Why, and how, do states obey international law? This engaging book tackles this very question head on via its examination of the conflicting and conciliating processes of the Chinese approach to litigation and the Western approach to legal orientation in the field of the WTO dispute settlement mechanism.The authors examine the normative framework of WTO rule implementation in a globalised international economic order. They further explore the notion of the rule of law in China's Confucian system, and how it interacts with a rule-based world trading system. Topics discussed include theorising the WTO implementation regime, the Chinese approach to law, China and the WTO dispute settlement system, and Chinese Confucianism and compliance. With its focus on international economic law and political science, this book will be accessible to students, policy makers, practitioners and academics looking to understand China and the rule of law in a global context

This book provides a detailed examination of the issue of conformity of goods and documents under the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods 1980 (CISG). This issue lies at the heart of sales law and is one of the most frequently litigated. The book explores: the Convention's requirements as to quality, quantity, description and packaging of the goods (conformity); the requirements flowing from the need for the goods to be free from rights or claims of third parties; and the questions of what documents the seller must deliver to the buyer and what constitutes a 'good' document under the CISG. The book engages extensively with a substantial body of cases decided under the CISG and academic commentary. It systematises the Convention's experience to date with a view to turning it into an integrated, comprehensive and distinctive CISG legal regime on conformity of goods and documents. The analysis is comparative and draws on the experience of some major domestic legal systems, such as English and US law. The focus is both analytical and practical. The book will be of interest to legal practitioners, academic lawyers and students with an interest in international and comparative sales, commercial and contract law.

This book explores the transnational legal infrastructure for dispute resolution in transnational securities transactions. It discusses the role of law and dispute resolution in securities transactions, the types of disputes arising from them, and the institutional and legal aspects of dispute resolution, both generally and regarding aggregate litigation. It illustrates different dispute resolution systems and aggregate litigation methods, and examines the legal issues of dispute resolution arising from transnational securities transactions. In addition, the book proposes two systems of dispute resolution for transnational securities transactions depending on the type of dispute: collective redress through arbitration and a network of alternative dispute resolution systems.

The distribution of technology among enterprises and nations lies at the heart of international economic relations, affecting trade, investment, finance and economic policies, and is affected in turn by the political relations between nations. The need for effective transfer of technology to developing countries has acquired renewed urgency in recent years as production becomes increasingly knowledge-intensive and competition is determined more and more by the ability of enterprises to learn, to acquire and use knowledge, and to innovate. Access to knowledge has become key to economic success in the marketplace. This text discusses the background, objectives, approaches and progress achieved in the decade-long negotiations on an International Code of Conduct on the Transfer of Technology which took place under the aegis of UNCTAD. It examines the impact and continued relevance of the Code negotiations to subsequent policy and legislative instruments on international technology transfer, both at domestic and international levels, and identifies and examine emerging trends and negotiating agendas that will help to shape the future of international technological co-operation. The central question posed by the initiators of the Draft Code of Conduct is still relevant today - how can we facilitate a just and mutually beneficial system of technology flow in a world of rapid change and increasing gaps in the technological capability of developed and developing countries? The need for marginalized countries to access knowledge in order to learn, adjust and integrate effectively into the world economic system must be balanced with the vital need to reward inventors and innovators to ensure the continued generation of knowledge. It is these issues that will continue to dominate any future discussion on the international transfer of technology. This book will be a valuable work of reference on the evolution of international technological cooperation in the last quarter of the 20th century, as well as a useful guide to policymakers, scholars and international negotiators dealing with these and related issues of international economic cooperation.

This book describes how international development works, its shortcomings, its theoretical and practical foundations, along with prescriptions for the future. International Development Law provides the reader with new perspectives on the origins of global poverty, identifies legal impediments to sustainable economic growth, and provides a better understanding of the challenges faced by the international community in resolving global poverty issues. The text is structured into two basic parts: the first part deals with the theoretical and philosophic foundations of the subject, and the second part sets forth issues relating to the international financial architecture, namely, international borrowing practices, privatization, and emerging economies. In particular, the book provides new, innovative analysis on corruption as an impediment to sustainable development. The three interlocking facets of corruption are examined: transnational organized crime, Islamic-based international terrorism, and corruption within emerging economies and the international banking system. Thus fresh new analysis adds depth and clarity to a field that heretofore has been scattered and superficial. Finally, the "right to development" within the international human rights discourse is critically reviewed, particularly in light of new jurisprudence emerging from the African context.This book offers a fresh, new and balanced legal perspective on the development process. The text has been rigorously researched and has many practical facets based on the author's professional experience within the international development field. It is an invaluable research and teaching tool since it takes a multidisciplinary approach to putting complex issues, legal trends and political questions into a clear, new perspective that is highly analytical as well as accessible to the reader. The author's elegant legal prose is both powerful and persuasive.

This book examines the intersection of WTO trade liberalisation rules and domestic health protection, a subject that is of considerable interest to those concerned that the WTO impinges on national regulatory autonomy. In analysing the tension between health protection and trade liberalisation, the book focuses on the way in which this tension is (or is not) resolved through the dispute resolution process. It offers a detailed analysis of the relevant WTO rules and case law, identifying particular concerns relating to the ability of WTO Members to take protective action in circumstances of scientific uncertainty and the role of social and cultural factors in the making of health-related regulations. The nature of scientific evidence and the extent to which the scientific process internalises uncertainty is further explored, drawing on documentation relating to the theory and conduct of scientific risk assessment. Despite the popularity of the precautionary principle in some quarters, it is suggested that it may not be advisable for the WTO to adopt that principle. Rather, further attention should be paid to the role that the standard of review might play in easing the tensions that arise when a sovereign state's health regulations are reviewed by the WTO. The origins of the WTO's 'objective assessment' standard of review are explained, but the standard itself is criticised. Options for developing the standard of review are considered, with a 'reasonable regulator' standard based on the Asbestos case proposed. The book takes a comparative approach, drawing on ECJ cases reviewing Member State and Community health measures as well as US judicial review and commerce clause cases.

As the ultimate arbiter in the global trade regime, the dispute settlement system of the World Trade Organization (WTO) is a body whose workings should be known to business people and their counsel everywhere. Here is a book - reviewed for accuracy by the WTO but written independently - that provides an uncomplicated but thorough explanation of the system, its purpose, its rules, and the role it plays in the management of the international economy. Peter Gallagher, a former trade negotiator and a specialist in the Uruguay Round agreements, answers such questions as: what sort of disputes does the WTO deal with?; can business or citizens use the WTO dispute system?; is it possible to get a temporary injunction to stop some action?; how much does it cost a to bring a case?; how far can you keep on appealing a decision?; what processes does a Panel follow?; what does the Appellate Body review?; what process does the Appellate Body follow?; how does intervention by other parties affect a dispute? As a handy guide to "bringing a case" before the WTO, or responding to a case already in progress, this easy-to-use book should prove an ideal starting point for lawyers, business people, or government officials confronted with a disputable trade issue.

In the World Trade Organization regime, government procurement is largely excluded from the multilateral agreements. The "plurilateral" WTO Agreement on Government Procurement, with its challenging accession procedures and limited number of signatories, cannot be said to succeed in its efforts to liberalize this area of trade activity - more than 10 per cent of gross domestic product in most countries. This study investigates the special sensitivities of government procurement that have left major trade barriers intact despite the WTO mandate that has proven so effective in other areas. Professor Arrowsmith examines the following crucial factors in depth: why and how procurement practices create barriers to trade; the institutional structure for dealing with government procurement in the GATT/WTO system; the impact of relevant WTO law on national legal systems; the types of contracts and entities covered in the Agreement on Government Procurement; how the National Treatment principle and the Most Favored Nation obligation affect government procurement; rules of WTO contract award procedure and the controversy over their interpretation and revision; the free trade versus social and environmental issues question in the context of government procurement; and the monitoring and enforcement of WTO procurement rules. Throughout the presentation the author focuses on specific issues to illuminate the overall pattern of her legal analysis. For example, practical questions stemming from such activities as multi-phase tendering and electronic procurement are raised for special scrutiny. The legal literature of the WTO and its jurisprudence are frequently brought into Professor Arrowsmith's arguments.

The 2004 volume of the "Comparative Law Yearbook of International Business" contains a wide variety of topics of interest to international commercial lawyers and their clients. Various areas of Company Law are discussed, including mergers and acquisitions, piercing the corporate veil and the financing of share acquisitions. The Yearbook also contains several chapters on investments and securities, including the need for corporate governance in this area, and the role of collective investment schemes in Bermuda. Some chapters deal with the introduction of new technology into the realm of commerce, particularly new legislation relating to e-commerce and the Competition Law issues encountered by the telecommunications industry. The introduction and effects of new legislation generally are also addressed, including the new Ukrainian Commercial Code and Brazilian Civil Code. In addition to discussions on intellectual property, arbitration and asset protection, the Yearbook contains a section on real property rights, including a very interesting comparison between the way in which China and Indonesia view property rights, and the treatment received by such rights in Western society. Various areas of law are also looked at from a European point of view, such as the increase in America-style asbestos litigation in Europe, the hiring out of workers within Europe and the effect of the European Convention on Human Rights upon business. With the ever-increasing introduction of new technology, the expansion of global communications, new attitudes towards business and commerce and increased awareness of personal and property rights, there is a constant need for the law to develop in order to adequately deal with these issues. The yearbook branches out into some of the innovative and topical areas of contemporary law, and should be of great interest to anyone involved in modern-day business.

The TRIPS Agreement (Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights), signed on April 15, 1994, introduced intellectual property protection into the World Trade Organization's multilateral trading system for the first time, and it remains the most comprehensive international agreement on intellectual property to date. A Neofederalist Vision of TRIPS by Graeme B. Dinwoodie and Rochelle C. Dreyfuss examines its interpretation, its impact on the creative environment, and its effect on national and international lawmaking. It propounds a vision of TRIPS as creating a neofederalist regime, one that will ensure the resilience of the international intellectual property system in time of rapid change. In this vision, WTO members retain considerable flexibility to tailor intellectual property law to their national priorities and to experiment with changes necessary to meet new technological and social challenges, but agree to operate within an international framework. This framework, while less powerful than the central administration of a federal government, comprises a series of substantive and procedural commitments that promote the coordination of both the present intellectual property system as well as future international intellectual property lawmaking. Part I demonstrates the centrality of state autonomy throughout the history of international negotiations over intellectual property. Part II, which looks at the present, analyzes the decisions of the WTO in intellectual property cases. It concludes that the WTO has been inattentive to the benefits of promoting cultural diversity, the values inherent in intellectual property, the rich fabric of its law and lore, the necessary balance between producers and users of knowledge goods, and the relationship between the law and the technological environment in which it must operate. Looking to the future, Part III develops a framework for integrating the increasingly fragmented international system and proposes the recognition of an international intellectual property acquis, a set of longstanding principles that have informed, and should continue to inform intellectual property lawmaking. The acquis would include both express and latent components of the international regime, put access-regarding guarantees such as user rights on a par with proprietary interests and enshrine the fundamental importance of national autonomy in the international system.

Concentrating on international intellectual property law, this volume is a collection of works by current authors in the field. Their work is supplemented by numerous essays and notes prepared by the editors. The controlling provisions of the major treaties in the field are included in a comprehensive appendix. The editors have organized the book according to the theories underlying the protection of international intellectual property rights. For example, they have considered the historical and philosophical foundation of copyright protection in the context of the protection of culture and personality, while issues regarding compulsory licensing to ensure public use of certain forms of intellectual property have been illustrated by examples drawn from patent protection. The problem of "harmonization" is addressed through many diverse examples from intellectual property protection. And the closely-related field of the protection of cultural patrimony is also included.

This publication represents a collection of scholarly and highly practical chapters prepared by leading experts on banking law. Important changes are taking place in the financial sectors in the Pacific Rim; vital roles are being played by Tokyo, Hong Kong, Singapore and Taipei. This volume deals with the broad policy issues entailed in the liberalization and deregulation of the banking industry and is divided into two parts. Part 1 covers liberalization and the search for an appropriate banking law model; and Part 2 deals with convergence of supervisory standards of international banking. This collection, which was designed as a broad foundation for comparative analysis of changes and reforms occurring worldwide in international banking regulation and practice, should be a useful aid to domestic and international government officials, executives of banking and other financial institutions, professionals (attorneys, accountants and other advisers) representing such institutions and academics, in trying to understand both policies and practicalities reflected by these rapid changes and reforms. A separate, but related, companion volume on international banking operations and practices has also been produced, entitled "International Banking Operations and Practices: Current Developments", which deals with the relevant legal questions regarding the changing international financial practices.

This work examines the scope of authors' rights in relation to the exploitation of their works by broadcasting, whether terrestrial or by satellite, cabling or over computer networks, in three important jurisdictions and under relevant international conventions. The analysis traces the gradual expansion of the various exclusive rights granted by copyright law in response to technological developments and puts them in their modern context, focusing on the overarching right of public performance or communication. The author argues that the advent of modern technologies, which recognize no national boundaries, necessitate the adoption of an internationally harmonized concept of "communication to the public" as the primary right applicable to the dissemination of copyright works in non-material form.

Franchising has long been an integral part of the globalization of business and an important tool in the spread of investment.
In this special issue of the Comparative Law Yearbook of International Business, practitioners who are specialized in franchising -- its potentials as well as its pitfalls -- provide reports on franchising developments in national systems such as:
- Australia,
- Austria,
- Canada,
- Chile,
- China,
- the Czech Republic,
- Denmark,
- France,
Germany,
- Greece,
- India,
- Indonesia,
- Israel,
- Malaysia,
- Mexico,
- Norway,
- Russia,
- Singapore,
- Spain,
- Thailand, and
- Turkey.

Examining open EDI, an application of electronic commerce, this volume deals with its relationship with law. Electronic commerce applications all allow the transfer of electronic data from one point to another. Open EDI also allows for commercial transactions to take place in a fully-automated and highly-organized trading environment. Open EDI permits "ad hoc" open electronic transactions irrespective of geographical border and jurisdictions among trading partners with no prior trade relationship. By doing this open EDI limits the possibility of using up-front interchange agreements to address legal problems of the interchange. It is therefore necessary to use legal instruments supported by information technology to overcome legal problems. The book advocates the use of possible regulations to address the need of the users to act in such a trading environment uninhibited by basic legal concerns. It concludes that to respond to the challenge of open EDI it is necessary to work towards a new legal framework based on international law and supported by information technology.

The spectacular success of electronic commerce in recent years has seen an explosion in the availability of information and entertainment products on the Internet. This distribution of `content' is expected to continue as one of the major sources of growth on the Internet in the years ahead, raising concerns over the protection of content owners' rights. While the complex copyright problems of the Internet have generated plenty of literature and legislative initiatives, many important issues still remain unresolved. Rights holders in the online marketplace thus remain vulnerable to digital piracy and other forms of unauthorised use. Concerns over the effectiveness of the copyright system in a digital environment have inspired content providers to look for alternative protection regimes or strategies. These alternatives, such as the protection afforded by contract law and information technology, comprise important elements of the Electronic Copyright Management System (ECMS), a fully automated system of secure distribution, rights management, monitoring and payment of copyright-protected content currently being developed. Perhaps the largest multidisciplinary study conducted on ECMS to date is the IMPRIMATUR project, which was subsidised by the European Commission's Esprit Programme, and for which the Institute for Information Law of the University of Amsterdam (IViR) produced a series of legal studies. This volume collects six fully revised and updated studies relating to copyright and electronic commerce which have resulted from the IViR's research. As well as examining the legal issues crucial to the development of electronic copyright management systems, the contributions address issues with wider implications for the law of copyright in general. Other aspects of information law are also considered, such as defamation, data protection, privacy and freedom of expression and information, as are general questions of contract and tort law.

The obligations of international trade law hinge upon the question of what constitutes 'like products'. Trade disputes will often involve an examination of whether the products in question are in competition with one another. The most common term used for this test is to ask whether they are 'like products' - that is to ask whether products are sufficiently similar for consumers to see them as substitutable - and thus whether they are subject to the rules of the WTO and GATT. This book seeks to develop consistent principles and an effective definition for this central issue of world trade law.

The 2006 edition of the "Comparative Law Yearbook of International Business" examines issues in three major topic categories: Litigation and Dispute Resolution, Investment Vehicles, and Secured Interests in Immovables. Lawyers from Nigeria, the United States, and Ireland review the settlement of investment disputes, the impact of claims on non-United States companies, and claim and dispute resolution under FIDIC. Practitioners from Israel, Panama, Hong Kong, and Belgium treat investment vehicles such as trusts, foundations, and joint ventures and investment visas. Contributors from Brazil, Venezuela, Argentina, and Mexico review the use of security in real property in their respective jurisdictions. Finally, lawyers from Brazil, Canada, the United States, Germany, South Africa, Ukraine, and Romania treat issues ranging from trade mark counterfeiting, registered designs, and telecommunications to criminality in international business transactions, outsourcing, and business immigration.

This textbook examines the legal and regulatory approaches to digital assets and related technology taken by United States regulators. As cryptoassets and other blockchain applications mature, and regulatory authorities work hard to keep pace, Daniel Stabile, Kimberly Prior and Andrew Hinkes invite students to consider the legal approaches, challenges and tension points inherent in regulating these new products and systems. The authors explore the attempts to apply securities laws and money transmission regulation, the growth of smart contracts, the taxation of digital assets, and the intersection of digital assets and criminal law. This innovative and unique textbook features: Commentary and analysis by three leading attorneys engaged with the regulation of digital assets and blockchain technology, offering practical, real-world acumen A comprehensive overview of the origins, key features and mechanisms of blockchain technology, as well as a broad intimation of the divisive debates that will shape the future of digital assets, to guarantee a thorough introduction to the topic for students Excerpts of authorities and other materials from key regulators, including the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Commodities Futures Trade Commission, and the Internal Revenue Service, to add insight and nuance to classroom discussions. In this, the first textbook of its kind, students of law, business, or technology will find crucial insights into the law and regulation of blockchain and a comprehensive overview of significant public debates on the topic.

This book focuses on the Asia-Pacific region, delineating the evolving dynamics of foreign investment in the region. It examines the relationship between efforts to increase foreign direct investment (FDI) and efforts to improve governance and inclusive growth and development. Against a background of rapidly developing international investment law, it emphasises the need to strike a balance between these domestic and international legal frameworks, seeking to promote both foreign investment and the laws and policies necessary to regulate investments and investor conduct. Foreign investments play a pivotal role in most countries' political economies, and in order to encourage cross-border capital flows, countries have taken various steps, such as revising their domestic legal frameworks, liberalising rules on inward and outward investment, and creating special regimes that provide incentives and protections for foreign investment. Alongside the developments in domestic laws, countries have also taken bilateral and multilateral action, including entering into trade and/or investment agreements. Further, the book explores regional investment trends, highlights specific features of Asia-Pacific investment laws and treaties, and analyses policy implications. It addresses four overarching themes: the trends (how Asia-Pacific's agreements compare with recent global trends in the evolving rules on foreign investment); what China is doing; current investment arbitration practice in Asia; and the importance of regionalising investment law in the Asia-Pacific region. In addition, it identifies and discusses the research and policy gaps that should be filled in order to promote more sustainable and responsible investment. The book offers a valuable resource not only for academics and students, but also for trade and investment officials, policy-makers, diplomats, economists, lawyers, think tanks, and business leaders interested in the governance and regulation of foreign investment, economic policy reforms, and the development of new types of investment agreements.

This work examines both the UK and international regulation, as well as the case law and legislation affecting a wide spectrum of modern financial techniques. Within the scope of those financial techniques are the broad range of instruments, structures and contracts deployed by global financial markets in relation to corporate customers, sovereign entities and other public sector bodies. The essays in this collection are concerned with the nature of the modernity of financial products like derivatives, and the particularly acute challenge that they pose both to the control of financial markets by private law and by established means of regulation. Much of the book focuses on derivatives as exemplars of this broader context. The authors analyze practical and theoretical issues as diverse as credit derivatives, dematerialized securities, the ISDA EMU protocol, and the OTC derivatives market, as well as the regulation of financial products, the economics of financial techniques, and the international regulatory framework. They examine issues of private law, including the legal implications of immobilization and dematerialization in collateral transactions, seller liability in credit derivatives markets and fraud. The essays examine the benefits and shortcomings of various legal mechanisms and methods of financial regulation, and suggest new approaches to the questions facing the law of international finance. The essays in this book arose out of the W.G. Hart workshop on Transnational Corporate Finance and the Challenge to the Law held at the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies in London in 1998.

Nations in all regions of the world today share a common international sales law, the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG). The Convention was prepared by the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) and adopted by a diplomatic conference on 11 April 1980. Since then, the number of countries that have adopted the CISG account for over two-thirds of all world trade. The area of international sales law continues to grow as technology and development take us to a global economy. As such, the study of the CISG has become an integral component of this ever-growing area of international commercial law. "The Pace International Law Review edits the "Review of the Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG), a book published by Kluwer Law International. The Review of the CISG is published once yearly and features articles written by prominent legal scholars in the field of international sale of goods from around the world. In addition to scholarly writings analyzing the various articles of the CISG, the book seeks to compile translations of recent decisions as well as commentaries of notable cases relating to the CISG. The Review of the CISG provides both a forum for legal discussion within the international legal community in the area of international sales law and as an authoritative source of reference for international scholars.

Freshwater is an increasingly scarce resource globally, and effective sustainable management will be absolutely crucial in the future. This timely book sets out future scenarios of international trade in both 'real' and 'virtual' water, examining the relationship between climate change, water scarcity, the human right to water and World Trade Organization law. Trade in Water Under International Law addresses questions of global importance such as: how can international trade in bulk water contribute to the advancement of the human right to water? Are 'green-boxed' irrigation subsidies disturbing the markets? Should water-footprint process and production methods allow for a different treatment of otherwise 'like' products? From examining the impact of water law on small-scale farmers in developing countries, to the broader issue of global environmental responsibility, Fitzgerald Temmerman explores the options available for fair resource allocation through international law arrangements such as the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, and the Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade. By taking a wide-reaching and non-technical approach, this book will capture the attention not only of international trade law professionals, but of all stakeholders in the field. With such relevance to contemporary environmental issues, this book will also be of interest to non-legally qualified individuals who want to comprehend the future possibilities of fair water trade.

The global crises of the early 21st century have tested the international financial architecture. In seeking to ensure stability, governments have regulated financial and capital markets. This in turn has implicated international investment law, which investors have invoked as a shield against debt restructuring, bail-ins or bail-outs. This book explores whether investment law should protect against such regulatory measures, including where these have the support of multilateral institutions. It considers where the line should be drawn between legitimate regulation and undue interference with investor rights and, equally importantly, who draws it. Across the diverse chapters herein, expert international scholars assess the key challenges facing decision makers, analyze arbitral and treaty practice and evaluate ways towards a balanced system of investment protection in the financial sector. In doing so, they offer a detailed analysis of the interaction between investment protection and financial regulation in fields such as sovereign debt restructuring and bank rescue measures. Combining high-level analysis with a detailed assessment of controversial legal issues, this book will provide guidance for both academics and legal practitioners working in international economic law, international arbitration, investment law, international banking and financial law. Contributors include: A. Asteriti, P. Athanassiou, C.N. Brower, A. De Luca, A. Goetz-Charlier, A. Gourgourinis, R. Hofmann, H. Kupelyants, Y. Li, M. Mendelson, M.W. Muller, M

With a foreword by Prof. Paolo Palchetti The topic of this book is the participation of the EU in international dispute settlement. It aims to provide the reader with an appraisal of the most problematic aspects connected with the participation of a sui generis legal subject such as the EU to international dispute settlement mechanisms in a State-centric international law. In particular, the publication dwells on the question of how to make possible an effective participation in disputes while at the same time preserving the specific characteristics (i.e. the autonomy) of the EU legal order. It does so by outlining different models and proposing the internalization model adopted under EU investment agreements as a possible paradigm. It is aimed at academics, practitioners and graduate students as well as EU officials and judges who should find the issues discussed both useful and of interest for staying up-to-date on the scholarly discussion and of their relevance to case law. Luca Pantaleo is a Lecturer in International and European Law at The Hague University of Applied Sciences in The Netherlands. He obtained a PhD in International and EU Law in 2013 at the University of Macerata in Italy and was previously a Senior Researcher at the T.M.C. Asser Institute and Postdoctoral researcher at the University of Luxembourg. Specific to this book: * Provides an up-to-date analysis of a current problem* The topic of the book is located at the intersection between international and EU law* Fills an important gap in the available literature