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University of Washington School of Law

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Articles 511 - 540 of 767

Full-Text Articles in Comparative and Foreign Law

Punishment And Preventing Pollution In Japan: Is American-Style Criminal Enforcement The Solution?, Robert G. Kondrat May 2000

Punishment And Preventing Pollution In Japan: Is American-Style Criminal Enforcement The Solution?, Robert G. Kondrat

Washington International Law Journal

Both Japan and the United States face the ongoing threat of intentional and preventable pollution. From 1970 until the mid-1980s, Japan utilized its environmental crime laws to punish and prevent intentional and preventable acts of pollution. After this period, however, the number of environmental crime arrests and prosecutions in Japan declined. In contrast, since the 1980s, the United States has continued to expand the number of prosecutors and investigators dedicated to the enforcement of environmental crime laws. These divergent trends can be explained by the different pollution histories, enforcement personnel structures, regulatory strategies, and case law of the two countries. …

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The Japanese Firearm And Sword Possession Control Law: Translator's Introduction, Mark Alleman Feb 2000

The Japanese Firearm And Sword Possession Control Law: Translator's Introduction, Mark Alleman

Washington International Law Journal

Japan's Firearm and Sword Possession Control Law was amended in 1993 and again in 1995, partially in response to changing firearms confiscation demographics. In the past, most firearms were confiscated from members of organized crime groups, and the Japanese viewed firearms largely as a danger related to organized crime. However, confiscation statistics suggest that firearms are moving into the hands of the general population, increasing the risk firearms pose to public safety in Japan. In response to this trend, Japan amended the Firearm and Sword Possession Control Law in 1993 and 1995 by adding add new crimes, more severe punishments, …

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One Country, Two (Taxation) Sytems: A Treaty In All But Name, Andrew Halkyard Feb 2000

One Country, Two (Taxation) Sytems: A Treaty In All But Name, Andrew Halkyard

Washington International Law Journal

It came as no small surprise when it was announced in February 1998 that the Chinese mainland ("the Mainland") and Hong Kong had agreed to enter into an arrangement for the avoidance of double taxation of income. Although concerns of double taxation between the Mainland and Hong Kong tended to be more academic than practical, this arrangement helps establish a firm foundation for future co-operation by the Mainland and Hong Kong on trade and other economic matters. From a Hong Kong taxation perspective, it is one of the most significant developments to have occurred for a very long time. From …

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The Proposed Revisions To Japan's Juvenile Law: If Punishment Is Their Answer, They Are Asking The Wrong Question, Jessica Hardung Feb 2000

The Proposed Revisions To Japan's Juvenile Law: If Punishment Is Their Answer, They Are Asking The Wrong Question, Jessica Hardung

Washington International Law Journal

The Juvenile Law in Japan turned fifty years old on January 1, 1999. Japan enjoys one of the lowest overall crime rates of any industrialized nation, but its juvenile crime rate is on the rise. The rise in juvenile crime has prompted Japanese legislators to propose changes to the Juvenile Law. This Comment argues that the majority of the proposed revisions, which do not focus on rehabilitation, should not be adopted and that social controls already in place are sufficient to combat any increase in juvenile delinquency. Japanese culture has unique characteristics that contribute to its low crime rate. In …

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Antitrust In Japan: The Original Intent, Harry First Feb 2000

Antitrust In Japan: The Original Intent, Harry First

Washington International Law Journal

This Article examines the "original intent" of those involved in drafting Japan's Antimonopoly Act, passed in 1947. Japanese sources generally assume this legislation to be pure American invention, a foreign transplant that the Japanese did not understand and that was improperly imposed on a country in which antitrust was, and continues to be, irrelevant. Drawing on original Occupation documents, however, this Article shows that negotiators from Japan's government understood perfectly well what the legislation was about. More than understanding, the government of Japan in fact drafted the statute that was finally enacted, and its provisions reflect the success Japan's negotiators …

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Firearm And Sword Possession Control Law, Mark Alleman Feb 2000

Firearm And Sword Possession Control Law, Mark Alleman

Washington International Law Journal

This Law sets forth safety regulations necessary for the prevention of harm related to the possession and use of firearms and swords.

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Watching The Watchdog: China's State Compensation Law As A Remedy For Procuratorial Misconduct, Keith Hand Feb 2000

Watching The Watchdog: China's State Compensation Law As A Remedy For Procuratorial Misconduct, Keith Hand

Washington International Law Journal

In 1994, China enacted a comprehensive State Compensation Law ("SCL"). The SCL provides individuals and legal entities with the right to compensation in a limited number of situations in which they are harmed by illegal government acts. The purpose of the law is twofold: (1) to guarantee the rights of individuals and legal entities to obtain compensation and (2) to encourage state officials to exercise their powers lawfully. In theory, the SCL provides an important check on the conduct of procurators and other government officials. China's procurators serve dual roles as criminal prosecutors and as supervisors of the legal process. …

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Shihō Ni Nani O Nozomu Ka [What I Desire For The Justice System], Daniel H. Foote Jan 2000

Shihō Ni Nani O Nozomu Ka [What I Desire For The Justice System], Daniel H. Foote

Articles

Explanatory Note: In 1999, the Japanese government established the Justice System Reform Council and charged that Council with “clarifying the role to be played by justice in Japanese society” and examining and deliberating measures necessary to realize an appropriate system. The Council met from 1999 through 2001. In its final report it recommended major reforms to numerous aspects of the justice system, many of which were achieved (including the enactment of over twenty significant pieces of legislation, along with a wide range of reforms that did not require legislative action). In 2000, as the Reform Council was embarking work on …

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Patent Infringement Damages In Japan And The United States: Will Increased Patent Infringement Damage Awards Revive The Japanese Economy?, Toshiko Takenaka Jan 2000

Patent Infringement Damages In Japan And The United States: Will Increased Patent Infringement Damage Awards Revive The Japanese Economy?, Toshiko Takenaka

Articles

This Article will look at the impact of the new Japanese legislation on patent infringement damages and will discuss whether the increase in damage awards contributes to the creation of breakthrough technology. To understand this impact, Part I will discuss pre-1998 legislation damages and highlight the difference between damages awarded by United States courts and those awarded by Japanese courts, by comparing United States and Japanese case examples. In examining the general tort and patent law theories, Part I will also try to identify the source of the difference and discuss how this difference is reflected in current United States …

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Patent Infringement Damages In Japan And The United States: Will Increased Patent Infringement Damage Awards Revive The Japanese Economy?, Toshiko Takenaka Jan 2000

Patent Infringement Damages In Japan And The United States: Will Increased Patent Infringement Damage Awards Revive The Japanese Economy?, Toshiko Takenaka

Articles

Accordingly, this Article will look at the impact of the new Japanese legislation on patent infringement damages and will discuss whether the increase in damage awards contributes to the creation of breakthrough technology. To understand this impact, Part I will discuss pre-1998 legislation damages and highlight the difference between damages awarded by United States courts and those awarded by Japanese courts, by comparing United States and Japanese case examples. In examining the general tort and patent law theories, Part I will also try to identify the source of the difference and discuss how this difference is reflected in current United …

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The Erorsion Of Refugee Rights In Australia: Two Proposed Amendments To The Migration Act, Andrew N. Langham Sep 1999

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 …

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Legalization Of The Birth Control Pill In Japan Will Reduce Reliance On Abortion As The Primary Method Of Birth Control, Evy F. Mcelmeel Sep 1999

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 …

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Law And Discretion In The Contemporary Chinese Courts, Margaret Y.K. Woo Sep 1999

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 …

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The Erorsion Of Refugee Rights In Australia: Two Proposed Amendments To The Migration Act, Andrew N. Langham Sep 1999

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 …

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Chinese Real Estate Mortgage Law, Patrick A. Randolph Jr., Lou Jianbo Sep 1999

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 …

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Criminalizing Money Laundering As A Method And Means Of Curbing Corruption, Organized Crime, And Capital Flight In Russia, Sam Chung Sep 1999

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 …

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A Unitary Asean Patent Law In The Aftermath Of Trips, Christian H. Nguyen Mar 1999

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 …

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Are You My Mommy, Or My Big Brother? Comparing Internet Censorship In Singapore And The United States, Lewis S. Malakoff Mar 1999

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, …

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A Look At Damage Awards Under Japan's Trademark Law And Unfair Competition Prevention Law, Masumi Anna Osaki Mar 1999

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 …

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An Inquiry Into Several Difficult Problems In Enacting China's Uniform Contract Law, Wang Lliming, Keith Hand Mar 1999

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 …

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The 1997 Deregulation Of Japan's Holding Companies, Andrew H. Thorson, Frank Siegfanz Mar 1999

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 …

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The 1997 Deregulation Of Japan's Holding Companies, Andrew H. Thorson, Frank Siegfanz Mar 1999

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 …

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Potential Disregard Of The Corporate Entity & U.S. Subsidiary Invocation Of Japanese Parent's Treaty Rights, Eric K. Kawabata Mar 1999

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 …

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Arbitration Fails To Reduce Foreign Investors' Risk In China, Charles Kenworthey Harer Mar 1999

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 …

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Federal Maritime Commission Sanctions On Japanese Carriers: A Call For Fairer Methods Of Resolving Disputes, Randy L. Baldemor Jan 1999

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. …

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The "Comfort Women" Case: Judgment Of April 27, 1998, Shimonoseki Branch, Yamaguchi Prefectural Court, Japan, Taihei Okada Jan 1999

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.

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Commentary On A Victory For "Comfort Women": Japan's Judicual Recognition Of Military Sexual Slavery, Etsuro Tutsuka Jan 1999

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, …

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Towards A Market Economy: Security Devices For China, Guanghua Yu Jan 1999

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 …

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Labor-Management Cooperation In The United States: Reflections On Boeing, Daniel H. Foote Jan 1999

Labor-Management Cooperation In The United States: Reflections On Boeing, Daniel H. Foote

Articles

No abstract provided.

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Corporate Governance Reform In Russia: The Effectiveness Of The 1996 Russian Company Law, Gregory Wolk Jan 1999

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 …

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