Comparative and Foreign Law Commons^™

London Calling: Does The U.K.'S Experience With Individual Taxation Clash With The U.S.'S Expectations, Stephanie Mcmahon

Faculty Articles and Other Publications

The United States is one of the last countries to tax married couples jointly; most other countries have adopted individual taxation. In 1990, the United Kingdom completed transitioning its tax system from one that treated husbands and wives as a marital unit to one that mandates an individual-based system, and so it has two decades of experience with the new regime. This article provides American policymakers valuable information regarding the consequences of adopting individual taxation by examining the United Kingdom's experience. First, it establishes a matrix of factors that identifies and assesses differences between the two nations that affect the …

Public And Private As Viewed Through The Work Of The Muhtasib, Kristen Stilt, Roy Mottahedeh

Faculty Working Papers

This article examines the distinctions between public and private space in classical Islamic law through the work of the muhtasib, a legal official charged with the inspection of public places and behavior in towns of the premodern Middle East and North Africa (and in some Muslim communities outside of these areas).

Constitutional Authority And Subversion: Egypt's New Presidential Election System, Kristen Stilt

Faculty Working Papers

This article examines the 2005 amendments to the Egyptian constitution that were intended to change the presidential selection system from a single-nominee referendum to a multi-candidate election. Through a careful study of the amendments and the related laws, it shows that while on the surface this amendment looks as though it opens the presidential elections to multiple candidates, its actual goal is to perpetuate the rule of President Mubarak and his National Democratic Party. Further, by entrenching the new election system through a detailed constitutional amendment, the Egyptian regime has subverted the powers of the Supreme Constitutional Court (SCC) to …

How Is Islam The Solution?: Constitutional Visions Of Contemporary Islamists, Kristen Stilt

Faculty Working Papers

This Article uses documents issued by the Muslim Brotherhood, in particular the lengthy 2007 "Political Party" Platform, and personal interviews with Brotherhood leadership to examine the group's specific goals and beliefs for the place of religion within the structure of the Egyptian legal system. While many important angles need to be explored, I focus on one topic that has drawn the most attention to the Brotherhood, the place of religion in the state, or religion defined and enforced by state institutions. I show that the Brotherhood carefully acknowledges the existing constitutional structure and jurisprudence on the position of Islam in …

Cleaning Up The Mess: The Economic, Environmental, And Cultural Impact Of U.S. Military Base Closures On Surrounding Communities, Elizabeth M. Myers

Richmond Journal of Global Law & Business

Today, many military bases have become financial burdens on the federal government, as the military’s needs and systems have changed drastically since the end of the Cold War. The federal government has discovered it can save a significant amount of money by shutting down unnecessary installations and shifting the work to ongoing bases. The federal government can also make money by selling the land of former military bases to surrounding communities or private companies.

The Decision From The Court Of First Instance That Destroyed The European Union Emissions Trading Scheme, Trevor E. Carson

Global Business & Development Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Threshold Obstacles To Justice: The Interaction Of Procedural And Substantive Law In The United States, France, And China, Daniel Vandekoolwyk

Global Business & Development Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Global Issues In Commercial Law, Claude D. Rohwer, Kristen David Adams

McGeorge School of Law Teaching Materials

This book seeks to provide an international perspective and also sufficient domestic context to facilitate a comparative-law discussion. The book includes staples of international commercial law, such as the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG) and international insolvency, but also items of particular contemporary concern, including clawbacks, microfinance, and religious objections to the payment of interest in commercial contracts.

Property Rights & The Demands Of Transformation, Bernadette Atuahene

Michigan Journal of International Law

Countries like those in Southern Africa will never emerge from the indomitable shadow of inequity and the serious threat of backlash unless real property is redistributed; but, the conception of property these countries explicitly or implicitly adopt can adversely affect their ability to redistribute. Under the classical conception of real property (the classical conception), redistribution is difficult because title deed holders are a privileged group who are given nearly absolute property protection. Strangely, the classical conception is ascendant in many transitional states where redistribution is essential. The specific question this Article addresses is: for states where past property dispossession has …

The Social-Obligation Norm Of Property: Duguit, Hayem, And Others, M C. Mirow

Faculty Publications

This article discusses and analyzes the sources and methods used by Leon Duguit in constructing the social-obligation or social-function norm of property as set out in an influential series of lectures in Buenos Aires published in 1912. The work of Henri Hayem has been underappreciated in the development of Duguit's ideas. Hayem should be restored as a central influence on Duguit's thought and as one of the main and earliest proponents of the idea of the social-function norm. The article also examines the influence of Charmont, Comte, Durkheim, Gide, Hauriou, Landry, and Saleilles in Duguit's thought on property and its …

Contemporary And Historical Comparison Of American And Brazilian Legal Efforts To Corral Digital Music Piracy And P2p Software, Nolan Garrido

ILSA Journal of International & Comparative Law

Today, legal purchases of music from online retailers are skyrocketing. Digital music sales across the globe reached 2.9 billion dollars in 2007, up forty percent from the previous year.'

American Exceptionalism, The French Exception, Intellectual Property Law, And Peer-To-Peer File Sharing On The Internet, 10 J. Marshall Rev. Intell. Prop. L. 95 (2010), Lyombe Eko

UIC Review of Intellectual Property Law

A fundamental problem confronting policy makers is how to apply intellectual property rules and regulations developed for tangible intellectual property assets in real space to intangible,dematerialized intellectual property in cyberspace. The United States and France are self-described exceptionalist countries. American exceptionalism refers to the historical tendency of the United States to emphasize its unique status as the beacon of liberty, while l’exception française (the French exception) refers to the French ideological posture that emphasizes the specificity and superiority of French culture. American exceptionalism and l’exception française are functionally equivalent theoretical constructs that describe and explain how the United States and …

Blasphemy In Pre-Criminal Code Canada: Two Sketches, Jeremy Patrick

St. Thomas Law Review

Few people realize that Canada has a law against blasphemy, and even fewer realize that this prohibition extends as far back as the origin of the country. The text of Canada's Criminal Code's ("the Criminal Code") blasphemous libel provision, which was enacted in 1892, and the five reported cases arising under it, are the most relevant materials for understanding the legal concept of blasphemy as it exists in Canada today. However, these materials reveal little about how irreligious speech was treated by the criminal justice system prior to the advent of the Criminal Code. This article attempts to fill in …

Constitutionalizing Communications: The German Constitutional Court's Jurisprudence Of Communications Freedom, Christopher Witteman

UC Law SF International Law Review

In the United States, the debate over communications issues as disparate as network neutrality and public broadcasting seems to be carried out in a constitutional vacuum. This is not surprising, as the First Amendment is framed as a negative - government shall make "no law" infringing the freedom of speech.

This paper explores the very different system that results from a constitution that is phrased in the affirmative, guaranteeing the freedom of the press and broadcasting. The German post-war constitution was built on the ashes of a fascist dictatorship that had misused mass communications; the new constitution was structured so …

Medellin V. Texas: The Roberts Court And New Frontiers For Federalism, Robert Shawn Hogue

University of Miami Inter-American Law Review

No abstract provided.

Reviewing Carbon Charges And Free Allowances Under Environmental Law And Principles, Steve Charnovitz

ILSA Journal of International & Comparative Law

In late June 2009, a slim majority of the U.S. House of Representatives enacted the American Clean Energy and Security Act

How Are Accountability Standards Implemented In The International Agricultural Research Centers?, Osmat A. Jefferson

ILSA Journal of International & Comparative Law

First, I would like to thank the panel members, in particular, Mr. Edward Flaherty, for inviting me to participate in this meeting. I am most grateful for this kind invitation.

88th Annual Meeting Of The American Branch Of The International Law Association, Keith Loken

ILSA Journal of International & Comparative Law

I am pleased to be here today to discuss the Hague Convention on Choice of Court Agreements.

Victim Participation At The International Criminal Court: Achievements Made And Challenges Lying Ahead, Mariana Pena

ILSA Journal of International & Comparative Law

The participation of victims in proceedings before the International Criminal Court (ICC or Court) is one of the most innovative aspects of its Statute (ICC Statute or Rome Statute).

The Americanization Of Constitutional Law And Its Paradoxes: Constitutional Theory And Constitutional Jurisdiction In The Contemporary World, Luis Roberto Barroso

ILSA Journal of International & Comparative Law

Contemporary democracies-both long-standing and recently- established-follow a standard that was established in the United States over the past two hundred years.