Comparative and Foreign Law Commons^™

Marbury In Mexico: Judicial Review’S Precocious Southern Migration, M C. Mirow

Faculty Publications

In attempting to construct United States-style judicial review for the Mexican Supreme Court in the 1880s, Ignacio Vallarta, president of the court, read Marbury in a way that preceded this use of the case in the United States. Using this surprising fact as a central example, this article makes several important contributions to the field of comparative constitutional law. The work demonstrates that through constitutional migration, novel readings of constitutional sources can arise in foreign fora. In an era when the United States Supreme Court may be accused of parochialism in its constitutional analysis, the article addresses the current controversy …

Teaching Comparative Perspectives In Mediation: Some Preliminary Reflections Symposium: Transatlantic Perspectives On Alternative Dispute Resolution, Jacqueline Nolan-Haley

Faculty Scholarship

The study of comparative law and legal process in any subject area offers the usual advantages of learning about other countries' legal cultures and developing a deeper understanding of one's own legal tradition. In the case of mediation, it is important to evaluate critically what is learned through comparative analysis. Mediation is still developing as a profession; it is newly institutionalized in legal cultures; and, it is relatively new to the canon of legal education. National legal traditions have responded differently to the implementation of mediation. Thus, lawyers must have an understanding of the differences and nuances in mediation law …

Consent In Mediation , Jacqueline Nolan-Haley

Faculty Scholarship

This brief comparative analysis of the United States and English approaches to mediation consent raises policy questions about the merits of mandatory mediation. Is England on a better course by requiring consent at the front end of mediation? Will mediation be stronger in the long run when it has a consensual foundation? Arguably, the use of cost sanctions in England's mediation regime makes it close to a mandatory mediation system. For some litigants, participating in mediation will be potentially less costly than arguing that it was not unreasonable to refuse mediation. But despite the mandatory gloss, mediation is still a …

Official Language A, B, Cs: Why The Canadian Experience With Official Languages Does Not Support Arguments To Declare English The Official Language Of The United States, Marla B. Somerstein

University of Miami Inter-American Law Review

No abstract provided.

Child Pornography In Canada And The United States: The Myth Of Right Answers, Travis Johnson

Dalhousie Law Journal

Child pornography is an increasing worldwide concern and is one of the most active fronts in the ongoing battle between freedom of expression and public safety and morality. In 2005, the child pornography provisions of the Canadian Criminal Code were amended in response to the controversial decision of the Supreme Court in R. v. Sharpe. Similar legislative response has occurred in the United States following the U.S. Supreme Court decision inAshcroft v. Free Speech Coalition. A comparative examination of the legislative and judicial treatments of the issue of child pornography in these countries reveals that despite reaching differing rights-balancing positions, …

Enforcing Foreign Summary/Default Judgments: The Damoclean Sword Hanging Over Pro Se Canadian Corporate Defendants? Case Comment On U.S.A. V. Shield Development, Antonin I. Pribetic

ExpressO

Following the 2003 Supreme Court of Canada decision in Beals v. Saldanha, where the “real and substantial connection” test is otherwise met (i.e. consent-based jurisdiction, presence-based jurisdiction or assumed jurisdiction) the only available defences to a domestic defendant seeking to have a Canadian court refuse enforcement of a foreign judgment are fraud, public policy and natural justice. The 2005 Ontario decision in United States of America v. Shield Development Co., presents an opportunity to critically analyze the defence of natural justice through a juxtaposition of American and Canadian procedural law. The thesis is that procedural justice mandates that “form follow …

Transsystemia–Are We Approaching A New Langdellian Moment? Is Mcgill Leading The Way?, Peter L. Strauss

Journal of Legal Education

No abstract provided.

The Chameleon Effect: Beyond The Bonding Hypothesis For Cross-Listed Securities, Cally Jordan

ExpressO

This paper is based on a presentation made at the New York Stock Exchange Conference on the Future of Global Equity Trading, March 12, 2004, Sarasota, FL.

Looking back, was it a momentary enthusiasm? The dramatic increase in cross-listed securities, particularly in the United States, was one of the remarkable phenomena of the 1990s capital markets. The bonding, or corporate governance, hypothesis was one of the more intriguing theories to surface to explain the phenomenon. Cross-listing, the hypothesis suggested, might be a bonding mechanism by which firms, incorporated in a jurisdiction with “weak protection” of minority shareholder rights or poor …

Any Place For Ethnicity? The Liberal State And Immigration, David Abraham

ExpressO

When it comes to immigration, almost all liberal states are faced with the contradiction between their universalist principles and the real affinities they feel for ethnic kinsmen. This review essay (4000 words) addresses the different ways a number of liberal democracies have handled this dilemma.

Constitutional Realism About Constitutional Protection: Indigenous Rights Under A Judicialized And A Politicized Constitution, Matthew Sr Palmer

Dalhousie Law Journal

This article assesses the comparative effectiveness of constitutional protection of indigenous rights in Canada and New Zealand using a perspective of "constitutional realism". The two constitutions offer a useful contrast of similar systems distinguished by distinctly contrasting directions over the past twentyfive years. The reality of Canadas constitutional development has seen more power accrue to the judicial branch of government. The reality of New Zealand's constitutional development has seen more power accrue to the political branches ofgovernment. The article considers the reality of the behaviour of these branches of government in each jurisdiction in relation to indigenous rights. It finds …

Larceny Offenses In Islamic Law , Hisham M. Ramadan

ExpressO

No abstract provided.

The Use And Misuse Of Comparative Constitutional Law (The George P. Smith Lecture In International Law), Cheryl Saunders

Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies

This article examines the extent and nature of the use of foreign law in constitutional adjudication in common law systems outside the United States, with special reference to Australia. Demonstrating that the courts of other common law jurisdictions use foreign case law readily, naturally, and for a variety of purposes, the article reaches two broad conclusions: (1) as a generalization, other common law countries do not share the concern about the legitimacy of comparative precedents that manifests itself in the United States, and (2) as a consequence, other common law countries necessarily share with the United States an interest in …

Lost In Translation: The Economic Analysis Of Law In The United States And Europe, Kenneth G. Dau-Schmidt, Carmen L. Brun

Articles by Maurer Faculty

In this Essay, we examine the reasons why the economic analysis of law has not flourished in European countries as it has in the United States. In particular, we focus on three European countries-the United Kingdom, Germany, and France. We argue that differences in culture, the legal system, and the academy have led to differing degrees of success of the law and economics movement in each country. We speculate that, although there is currently less interest in the economic analysis of the law in Europe than in the United States, European interest could dramatically increase if scholars adopt more communitarian …

Introduction, Ruti Teitel

NYLS Law Review

No abstract provided.

"A Decent Respect To The Opinions Of Mankind": Referring To Foreign Law To Express American Nationhood, Mark V. Tushnet

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

Why might a court refer to non-U.S. law? Justice Stephen Breyer's pragmatic defense of the practice is probably the most widely known, as are its defects. Here, I want to sketch a counterintuitive explanation for the practice. Referring to non-U.S. law in Supreme Court opinions might be a way in which Supreme Court Justices participate in the dissemination of a distinctively American self-understanding. By this I do not mean that Justices who refer to non-U.S. law necessarily endorse the (reasonable) interpretive theory that the U.S. Constitution instantiates universally true propositions of political morality. Rather, I mean that references to non-U.S. …

Referring To Foreign Law In Constitutional Interpretation: An Episode In The Culture Wars, Mark V. Tushnet

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

As Judge Messitte's essay demonstrates, recent references in Supreme Court decisions to non-U.S. legal materials have generated a great deal of controversy. Those who make such references say that doing so is no big deal. I have called the controversy a tempest in a teapot. My topic here is the disjuncture between the perception on one side that something important and troubling has happened - or, as I will argue, may be about to happen - and the perception on the other that there is nothing to be concerned about. After describing in Section I the practice that has given …

When Is Knowing Less Better Than Knowing More? Unpacking The Controversy Over Supreme Court Reference To Non-U.S. Law, Mark V. Tushnet

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

My goal in this Essay is simply to lay out the criticisms of the use of non-U.S. law in constitutional interpretation, so as to identify what might be correct (not much, in the end) in those criticisms. I discuss criticisms based on theories of interpretation, on the claim that reference to non-U.S. law is merely decoration playing no role in generating outcomes, on the role the Constitution has in expressing distinctively American values, and on the proposition that judges are unlikely to do a good job in understanding - and therefore in referring to - non-U.S. law. This last "quality-control" …

Educating Lawyers For Transnational Challenges: The Challenge Of Islamic Law, Ali Ahmad

Journal of Legal Education

No abstract provided.

A Survey Of Aals Law Schools Teaching Islamic Law, John Makdisi

Journal of Legal Education

No abstract provided.

Special Methods And Tools For Educating The Transnational Lawyer: Exchanges, Ian Holloway

Journal of Legal Education

No abstract provided.

Is There A Curricular Core For The Transnational Lawyer?, Michael Bogdan

Journal of Legal Education

No abstract provided.

The Shari'a Factor In International Commercial Arbitration, Faisal M. Kutty

ExpressO

The world has witnessed a phenomenal growth in commercial disputes transcending national borders due to our increasingly interrelated and globalized world economy. In addition to issues in interpretation of commercial agreements and practices, differences in custom, language, culture and religion will continue to fuel conflicts and disagreements between commercial players. Over the last few decades there have been growing commercial interaction between Western companies and their Middle Eastern counterparts. Given this interaction and the great geo-political and economic importance of this region, it is imperative that Western lawyers and dispute resolution professionals have a reasonable grasp of the general principles …

Va Savoir! - The Adage "Jura Novit Curia" In Contemporary France, Douglas Brooker

ExpressO

The Civilian adage jura novit curia – the court knows the law – for all that it is well recognised in France does not receive much scrutiny. This is unusual first because some claim it expresses a fundamental principle of French law and secondly because rules and practices associated with jura novit curia are controversial. The paper remedies the scholarly deficit, scrutinising seven definitions of jura novit curia to catalogue for the first time the divergent meanings associated with the adage and to analyse their status in French law and legal culture. While many meanings are attributed to jura novit …

The View Outside: What Kind Of Expression For Adolescents Outside The United States?, Edward J. Eberle

Law Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Reforming Retirement Systems: Why The French Have Succeeded When Americans Have Not, Kathryn L. Moore

Law Faculty Scholarly Articles

In order to understand why the American Social Security system has been so resistant to change while the retirement systems in other countries have been amended, this Article analyzes why one country, France, was able to reform its retirement system significantly in 2003. The Article begins by briefly describing the French retirement system prior to 2003. It then provides an overview of the most significant changes wrought by the reform enacted in 2003. It then analyses why, after years of inaction and failed attempts to reform the French retirement system, the government succeeded in reforming the retirement system in 2003. …

Foreign Law And The U.S. Constitution, Kenneth Anderson

Popular Media

The use of foreign law and unratified international treaty law by U.S. courts in U.S. constitutional adjudication has emerged as a major debate among justices of the U.S. Supreme Court, with Justice Anthony Kennedy writing for a majority approving the practice in the March 2005 decision of Roper v. Simmons, and Justices Antonin Scalia and Stephen Breyer undertaking an unusual public discussion of the practice in January 2005 at American University law school. This article examines the arguments made by Justices Kennedy, Scalia, and Breyer for and against the practice, setting them in the broader context of constitutional theory. It …

Harmonizing Business Laws In Africa: Ohada Calls The Tune, Claire M. Dickerson

ExpressO

OHADA (in English, “Organization for Harmonization in Africa of Business Laws”) is a system of business laws and implementing institutions. Sixteen West African nations adopted this regime in order to increase their attractiveness to foreign investment. Because most of the member-states are former French colonies, the OHADA laws are based on the French legal system. Despite certain economists’ recent, well-publicized assertions that any French-based legal system is incompatible with development, other studies challenge those claims and in doing so outline characteristics that a pro-development system of business laws should possess. A review of selected provisions from OHADA’s corporate law and …

Foreign Judgments At Common Law: Rethinking The Enforcement Rules, Tanya J. Monestier

Dalhousie Law Journal

England and Canada have adopted divergent approaches to the enforcement of foreign civil and commercial judgments. An English court will only enforce a foreign judgment where the defendant submitted to the junsdiction of the foreign court, or was present in the foreign jurisdiction when served with process. This position. while protecting domestic defendants, is outdated and does little to further the objectives underpinning judgment enforcement- Canadian courts, by contrast, have been far more liberal than their English counterparts, enforcing foreign judgments in cases where there is a "real and substantial connection" between the dispute and the judgment forum. While this …

Blocking Legal Evolution And Paying The Price: Property And Conflict In The Nigerian Highlands, Karol C. Boudreaux

ExpressO

This article examines current high levels of violent conflict in Plateau State in central Nigeria using an economic property-rights analysis that draws on the work of Harold Demsetz, Robert Cooter, Terry Anderson and Fred McChesney.

The thesis of the article is that this wide-spread violent conflict over resource use/access is tied, in important ways, to the passage of federal legislation in Nigeria that nationalized land. This legislation, I contend, blocked the continued evolution of customary land-law norms that had evolved to meet a variety of land-use needs and that had a relatively low-cost and transparent indigenous dispute resolution mechanism.

The …

From The Ali To The Ili: The Efforts To Export An American Legal Institution, Jayanth K. Krishnan

Articles by Maurer Faculty

In this article, I argue that those who believe that Americans can successfully export their visions of law and legal research to other countries need to consider - in addition to Japan and Germany, two countries that are often touted as exemplars - the case of India. India gained its independence from the British in 1947, and soon thereafter many American experts traveled to India in an effort to foster a culture of Western legal intellectualism. As part of their mission to improve the status of law in India, the Americans, upon their arrival, strongly advocated for the construction of …