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Full-Text Articles in Comparative and Foreign Law

Future Of Innovation In Medicine: Incentives For New Medical Treatments And Global Health, Anon Feb 2017

Future Of Innovation In Medicine: Incentives For New Medical Treatments And Global Health, Anon

Washington Journal of Law, Technology & Arts

A transcript of the symposium's proceedings.


Constitution And Narrative In The Age Of Crisis In Japanese Politics, Keigo Komamura Jan 2017

Constitution And Narrative In The Age Of Crisis In Japanese Politics, Keigo Komamura

Washington International Law Journal

The most significant political issue facing the legal world in Japan is the drive for constitutional revision led by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). This paper situates the revisionist movement within the context of postwar Japanese politics before drawing on theoretical literature in critical legal studies to analyze the LDP’s draft constituion to reveal the magnitude of the proposed changes and to assess the risk they pose to the rule of law in Japan. The paper argues that the proposed draft constitution eschews the languages of the current constitution like “a universal principle of mankind”, …


Article 9 In The Post-Sunakawa World: Continuity And Deterrence Within A Transforming Global Context, John O. Haley Jan 2017

Article 9 In The Post-Sunakawa World: Continuity And Deterrence Within A Transforming Global Context, John O. Haley

Washington International Law Journal

The 1959 Supreme Court Grand Bench (en banc) decision in Sakata v. Japan (the Sunakawa case) was the first Supreme Court decision on Article 9 and the constitutionality of Japan's defense policies. In the precedent-setting decision, all fifteen justices endorsed the view that under Article 9 Japan retained a fundamental right of self-defense and could enter into treaties for mutual security. In the absence of an apparent or "clear" violation, the courts, Sunakawa held, must defer to the judgment of the political branches on the issue of constitutionality. The Court thereby established the outer parameters for judicial review …


Garbage Day: Will Italy Finally Take Out Its Trash In The Land Of Fires?, Jason A. Slaybaugh Jan 2017

Garbage Day: Will Italy Finally Take Out Its Trash In The Land Of Fires?, Jason A. Slaybaugh

Washington International Law Journal

The illegal dumping and burning of waste and toxic waste in southern Italy has caused such immense environmental damage that the disaster is now known as “Italy’s Chernobyl”. In early 2014, the Italian Senate passed the Land of Fires Decree, a sweeping new law aimed at solving a problem that Italy has historically failed to adequately address. Despite the broad grants of power and the new crime created, the lack of political will renders these new tools useless and means little will likely change. Italy can no longer put this fire out by itself. As such, Italy should look to …


Japan’S Adr System For Resolving Nuclear Power-Related Damage Disputes, Daniel H. Foote Jan 2017

Japan’S Adr System For Resolving Nuclear Power-Related Damage Disputes, Daniel H. Foote

Articles

This paper has dual aims. First, it introduces the Nuclear Power-Related Damage Claim Resolution Center, established in 2011 to handle disputes arising out of the March 2011 meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. After first examining the genesis of that Center, this paper describes its structure and roles and discusses its performance, including the challenges it has faced and the accomplishments it has achieved. Second, this paper seeks to place that Center into the broader context of the overall development of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) in Japan and to assess its impact. Two major themes recur throughout this …


A Review Of Who Rules Japan?: Popular Participation In The Japanese Legal Process, Daniel H. Foote Jan 2017

A Review Of Who Rules Japan?: Popular Participation In The Japanese Legal Process, Daniel H. Foote

Washington International Law Journal

Who Rules Japan? is a valuable addition to the literature on Japanese law. Seven substantive chapters explore important recent developments in a wide range of fields. The ten authors—including leading experts in criminal justice, labor law and other fields—all are highly qualified and all have undertaken extensive research. Each of the chapters breaks new ground; and collectively they provide a wealth of new information, new methodological approaches, and new theoretical insights. To summarize briefly, Leon Wolff, Luke Nottage, and Kent Anderson (who also served as editors for the entire volume) begin the book with a thoughtful Preface and Introduction (Chapter …


Contemplated Amendments To Japan's 1947 Constitution: A Return To Iye, Kokutai And The Meiji State, Carl F. Goodman Jan 2017

Contemplated Amendments To Japan's 1947 Constitution: A Return To Iye, Kokutai And The Meiji State, Carl F. Goodman

Washington International Law Journal

The post World War II American Occupation of Japan was a huge programmatic success. Its disarmament, repatriation, land reform, and health programs put a defeated Japan on the road to recuperation, while providing a military shield that enabled Japan to focus on recovery from the War and rebuilding the country and economy. Perhaps its most enduring legacy was its Enlightenment-based, American-drafted, rights-oriented Constitution of 1947 [hereinafter “the Constitution”]. Drafted in English, the Constitution was promulgated in Japanese, resulting in some substantive changes. Among the most important of these were changing the English word “people” into the Japanese “kokumin” …


The End Of Constitutional Pacifism?, Yasuo Hasebe Jan 2017

The End Of Constitutional Pacifism?, Yasuo Hasebe

Washington International Law Journal

On September 19, 2015, the National Diet of Japan enacted a series of statutes which enable the government to exercise the right of collective self-defense. One of the statutes also enables the government to dispatch the Self-defense Forces to take charge of logistics for foreign military forces waging wars. This enactment symbolises Japan’s turn of course regarding its long-held stance on constitutional pacifism. Pacifism maintained under the Constitution of Japan was not pure pacifism rejecting any use of force. The successive governments held that the right of individual self-defense, in other words, the right to use force in order to …


Supreme People's Court Annual Report On Intellectual Property Cases (2015) (China), Xiaohan Lou, Mingyuan Song, Chao Yu Jan 2017

Supreme People's Court Annual Report On Intellectual Property Cases (2015) (China), Xiaohan Lou, Mingyuan Song, Chao Yu

Washington International Law Journal

The Supreme People’s Court of China began publishing its Annual Report on Intellectual Property Cases in 2008. The annual reports, published in April each year, summarize and review new intellectual property cases. This translation includes all 32 cases and 38 legal issues of the 2015 Annual Report. It addresses various areas of law related to intellectual property, including patent law, trademark law, copyright law, unfair competition law, antitrust law, new plant product patent law, and laws related to procedural and evidentiary issues in intellectual property cases. While China is not a common law country, these cases serve as guidelines for …


Interpretation Of The Pacifist Article Of The Constitution By The Bureau Of Cabinet Legislation: A New Source Of Constitutional Law?, Hajime Yamamoto Jan 2017

Interpretation Of The Pacifist Article Of The Constitution By The Bureau Of Cabinet Legislation: A New Source Of Constitutional Law?, Hajime Yamamoto

Washington International Law Journal

This article analyzes recent change of Japanese governmental interpretation of Article 9 of the Constitution of Japan concerning the right of collective self-defense. This governmental interpretation of Article 9 has been elaborated by the Bureau of Cabinet Legislation. This article criticizes a recent critique of this situation by main stream Japanese constitutional scholars as “crisis of constitutionalism”.


Privacy Harmonization And The Developing World: The Impact Of The Eu's General Data Protection Regulation On Developing Economies, Tiffany Curtiss Oct 2016

Privacy Harmonization And The Developing World: The Impact Of The Eu's General Data Protection Regulation On Developing Economies, Tiffany Curtiss

Washington Journal of Law, Technology & Arts

Through strengthened third-party obligations for data protection, the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation will export privacy norms. However, developing economies may want to consider a co-regulatory industry approach to data protection before adopting similar national legislation. The General Data Protection Regulation can be an ideal model for global harmonization of privacy laws, particularly for adoption among industries and willing participants. To benefit from a co-regulatory approach, however, a developing economy would need to invest in education and legal systems in order to capture the benefits of the growing e-commerce market that will undoubtedly be influenced by the General Data …


The Influence Of Special Interest Groups On Copyright Law And Policy—A Comparison Of The Legislative Processes In The United States And Switzerland, Michael P. Kunz Oct 2016

The Influence Of Special Interest Groups On Copyright Law And Policy—A Comparison Of The Legislative Processes In The United States And Switzerland, Michael P. Kunz

Washington Journal of Law, Technology & Arts

In April 2016, the Office of the United States Trade Representative placed Switzerland on the Watch List of its 2016 Special 301 Report, which contains an annual review of the state of intellectual property rights protection and enforcement in U.S. trading partners around the world. According to the Report, the decision to put Switzerland on the Watch List was premised on U.S. concerns regarding specific difficulties in Switzerland’s system of online copyright protection and enforcement, particularly the “Logistep” ruling issued by the Federal Supreme Court of Switzerland in 2010. Although the Swiss authorities have acknowledged the difficulties mentioned in the …


Globalization, Rights, And Judicial Review In The Supreme Court Of India, Manoj Mate Jun 2016

Globalization, Rights, And Judicial Review In The Supreme Court Of India, Manoj Mate

Washington International Law Journal

This article examines the broader and evolving role of the Supreme Court of India in an era of globalization by examining the Court’s decisionmaking in rights-based challenges to economic liberalization, privatization, and development policies over the past three decades. While the Court has been mostly deferential in its review of these policies and projects, it has in many cases been active and instrumental in remaking and reshaping regulatory frameworks, bureaucratic structures, accountability norms, and in redefining the terrain of fundamental rights that non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and other litigants have invoked in challenges to these policies. This article argues that the …


The "Chaudhry Court": Deconstructing The "Judicialization Of Politics" In Pakistan, Moeen H. Cheema Jun 2016

The "Chaudhry Court": Deconstructing The "Judicialization Of Politics" In Pakistan, Moeen H. Cheema

Washington International Law Journal

The Supreme Court of Pakistan underwent a remarkable transformation in its institutional role and constitutional position during the tenure of the former Chief Justice of Pakistan, Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry (2005–2013). This era in Pakistan’s judicial history was also marked by great controversy as the court faced charges that it had engaged in “judicial activism,” acted politically, and violated the constitutionally mandated separation of powers between institutions of the state. This article presents an in-depth analysis of the judicial review actions of the Chaudhry Court and argues that the charge of judicial activism is theoretically unsound and analytically obfuscating. The notion …


The Politics Of Constitutional Common Law In Hong Kong Under Chinese Sovereignty, Eric C. Ip Jun 2016

The Politics Of Constitutional Common Law In Hong Kong Under Chinese Sovereignty, Eric C. Ip

Washington International Law Journal

This article studies how the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal has come to develop a sophisticated judicial gloss on the provisions of the Basic Law, Hong Kong’s constitutional document, in ways unforeseen by the Chinese National People’s Congress that enacted it. The ascendancy of constitutional common law in Hong Kong after the end of British rule is remarkable when considered in light of the continuing denial of democratic self-rule by China’s authoritarian Party-state. This article argues that the profusion of political transaction costs due to the fragmentation of the ruling elite and state-society discord consequent to the resumption of …


The Rise And Fall Of Historic Chief Justices: Constitutional Politics And Judicial Leadership In Indonesia, Stefanus Hendrianto Jun 2016

The Rise And Fall Of Historic Chief Justices: Constitutional Politics And Judicial Leadership In Indonesia, Stefanus Hendrianto

Washington International Law Journal

In the decade following its inception, the Indonesian Constitutional Court has marked a new chapter in Indonesian legal history, one in which a judicial institution can challenge the executive and legislative branches. This article argues that judicial leadership is the main contributing factor explaining the emergence of judicial power in Indonesia. This article posits that the newly established Indonesian Constitutional Court needed a strong and skilled Chief Justice to build the institution because it had insufficient support from political actors. As the Court lacked a well-established tradition of judicial review, it needed a visionary leader who could maximize the structural …


On The Uneven Journey To Constitutional Redemption: The Malaysian Judiciary And Constitutional Politics, Yvonne Tew Jun 2016

On The Uneven Journey To Constitutional Redemption: The Malaysian Judiciary And Constitutional Politics, Yvonne Tew

Washington International Law Journal

This article explores the Malaysian judiciary’s approach toward interpreting the Federal Constitution of Malaysia and situates it within the context of the nation’s political and constitutional history. It traces the judiciary’s movement toward a more rights-oriented approach followed by its more recent retreat, which has been marked by strict formalism and insularity in several appellate court decisions. This article argues that the Malaysian courts’ journey toward constitutional redemption has been uneven so far. In order to reclaim its constitutional position as a co-equal branch of government, the Malaysian judiciary must be willing to uphold its constitutional duty to assert its …


Constitutional Fig Leaves In Asia, Po Jen Yap Jun 2016

Constitutional Fig Leaves In Asia, Po Jen Yap

Washington International Law Journal

Constitutional landscapes in Asia are littered with fig leaves. These proverbial fig leaves are legal principles, doctrines, and theories of interpretation that judges appeal to when resolving constitutional disputes. This article uncovers and examines three constitutional fig leaves that are prevalent and flourishing in Asia: 1) formalism and its conceptual variants; 2) the exercise of judicial review that is merely symbolic; and 3) the invocation of vacuous constitutional doctrines. This article further argues that judicial recourse to fig leaves is not intended to deceive anyone about what courts are doing; the fig leaves are on public display merely to demonstrate …


Moving Towards A Nominal Constitutional Court? Critical Reflections On The Shift From Judicial Activism To Constitutional Irrelevance In Taiwan's Constitutional Politics, Ming-Sung Kuo Jun 2016

Moving Towards A Nominal Constitutional Court? Critical Reflections On The Shift From Judicial Activism To Constitutional Irrelevance In Taiwan's Constitutional Politics, Ming-Sung Kuo

Washington International Law Journal

The Taiwan Constitutional Court (TCC, also known as the Council of Grand Justices) has been regarded as a central player in Taiwan’s transition to democracy in the late twentieth century. Transforming from a rubberstamp under the authoritarian regime into a facilitator of political dispute settlement, the TCC channelled volatile political forces into its jurisdiction. Thanks to the TCC’s judicial activism, the judicialization of constitutional politics was characteristic of Taiwan’s democratization in the last two decades of the twentieth century. The TCC scholarship asserts that the TCC has continued to play a pivotal role in Taiwan’s constitutional politics in the twenty-first …


A Comparative Study Of Non-Compete Agreements For Trade Secret Protection In The United States And China, Hui Shangguan Apr 2016

A Comparative Study Of Non-Compete Agreements For Trade Secret Protection In The United States And China, Hui Shangguan

Washington Journal of Law, Technology & Arts

Non-compete agreements are commonly used in both the United States and China, and are regarded as an important means for employers to prevent employees or rival companies from using valuable trade secrets for competitive purposes. Despite their popularity, however, the enforceability of non-competes in both countries can be difficult to determine. In the U.S., the level to which non-competes are fully enforced varies by jurisdiction. While some state courts apply a “rule of reason,” others, such as California, prohibit non-competes altogether. In contrast, Chinese courts tend to support non-competes. This Article provides a comparative perspective of non-competes in the U.S. …


Translation, Codification, And Transplantation Of Foreign Laws In Taiwan, Tay-Sheng Wang Apr 2016

Translation, Codification, And Transplantation Of Foreign Laws In Taiwan, Tay-Sheng Wang

Washington International Law Journal

Taiwan is an excellent example for rethinking the significance of translation and codification of law in the process of transplantation of modern law in East Asian countries. Regardless of its strangeness to the general public, the translation of Western laws was always codified in Meiji Japan for the purpose of “receiving” modern law. Those Westernized Japanese legal codes also took effect in Taiwan during the later period of Japanese colonial rule, although Japanese colonialists initially applied Taiwanese customary law, created by Western legal terminology, to the Taiwanese to decrease their resistance to the new regime. Using foreign Japanese language to …


Don't Count Your Nest Eggs Before They Vest: A Lack Of Reform Could Leave A Generation Of Retiring Israelis Without A Future, Tomer Vandsburger Apr 2016

Don't Count Your Nest Eggs Before They Vest: A Lack Of Reform Could Leave A Generation Of Retiring Israelis Without A Future, Tomer Vandsburger

Washington International Law Journal

Israel’s pension system has changed drastically since the mid-1990s, when it faced an underfunding crisis. The transition to defined contribution plans permitted a wider range of investments and shifted the burden of income-replacement from the government to the individual pension plan participant. This shift required increased protections for pension plans, which led to the creation of the Capital Market Insurance and Savings Division (CMISD) to oversee and regulate pension management entities. In comparison to post-Soviet nations that experienced similar transitions from socialist to market economies, Israel’s pension system is significantly healthier and more regulated. However, the CMISD must enact measures …


Identity Laws And Privacy Protection In A Modern State: The Legal History Concerning Personal Information In Taiwan (1895-2015), Yung-Hua Kuo, Po-Liang Chen Apr 2016

Identity Laws And Privacy Protection In A Modern State: The Legal History Concerning Personal Information In Taiwan (1895-2015), Yung-Hua Kuo, Po-Liang Chen

Washington International Law Journal

This article investigates the continuity and transformation of the personal identity and identification legal systems in Taiwan. From 1895 to 2015, Japan and subsequently the Republic of China (ROC) ruled Taiwan and transplanted different legal systems of personal information to Taiwan. This article analyzes how these systems were applied to and impacted Taiwanese society in three periods: the Japanese rule period (1895–1945), the period of strict control by the ROC government (1945–1992), and the rise and evolution of the privacy period (1993–2015). When Taiwan was ruled by the Qing Empire (1683–1895), there was no precise personal information database in Taiwan. …


Legal Analysis: Daesh Control Of Watercourses In Syria And Iraq, Nadim Damluji Apr 2016

Legal Analysis: Daesh Control Of Watercourses In Syria And Iraq, Nadim Damluji

Washington International Law Journal

After years of turmoil, the volatile situation in Iraq and Syria erupted into chaos, setting the stage for the rise of Daesh. Under the leadership of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi since 2013, Daesh has successfully gained control of territory and influence throughout vast regions of Iraq and Syria to create a new religious caliphate. In the water-scarce region, Daesh has executed a plan to capture the most precious resource available: water. The critical threat Daesh poses to watercourse installations along the Tigris and Euphrates in Syria and Iraq poses a pressing challenge to water security in the Middle East. How might …


Large-Scale Land Acquisitions And Applying A Gender Lens To Supply Chain Reform, Mina Manuchehri Apr 2016

Large-Scale Land Acquisitions And Applying A Gender Lens To Supply Chain Reform, Mina Manuchehri

Washington International Law Journal

In recent years, multinational corporations, in particular food and beverage companies, have committed to “zero tolerance for land grabs” throughout their supply chains. To achieve this end, companies have also committed to international legal norms, including Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC) and the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs). Although these commitments were unprecedented, no company explicitly requires the consideration of women’s use of and rights to land when remedying land grabs or acquiring land. To guarantee that women are included and consulted throughout land acquisition processes, companies should explicitly require the application of a …


Monitoring Hiv And Aids Related Policy Reforms: A Road Map To Strengthen Policy Monitoring And Implementation In Pepfar Partner Countries, Jeffrey Lane, Andre Verani, Mai Hijazi, Erin Hurley, Amy Hagopian, Nicole Judice, Ron Macinnis, Sallie Sanford, Sarah Zelek, Aaron Katz Feb 2016

Monitoring Hiv And Aids Related Policy Reforms: A Road Map To Strengthen Policy Monitoring And Implementation In Pepfar Partner Countries, Jeffrey Lane, Andre Verani, Mai Hijazi, Erin Hurley, Amy Hagopian, Nicole Judice, Ron Macinnis, Sallie Sanford, Sarah Zelek, Aaron Katz

Articles

Achieving an AIDS-free generation will require the adoption and implementation of critical health policy reforms. However, countries with high HIV burden often have low policy development, advocacy, and monitoring capacity. This lack of capacity may be a significant barrier to achieving the AIDS-free generation goals. This manuscript describes the increased focus on policy development and implementation by the United States President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). It evaluates the curriculum and learning modalities used for two regional policy capacity building workshops organized around the PEPFAR Partnership Framework agreements and the Road Map for Monitoring and Implementing Policy Reforms. …


Trial By One's Peers: The Need To Expand Japan's Lay Judge System, Harrison L.E. Owens Jan 2016

Trial By One's Peers: The Need To Expand Japan's Lay Judge System, Harrison L.E. Owens

Washington International Law Journal

As a civil law-based country, Japan’s legal system has historically placed a strong emphasis on the formalistic application of code provisions to cases by professional judges without a jury. Within the criminal justice system, prosecutors have played a highly significant role in all cases. They exclusively make the decision to indict an alleged criminal, conduct investigation of crimes, initiate a criminal case, and they also control and supervise enforcement of a conviction. In addition, the Prosecutors Office of Japan has historically emphasized the need to obtain a high rate of convictions to maintain the Japanese public’s trust in, and high …


Real-Name Registration Rules And The Fading Digital Anonymity In China, Jyh-An Lee, Ching-Yi Liu Jan 2016

Real-Name Registration Rules And The Fading Digital Anonymity In China, Jyh-An Lee, Ching-Yi Liu

Washington International Law Journal

China has implemented comprehensive online real-name registration rules, which require Internet users to disclose their identities. Chinese national law has required most online service providers to implement real-name registration since 2012. This article uses the real-name registration rules to illustrate the supremacy and limitations of the Network Authoritarian Model (NAM), an approach leveraging corporate resources for political surveillance and occasionally adopted by the Chinese party-state. By addressing the evolution of real-name registration rules in China, this article illustrates the party-state’s gradual efforts in both eliminating cyberspace anonymity and etching Chinese characteristics on the architecture of the Internet. Although the Chinese …


Explaining Comparative Administrative Law: The Standing Of Positive Political Theory, Benjamin Minhao Chen, Zhiyu Li Jan 2016

Explaining Comparative Administrative Law: The Standing Of Positive Political Theory, Benjamin Minhao Chen, Zhiyu Li

Washington International Law Journal

The principal-agent model of administrative law sees bureaucrats as imperfectly supervised agents of their political principals and courts as a tool used by the latter to monitor and check the former. This paper compares how the class of plaintiffs authorized to bring suit against governmental bodies has been defined in three countries where one should expect to find significant barriers to administrative litigation—Japan, Singapore, and the People’s Republic of China. Although these three Asian countries have traditionally been one-party dominated states, we do observe substantial differences in how legislatures and courts have addressed the issue of standing over time. It …


Supreme People's Court Annual Report On Intellectual Property Cases (2015) (China), Xiaohan Lou, Mingyuan Song, Chao Yu Jan 2016

Supreme People's Court Annual Report On Intellectual Property Cases (2015) (China), Xiaohan Lou, Mingyuan Song, Chao Yu

Washington International Law Journal

The Supreme People’s Court of China began publishing its Annual Report on Intellectual Property Cases in 2008. The annual reports, published in April each year, summarize and review new intellectual property cases. This translation includes all 32 cases and 38 legal issues of the 2015 Annual Report. It addresses various areas of law related to intellectual property, including patent law, trademark law, copyright law, unfair competition law, antitrust law, new plant product patent law, and laws related to procedural and evidentiary issues in intellectual property cases. While China is not a common law country, these cases serve as guidelines for …