This flexible scheme would include compensation for those landowners who grant easements to their localities, while giving private property owners the option to …

Addressing The Auditor Independence Puzzle: Regulatory Models And Proposal For Reform, Martin Gelter, Aurelio Gurrea-Martinez

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

Auditors play a major role in corporate governance and capital markets. Ex ante, auditors facilitate firms' access to finance by fostering trust among public investors. Ex post, auditors can prevent misbehavior and prevent financial fraud by corporate insiders. In order to fulfill these goals, however, in addition to having the adequate knowledge and expertise, auditors must perform their functions in an independent manner. Unfortunately, auditors are often subject to conflicts of interest, for example, resulting from the provision of nonaudit services but also because of the mere fact of being hired and paid by the audited company. Therefore, even if …

The Conundrum Of Common Ownership, Jennifer G. Hill

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

The common ownership debate has become one of the most contentious issues in corporate law today. This debate is a by-product of major changes to capital market ownership structure, which have triggered concerns about the rise of institutional investors, the growth of index investing, and the rapid concentration of ownership in major international financial markets. The common ownership theory focuses on concerns about the incentives of large financial institutions holding widely diversified portfolios of shares in competing companies within a particular economic sector. Proponents of the common ownership theory argue that, even where institutional investors have relatively small ownership stakes, …

Shareholder Protection In Close Corporations And The Curious Case Of Japan: The Enigmatic Past And Present Of Withdrawal In A Leading Economy, Alan K. Koh

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

Oppressed, outvoted, and outgunned, minority shareholders have an obvious solution for their woes: vote with their feet, sell their shares, and leave the company. But this "Wall Street Rule" is only available to shareholders in publicly listed corporations; shareholders in close corporations; privately owned business entities with no market for their shares--do not have the option of easy exit. Legal solutions which enable the shareholder to voluntarily exit a company with their capital such as the oppression or unfair prejudice remedies in US and Anglo-Commonwealth corporate law--what this Article classifies as "withdrawal remedies"--are therefore vital in close corporations.

However, until …

Something Is Not Always Better Than Nothing: Problematizing Emerging Forms Of Jus Ad Bellum Argument, David Hughes, Yahli Shereshevsky

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

Since the adoption of the UN Charter, an unending debate concerning the permissible exceptions to the use of force prohibition has filled the pages of countless law reviews. The resulting legal regime, the jus ad bellum, has become increasingly strained as the international community faces new threats and encounters unforeseen scenarios. The post-war legal architecture is, so the debate goes, either insufficiently enabled to address contemporary challenges or consistently undermined by actors who seek exceptions to the strict limits placed upon state conduct. Debates regarding different instances when force is used exhibit a predictable pattern. Those that wish to limit …

To Edit Or Not To Edit?--Regulating Crispr Transnationally, Ann Potter

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

After Chinese scientist Dr. He Jiankui's announcement that he had successfully edited the human genome using a new technology called CRISPR/Cas-9, Dr. He forced the world to address the ethical dilemmas introduced by gene-editing technologies. Born out of a historical tradition of human "improvement," gene-editing technologies like CRISPR/Cas-9 modify human genes down to DNA molecules. CRISPR can prevent and cure genetic diseases that have previously had no cure, but problems arise when CRISPR's use expands to enhancements or to modifications that would change the human genome permanently. Given CRISPR's potential profound impact, this Note analyzes how international bodies like the …

A Sinking World: A Model Framework For Climate Change Adaptation Measures In Coastal Cities, Emma Rose

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

Climate change has already begun wreaking havoc on coastal communities across the globe, including Miami, Venice, and the Philippines. Adaptation mechanisms may be the most powerful weapons these communities have to combat sea level rise and the other disastrous effects of a warming planet. However, these adaptation programs must fit within each nation's unique federal and local regulatory schemes. Additionally, when they are funded by the federal government or foreign sources, these communities may have to sacrifice some autonomy over their implementation. While adaptation strategies can be broken down into three primary modes--resistance, transformation, and retreat--the most effective combination of …

Redefining Lgbtq And Abortion Rights In Latin America: A Transnational Toolkit, Alyssa Julian

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

Throughout Latin America, the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, and Queer (LGBTQ) and abortion rights movements have progressed at divergent strengths and speeds, with significant variation among countries. The region is home to some of the most restrictive and discriminatory laws when it comes to these contentious issues. This Note explores some of the reasons behind the variation in LGBTQ and abortion rights throughout the region.

This Note traces the economic and political history of Latin America to illustrate the climate in which these social movements are operating. Further, this Note offers a brief snapshot of recent global developments in LGBTQ …

Artificial States And The Remapping Of The Middle East, Ash U. Bali

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

This Article critically examines arguments tracing contemporary crises in the Arab world to the making of the Arab state system a century ago. A series of popular and scholarly articles occasioned by the recent spate of World War I-related centenaries suggest that new boundaries be drawn in the Middle East to produce more stable nation-states. More specifically, a set of authors has advocated for different borders that would avoid ethno-sectarian conflict by designing relatively homogenous smaller states to replace multiethnic, multisectarian states like Iraq and Syria. Such proposals are significant for the underlying presumptions they reflect concerning the relationship between …

Conflicting Justice In Conflict Of Laws, Roxana Banu

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

Choice-of-law rules determine which national law (not necessarily that of the forum) applies in private law matters that cross over multiple jurisdictions. Given the ubiquity of interpersonal cross-border relations, choice-of-law rules play an enormous role in securing justice in the transnational social realm. For example, they determine whether individuals can recover retirement benefits from worldwide investments through pension funds, whether they can receive compensation following an accident abroad, or whether their foreign marriages, divorces, adoptions, or support orders will be recognized or invalidated at home.

Yet the legal field of conflict of laws has always been divided between two theoretical …

Identity Federalism In Europe And The United States, Vlad Perju

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

The turn to identity is reshaping federalism. Opposition to the policies of the Trump administration, from the travel ban to sanctuary cities and the rollback of environmental protections, has led progressives to explore more fluid and contingent forms of state identity. Conservatives, too, have sought to shift federalism away from the jurisdictional focus on limited and enumerated powers and have argued for a revival of the political safeguards of federalism, including state-based identities. This Article draws on comparative law to study identity as a political safeguard of federalism and its transformation from constitutional discourse to interpretative processes and, eventually, constitutional …

Data Imperialism: The Gdpr's Disastrous Impact On Africa's E-Commerce Markets, Cara Mannion

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

The European Union (EU) recently passed the General Data Protection Regulation--a sweeping regulatory framework that sets a new global standard for the collection, storage, and use of personal data. To ensure far-reaching compliance with the GDPR, the EU has adopted a strict take-it-or-leave-it approach--countries that wish to engage with digital users in the EU must either comply with the GDPR's expansive data obligations or risk losing access to the world's largest trading block.

This presents significant obstacles for several African nations. Notably, no African country currently has domestic laws that comply with the GDPR. Even if they did, several African …

Venture Capital In China And India: Does Business Form Matter?, Lin Lin, Umakanth Varottil

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

This Article reevaluates the importance of business organizational forms with regard to venture capital funds by exploring two major Asian markets, China and India. Evidence suggests that the limited partnership is the leading business form among Chinese venture capital funds. On the other hand, Indian venture capital funds are predominantly organized as private noncharitable trusts. These findings challenge the orthodox view that the limited partnership is the preferred business form for venture capital funds. Instead, Indian venture capital funds have used the trust vehicle effectively and regard it as a functional equivalent to limited partnerships. This Article argues that the …

Judging Judicial Appointment Procedures, S. I. Strong

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

Over the last several years, judicial appointment procedures in the United States have become increasingly intractable. Members of both parties are seen to engage in political gamesmanship, calling the legitimacy of the appointment process into question and decreasing public confidence in both the legislature and the judiciary. Questions are even beginning to arise about whether and to what extent the United States is complying with the rule of law.

Although numerous solutions have been proposed, one alternative has not yet been considered: international law. As paradoxical as it may seem, the best and perhaps only feasible solution to quintessentially domestic …

Ico Vs. Ipo: Empirical Findings, Information Asymmetry, And The Appropriate Regulatory Framework, Moran Ofir, Ido Sadeh

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

Initial coin offerings (ICOs) are a new form of fundraising whereby blockchain-related ventures raise public capital in exchange for newly issued digital tokens. In recent years, ICOs have been a prominent focus of legal and economic studies, which analyze their characteristics and determinants of their success. In this Article, we systematically review these studies and identify key ICO success factors. We then offer theoretical explanations for our findings, and in certain cases, connect the empirical results with the IPO and crowdfunding literatures. The results of our analysis are important for two reasons. First, there is no single formal data source, …

The Law And Practice Of Shareholder Inspection Rights: A Comparative Analysis Of China And The United States, Robin H. Huang, Randall S. Thomas

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

Shareholder inspection rights allow a shareholder to access the relevant documents of the company in which they hold an interest, so as to address the problem of information asymmetry and reduce the agency costs inherent in the corporate structure. While Chinese corporate governance and American corporate governance face different sets of agency cost problems, this Article shows that shareholder inspection rights play an important role in both China and the United States. On the books, while shareholder inspection rights in both countries are broadly similar, there are some important differences on issues such as the proper purpose requirement. The empirical …

Singapore's Puzzling Embrace Of Shareholder Stewardship: A Successful Secret, Dan W. Puchniak, Samantha S. Tang

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

In the wake of the 2008 Global Financial Crisis (GFC), the United Kingdom created the first stewardship code, which was designed to transform its rationally passive institutional investors into actively engaged shareholders. In the UK corporate governance context, this idea made sense. Institutional investors collectively own a sizable majority of the shares in most of the United Kingdom's listed companies. In turn, if the UK stewardship code could incentivize them to effectively monitor management to act as "good shareholder stewards"--the managerial short-termism and excessive risk-taking, which were identified as contributors to the GFC, could be avoided.

The United Kingdom's idea …

Management Succession In Korea: Tunneling, Semi-Tunneling, And The Reaction Of Corporate Law, Kyung-Hoon Chun

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

Recently in Korea, certain issues of corporate law became the subjects of fierce political debates unlike many other jurisdictions where corporate law issues generally remain in the exclusive realm of professionals and academics. This Article begins with the question of why corporate law issues attracted so much political attention in Korea and whether such political attention actually helped improve the corporate law. In pursuing the answers to such questions, this Article identifies a recurring pattern: (i) existence of strict rules against seeking private benefits; (ii) various clever measures to circumvent such rules; (iii) failure of the courts to regulate such …

Standing, Still? The Evolution Of The Doctrine Of Standing In The American And Israeli Judiciaries: A Comparative Perspective, Joshua Hoyt

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

The doctrine of standing plays an important role in limiting the classes of cases or controversies that are appropriate for judicial resolution; considered with other justiciability doctrines, judicial standing necessarily reflects the broader role of the court in society. Though the American judiciary had rather generous standing policies in place at the time of the founding, with the rise of the administrative state in the aftermath of the New Deal, progressive justices saw fit to restrict judicial standing as a means of insulating regulatory programs from industry challenge. In contradistinction, the young Israeli society has some of the most accessible …

Diversity Of Shareholder Stewardship In Asia: Faux Convergence, Gen Goto, Alan K. Koh, Dan W. Puchniak

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

Since the UK adopted the world's first stewardship code in 2010, stewardship codes have proliferated across Asia. Given the UK Code's prominence, it is tempting to assume that every other stewardship code performs the same function as the UK Code. This assumption belies the truth: all these codes--regardless of whether they have in fact drawn inspiration from the UK Code--have taken different trajectories due to each adopting its jurisdiction's distinctive institutional and legal context.

Using empirical evidence and in-depth case studies of stewardship in Japan and Singapore, this Article reveals how any reception of United Kingdom-style stewardship concepts is only …

China's Belt And Road Initiative Is Reshaping Human Rights Norms, Mikkaela Salamatin

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

Since its birth in 2015, the Belt and Road Initiative has garnered significant attention for its benefits and its detriments. Much of the current scholarship in this area is focused on particular pieces of the Belt and Road Initiative, with few in legal scholarship considering the impact of the relationship between China's growing soft power and its effect on international law and international institutions. Every state has the right to pursue power and influence, but this Note specifically examines how China's methods of obtaining this power and influence--specifically through the Belt and Road Initiative and related actions within United Nations' …

Fortifying American Emergency Power: A Multinational Comparison To Contain Crises, Courtney Devore

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

Countries will inevitably face emergencies. Historically, governments have exercised immense power in response to emergencies. For responses to be quick and effective, emergency power operates outside of the normal rule of law. While disbanding the normal rule of law may be necessary from time to time to protect national security, the unilateral ability of government to take such action creates perverse incentives to abuse the power. Abuses of emergency power are found across the globe, most notably occurring in the United States recently.

In the wake of the Trump Administration, this Note seeks to identify how and why the US …

Traditional Knowledge In Taiwan: A Call For Greater Participation Of Indigenous Peoples In The Global Intellectual Property Marketplace, James M. Cooper

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

This Article explores the plight of the Aborigines of Taiwan and the legal protections that exist for their Traditional Knowledge. While Taiwan continues to face international isolation with a diminished number of states recognizing the Republic of China as the seat of China, the island's government has taken limited steps to recognize language, cultural, and economic rights of its Indigenous peoples. International law has not been helpful in protecting Traditional Knowledge, but Taiwan could use its vast economic resources and positive track record in protecting some of these rights to further its goals of international recognition. This Article details the …

Reciprocity In China-Us Judgments Recognition, William S. Dodge, Wenliang Zhang

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

The conventional wisdom is that China and the United States do not recognize each other's court judgments. But this is changing. A US court first recognized a Chinese judgment in 2009, and a Chinese court first reciprocated in 2017. This Article provides an overview of the enforcement of US judgments in China and Chinese judgments in the United States, noting the similarities and differences in the two countries' systems. In China, rules for the enforcement of foreign judgments are established at the national level and require reciprocity. In the United States, rules for the enforcement of foreign judgments are established …

The "Poison Pill" In The Usmca: The Erosion Of Wto Principles And Its Implications Under A Us-China Trade War, Gil Lan

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

The United States, Canada, and Mexico have ratified a multilateral trade agreement (the "USMCA") that contains a highly unusual provision. This provision (referred to as the 'Poison Pill") is intended to deter the signatories from entering into a free trade agreement (FTA) with any "non-market country." The Poison Pill was introduced by the United States in the wake of the US-China trade war and was most likely directed at deterring Canada from entering into an FTA with China.

This Article argues that the Poison Pill is functionally an expulsion clause (as opposed to a withdrawal clause) which violates the USMCA …

The Constitutional Logic Of The Common Law, Douglas E. Edlin

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

This Article uses two concepts from philosophical logic, the transitive property and syllogistic reasoning, to examine the history and theory of the common law. More specifically, the Article uses the transitive property to challenge the claims of sovereignty theorists that parliamentary supremacy is truly the most fundamental historical and theoretical basis of the British constitution. Instead, the transitive property helps show that the history and theory of the common law tradition has long provided a role for independent courts in maintaining the rule of law as a foundational principle of the British constitution. The Article then closely analyzes the reasoning …

Deal Breakage In Domestic And Cross-Border Mergers And Acquisitions: New Data And Avenues For Research, Morgan Ricks

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

This Article presents a newly constructed mergers and acquisitions (M&A) data set that can support detailed analysis of deal outcomes, including deal breakage. The main novelty of the data set is a detailed classification scheme for characterizing deal outcomes, using information drawn from public announcements and news reports. The data set also includes a number of variables, hand gathered from press releases and merger agreements, that are unavailable in existing data sets in reliable form, or at all. The data set consists of all definitive, signed M&A transactions involving US public company targets with a deal value of at least …

Mixed Ownership Reform And Corporate Governance In China's State-Owned Enterprises, Jiangyu Wang, Tan Cheng-Han

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

This Article provides an early assessment of the impact on corporate governance of the most recent wave of reform of China's state-owned enterprises (SOEs) announced by the CCP in 2013, officially known as the mixed-ownership reform (MOR). It offers a comprehensive and detailed account of the background, policy and regulatory frameworks, and rationale of the MOR in light of the history of ownership reform in China. It also conducts empirical studies of the change in ownership and board composition in over 30 SOEs which have recently completed their MOR experiments, as well as several case studies. It observes that MOR's …