Taking Constitutional Identities Away From The Courts,
2016
Brooklyn Law School
Taking Constitutional Identities Away From The Courts, Pietro Faraguna
Brooklyn Journal of International Law
In federal states, constitutional identity is the glue that holds together the Union. On the contrary, in the European Union—not a fully-fledged federation yet—each Member state has its own constitutional identity. On the one hand, the Union may benefit from the particular knowledge, innovation, history, diversity, and culture of its individual states. On the other hand, identity-related claims may have a disintegrating effect. Constitutional diversity needs to come to terms with risks of disintegration. The Treaty on the European Union seeks a balance, providing the obligation to respect the constitutional identities of its Member states. Drawing from the European experience, …
Treating The New European Disease Of Consumer Debt In A Post-Communist State: The Groundbreaking New Russian Personal Insolvency Law,
2016
Brooklyn Law School
Treating The New European Disease Of Consumer Debt In A Post-Communist State: The Groundbreaking New Russian Personal Insolvency Law, Jason J. Kilborn
Brooklyn Journal of International Law
This article examines the tumultuous transition from restrictive Communism to the debt-fueled consumer economy of modern Russia. In particular, it surveys Russia’s legal response to severe debt distress, situating it in the context of nearly one thousand years of historical development. Effective 1 October 2015, Russia finally joined most of its European neighbors in adopting a personal bankruptcy law, with characteristics that reflect both evolving international best practices and a series of lessons not learned. This article offers the first detailed exposition in English of the two steps forward represented by this new law, as well as an evaluation of …
Thailand's Ban On Commercial Surrogacy: Why Thailand Should Regulate, Not Attempt To Eradicate,
2016
Brooklyn Law School
Thailand's Ban On Commercial Surrogacy: Why Thailand Should Regulate, Not Attempt To Eradicate, Allison L. Zimmerman
Brooklyn Journal of International Law
International commercial surrogacy is when a person or couple from one country hires a surrogate in a different country. In recent years, this form of reproductive tourism has been a booming industry in Thailand due to the lack of meaningful regulation, relatively low cost, and unavailability in other countries. After a string of scandals involving Thai surrogacy arrangements arose, however, the Thai government enacted the Protection for Children Born Through Assisted Reproductive Technologies Act (the “ART Act”), prohibiting Thai commercial surrogacy from serving foreign clients, and only allowing Thai heterosexual couples to make use of surrogacy arrangements. As a result, …
A Comparison Between Shale Gas In China And Unconventional Fuel Development In The United States: Water, Environmental Protection, And Sustainable Development,
2016
Brooklyn Law School
A Comparison Between Shale Gas In China And Unconventional Fuel Development In The United States: Water, Environmental Protection, And Sustainable Development, Paolo D. Farah, Riccardo Tremolada
Brooklyn Journal of International Law
China is believed to have the world's largest exploitable reserves of shale gas, although several legal, regulatory, environmental, and investment-related issues will likely restrain its exploitation. China's capacity to face these hurdles successfully and produce commercial shale gas will have a crucial impact on the regional gas market and on China’s energy mix, as Beijing strives to decrease reliance on imported oil and coal, and, at the same time, tries to meet growing energy demand and maintain a certain level of resource autonomy. The development of the unconventional natural gas extractive industry will also provide China with further negotiating power …
The Phase-Out And Sunset Of Travel Restrictions In The International Health Regulations,
2016
Brooklyn Law School
The Phase-Out And Sunset Of Travel Restrictions In The International Health Regulations, Sarah R. Goldfarb
Brooklyn Journal of International Law
Whether and to what extent travel restriction should be implemented during international infectious disease epidemics became a controversial issue, most recently, during the 2014 Ebola outbreak. The primary authority on the manner in which to respond to such epidemics is the International Health Regulations (IHR). The IHR is a treaty, established by the World Health Organization (WHO), which governs and coordinates international responses to international infectious disease epidemics. Despite the WHO's strong advisement to the contrary, many countries who were signatories to the IHR implemented travel bans and other types of travel restrictions to prevent the transmission of the disease …
The Need For An International Convention On Data Privacy: Taking A Cue From The Cisg,
2016
Brooklyn Law School
The Need For An International Convention On Data Privacy: Taking A Cue From The Cisg, Morgan Corley
Brooklyn Journal of International Law
In light of the invalidation of the U.S.-EU Safe Harbor, along with the increase in sales of personal data as a commodity, data privacy has become a major concern amongst different nations. The lack of harmonization of data-privacy laws around the world continues to pose obstacles to the free flow of data across national borders. The free flow of data is, nonetheless, essential the international economy. As a result, nations continue to work together to try to create mechanisms by which data can be transferred across borders in a secure manner. This Note examines the current state of data-privacy law …
Treaties In The Aftermath Of Beps,
2016
Brooklyn Law School
Treaties In The Aftermath Of Beps, Yariv Brauner
Brooklyn Journal of International Law
The article argues that, despite the fanfare around it, the outcome of the BEPS project is unlikely to be dramatic, at least in the short term. Beyond a period of increased legal uncertainty and aggressive enforcement by some countries, it expects little substantive change in tax treaties. The challenges to the dominance of the OECD and the richest countries would likely be assuaged with marginal concessions, most or all of which not be affecting tax treaties. Yet, the article sees a silver lining in the non-substantive, structural, and instrumental outcomes of the BEPS project. It argues that even if unintended, …
Kill-Switches In The U.S. Model Tax Treaty,
2016
Brooklyn Law School
Kill-Switches In The U.S. Model Tax Treaty, Allison Christians, Alexander Ezenagu
Brooklyn Journal of International Law
The new U.S. Model income tax treaty contains an unusual addition: mechanisms for the parties to unilaterally override the negotiated treaty rates in specified circumstances. Previewed last year in proposed form—a first for the Treasury—these new mechanisms work as kill-switches, partially terminating the treaty as to one or both treaty partners. The idea is to forestall a more problematic outcome, such as an enduring breach of one of the parties’ expectations, or the opposite, a complete termination of all the treaty terms in the face of such a breach. Yet embedding a kill-switch in a treaty creates distinct legal, procedural, …
Location Savings And Segmented Factor Input Markets: In Search Of A Tax Treaty Solution,
2016
Brooklyn Law School
Location Savings And Segmented Factor Input Markets: In Search Of A Tax Treaty Solution, Mitchell A. Kane
Brooklyn Journal of International Law
This article analyzes the proper bounds of source-based taxation of profits generated when firms outsource factor inputs, such as labor, to achieve cost savings. The article advances arguments grounded in efficiency, treaty text, and international distribution to justify greater source-based taxation than has historically been the case. To implement such expanded taxation, the article proposes a modification to transfer-pricing rules in instances where factor inputs are acquired from affiliates and a modification to the tax treaty rules regarding permanent establishments where factor inputs are acquired from unrelated parties. Finally, the article deals with a range of complications, particularly relating to …
Tax Treaties And The Taxation Of Services In The Absence Of Physical Presence,
2016
Brooklyn Law School
Tax Treaties And The Taxation Of Services In The Absence Of Physical Presence, Michael S. Kirsch
Brooklyn Journal of International Law
The increasing ability to deliver personal services electronically raises significant cross-border tax issues. In particular, given that the service provider need not be physically present in the would-be source country, significant questions arise as to the continued viability of tax treaty rules that focus on the service provider’s physical location. In response to these developments, proposed changes to the United Nations Model tax treaty have been approved that would allow source country taxation of technical services, even in the absence of the service provider’s physical presence. This article raises concerns about the broad scope of the proposed changes and recommends …
Unilateral Responses To Tax Treaty Abuse: A Functional Approach,
2016
Brooklyn Law School
Unilateral Responses To Tax Treaty Abuse: A Functional Approach, Omri Marian
Brooklyn Journal of International Law
In recent years, there has been a dramatic increase in the attention given to abusive tax schemes that take advantage of bilateral tax treaties. The ensuing discourse tends to view potential responses to treaty abuses as a hierarchical set of options, gradually escalating, in which treaty termination is a last resort option. This article argues that the hierarchical view of unilateral responses to treaty abuse is misguided. Unilateral responses to treaty-based abuse are not hierarchically ordered. Rather, the approach to treaty abuse is (and should be) functional, adopting specific types of unilateral responses based on the type of treaty abuse …
When International Tax Agreements Fail At Home: A U.S. Example,
2016
Brooklyn Law School
When International Tax Agreements Fail At Home: A U.S. Example, Diane Ring
Brooklyn Journal of International Law
Over the past two and a half years, the international tax community has focused on the Base Erosion and Profit Shifting Project (BEPS project) undertaken by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) at the behest of the G20. According to the OECD, the resulting 2015 agreement involved the direct participation of more than sixty countries. An additional fifty-nine countries indirectly participated through regional dialogues. Furthermore, numerous international organizations are credited with participating in discussions and contributing to the resulting product. But, effective implementation of the BEPS agreement requires domestic action of various types—the domestic side of international agreement …
How Reform-Friendly Are U.S. Tax Treaties?,
2016
Brooklyn Law School
How Reform-Friendly Are U.S. Tax Treaties?, Fadi Shaheen
Brooklyn Journal of International Law
This article addresses the treaty compatibility aspect of proposals for reforming the U.S. international tax system. Finding that a reform proposal is treaty compatible obviates the need for renegotiating or overriding existing U.S. treaties to implement the proposal if enacted. After establishing that a U.S. move to an exemption system would be treaty compatible despite the literal reading of Article 23 of the U.S. Model income tax treaty as requiring a credit system, the article argues that any system that is or can be expressed as an outright fixed or floating combination of exemption and credit is treaty compatible regardless …
Tax Treaties As A Network Product,
2016
Brooklyn Law School
Tax Treaties As A Network Product, Tsilly Dagan
Brooklyn Journal of International Law
The copiousness of tax treaties is often presented as proof, not only of their success but also of their desirability. In focusing on alleviating double taxation by allocating tax revenues, however, the treaties project is a missed opportunity. This article explains that an international tax standard is a network product and uses network theory to explore the potential advantages and drawbacks of the tax treaty network in entrenching such a standard. Networks facilitate stability and self-enforcement. By joining (and remaining in) a network, users benefit from the compatibility with other users; this, in turn, incentivizes new users to join and …
Cutting The Wire: A Comprehensive Eu-Wide Approach To Refugee Crises,
2016
Brooklyn Law School
Cutting The Wire: A Comprehensive Eu-Wide Approach To Refugee Crises, Kelsey Leigh Binder
Brooklyn Journal of International Law
This Note examines the current refugee crisis occurring in the European Union, where over a million refugees have entered the region since the beginning of 2015, and proposes that the EU implement a two-step permanent emergency framework for dealing with mass migration crises. It first looks at the major bodies of international refugee law, including a historical overview of its foundations, the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, and the 1967 Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees. Next, it will explore the legal mechanisms that are in force throughout the EU, including the EU’s asylum laws and …
“Thinking Outside The (Tax) Treaty” Revisited,
2016
Brooklyn Law School
“Thinking Outside The (Tax) Treaty” Revisited, Adam H. Rosenzweig
Brooklyn Journal of International Law
The rise and development of “Base Erosion and Profit Shifting” project by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (BEPS) provides an ideal opportunity to revisit the fundamental principles underlying the international tax regime and the bilateral tax treaty regime in particular. This is true because BEPS represents both an attempt to create a new, truly multinational consensus on international tax matters and a clear move away from the bilateral tax treaty as the primary form of international coordination. From this perspective, BEPS provides the perfect opportunity to revisit the role of a proposed dispute resolution mechanism for nontreaty member …
Free Kick: Fifa’S Unintended Role In Illuminating Jurisdictional Gaps Of International Criminal Courts,
2016
Brooklyn Law School
Free Kick: Fifa’S Unintended Role In Illuminating Jurisdictional Gaps Of International Criminal Courts, Travis L. Marmara
Brooklyn Journal of International Law
In the wake of the FIFA corruption scandal of 2015, certain realities have come to light. FIFA’s corruption knows no bounds, but fans of the sport will watch nonetheless. What is less apparent is that the two most prominent international criminal courts—the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and the International Criminal Court (ICC) fail to have jurisdiction over the FIFA organization or its officials when they engage in white-collar crimes that sanction human rights abuses abroad. This Note examines how FIFA officials’ acceptance of Qatari bribes to host the 2022 World Cup exposed alarming jurisdictional inadequacies of the ICJ and …
Public Antitrust Enforcement Of Resale Price Maintenance In China: A Crusade Or Discrimination?,
2016
Brooklyn Law School
Public Antitrust Enforcement Of Resale Price Maintenance In China: A Crusade Or Discrimination?, Jingmeng Cai
Brooklyn Journal of International Law
In recent years, a growing number of international observers and companies have expressed concerns that China may be using its new antitrust laws to discriminate against multinational companies. China’s antitrust decisionmakers, however, have taken pains to deny such criticisms. This article focuses on Resale Price Maintenance (RPM) to argue that these concerns are not always based in reality. After examining almost all of the decisions made public regarding RPM by the Chinese antitrust agency, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), this article analyzes the following three factors that have shaped how the NDRC enforces antitrust laws in China. First, …
The Costs And Consequences Of Incorrect Citations: European Law In The U.S. Supreme Court,
2016
Brooklyn Law School
The Costs And Consequences Of Incorrect Citations: European Law In The U.S. Supreme Court, Andrea Pin
Brooklyn Journal of International Law
Building on the controversy over foreign citations in domestic courts, this article reflects on the U.S. Supreme Court's practice of quoting EU law and the European Court of Human Rights’ case law. It offers a detailed examination of how the U.S. Supreme Court has used European sources and shifts the debate over whether it should use them, by explaining a different way in which the court could exploit them. The article focuses on the three fields in which such foreign case law has either influenced the U.S. Supreme Court decisions or otherwise impacted the judges’ reasoning: laws targeting homosexual conduct; …
Relative International Legal Personality Of Non-State Actors,
2016
Brooklyn Law School
Relative International Legal Personality Of Non-State Actors, William Thomas Worster
Brooklyn Journal of International Law
Non-state actors are increasingly being considered international legal persons on a case-by-case basis. This articles argues that the common thread in making decisions on whether to treat a non-state actor as an international legal person is one of the function that the actor is playing in relation to other international actors. Gone is the traditional notion that only states are international legal persons, and it is now well accepted that international organizations are also persons. More controversial is the status of self-determination peoples, National Liberation Movements, indigenous peoples, insurgents, belligerents, combatants, private corporations, non-governmental organizations, religious organizations, and individuals. This …
