Comparative and Foreign Law Commons^™

Breaking The Bank: Revisiting Central Bank Of Denver After Enron And Sarbanes-Oxley, Celia Taylor

ExpressO

No abstract provided.

Shifts In Policy And Power: Calculating The Consequences Of Increased Prosecutorial Power And Reduced Judicial Authority In Post 9/11 America, Chris Mcneil

ExpressO

Among many responses to the attacks of September 11, 2001, Congress and the states have shifted to the executive branch certain powers once held by the judicial branch. This article considers the impact of transferring judicial powers to prosecutorial officers, and compares the consequent increased powers of the prosecutor with those powers traditionally held by prosecutors in Japanese criminal courts. It considers the impact of removing from public view and judicial oversight many prosecutorial functions, drawing comparisons between the largely opaque Japanese prosecutorial roles and those roles now assumed in immigration and anti-terrorism laws, noting the need for safeguards not …

From International Law To Law And Globalization, Paul Schiff Berman

ExpressO

International law’s traditional emphasis on state practice has long been questioned, as scholars have paid increasing attention to other important – though sometimes inchoate – processes of international norm development. Yet, the more recent focus on transnational law, governmental and non-governmental networks, and judicial influence and cooperation across borders, while a step in the right direction, still seems insufficient to describe the complexities of law in an era of globalization. Accordingly, it is becoming clear that “international law” is itself an overly constraining rubric and that we need an expanded framework, one that situates cross-border norm development at the intersection …

Moving From Impunity To Accountability In Post-War Liberia: Possibilities, Cautions, And Challenges, Rena L. Scott

ExpressO

Liberia has become the quintessential example of an African failed state. Though Liberia’s civil war is officially over, war criminals are free and some are even helping run the transitional government under the authority of Liberia’s Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA). This peace agreement calls for the consideration of a general amnesty for those involved in the Liberian civil war alongside the parceling of governmental functions among members of various rebel groups. The drafters of the agreement claim that this was the only viable solution for sustainable peace in Liberia. Meanwhile, Charles Taylor relaxes in Nigeria’s resort city of Calabar. To …

The Paradox Of Omnipotence: Courts, Constitutions, And Commitments, David S. Law

ExpressO

Sovereigns, like individuals, must sometimes make commitments that limit their own freedom of action in order to accomplish their goals. Social scientists have observed that constitutional arrangements can, by restricting a sovereign’s power, enable the sovereign to make such commitments. This essay advances several claims about the commitment problems that sovereigns face. First, constitutions do not necessarily solve such problems but can instead aggravate them, by entrenching inalienable governmental powers and immunities. Second, sovereigns and other actors face two distinct varieties of commitment problems – undercommitment and overcommitment – between which they must steer: an actor that can bind itself …

Jury Trials In Japan, Robert M. Bloom

ExpressO

The Japanese are seeking to involve their citizens in the judicial system. They are also establishing a check on the power of the judiciary. Towards these goals, they have enacted legislation to create jury trials. These remarkable ambitions envision adopting a mixed-jury system, slated to take effect in 2009. In this mixed-jury system, judges and citizens participate together in the jury deliberation.

This article first explores the differences between mixed-juries and the American jury system. It then suggests why the Japanese opted for a mixed-jury system. The article explores psychological theories surrounding collective judgment and how dominant individuals influence group …

Application Of Consular Rights To Foreign Nationals: Standard For Reversal Of A Criminal Conviction, John Quigley

ILSA Journal of International & Comparative Law

In nineteenth century criminal procedure in the United States, extradition treaties impacted the treatment of a person surrendered by a foreign state.

Generic Constitutional Law, David S. Law

University of San Diego Public Law and Legal Theory Research Paper Series

This paper seeks to articulate and explore the emerging phenomenon of generic constitutional law, here and in other countries. Several explanations are offered for this development. First, constitutional courts face common normative concerns pertaining to countermajoritarianism and, as a result, experience a common need to justify judicial review. These concerns, and the stock responses that courts have developed, amount to a body of generic constitutional theory. Second, courts employ common problem-solving skills in constitutional cases. The use of these skills constitutes what might be called generic constitutional analysis. Third, courts face overlapping influences, largely not of their own making, that …

The Hollowness Of The Harm Principle, Steven D. Smith

University of San Diego Public Law and Legal Theory Research Paper Series

Among the various instruments in the toolbox of liberalism, the so-called “harm principle,” presented as the central thesis of John Stuart Mill’s classic On Liberty, has been one of the most popular. The harm principle has been widely embraced and invoked in both academic and popular debate about a variety of issues ranging from obscenity to drug regulation to abortion to same-sex marriage, and its influence is discernible in legal arguments and judicial opinions as well. Despite the principle’s apparent irresistibility, this essay argues that the principle is hollow. It is an empty vessel, alluring but without any inherent legal …

Beyond Rights: Legal Process And Ethnic Conflicts, Elena A. Baylis

ExpressO

Unresolved ethnic conflicts threaten the stability and the very existence of multi-ethnic states. The realities of ethnic conflict are daunting: ethnic disputes tend to be both persistent and complex, and efforts to use democracy or ethnic-blind policies to deal with those conflicts tend to fail. While multi-ethnic states have struggled to devise political solutions for ethnic conflict, they have largely ignored the role that legal processes might play in resolving ethnic discord. But at certain crucial moments in the development of ethnic conflicts, legal processes such as mediation, adjudication, and constitutional interpretation might effectively address these disputes.

This article explores …

Litigating Humanrights Abuses In United States Courts: Recent Developments, Elizabeth F. Defeis

ILSA Journal of International & Comparative Law

During the last quarter of a century, litigation in United States courts to address human rights abuses that occur beyond the shores of the United States has increased dramatically.

Trial Of The Accused Taliban And Al Qaeda Operatives Captured In Afghanistan And Detained On A U.S. Military Base In Cuba, Jaime Jackson

ExpressO

A timely piece proposing solutions for issues certain to be raised in the upcoming trials of the accused Taliban and Al Qaeda operatives captured in Afghanistan and detained on a U.S. military base in Cuba. In the article, I begin by examining the history and jurisdiction of Article I and Article III courts and then address the history and structure of the Al Qaeda and Taliban regimes. After considering the Constitution, federal statutes, politics, and geographical limitations, I conclude that Al Qaeda detainees should be tried in Article III courts under terrorism statutes and Taliban detainees, as military combatants, should …

The International Criminal Court And The Future Of Legal Accountability, William W. Burke-White

ILSA Journal of International & Comparative Law

With unexpected speed, the International Criminal Court has become a reality.

The Courts And Legislation: Anglo-American Contrasts (George P. Smith, Ii, Distinguished Professorship-Chair Of Law), Sir David Williams David Q. C.

Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies

On April 12, 2000, Sir David Williams delivered the following lecture at the Indiana School of Law-Bloomington in accordance with The George P. Smith, II, Distinguished Visiting Professorship-Chair of Law and Legal Research endowment. The Chair was established by George P. Smith to broaden students' exposure to scholars and judges of national and international reputation and to allow distinguished visiting scholars the opportunity to do research at Indiana University and share their ideas with the faculty and students of the Indiana University School of Law and Indiana University. George P. Smith, an Indiana native, received his B.S. degree in business, …

Accountability And International Actors In Bosnia And Herzegovina, Kosovo And East Timor, Ralph Wilde

ILSA Journal of International & Comparative Law

Current international involvement in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo and East Timor has two elements.

From Gender Apartheid To Non-Sexism: The Pursuit Of Women's Rights In South Africa, Penelope Andrews

Articles & Chapters

This article discusses the quest for women's rights in South Africa and how the transition from apartheid to democracy led to a commitment to gender equality as incorporated in South Africa's transitional and final Constitutions. This paper refers to the organizational attempts by women prior to and during the constitutional drafting process to ensure that the new Constitution embodied the aspirations and reflected the struggles for women's rights by women activists in South Africa. This article is divided into six sections. Section Two describes the legacy of apartheid for all women in South Africa. This section shows how the laws …

Litigation In The United States And Mexico: A Comparative Overview, Robert M. Kossick, Jr.

University of Miami Inter-American Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Civil Enforcement Of Human Rights Norms In Domestic Courts, Beth Van Schaack

ILSA Journal of International & Comparative Law

This Article will attempt to make the case for the domestic civil action in defense of international human rights in the face of a potential threat to such litigation.

The Jurisdiction Of The International Criminal Court Over Nationals Of Non-Party States (Conference Remarks), Madeline Morris

ILSA Journal of International & Comparative Law

The Rome Treaty for an International Criminal Court (ICC) provides for the establishment of an international court with jurisdiction over genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity.

The Journey Into Activism, Bernhard Schlink

Cardozo Law Review

In Anna Karenina, Leo Tolstoy teaches us that all happy families are alike and only unhappy families are different. It is the same with courts that engage in constitutional review. All happy constitutional courts, that is, all happily activist constitutional courts are alike and only those that do not play an activist role are different.

French And American Judicial Opinions, Michael Wells

Scholarly Works

In this Article, I examine the foundations of American judicial form, in particular the proposition that powerful instrumental considerations support the issuance of reasoned opinions. This project proceeds from the belief that the form of judicial opinions deserves serious scholarly attention despite the broad consensus about its value, because it frames the terms of debate on every issue courts confront. My analysis is built on the view that critical insights into the nature of one's own legal system can be gleaned only by "understand[ing] what [one's] system is not," a task that requires putting aside the internal perspective of a …

The Tribunal In Albania, John Paul Jones

Law Faculty Publications

Professor Jones explains and critiques "The Organization of Justice and the Constitutional Court," the1992 amendments to Albania's provisional constitution that established the nation's post-revolution judicial system.

Law, Change, And Litigation: A Critical Examination Of An Empirical Research Tradition, Frank W. Munger

Articles & Chapters

This article examines the theory and empirical methods of recent studies of law and litigation. It argues that the recent interest in longitudinal studies of trial court dockets proceeds from a deeply rooted functionalist theoretical tradition in empirical work on courts. Functionalist theory, through its sophisticated application in the work of James Willard Hurst, is described as the direct or indirect source of theory for longitudinal litigation studies. Though there are many reasons for suspecting that fuctionalist theory is inadequate, it has seldom been rejected through proper empirical testing of its hypotheses. The theory, often poorly conceptualized, is discussed here …

Questioning Litigation's Role-Courts And Class Actions In Canada, W. A. Bogart

Indiana Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Book Review. The Judicial Process: An Introductory Analysis Of The Courts Of The United States, England, And France By Henry J. Abraham, Bryant G. Garth

Articles by Maurer Faculty

No abstract provided.

Current Studies In Japanese Law, Whitmore Gray, Kazuo Sugeno, Walter L. Ames, Ronald G. Brown, Richard O. Briggs

Books

Over the past fifteen years there has been a remarkable growth in the study of Japanese law in the United States. The foundation was laid during the late 1950's when the Harvard-Michigan-Stanford program brought together Japanese legal specialists and their American counterparts for study and research. At the end of this program a major conference was held, and the resulting publication, Law in Japan, continues to serve as a point of departure in descriptive studies of Japanese law.

During the 1960's interest in Japan continued to develop among law faculty members, but an even more important development was the increase …

The Application Of Constitutive Prescriptions: An Addendum To Justice Cardozo, Myres S. Mcdougal

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

Comparative Judicial Review And Constitutional Politics, Donald P. Kommers

Journal Articles

Donald P. Kommers reviews Richard D. Baker's Judicial Review in Mexico: A Study of the Amparo Suit (Austin and London: University of Texas Press, 1971); B. L. Strayer's Judicial Review of Legislation in Canada (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1968); Heinz Laufer's Verfassungsgerichtsbarkeit und politischer Prozess (Tiibingen: J.C.B. Mohr [Paul Siebeck ], 1968); Mauro Cappelletti's Judicial Review in the Contemporary World (Indianapolis: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, Inc., 1971); Edward McWhinney's Judicial Review (4th ed.) (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1969); Richard E. Johnston's The Effect of Judicial Review on Federal-State Relations in Australia, Canada, and the United States (Baton Rouge: Louisiana …

Court Reform In England, Kazimierz Grzybowski

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Toward A Phenomenological Approach To Law: A Treatment For The Schizophrenia Of Contemporary Legal Regimes, George S. Robinson

Villanova Law Review (1956 - )

No abstract provided.