Law Commons^™

The Customary Practice Of Gerawee In Afghanistan: A Case For Transitioning To Real Equity-Based Finance, Haroun Rahimi

Haroun Rahimi

The customary practice of Gerawee, in principle, refers to a specific form of synthetic loan. It is a pledge-lease transaction that enables owners of immovable properties to obtain financing based on the market value of those properties in exchange for either paying regular payments in form of rent or transferring the right to lease those properties to a financer. The practice has been developed to help debtors and creditors avoid the prohibition of interest bearing loans under Shari’ah. Despite the efforts of some Muslim jurists to justify the practice under Shari’ah, it is widely criticized. In particular, Afghan muftis …

Wage Gender Disparities: Challenging Prevailing Assumptions, Theoretical Approache, Shlomit Yanisky-Ravid Professor Of Law

Shlomit Yanisky-Ravid Professor of Law

Women in the United States are, on average and consistently, earning less than their male peers. Sometimes, they are even paid less than the men they supervise. A common response concerns about the 23 cent gender wage gap for full-time year-round workers across occupations, is that it is simply a byproduct of the choices women make: choices to prefer family life and needs, work fewer hours, take on lower-paying jobs, or opt out of the workforce for longer periods of time than men. Under this view, the gender pay gap is not a result of sex discrimination but of women's …

Designing Trial Avoidance Procedures For Post-Conflict, Civil Law Countries: Is German Absprachen An Appropriate Model For Efficient Criminal Justice In Afghanistan?, Nasiruddin Nezaami

Nasiruddin Nezaami

In Afghanistan, overflow of court dockets and lengthy trials persist despite recent reforms effected through a new Criminal Procedure Code. The new Code has solved some of the problems that existed prior to its ratification; however, it has failed to establish adequate trial avoidance procedures. This problem is further compounded by the dissatisfaction of parties with trial outcomes. This article suggests that Afghanistan could address both issues by adopting a mechanism similar to German Absprachen as an appropriate case disposing procedure, enabling party consensus, helping courts decrease their dockets, and reducing the length of trials. This analysis is not only …

Trust And Good-Faith Taken To A New Level: An Analysis Of Inconsistent Behavior In The Brazilian Legal Order, Thiago Luis Sombra

Thiago Luís Santos Sombra

With the changes in the paradigm of voluntarism developed under the protection of liberalism, the bases for legal acts have reached an objective dimension, resulting in the birth of a number of mechanisms of control of private autonomy. Among these mechanisms, we can point out the relevance of those reinforced by the Roman Law, whose high ethical value underlines one of its biggest virtues in the control of the exercise of subjective rights. The prohibition of inconsistent behavior, conceived in the brocard venire contra factum proprium, constitutes one of the concepts from the Roman Law renown for the protection …

Rethinking The Context Of Hate Speech Regulation, Robert Kahn

Robert Kahn

In this essay I review Michael Herz and Peter Molnar (eds.) The Content and Context of Hate Speech: Rethinking Regulation and Responses (Cambridge University Press 2012). As I show in the review, the Herz and Molnar volume advances our understanding of comparative hate speech regulation in three ways. First, the essays suggest that local context has a role to play in understanding, assessing, and applying hate speech regulations, even in an age when online hate speech is pressuring states and regions to reach common solutions to these problems. Second, the essays rebut the commonly held premise that the United States …

Beyond The Written Constitution: A Short Analysis Of Warren Court, Thiago Luis Santos Sombra

Thiago Luís Santos Sombra

This essay propose an analysis about how Warren Court became one of the most particular in American History by confronting Jim Crow law, especially by applying the Bill of Rights. In this essay, we propose an analysis of how complex the unwritten Constitution is. Cases like Brown vs. Board of Education will be analyzed from a different point of view to understand the methods of the Court.

Semi-Presidentialism Under The Indian Constitution, Khagesh Gautam

Khagesh Gautam

No abstract provided.

Cracking Down On Corporate Crime In Italy, Rosa Anna Ruggiero Prof.

Rosa Anna Ruggiero Prof.

The paper describes the changes in the Italian system regarding corporate criminal liability. With the implementation of Legislative Decree No. 231 on June 8th, 2001, Italy aligned itself with other European countries (France, the United Kingdom, Holland, Denmark, Portugal, Ireland, Sweden, Finland), which already provided for the liability of corporate entities responsible for committing certain crimes. The previous gap in legislation had serious implications at an international level, especially in light of the objective of fostering cooperation in the Area of Freedom, Security and Justice in the European Union - through, for example, the progressive alignment of Member States’ legislation. …

Cracking Down On Corporate Crime In Italy, Rosa Anna Ruggiero Prof.

Rosa Anna Ruggiero Prof.

The paper describes the changes in the Italian system regarding corporate criminal liability. With the implementation of Legislative Decree No. 231 on June 8th, 2001, Italy aligned itself with other European countries (France, the United Kingdom, Holland, Denmark, Portugal, Ireland, Sweden, Finland), which already provided for the liability of corporate entities responsible for committing certain crimes. The previous gap in legislation had serious implications at an international level, especially in light of the objective of fostering cooperation in the Area of Freedom, Security and Justice in the European Union - through, for example, the progressive alignment of Member States’ legislation. …

An Approach To The Regulation Of Spanish Banking Foundations, Miguel Martínez

Miguel Martínez

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the legal framework governing banking foundations as they have been regulated by Spanish Act 26/2013, of December 27th, on savings banks and banking foundations. Title 2 of this regulation addresses a construct that is groundbreaking for the Spanish legal system, still of paramount importance for the entire financial system insofar as these foundations become the leading players behind certain banking institutions given the high interest that foundations hold in the share capital of such institutions.

Where Law Meets Culture: The Legal Protection Of The Dead In China, Bing Shui

Bing Shui

Can people be harmed after they are gone? If so, by what means can we protect their posthumous interests? Do the dead have legal rights? Those sequential questions are not only philosophical puzzles, but also a gridlock to law-makers and judges in most jurisdictions. Following the old notion that “the dead do not hear”, law is historically set up to deal with people from the cradle to the grave. Once a human being has become a corpse, it may be viewed as something like “a piece of furniture” yet the body is more than an instrumental thing; it is a …

Secession: The Contradicting Provisions Of The United Nations Charter – A Direct Threat To The Current World Order, N. Micheli Quadros

N. Micheli Quadros

The preamble of the United Nations' Charter (hereinafter UN Charter) presents its members declaration under which justice and respect for international law and the international community is supposed to be maintained. To date, the United Nations (UN) has failed to ensure international peace by allowing powerful states to infringe upon other nations’ territorial integrity and manipulate individuals to exercise their right of self-determination.

Outdated, redundant and vague provisions that proved their inefficiency have plagued the UN Charter. Chapter I, Art 1 § 2 of the UN Charter, states that one of the main purpose of the UN is “to develop …

Looking Beyond The Negative-Positive Rights Distinction: Analyzing Constitutional Rights According To Their Nature, Effect And Reach, Jorge Farinacci-Fernós

Jorge Farinacci-Fernós

In this brief Article, I wish to challenge and transcend the narrow dichotomy of political-rights-as-negative-rights versus socio-economic-rights-as-positive-rights, and analyze the different variables applicable to constitutional rights, taking into account several interacting features. First, the nature of a right, that is, whether it is civil and political or socio-economic. Second, the effect of a right, that is, whether it is negative rights that protect the titleholder against the actions of others or positive rights that entitle its titleholder to require others to act. Third, the reach of a right, that is, whether it is vertical rights opposable to the state or …

Avenues To Foreign Investment In China’S Shipping Industry—Have Lease Financing Arrangements And The Free Trade Zones Opened Markets For Foreign Non-Bank Investment?, Rick Beaumont

Rick Beaumont

No abstract provided.

Crowdfunding: Solving The Sme Funding Problem And Democratising Access To Capital, Alma Pekmezovic, Gordon Richard Walker Dr

Alma Pekmezovic

No abstract provided.

A Comparison Of The Jurisprudence Of The Ecj And The Efta Court On The Free Movement Of Goods In The Eea: Is There An Intolerable Separation Of Article 34 Of The Tfeu And Article Of 11 Of The Eea?, Jarrod Tudor

Jarrod Tudor

Article 11 of the European Economic Area (“EEA”) and Article 34 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (“TFEU”) prohibit quantitative restrictions on the free movement of goods. The EEA is monitored by the European Free Trade Area Court (“EFTA Court”) and the TFEU is monitored by the European Court of Justice (“ECJ”). In theory, the EFTA Court and the ECJ should interpret Article 11 and Article 34 in the same manner in order to promote harmonization of the law on the free movement of goods and allow for further economic integration between EFTA and the EU. …

Afghan Juvenile Code In Practice: Assessing Against International Juvenile Law, Christopher W. Carlson Jr.

Christopher W. Carlson Jr.

This Article assesses and compares Afghanistan’s juvenile procedures with the systems and norms advocated by the United Nations (“UN”). The Afghan Juvenile Code of 2005 is compared with the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child’s four key guidelines. The four guidelines include: (1) imprisonment of juveniles “shall be used only as a measure of last resort”; (2) any such imprisonment shall be “for the shortest appropriate period of time”; (3) juveniles who are in prison shall be “separated from adults”; and (4) they shall have the right to maintain “family contact.” These guidelines serve as a medium through …

The Free Movement Of Capital In Europe: Is The European Court Of Justice Living Up To Its Framers' Intent And Setting An Example For The World?, Jarrod Tudor

Jarrod Tudor

The benefits to free movement of international financial flows are numerous but include an efficient asset market and the opportunity for economic growth and development for countries engaged in an agreement allowing for such freedom. The free movement of capital is one of the four pillars of the Treaty on the Function of the European Union (TFEU) along with the free movement of goods, services, and labor. Article 63 of the TFEU prohibits limitations on the free movement of capital while Article 65 of the TFEU allows for some exceptions. Not only does the free movement of capital doctrine suppose …

Discriminatory Internal Taxation In The European Union: The Power Of The European Court Of Justice To Limit The Tax Sovereignty Of Member-States Under Article 110 Of The Tfeu, Jarrod Tudor

Jarrod Tudor

Protectionism can come in a variety of methods including the use of internal taxation policies that discriminate against imports making those imports more expensive on the domestic market and thus favoring domestically-produced goods. Discriminatory taxation policies have been developed by member-states to mask protectionism by distinguishing products based on import status, product similarity, product life cycle, consumption, tax collection practices, transportation charges, and state aid. The Framers of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) wrote Article 110 with the objective in mind to prohibit internal taxation policies from discriminating against goods in made in other member-states. …

“Ya Me Canse”: How The Iguala Mass Kidnapping Demonstrates Mexico’S Continued Failure To Adhere To Its International Human Rights Obligations, Justin A. Behravesh

Justin A. Behravesh

This article addresses the recent kidnapping and disappearance of forty-three college students from Iguala, Mexico (the “Iguala Mass Kidnapping”), under the lens of the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance (the “Convention”). While Mexico’s reporting documents on its compliance with the Convention paint a positive picture of how that country is adhering to Convention, any notion that the country was in compliance with the Convention was completely shattered through the Iguala Mass Kidnapping. The article concludes that the actions of state officials during the Iguala Mass Kidnapping violated articles one, six, and twenty-three of the …

The Proposed Inheritance Tax And Its Impact On China's Economy, Michael Steve

Michael Steve

No abstract provided.

Nailing Down The Deadlines: A Modified Peremption Scheme For Claims Against Design Professionals, Alex T. Robertson

Alex T Robertson

In Louisiana construction cases, the timeliness of a third party claim for indemnity is contingent on both the profession of the defendant and where the plaintiff files the suit.[1] This moving target effect has roots in Louisiana’s adoption of a single peremptive statute for construction cases in lieu of the previously controlling liberative prescription statutes.[2] Louisiana instituted peremption to create a shorter and fixed period of time for the possibility of a design professional to be sued from a design, which has several positive consequences--judicial efficiency, higher quality of evidence in construction cases, positive economic impact and heightened creativity in …

Notes From A New Underground: The Intersection Of Russian Orthodoxy, Religious Liberty, Lgbt Rights, And State Authority, John Ehrett

John Ehrett

Current laws in the Russian Federation impose sanctions against both speech deemed offensive to Russia’s traditional religious groups and speech considered “propaganda” of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community. This Article offers a contemporary examination of the historical, cultural and political forces underlying these ongoing trends, and offers an interdisciplinary consideration of issues surrounding the intersection of liberty of religious expression with liberty of LGBT expression in Vladimir Putin’s Russia. This is historically contextualized through consideration of the political integration of church and state as a contributing factor toward limitations on these political freedoms. Ultimately, a vision of …

Promoting “Academic Entrepreurship” In Europe And The United States: Creating An Intellectual Property Regime To Facilitate The Efficient Transfer Of Knowledge From The Lab To The Patient, Constance Bagley, Christina Tvarno

Constance E. Bagley

In 2014, the European Commission announced the launch of a study of knowledge transfer by public research organizations and other institutes of higher learning “to determine which additional measures might be needed to ensure an optimal flow of knowledge between the public research organisations and business thereby contributing to the development of the knowledge based economy.” As the European Commission has recognized, the EU needs to take action to “unlock the potential of IPRs [intellectual property rights] that lie dormant in universities, research institutes and companies.” This article builds on our earlier work on structuring efficient pharmaceutical public-private partnerships (PPPPs) …

Rescuing Arbitration In The Developing World: The Extraordinary Case Of Georgia, Steven Austermiller

Steven Austermiller

The country of Georgia has a long and interesting history with arbitration. From “telephone justice” to the criminal underworld to legitimacy, Georgian arbitration has survived many iterations. Now, as Georgia begins the EU accession process, it has a new arbitration law that incorporates international norms. This article analyzes the law, explores how arbitration has been implemented thus far, and discusses some of the challenges that remain. Drawing on his U.S. practice experience in arbitration and his work managing legal reform programs in Georgia and other countries, the author recommends some important changes to Georgia’s new arbitration regime. A particular area …

Does It Matter How One Opposes Memory Bans? A Commentary On Liberte Pour L'Histoire, Robert Kahn

Robert Kahn

This paper examines Liberté pour l'Histoire, a group of French historians who led the charge against that nation’s memory laws, in the process raising unique arguments not found elsewhere in the debate over hate speech regulation. Some of these arguments – such as a focus on how the constitutional structure of the Fifth Republic encouraged memory laws – advance our understanding of the connection between hate speech bans and political institutions. Other arguments, however, are more problematic. In particular, Liberté historians struggle to distinguish the Holocaust (which is illegal to deny) from the Armenian Genocide (which is not). The Liberté …

The Brazilian Appellate Procedure Through Common Law Lenses: How American Standards Of Review May Help Improve Brazilian Civil Procedure, Cesar Zucatti Pritsch

Cesar Zucatti Pritsch

In this article, we address a flaw in Brazilian civil procedure observed in our practice as a Federal Labor Judge in Brazil, an issue that may be addressed by limiting appellate review in a similar fashion as the American courts do, using standards of appellate review.

In Brazil, appellate courts tend to ignore the lower court’s decisions, replacing them for the ruling they would have made had they been the original decision makers. A simple disagreement with the lower court’s findings of fact or discretionary rulings, no matter how reasonable, is sufficient grounds for reversal.

The lack of standards of …

Market Corrective Rulemaking: Drawing On Eu Insights To Rationalize U.S. Regulation, Reeve T. Bull

Reeve T Bull

When justifying the government’s role in intervening in the free market, economists and legal scholars alike point to the problem of “market failures”: laissez-faire capitalism may not produce optimal outcomes in certain cases, and government interventions can promote overall market efficiency. The existence of such market failures is not terribly controversial; the question of whether government regulators can correctly identify these flaws and devise appropriate solutions, by contrast, is significantly more contentious. Unfortunately, under the existing regulatory framework, government officials are not especially well-positioned to make these difficult determinations. Congress does not, as a general matter, consider the economic costs …

It's All Interpretation, All The Way Down, Or, The Reason We Call It The “Practice” Of Law: With Observations From Two Different Legal Systems, John R. Prince Iii

John R. Prince III

This article explores one aspect of the philosophy of law; not what it means to refer to “the law” but what it means to discuss the “practice of law.” That practice is identified as a discursive practice, one where a text is applied to a particular factual context, and thus an interpretive practice. However, the type of interpretation involved in the practice of law is not one of translating one verbal formulation of a rule into another verbal formulation, but the act of bridging the gap between the rule and what that rule means here, and now, in a particular …

Capturing The Transplant: U.S. Antitrust Law In The Eu, Silvia Beltrametti

Silvia Beltrametti

The scholarly literature on the movement of legal norms focuses almost exclusively on transfers from one jurisdiction to another. It largely ignores transfers into new regulatory regimes. Drawing on a case study of the transplantation of U.S. antitrust law into the nascent entity that was to become the European Community, and analyzing its evolution from a public choice perspective, this Article suggests that transfers into new regulatory regimes are more likely to be effective when the lack of established institutions creates opportunities for stakeholders. The endorsement of a new law will enable stakeholders to influence its application and to capture …