The Limits of Criminal Law shines light from the outer edges of the criminal law in to better understand its core. From a framework of core principles, different borders are explored to test out where criminal law's normative or performative limits are, in particular, the borders of crime with tort, non-criminal enforcement, medical law, business regulation, administrative sanctions, counter-terrorism and intelligence law.The volume carefully juxtaposes and compares English and German law on each of these borders, drawing out underlying concepts and key comparative lessons. Each country offers insights beyond their own laws. This double perspective sharpens readers critical understanding of the criminal law, and at the same time produces insights that go beyond the perspective of one legal tradition.The book does not promote a single normative view of the limits of criminal law, but builds a detailed picture of the limits that exist now and why they exist now. This evidence-led approach is particularly important in an ever more interconnected world in which different perceptions of criminal law can lead to profound misunderstandings between countries. The Limits of Criminal Law builds picture of what shapes the criminal law, where those limits come from, and what might motivate legal systems to strain, ignore or strengthen those limits. Some of the most interesting insights come out of the comparison between German systematic approach and doctrinal limits with English laws focus on process and judgment on individual questions.

A three-year-old boy dies, having apparently fallen while trying to reach a bag of sugar on a high shelf. His grandmother stands accused of second-degree murder. Psychologist Susan Nordin Vinocour agrees to evaluate the defendant, to determine whether the impoverished and mentally ill woman is competent to stand trial. Vinocour soon finds herself pulled headlong into a series of difficult questions, beginning with: was the defendant legally insane on the night in question? As she wades deeper into the story, Vinocour traces the legal definition of insanity back nearly two hundred years, when our understanding of the human mind was in its infancy. "Competency" and "insanity", she explains, are creatures of legal definition, not psychiatric reality, and in criminal law, "insanity" has become a luxury of the rich and white. With passion, clarity, and heart, Vinocour examines the troubling intersection of mental health issues and the law.

This significantly revised and expanded third edition of Comparative Contract Law brings together extracts from legislation and court practice in a way that enables students to experience comparative law in action. Promoting a 'learning-by-doing' approach to comparative contract law and comparative methodology, this unique guide to European and international contract law is marked out by the following features: A comparative perspective on highly topical, real-life issues of contract law; Materials from some 30 jurisdictions in both their original languages and in high quality translations, with information on smaller and medium-sized jurisdictions further diversified; An opportunity for students to solve scenarios according to the laws of different jurisdictions, to compare and evaluate the solutions and approaches they identify, and to better understand the diverse approaches to modern contract law; NEW! Concise introductions to the history of each country and its private law system, informing readers about the key data before they are invited to work with material from that jurisdiction; NEW! A chapter on 'contractual penalty clauses', a frequent occurrence in contractual practice; NEW! Full integration of the Chinese Civil Code which entered into force in 2021. Essential reading for all students of comparative contract law and methodology, thi the s third edition remains a vital teaching and learning resource, and a practical guide for those seeking to familiarise themselves with real-world materials and to better understand the diverse approaches to modern contract law.

David Boonin presents a new account of the non-identity problem: a puzzle about our obligations to people who do not yet exist. Our actions sometimes have an effect not only on the quality of life that people will enjoy in the future, but on which particular people will exist in the future to enjoy it. In cases where this is so, the combination of certain assumptions that most people seem to accept can yield conclusions that most people seem to reject. The non-identity problem has important implications both for ethical theory and for a number of topics in applied ethics, including controversial issues in bioethics, environmental ethics and disability ethics. It has been the subject of a great deal of discussion for nearly four decades, but this is the first book-length study devoted exclusively to its examination. Boonin begins by explaining what the problem is, why the problem matters, and what criteria a solution to the problem must satisfy in order to count as a successful one. He then provides a critical survey of the solutions to the problem that have thus far been proposed in the sizeable literature that the problem has generated and concludes by developing and defending an unorthodox alternative solution, one that differs fundamentally from virtually every other available approach.

For many Europeans, the persistence of America's death penalty is a stark reminder of American otherness. The practice of state killing is an archaic relic, a hollow symbol that accomplishes nothing but reflects a puritanical, punitive culture - bloodthirsty in its pursuit of retribution. In debating capital punishment, the usual rhetoric points to America's deviance from the western norm: civilized abolition and barbaric retention; 'us' and 'them'. This remarkable new study by a leading social thinker sweeps aside the familiar story and offers a compelling interpretation of the culture of American punishment. It shows that the same forces that led to the death penalty's abolition in Europe once made America a pioneer of reform. That democracy and civilization are not the enemies of capital punishment, though liberalism and humanitarianism are. Making sense of today's differences requires a better understanding of American society and its punishments than the standard rhetoric allows. Taking us deep inside the world of capital punishment, the book offers a detailed picture of a peculiar institution - its cultural meaning and symbolic force for supporters and abolitionists, its place in the landscape of American politics and attitudes to crime, its constitutional status and the legal struggles that define it. Understanding the death penalty requires that we understand how American society is put together - the legacy of racial violence, the structures of social power, and the commitment to radical, local majority rule. Shattering current stereotypes, the book forces us to rethink our understanding of the politics of death and of punishment in America and beyond.

Philip Pettit has drawn together here a series of interconnected essays on three subjects to which he has made notable contributions. The first part of the book discusses the rule-following character of thought. The second considers how choice can be responsive to different sorts of factors, while still being under the control of thought and the reasons that thought marshals. The third examines the implications of this view of choice and rationality for the normative regulation of social behaviour.

Access to justice is a fundamental democratic right for all citizens. In order to exercise this right people need lawyers or other legal professionals to translate their everyday problems and conflicts to the distant legal world and to translate legal language into the ordinary language of the average (potential) litigant. In both countries the legal aid system is under pressure partly due to the economic crisis, partly because of the increasing demand for and use of legal aid. We live in times of austerity and the legal aid system is considered to be too expensive. In both Belgium and the Netherlands we see cutbacks and proposals to reform the legal aid system. Legal Aid in the Low Countries deals with the system of legal aid in Belgium and the Netherlands. Central questions in the book are whether the conditions for a sound legal aid system are met, especially in the fields of law that mainly concern the 'have nots'; the main ethical considerations that legal aid providers have to take into account; and the alternatives for legal aid and complementary solutions to enhance access to justice. The approaches to legal aid are very varied: the socio-legal approach, the policy approach, the critical approach, the legal approach, etc. Legal Aid in the Low Countries is unique in how it brings these disciplines together. It broadens the debate on legal aid and sheds light on these questions from the perspectives of all these disciplines. The book is written for everyone who is professionally or scientifically interested in legal aid.

Mexican Law provides an overview of the Mexican legal system. In addition to setting forth rules and legal doctrines (with reference to the practical application of the law), this volume surveys the key institutions that make and enforce the law in Mexico, and places them in their historical and cultural context. The book makes frequent comparisons to United States legal doctrines and institutions, and provides a foundation for understanding the roles of law and legal institutions in shaping public and private life in Mexico.

Realising the Right to Basic Education examines the crucial roles of civil society and the courts in developing the right to education in South Africa amid substantial and persistent inequalities in education provisioning. Unlike other socio-economic rights in the Constitution, the right to basic education is framed as an unqualified right - it is not subject to qualifiers such as 'progressive realisation' and 'within the state's available resources'. Yet, two and a half decades into South Africa's constitutional democracy, the apartheid legacy of unequal education still lingers. Poor, predominantly black learners continue to attend historically disadvantaged schools that are often severely under-resourced, producing poor learner outcomes. This has given rise to a wave of civil society activism since around 2008 - and organisations have been utilising legal mobilisation as a key tool to effect change in historically disadvantaged schools. The litigation initiated by these organisations has contributed to a rich and evolving jurisprudence on the right to basic education as a substantive right. However, in a significant number of these cases, the relevant education departments have not complied with court orders, requiring litigants to seek increasingly innovative, experimentalist and even coercive remedies to ensure that judgments are implemented. Realising the Right to Basic Education presents an overview of these education-provisioning cases and the roles played by civil society and the courts. It analyses the contribution of these two role-players in the normative development of the right to basic education. The book also aims to identify a viable framework for interpreting the right to basic education - one that can guide South Africa towards adequate education provisioning and, ultimately, facilitate transformation of basic education in South Africa's historically disadvantaged schools.

The close connection between philosophy of language and philosophy of law has been recognized for decades through the work of many influential legal philosophers. This volume brings recent advances in philosophy of language to bear on contemporary debates about the nature of law and legal interpretation. The book builds on recent work in pragmatics and speech-act theory to explain how, and to what extent, legal content is determined by linguistic considerations. At the same time, the analysis shows that some of the unique features of communication in the legal domain - in particular, its strategic nature - can be employed to put pressure on certain assumptions in philosophy of language. This enables a more nuanced picture of how semantic and pragmatic determinants of communication work in complex and large-scale systems such as law. Chapters build on explanations of key elements of statutory language, such as the distinction between what is said and what is implicated, the possibility of ascribing truth-values to legal prescriptions and the structure of legal inferences, the various forms of vagueness in the law, the distinctions between vagueness, ambiguity, and polysemy in legal language, and the distinction between concept and conceptions, mostly in the context of constitutional interpretation. The book demonstrates that paying close attention to the kind of speech acts legal directives are, and how they determine the content of the law, enables a better understanding of the boundaries between normative and linguistic determinants of legal content.

Reflecting the most recent changes in the law, the third edition of this popular textbook provides a fully updated, comparative introduction to the law of contract. Accessible and clear, it is perfectly pitched for international students and courses with a global outlook. Jan Smits' unique approach treats contract law as a discipline that can be studied on the basis of common principles and methods without being tied to a particular jurisdiction or legal culture. He puts contract law in context by discussing empirical and economic insights. Notable updates include the consequences of Brexit, the implementation of new European directives 1999/770 and 2019/771 as well as coverage of the effect of COVID-19 on contracts. Key features of the third edition include: Introduces key principles by comparing solutions from different jurisdictions, illustrating for students the international nature and substance of contract law Draws from a wide variety of sources including German, English, French and Dutch law, European and international instruments, and examples from Central and Eastern Europe and Islamic contract law, making this an ideal textbook for students across Europe and beyond Focuses on legal method as well as substantive law Attractive and accessible design with text boxes, colour and graphics to help students navigate easily and identify key information. With its innovative approach and engaging design, this textbook has proved an essential companion to introductory courses on contract law across a multitude of jurisdictions.

The right to adequate food and to be free from hunger is a fundamental human right whose realisation is within the reach of the present generation, provided there is commitment to meeting corresponding obligations on the part of state and other duty bearers, and improved, broadly based understanding of the nature of these obligations as basis for their effective implementation. The first volume of this book introduced the concept of the human right to adequate food and elaborated its theoretical foundation and operational meaning in development. This second volume carries the debate further, with a relative shift in emphasis on implementation issues. It begins with a series of reviews of how different academic disciplines which influence the agenda for development have embraced or rejected human rights dimensions in their scholarly discourse and practical advice to governments. This is followed by concrete examples of how some states have started to apply a human rights based approach to food and nutrition policies and action, recognising the potential of such an approach as much as the many challenges still ahead. The cases reveal that one major obstacle is the lack of awareness, knowledge and capacity at all levels for applying human rights in national and local development. The need for appropriate education and capacity strengthening is therefore a central message. Overall, the experience presented suggests that human rights in development have reached a stage-of-noreturn, with the climate for the adoption and application of right to adequate food principles and obligations slowly but steadily improving.

Out of the 2015/16 nationwide student protest action has come the long-overdue challenge for academia to assess and reconsider critically the role academics play in maintaining and perpetuating exclusive social structures and discourse in schools and faculties in the higher education landscape in South Africa. Decolonisation and Africanisation of Legal Education in South Africa proposes possible starting points on the subject, and the roles, challenges and questions that legal academia face in the quest to decolonise and Africanise legal education in South Africa. It explores the potential role of the Constitution in decolonising and Africanising legal education. Furthermore, the book discusses important contextual factors in relation to decolonising clinical legal education. Decolonisation and Africanisation form a much more nuanced project in the continuous process of development and reflection to be undertaken by all law academics together with their relevant institutions and students. The book ultimately highlights the importance of decolonising the law itself. This timely and important work lays a foundation that will hopefully inspire many more publications and debates aimed at transforming our legal education.

'The incorporation of Chinese law is particularly interesting for Chinese legal researchers and even for the Chinese legislator considering the dramatic ongoing codification movement taking place within Chinese civil law, because one of the essential values of comparative law is to find alternative solutions to one's own legal system.' - Jiayou Shi, Renmin University of China, Beijing, China 'Professor Kadner Graziano's book on comparative contract law is an invaluable source of inspiration to both study and teach contract law in a transnational perspective. His cases highlight the expected and sometimes less expected differences and similarities between the key jurisdictions in Europe and allow the reader to gain a concrete understanding of the various systems put in play. I cherish this book this book for my course on transnational contract law and highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in this stimulating field of study.' - Andre Prum, University of Luxembourg Promoting a 'learning-by-doing' approach to comparative contract law and comparative methodology, this second edition of Comparative Contract Law updates the first true student reader on the subject. It brings together extracts from legislation and court practice in a way that lets students experience comparative law in action, presenting a unique guide to European and International contract law. This updated second edition provides: an international perspective on highly topical, real-life issues of contract law materials from some 30 jurisdictions in both their original languages, and in excellent translations the chance for students to solve scenarios according to the laws of different jurisdictions and compare and evaluate the solutions and approaches they identify the opportunity for students to engage with a broad array of case material and to develop their skills as comparative lawyers. Essential reading for all students, practitioners, and scholars of comparative contract law and methodology, this second edition remains a vital practical guide for those seeking to familiarise themselves with real-world materials and to better understand the diverse approaches to modern contract law.

Ethics are an integral part of the legal profession. Ethics are important because they imbue a sense of orderliness and professionalism in the members of the profession, and hence instil in legal practitioners a sense of responsibility and accountability. Understanding Professional Conduct and Ethics for Legal Practitioners in Zambia covers the following areas: the core ethics of a legal practitioner; the obligations of an advocate; the fraternity of lawyers; undertakings; disciplining an advocate; the conduct and ethics of prosecutors; and judicial officers' conduct and ethics. The book includes the Judicial (Code of Conduct) Act, the Legal Practitioners' Act and the Legal Practitioners' Practice Rules.

A book series devoted to the common foundations of the European legal systems. The Ius Commune Europaeum series includes comparative legal studies as well as studies on the effect of treaties within national legal systems. All areas of the law are covered. The books are published in various European languages under the auspices of METRO, the Institute for Transnational Legal Research at Maastricht University. This book discusses the impact of EU law on selected national legal systems. The authors analyse how the civil procedure system of their country has reacted to increasing Europeanisation and influence of EU law. They identify significant changes and disseminate the reasons for particular developments and the further implications of EU law on the civil procedure.Europe is in a period of increasing Europeanisation of civil procedure. Procedural elements of EU law are based on decentralised enforcement, leaving enforcement and procedural issues to the Member States. Consequently, there is vast amount of EU case law that is relevant for national procedural law. The supremacy of EU law and, inter alia, the requirements of effectiveness and equivalence may be relevant for several topics of national civil procedural law, for example ex officio application of EU law, enforcement, insolvency proceedings, evidence, etc. Both EU legislation and doctrinal changes in EU case law touch upon various topics of the procedural law of the Member States. In a concluding chapter, a more comprehensive comparison between the countries represented in the book is made. Which doctrines, which pieces of legislation or features in legislation pose problems for national civil procedure? Are some legal systems or topics more prone to integrate European rules, and are others more resistant to changes? This book displays the Europeanisation of national civil procedure law and helps to understand this development from the perspective of Member States.

The regulation of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) continues to generate controversy. On the one hand, they are actively promoted by the biotechnology industry as vital to ensuring food security. Yet, on the other hand, consumer resistance persists, not least in the European Union, and such lack of confidence extends not just to GM food itself but also to the regulatory regime, where legal issues are inextricably linked with economics and politics.
This edited collection provides a novel contribution to the ongoing debate, recognizing that the legislative environment is complicated by forces as varied as national public opinion and world trade commitments.
The book is divided into four parts. The first of these addresses the influence in this context of both civil society and economic imperatives. The second part is directed more specifically to the measures that have been implemented in the European Union, considering multi-level governance, wider aspects of food law, co-existence with conventional and organic crops, and environmental liability. The third part is comparative in focus, with chapters covering the diverse regimes implemented in Africa, Australia, North America and South America. The book concludes with chapters on world trade and international considerations, including analysis of the Biotech case.

Equality is an ideal to which we all aspire. Yet the more closely we examine it, the more its meaning shifts. How do we explain how equal treatment can in effect lead to inequality, while unequal treatment might be necessary in order to achieve equality? The apparent paradox can be understood if we accept that equality can be formulated in different ways, depending on which underlying conception is chosen. In this highly readable yet challenging book, Sandra Fredman examines the ways in which discrimination law addresses these questions.
The new edition retains the format of the highly successful first edition, while incorporating the many new developments in discrimination law since 2002, including the Equality Act 2010, human rights law, and EU law. By using a thematic approach, the book illuminates the major issues in discrimination law, while at the same time imparting a detailed understanding of the legal provisions. The comparative approach is particularly helpful; by examining comparable law in the US, India, Canada, and South Africa, as well as the UK, the book exposes common problems and canvasses differing solutions. As in the previous edition, the book locates discrimination in its wider social and historical context. Drawing on the author's wide experience of equality law in many jurisdictions, she creates an analytic framework to assess the substantive law.
The book is a thought-provoking and accessible overview of the way in which equality law has adjusted to new and increasingly complex challenges. It concludes that progress has been evident, but uneven. Those dedicated to equality still face an exacting, but ultimately deeply rewarding, task.

How might the social sciences best be employed in the study of law, especially in light of today's legal climate of anti-foundationalism? Realistic Socio-Legal Theory addresses this question thoroughly and precisely. Drawing upon philosophical pragmatism to construct an epistemological and methodological foundation, this book formulates a framework for a realistic approach to socio-legal theory.
Brian Z. Tamanaha contrasts the strengths of his realistic approach with those of the major schools of socio-legal theory through application to many key issues in the field. He explores the problematic state of socio-legal studies, the relationship between behavior and meaning, the notion of legal ideology, the nature of the concept of law, the problem of indeterminacy in rule following and application, and the structure of judicial decision making.
Tamanaha's discussion is always clear and concise as he articulates a social theory of law that draws equally from legal theory and socio-legal studies. His book has much to offer those interested in the gathering and organization of knowledge about law and legal phenomena.

Trial preparation is a process that often commences immediately after the close of pleadings. It involves what may be categorised as: external procedural steps directed at the opposing litigant or third parties, such as requesting further particulars and replying to requests, making discovery and subpoenaing witnesses; internal acts of preparation, such as identifying the issues in a matter, determining the witnesses required to be called, preparing to lead and cross-examine witnesses and undertaking research on law. An extensive range of the steps to be taken are dealt with in this book. Where they involve matters of procedural and related law, the basic principles are set out and practical advice is given to assist in deciding when and how to use these legal procedures. Practical steps to prepare for trial are also dealt with in a manner that can be readily understood. To explain abstract concepts, several examples of pleadings in different types of actions (in an appendix) are used as illustrations.

This is a concise and accessible introduction to fundamental rights in Europe from the perspectives of history, theory and an analysis of European jurisprudence. Taking a multidisciplinary approach, the book equips readers with the tools to understand the foundations and the functioning of this complex and multi-layered topic. Key Features: A combination of historical and philosophical approaches with analysis of significant legal cases A multidisciplinary outlook, in contrast to the strict legal approach of most textbooks on the subject A European perspective which refers throughout to central European values such as freedom, equality, solidarity and dignity A specific focus on fundamental rights, which have received less attention in the fields of legal history and theory in comparison to human rights This textbook will be an important resource for both undergraduate and postgraduate students in law, philosophy and political science. It will be particularly useful to those studying the law of fundamental rights or human rights as a complement to more traditional legal approaches.

This is a study of the law governing the bank-customer relationship pertaining to the disposition of funds by cheques and credit transfers, covering both paper-based and electronic payments. The work addresses, with various degrees of detail, common law, civilian, and `mixed' jurisdictions, particularly, Australia, Canada, England, France, Germany, Israel, Italy, Japan, South Africa, Switzerland and the United States. In addition to the description of the law in these jurisdictions, the book contains an in-depth analysis of the common issues and the responses to them, in light of desired policies. Accordingly, an evaluation of the various rules and proposals for reform are integral parts of the study.

Two of the world's leading political scientists present the best of their research, focusing on how to build and test a social science of law and courts. Written for a broad, scholarly audience, the book is also recommended for use in graduate and advanced undergraduate courses in law and the social sciences.

Clinical legal education (CLE) is a springboard for entry into legal practice, preparing students for the professional challenges they will face after completing their studies and embarking on their legal careers. In her eight years of conducting research on CLE in South African universities, the author has found that the most urgent needs are in the area of student assessment. Designing a curriculum with assessable content is therefore essential for clinicians who, in certifying students' capabilities, are the gatekeepers to practice. This book identifies curriculum requirements across a number of jurisdictions, and proposes a menu of assessment methods, which may enhance the choices of assessment methodologies available to South African university law clinics. It also covers the setting of parameters for assessment, grading, grade descriptors and moderation systems, and discusses different forms of tests, assignments, essay- and oral-examinations, as well as self- and peer-evaluation, peer editing, case portfolios, and trial advocacy skills. The book addresses challenges such as clinicians' heavy workloads and differing levels of experience in supervision and assessment. It discusses challenges students face and presents solutions enabling clinicians to help them depending on their individual experience and needs. Also discussed are the potential conflicts between the needs of students and those of the local community being served by the law clinic. Although the aim of this book is to find appropriate assessment methods for CLE, the effectiveness of an assessment programme can only be determined when measured against a curriculum. The proposed curriculum is therefore measured against the identified assessment criteria. CLE Lecturers can download assessment forms, checklists and rubrics from the Juta Law website - visit https://juta.co.za/support-material/detail/clinical-legal-education for details.

Sex crime has become one of the most intense areas of public and political concern in recent decades. This book explores the complex influences that shape its construction in the press. Media representations give important clues as to how we should perceive the nature and extent of sex crime, how we should think and feel about it, how we should respond to it, and the measures that might be taken to reduce risk. Understanding the media construction of sex crime is central to understanding its meaning and place in our everyday lives. Unlike much of the existing research, this book explores the construction of sex crime at every stage of the news production process. It then locates the findings within a wider context of cultural, economic and political change in late modernity. The book; shows how increased market competition and tabloidisation has altered fundamentally the way in which news is produced, communicated and consumed discusses representations of the full range of sex crimes from consensual homosexual offences and prostitution to serial rape and sex murder draws upon extensive empirical research in Northern Ireland, while addressing issues relevant to advance capitalist societies across the globe