The last few centuries have seen paper-based documents and manuscript signatures dominate the way businesses enter into a contractual relationship with each other. With the advent of Internet, replacing paper-based contracts with B2B electronic contracts is a possibility. However, an appropriate technology and an enabling legislation are crucial for this change to happen. On the technology front this feature has the potential to enable business executives to sit in front of their computer and sign multi-million dollar deals by using their electronic signatures. On the legal front various pieces of legislation have been enacted and policies developed at both national and international levels to give legal recognition to such type of contracts. This book presents the findings of an empirical study on large public listed Australian companies that examined businesses' perception towards the use of electronic signatures in B2B contracts. Essentially, it identifies six key factors that create a disincentive to businesses to move from the practice of paper- based signatures to the new technology of electronic signatures. This book offers legal practitioners, academics and businesses insights into issues associated with the use of electronic signatures and suggests a number of measures to promote its usage in B2B contracts.

Who enjoys statutory preferred creditor status? What justifications exist for jurisdictions to maintain statutes that favour 'priority' creditors over other creditors and contributories? This book examines preferential debts derived from specific legislative provisions applying to corporate insolvency. In exploring the concept of preferential treatment, Statutory Priorities in Corporate Insolvency Law includes chapters that provide a doctrinal, theoretical and historical analysis of who enjoys preferred creditor status. As well as examining the traditional major categories of priorities, this work also identifies potential new categories for priority status such as environmental clean-up costs, international creditors, tort claimants and consumers among other non-consensual creditors. While the study focuses on Australian corporate insolvency law, where appropriate, comparisons are made with other common law jurisdictions, particularly the UK, Canada, New Zealand and the US.

The capacity to abuse, or in general affect the enjoyment of human, labour and environmental rights has risen with the increased social and economic power that multinational companies wield in the global economy. At the same time, it appears that it is difficult to regulate the activities of multinational companies in such a way that they conform to international human, labour and environmental rights standards. This has partially to do with the organization of companies into groups of separate legal persons, incorporated in different states, as well as with the complexity of the corporate supply chain. Absent a business and human rights treaty, a more coherent legal and policy approach is required. Faced with the challenge of how to effectively access the right to remedy in the European Union for human rights abuses committed by EU companies in non-EU states, a diverse research consortium of academic and legal institutions was formed. The consortium, coordinated by the Globernance Institute for Democratic Governance, became the recipient of a 2013 Civil Justice Action Grant from the European Commission Directorate General for Justice. A mandate was thus issued for research, training and dissemination so as to bring visibility to the challenge posed and moreover, to provide some solutions for the removal of barriers to judicial and non-judicial remedy for victims of business-related human rights abuses in non-EU states. The project commenced in September 2014 and over the course of two years the consortium conducted research along four specific lines in parallel with various training sessions across EU Member States. The research conducted focused primarily on judicial remedies, both jurisdictional barriers and applicable law barriers; non-judicial remedies, both to company-based grievance. The results of this research endeavour make up the content of this report whose aim is to provide a scholarly foundation for policy proposals by identifying specific challenges relevant to access to justice in the European Union and to provide recommendations on how to remove legal and practical barriers so as to provide access to remedy for victims of business-related human rights abuses in non-EU states.

Because of its enormous economic power and susceptibility to corruption, public procurement - the purchase by government of goods and services - has come under increasing regulation as world trade expands. Three international leaders in public procurement law fully explain how the procurement award process must be managed to achieve its goals in global market economy. This work should educate government officials, trade lawyers, and students in how to comply with existing and emerging regulatory schemes as they: select a contractor and plan the contract, with detailed attention to terms, conditions and specifications; allow for national security, national industrial development, and environmental protection; get value for money and avoid waste of public funds; publicize contracts; combat corruption; secure successful completion of contracts; balance pressures to buy from domestic sources with the economic benefits of international competition; harness procurement power to promote social and environmental goals; enforce compliance with public procurement rules; and recognize circumstances under which discretion-based (rather than rules-based) initiatives may be more effective.

Managing scarcity to serve the public interest is a classic government task. An important way to execute this task is by allocating individual rights that are only available in limited quantities, such as CO2 emission allowances, gambling licences, subsidies, radio frequencies, public contracts and parking permits. Whereas economic and political theory has paid much attention to the allocation of scarce goods and rights, until now a consistent and general legal theory of 'the allocating government' has been missing. This is striking given the fact that limited rights have to be allocated within many sectors and are often of great social significance and financial importance. Decisions on allocation often lead to disputes. This book provides a unique exploration of building blocks for a consistent and general legal theory on the allocation of limited rights by administrative authorities. This book is useful to legislators, administrative authorities, applicants, interested third parties and the courts. The EU-law perspective is an important element in this book, but comparative law and doctrinal approaches are also taken into account. The contributions in this book have been enriched by information from national reports on the allocation of gambling licences, radio frequencies and CO2 emission permits in seven EU Member States: France, Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Romania and Spain. (See P. Adriaanse, F. van Ommeren, W. den Ouden and J. Wolswinkel (eds.), Scarcity and the State II. Member State Reports on Gambling Licences, Radio Frequencies and CO2 Emission Permits, Intersentia, Antwerp 2016).

How much economic freedom is a good thing?
This book tells the story of how the business community, and the trade associations and think tanks that it created, launched three powerful assaults during the last quarter of the twentieth century on the federal regulatory system and the state civil justice system to accomplish a revival of the laissez faire political economy that dominated Gilded Age America. Although the consequences of these assaults became painfully apparent in a confluence of crises during the early twenty-first century, the patch-and-repair fixes that Congress and the Obama administration put into place did little to change the underlying laissez faire ideology and practice that continues to dominate the American political economy. In anticipation of the next confluence of crises, Thomas McGarity offers suggestions for more comprehensive governmental protections for consumers, workers, and the environment.

This book presents a detailed study of the interface between regional integration and competition policies of selected regional trade agreements (RTAs), and the potential of regional competition laws to help developing countries achieve their development goals. The book provides insights on the regional integration experiences in developing countries, their potential for development and the role of competition law and policy in the process. Moreover, the book emphasizes the development dimension both of regional competition policies and of competition law. This timely book delivers concrete proposals that will help to unleash the potential of regional integration and regional competition policies, and also help developing countries to fully enjoy the benefits deriving from a regional market. Bringing together analysis from well-known scholars in the developed world with practical insight from scholars in countries hoping to exploit the potential of competition law, this book will appeal to academics working in the field of competition law, practitioners, policymakers and officials from developing countries, as well as those in development organizations such as UNCTAD. Contributors: A. Amunategui Abad, M. Bakhoum, D.S. Beckford, J. Cortazar, J. Drexl, E.M. Fox, M.S. Gal, D.J. Gerber, G.K. Lipimile, G. Mamhare, J. Molestina, K. Moodaliyar, M. Ngom, T. Stewart, L. Thanadsillapakul, I.F. Wassmer

A powerful and succinct reminder of the way in which the 'corporate property rights structure' has come to dominate American society and politics. . . . Brings out the connections among law, politics, and economics. Howard J. Vogel Hamline University School of Law This provocative overview of fundamental principles in American law points out how the law is administered unfairly and how wrongly it is conceived if it is to meet basic needs in our society today. Gerald Houseman examines legal education and practice, and law relating to business, government, labor, and elections. He dissects different theories and shows certain possibilities for reform. This summary of basic concerns about law and society today is easy reading and a good text for students of law, business, government, and economics. The first part of the book deals with forces retarding change in American policy; the second questions the corporate-property power establishment; and the third questions law and economic approaches. This scrutiny of assumptions, different approaches, and conclusions is followed by proposals for fundamental reforms.

Atiyah and Adams' Sale of Goods, 14th Edition, by Twigg-Flesner and Canavan is a highly readable and comprehensive account of the law governing the sale of goods. It is essential reading for undergraduate and postgraduate students, and a valuable point of first reference for practitioners of commercial law. This book addresses the increasing split of the law on the sale of goods between commercial and consumer contracts, which is reflected in the separate treatment of consumer law aspects.

Private-sector unionization has been in a period of dramatic decline. While much scholarship has sought to explain this development and has called for stronger legal protection of union organizing efforts, the viability of alternative or supplementary forms of employee representation has received comparatively little attention. The potential for such alternatives and the appropriate role of public policy in this arena served as the theme for the 50th anniversary of New York University's Annual Conference on Labor. This long-standing conference brings together government officials; representatives of companies, labor unions, and employees; lawyers; and human resources specialists. In this vital forum, participants discuss important themes in U.S. labor law affecting the American workplace and share new ideas and perspectives for improving the practice. This latest installment includes conference papers and commentary as well as additional essays by professors at esteemed institutions in three different countries (Israel, Canada, and the United States). It addresses such provocative questions as: What do workers want in the way of workplace representation? What role has individualism played in the decline of unions in private companies? Do labor laws unnecessarily restrict the potential growth of employee ownership? The list of contributors comprises both professors and practicing attorneys from a variety of backgrounds. The papers contained in Employee Representation in the Emerging Workplace will assist and appeal to all concerned with these important contemporary labor law issues and especially with the ways in which the United States is considering them. The theme addressed in this particular installment is topical, central to the field, and deserving of attention.

This work comprises discussions of issues impacting on the development of banking activities in the Latin American region, together with various perspectives on possible reform. It presents a comparative study of several Latin American banking systems and their supervisory bodies, and examines the institutional structures put in place following the reforms of the last decade. There is further discussion about the relationship that should exist between regulations and discretionary power when banks face difficulties. These various subjects are explored through national case studies including Brazil, Ecuador, Venezuela, Colombia, Peru, Mexico, Bolivia, Guatemala, Argentina, Costa Rica and by way of comparison, the United States and Canada. In addition, the text covers a general discussion of the wider international context. There is comparative study of the structure of supervisory bodies in developed countries and the implications for developing countries, and of how recent international trends in banking supervision have been reflected in the experiences of Latin American countries. The crises experienced by South East Asian financial systems are examined and the ways in which they could impact on Latin America. The book also investigates the integration of banking markets at an international level and the harmonization of different regulatory frameworks. A study of the European Union experience provides a background for the discussion of harmonization in the Mercosur countries. This book arose out of the Second High Level meeting on the reform of the financial systems in Latin America and the Caribbean, held in Venezuela in October 1997 under the auspices of the Permanent Secretariat of the Latin American Economic System (SELA). In bringing together the various viewpoints presented at this meeting, the book aims to initiate serious reflection on the reform of Latin American banking systems, and in doing so, to contribute to the achievement of safe and efficient banking markets in the region.

Increasingly, European companies in a variety of business sectors as well as professional groups are taking self-regulatory initiatives as a means of gaining competitive and protective leverage in a "meta-regulatory" environment. While these initiatives have obvious legal and economic advantages for the entities and principals who take them, the phenomenon of self-regulation raises profound issues for competition law and even for constitutional law. Although deeply grounded in legal theory, such issues have profound and growing significance for practitioners in many fields of law. In this thought-provoking book, thirteen outstanding authorities from various EU jurisdictions examine the legal basis of self-regulation and its function in the process of European legal integration, with particular reference to European private law. The authors offer in-depth analysis of self-regulation in the context of current economic and political conditions in Europe, and investigate the effects of self-regulation on such societal factors as the following: the European social dialogue, the professions, consumer protection, the media, and corporate social responsibility. This book is among the first to raise these vital issues, and the first to examine self-regulation in depth with reference to specific sectors. The essays identify trends set in motion by self-regulation among major actors, and the authors do not hesitate to offer insightful criticisms and recommendations. For these reasons, this book will be of great value to policymakers and business people, as well as to legal academics, for years to come, as self-regulation assumes ever more salience in our economic and social fabric.

Drafted in plain language, the International Trade Terms (Intraterms) are a set of standard terms for the sale of goods. They are divided into five chapters dealing with contracts in general, international sale of goods, transportation of sold goods, abbreviated terms, and resolution of disputes. In

The leading academic authorities contributing to this book have been involved in major studies carried out for international organisations, individual governments, and national trades' union organisations; in Vulnerable Workers they consider the growth of job insecurity, the prevalence of flexible or temporary work, and the emergence of precarious forms of self-employment. They look at the new market economies of post-communist Eastern Europe and China, where economic development may occur at the expense of workers' lives and health; 'misclassification' by employers of workers as 'contractors', denying them access to rights; and the plight of migrant, transient and 'invisible' workers. The impact of supply chain business strategies on the most vulnerable workers; and on the complex relationships between levels of job security and the presence of different kinds of risks are similarly assessed. The contributors also propose responses to the challenges they highlight. The role of employee representatives is examined, together with the potential to enhance worker capability through organisational change. New legislative approaches, and changes to traditional compensation and social security systems are considered. Academics and researchers, policy makers, regulators, trades unionists and occupational health professionals - and wise employers - will all find a use for this book.

From the creators of the UK's bestselling Law Express revision series. Maximise your marks for every answer you write with Law Express Question and Answer. This series is designed to help you understand what examiners are looking for, focus on the question being asked and make even a strong answer stand out.

This volume contains chapters by different authors describing the development of competition policy in 10 European Union Member States, as well as the interaction of those policies with EU competition policy. The convergence of Member State competition policy to the EU approach is put in evidence, as is the influence of Member State practice on EU competition policy. The chapters are rich in institutional detail, but also analyze the functioning of competition policy from an economic point of view.

The essays in this third volume of "Developments in European Company Law" are concerned with conflicts of interest and duty in company law. The first part provides a legal analysis of the duties of company directors, of their accountability and of the trustee's perspective. A second part provides a socio-legal analysis and a third part an economic analysis. The essays provide important contributions to law reform and scholarly debate of these pressing issues of company law. The contributors include leading judges with an interest in the field and academics from the UK and Australia.

Circumcision affects 15.3 million children and young adults annually. In terms of gender, 13.3 million boys and 2 million girls are subjected to the involuntary removal of part or all of their external sexual organs every year. The problem of female circumcision has been addressed on an international level, but male circumcision remains a controversial subject that many academics have been reluctant to examine. Circumcision is tolerated today because it has been practiced for millennia by a small but vocal minority of religious and ethnic groups, however, when the practice is examined through the lens of modern legal, ethical, and human rights advancements, no place remains in civilized society for this body-altering ritual. In Genital Autonomy: Protecting Personal Choice, international experts address various types of genital modifications, the impact of these harmful traditional practices on the child, on human rights, and on the development of the concept of bodily integrity. The papers presented in this volume address these topics from a variety of angles. They question and dissects the true motivations of the doctors, witch doctors, and "holy men" who promote and profit from circumcision.

This volume provides a fascinating look at the anti-tax avoidance strategies employed by more than fifteen countries in eastern and western Europe, Canada, the Pacific Rim, Asia, Africa, and the United States. It surveys the similarities and differences in anti-avoidance regimes and contains detailed chapters for each country surveying the moral and legal dimensions of the problem. The proliferation of tax avoidance schemes in recent years signals the global dimensions of a problem presenting a serious challenge to the effective administration of tax laws. Tax avoidance involves unacceptable manipulation of the law to obtain a tax advantage. These transactions support wasteful behavior in which corporations enter into elaborate, circuitous arrangements solely to minimize tax liability. It frustrates the ability of governments to collect sufficient revenue to provide essential public goods and services. Avoidance of duly enacted provisions (or manipulation to secure tax benefits unintended by the legislature) poses a threat to the effective operation of a free society for the benefit of a small group of members who seek the privilege of shifting their tax burden onto others merely to compete in the world of commerce. In a world in which world treasuries struggle for the resources to battle terrorist threats and to secure a decent standard of living for constituents tax avoidance can bring economies close to the edge of sustainability. As tax avoidance is one of the top concerns of most nations, the importance of this work cannot be overstated.

Traditionally, tapping into the power of competitive intelligence (CI) meant investing in the development of an internal CI unit or hiring outside consultants who specialized in CI. "Proactive Intelligence: The Successful Executive's Guide to Intelligence" offers an alternative: learn how to do it yourself and how to effectively manage the parts you cannot. The tools and techniques that will enable you to produce your own CI for your consumption are out there, and have been honed by decades of work. But, you cannot just adopt them - you have to adapt them.

Why? Because, when you finish reading this book, you will be the data collector, the analyst, and the end-user. Traditional CI is premised on a reactive, two part relationship - a CI professional responding to what an end-user identifies as a need; by doing this yourself you can turn CI from being reactive to being proactive. As the decision-maker, you can get what CI you need, when you need it, and then use it almost seamlessly. Written by two of the foremost experts on CI, Proactive "Intelligence: The Successful Executive's Guide to Intelligence"

shows where and how CI can help you and your firm,

provides practical guidance on how to identify what CI you need, how to find the data you need, and how to analyze it, and

discusses how to apply CI to develop competitive- and career- advantages.

Each chapter is supported by important references as well as by an additional list of resources to support and supplement your knowledge. "Proactive Intelligence: The Successful Executive's Guide to Intelligence" teaches you how to generate proactive intelligence and use it to advance your business and your career- making it an essential resource for managers and executives, as well as everyonewho wishes to integrate CI into their daily work routine."

Emerging technologies present a challenging but fascinating set of ethical, legal and regulatory issues. The articles selected for this volume provide a broad overview of the most influential historical and current thinking in this area and show that existing frameworks are often inadequate to address new technologies - such as biotechnology, nanotechnology, synthetic biology and robotics - and innovative new models are needed. This collection brings together invaluable, innovative and often complementary approaches for overcoming the unique challenges of emerging technology ethics and governance.

Disputes arising from foreign investment activities are on the increase, and with them a growing awareness among practitioners of a greater variety of settlement methods than most legal analyses have dealt with heretofore. With the experience gained in recent years from a broad spectrum of successful negotiation, arbitration, and litigation techniques, it is possible to derive a comprehensive, critical survey of the principal methods of settling foreign investment disputes. This book provides such a survey. The subject is treated systematically, dealing first with the internal balances within modern foreign investment contracts, the complexities that arise due to state participation or interference in these contracts, and the stances that are taken when disputes arise. It goes on to examine, in turn, the main issues involved in negotiation, arbitration, and judicial settlement as the methods of settling foreign investment disputes, discussing the controversial themes in each of these methods in detail. Recognizing that the focus of attention is shifting to the misconduct of multinational corporations, the last chapter contains a discussion of the role of domestic courts.

Post-conflict peacebuilding efforts can fail if they do not pay sufficient attention to natural resources. Natural resources - diamonds, oil, and minerals - are frequently at the heart of historic grievances, and have caused or funded at least eighteen conflicts since 1990. The same resources can play a central role in post-conflict peacebuilding, providing revenue for cash-starved governments, basic services for collapsed economies, and means for restoring livelihoods. To date, there is a striking gap in knowledge of what works, what does not, and how to improve peacebuilding through more effective and systematic management of natural resources. Post-Conflict Peacebuilding and Natural Resource Management addresses this gap by examining the growing literature on the topic and surveying experiences across more than forty post-conflict countries. The six-volume series includes more than 130 chapters from over 200 researchers, practitioners, and policymakers.