Commercial Law Commons^™

In Eu-Africa Trade Relations: Africa Is Not Europe’S “Twin Continent”, Olabisi D. Akinkugbe

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

There is a new struggle for Africa’s market. The contestants include the European Union (EU), United States (US), Russia, India and China. In this blog, I reflect on the new European Union -Africa Comprehensive Strategy proposals. The blog pushes against the Strategy’s revision of the historical relationship between the two regions which is built on embedded inequality. This is because, to be a true partnership, the unequal nature of the relationship between the EU and Africa must be centered. In the contest for its market, Africa has a unique opportunity to harness the competition tactically.

Bank Resolution And Creditor Distribution: The Tension Shaping Global Banking – Part I: “External And Intra-Group Funding” And “Ex Ante Planning V. Ex Post Execution” Dimensions*, David Ramos, Javier Solana

University of Miami Business Law Review

Banking has drastically changed since the 2007-2009 financial crisis and its aftermath. Of all the reforms that impinge upon the ability of global banks to run their business, none is more consequential than the new frameworks on bank resolution, which try to end “too-big-to-fail.” Yet bank resolution’s “macro” goals, such as systemic stability, limitation of contagion, and avoidance of moral hazard, run in the face of insolvency law and the more “micro” principles underpinning it. Among the latter, none is more pervasive than the need for fairness between creditors, and between (and within) creditor classes, enshrined in the ranking and …

The Misuse Of Tobin’S Q, Robert Bartlett, Frank Partnoy

Vanderbilt Law Review

In recent years, scholars have addressed the most important topics in corporate law based on a flawed assumption: that the ratio of the market value of a corporation’s securities to their book value is a valid measure of the value of the corporation. The topics have included staggered boards, incorporation in Delaware, shareholder activism, dual-class share structures, share ownership, board diversity, and other significant aspects of corporate governance. We trace the history of this flawed assumption, and document how it emerged from Tobin’s q, a concept from an unrelated area in macroeconomics. We show that scholars have misused Tobin’s q, …

The Compelled Commercial Speech Cases: Why Not Just Flip A Coin?, R. George Wright

Mercer Law Review

Government regulation of commercial enterprises takes many forms. Among the most familiar forms are requirements that commercial speakers convey particular government-approved commercial messages, presumably for the sake of some sufficient benefit to the persons thereby informed. This Article discusses the difficult problems generated by the case law of compelled commercial speech. Controversies and important paradoxes are examined herein, on the way to the surprising conclusion that in light of the ordinarily limited interests on both sides of the case, typical compelled commercial speech cases can be responsibly resolved, all else equal, by merely flipping a coin.

First, the Article briefly …

Considering Law And Macroeconomics, Anna Gelpern, Adam J. Levitin

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

The worst financial and economic crisis to hit the world’s richest economies since the Great Depression inspired a flood of scholarship that straddled the disciplines of law and macroeconomics. With few exceptions, this crisis scholarship did not set out to build a new interdisciplinary movement and did not claim the legacy of earlier efforts to mine the intersection of law and macroeconomics. What are we to make of this moment ten years on? Could Law and Macroeconomics (#LawMacro for short) be an important new turn in legal and economic thought, a casual interdisciplinary tryst on the margins of a hundred-year …

Directors’ Duties Of Financially Distressed Companies In The Time Of Covid-19, Aurelio Gurrea-Martinez

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

Unlike other jurisdictions around the world, several European countries require corporate directors to file for bankruptcy once a company becomes insolvent. For instance, under German law, corporate directors are required to file for bankruptcy within three weeks since they know, or ought to have known, that the company became insolvent on a balance-sheet or a cash-flow basis. Failure to comply with this duty may expose the directors to both civil and criminal liability. In Spain, a similar duty is imposed. However, instead of exposing directors to criminal liability, they can be subject to other sanctions (including disqualification and liability for …

Causing A Sanctions Violation With U.S. Dollars: Differences In Regulatory Language Across Ofac Sanctions Programs, Christine Abely

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

The Overturning Of Quill And The New Nexus Standard, Ethan T. Kirner

DePaul Business & Commercial Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Blowing The Whistle In The Digital Age: Are You Really Anonymous? The Perils And Pitfalls Of Anonymity In Whistleblowing Law, Tanya M. Marcum J.D., Jacob Young D.B.A., Ethan T. Kirner

DePaul Business & Commercial Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Restructuring As One Of The Ways To Save Licensed Civil Companies Of A Professional Nature From Financial Default, According To The Uae An Analytical Study Law, Dr. Mohammad Saad Al Armman

Faculty Peer-Reviewed Papers | بحوث هيئة التدريس المحكمة

No abstract provided.

Symposium Introduction: Assessing The Roles Of Theory And Methodology In The Study Of Iel In Africa, Olabisi D. Akinkugbe

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

No abstract provided.

Social Justice And Deposit Return Calculations: A Study Of Success And Failure In Commercial Law Reform, William H. Widen

St. John's Law Review

(Excerpt)

This Article proceeds as follows: Part I describes case law which uses a “penalty” interpretation for § 2-718(2) and (3). Part II describes case law in which courts do not apply a penalty. Part III offers a penalty-free interpretation for § 2-718(2) and (3) that remains true to the statutory language. These three parts make extensive use of numerical examples and explanations. Although the presentation may seem dense in parts, an appreciation of the numbers is essential to understanding both the problem and the solution.

Part IV describes the drafting history of § 2-718(2) and (3) to support the …

Compliance As An Exchange Of Legitimacy For Influence, In The Oxford Handbook Of Global Legal Pluralism (Paul Schiff Berman Ed., 2020), Kishanthi Parella

Books and Chapters

This chapter explains that business actors comply with legally nonbinding institutions because of an exchange between legitimacy and influence. Specifically, the information effects produced by both binding and nonbinding institutions can cause reputational damage to a company. To regain its legitimacy, that company associates itself with a more reputable organization than itself, regaining legitimacy through that association. However, that association often comes at a price. In exchange for conferring legitimacy, the external organization will promote its own institutions for the company’s adoption. Companies therefore adopt these institutions in order to credibly signal the quality of their association with the external …

Dissecting Revlon: Severing The Standard Of Conduct From The Standard Of Review In Post-Closing Litigation, Katie Clemmons

Vanderbilt Law Review

In Corwin v. KKR Financial Holdings LLC and its progeny, the Delaware courts made clear that a fully informed, uncoerced vote by disinterested stockholders triggers the waste standard. In Corwin, the Delaware Supreme Court also indicated that Revlon was only meant to provide stockholders with an expedited process for obtaining a preliminary injunction before the closing of a transaction. However, more recent cases indicate that Revlon in fact does apply after the closing of a transaction. Unfortunately, the Delaware courts have not been given an opportunity to determine which standard of review should apply at this stage—enhanced scrutiny, waste, or …

The Liberal Case Against The Modern Class Action, Martin H. Redish

Vanderbilt Law Review

Those who classify themselves as liberal generally favor widespread use of class actions as a means of policing corporate misbehavior and protecting the individual worker or consumer against capitalist excesses. In this Essay, however, I take the counterintuitive position that while class action practice could conceivably be modified in ways that make it far more acceptable than it currently is, liberal political theory should be very skeptical of the modern class action device as it currently exists. Defining the foundation of liberal thought as a process-based belief in accountable democratic government and respect for the right of individuals to protect …

Cultural Due Diligence And M & A In The Wake Of A Pandemic, Michael R. Siebecker, Iris Lozano

Sturm College of Law: Faculty Scholarship

What insights does the Covid-19 pandemic provide regarding how to refocus cultural due diligence to ensure successful firm integration in mergers and acquisitions (“M&A”) transactions? The question seems particularly pressing considering a number of prominent planned acquisitions have been canceled since the advent of the pandemic. Perhaps most notably, on March 31, 2020, Xerox Holdings Corporation terminated its proposed $32.85 billion hostile acquisition of HP Inc. A few months earlier, friendly merger negotiations between the two companies stalled because the companies could not agree on terms for the exchange of confidential information necessary to assess the terms of any deal. …

Interpreting Gobbledygook Under 35 U.S.C. § 101: Does The 2019 Patent Eligibility Guidance Clarify Past Confusion?, Nicole Bruner

American University Business Law Review

No abstract provided.

What Remains Of The Ftc's Enforcement Power After Ftc V. Credit Bureau?, Robert Sommers

Dissertations and Honors Papers

This Comment begins with an introduction of the different enforcement provisions available to the Federal Trade Commission and provides a brief history on the FTC’s use of Section 13(b). Specifically, this Comment focuses on the Seventh Circuit’s opinion in FTC v. Credit Bureau and argues that the court, despite overturning long-standing precedent, got it right. The Comment concludes by addressing the future implications of the Credit Bureau decision on FTC enforcement mechanisms and strategies.

Stay In The Fight With Civility And Professionalism, David Spratt

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

No abstract provided.

Mechanisms For Consultation And Free, Prior And Informed Consent In The Negotiation Of Investment Contracts, Sam Szoke-Burke, Kaitlin Cordes

Northwestern Journal of International Law & Business

Investor-state contracts are regularly used in low- and middle-income countries to grant concessions for land-based and natural resource investments, such as agricultural, extractive industry, forestry, or renewable energy projects. These contracts are rarely negotiated in the presence of, or with meaningful input from, the people who risk being adversely affected by the project. This practice will usually risk violating requirements for meaningful consultation, and, where applicable, free, prior and informed consent (FPIC), and is particularly concerning when the investor-state contract gives the investor company rights to lands or resources over which local communities have legitimate claims.

This article explores how …

Crowding Out Theory: Protecting Shareholders By Balancing Executives’ Incentives In France, The United States, & China, Palden Flynn

Northwestern Journal of International Law & Business

This paper explores the differences between executive compensation regimes in France, the United States, and China. It asks whether there is a link between state regulation of real options as a form of executive compensation and state regulation of shareholder protections. This paper argues that if a country regulates the use of real options as compensation, then that country is also more likely to have strong shareholder protection laws. This argument seems to be true based on a descriptive review of executive compensation law and shareholder protections in France, the United States, and China.

If it is true that countries …

Revisiting The Enforceability Of Online Contracts: The Need For Unambiguous Assent To Inconspicuous Terms, Tom Mozingo

Seattle University Law Review

In determining the enforceability of online contracts, namely those formed from the use of smartphone applications, courts typically look to whether the contract terms were reasonably conspicuous or communicated to the consumer. With the rise of “browse-wrap” contracts, where terms are not directly communicated to the consumer or where the consumer is not required to click the equivalent of an “I agree” button clearly manifesting assent to the terms, courts have inconsistently applied the reasonable communicativeness standard to the detriment of consumers and application developers alike. This Comment will explore the development of browse-wrap contracting jurisprudence and the need to …

In Memory Of Professor James E. Bond, Janet Ainsworth

Seattle University Law Review

Janet Ainsworth, Professor of Law at Seattle University School of Law: In Memory of Professor James E. Bond.

Authorization Of Discovery In International Commercial Arbitration: Demystifying The Sixth Circuit’S Statutory Construction Of 28 U.S.C. § 1782(A), Jason Arendt

American University Business Law Review

No abstract provided.

Demystifying Unconscionability: An Historical And Empirical Analysis, Brian Mccall

Faculty Articles

The doctrine of unconscionability is encrusted with myths. First year law students are taught that the doctrine was created in the twentieth century. Unconscionability is often presented as a novel one, born in the Uniform Commercial Code’s adoption of Section 2-302 in the mid-twentieth century. Even those scholars who are willing to look a bit further afield than the twentieth century for the origins of the unconscionability doctrine typically only reach the mid eighteenth century. In addition to myths surrounding its origin, the doctrine has been presented as a dangerously vague and imprecise concept. Commentators and scholars have likewise characterized …

Investments And Security: Balancing International Commerce And National Security With Expanded Authority For The Committee On Foreign Investment In The United States, Christopher Jusuf

Catholic University Journal of Law and Technology

What happens when the interests of international trade conflict with those of national security? This article analyzes this question within the context of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), an obscure but increasingly powerful executive panel that exercises the president's broad authority to unilaterally interfere with and stop international mergers and acquisitions. With the passage of the Foreign Investment Risk Review Modernization Act (FIRRMA), CFIUS is more powerful now than it has ever been, and should be a key consideration for any company seeking to do business with foreign investors. This is especially true as America …

Pre-Game Strategy For Long-Term Win: Using Trademark Registration And Right Of Publicity To Protect Esports Gamers, John Bat

Catholic University Journal of Law and Technology

The soaring popularity of esports across the globe has turned ultra-talented gamers into a blend of athlete and entertainer. The youthful esports ecosystem is exploding in growth, and the world is taking notice. But are the gamers who are eyeing professional play taking basic legal steps to develop and shield their brands, as well as bolster their collective negotiating leverage with teams, leagues, and miscellaneous entities? This note explores what features of an up-and-coming esports gamer might be worth protecting through a trademark and/or personality-rights schema, which in turn, could assist competitive gamers who are interested in developing their careers …

An Avenue For Fairness: Disclosure-Based Compensation Schemes For Good Faith Purchasers Of Stolen Art, Caroline Harvey

Georgia Law Review

Art theft occurs regularly around the world, and each
year stolen works of art are funneled into the
international art market. While the United States boasts
the world’s largest art market, it is also home to the
biggest market of illegal art. Longstanding principles of
property law are unfavorable to unwitting good faith
purchasers of stolen art, who are often forced to return
works to true owners at great financial loss. This Note
explores the legal implications of purchasing a stolen
work of art in the United States and the equities
associated with defenses available to good faith
purchasers. In …

Identifying Fundamental Breach Of Articles 25 And 49 Of The Cisg: The Good Faith Duty Of Collaborative Efforts To Cure Defects - Make The Parties Draw A Line In The Sand Of Substantiality, Yasutoshi Ishida

Michigan Journal of International Law

Article 49(1) of the CISG allows buyers of international goods to avoid their sales contracts “if the failure by the seller to perform . . . amounts to a fundamental breach.” A breach is “fundamental,” as defined by CISG article 25, when it causes the buyer such detriment “as substantially to deprive him of what he is entitled to expect under the contract.” This definition is followed by the so-called “foreseeability test,” an “unless” clause that excepts the situation where “the party in breach did not foresee[,] and a reasonable person of the same kind in the same circumstances would …

Monetary Consequences Of Environmental Regulations: Costs Of Doing Business Or Non-Deductible Penalties Or Fines?, Daniel P. Fernandez, Alex R. Figares, H. Cecil

American University Business Law Review

No abstract provided.