The healthcare delivery system in the United States is inundated with medical malpractice and liability issues, and there is no consensus about causes or solutions. Both physicians and an alliance of lawyers and consumer groups agree that there is a crisis, but physicians claim that the current medical malpractice system inheres in too many lawsuits while the lawyers argue that the current level of litigation is insufficient. Multivariate statistical methods are used in this much needed effort to investigate the effects of medical malpractice on various aspects of health care.

After introducing the various tort reforms that have been proposed and implemented by some states, the author analyzes the impact of these reforms on medical malpractice payment rates, claim payments, malpractice insurance, and in dental malpractice. The impact of malpractice liability on costs, licensure, disciplinary action, the supply of physicians, and the practice of defensive medicine are also covered. This is an essential guide for students in law, medicine, and health administration, as well as anyone who wants to research these issues for public policy.

A human right to housing represents the law's most direct and overt protection of housing and home. Unlike other human rights, through which the home incidentally receives protection and attention, the right to housing raises housing itself to the position of primary importance. However, the meaning, content, scope and even existence of a right to housing raise vexed questions. Drawing on insights from disciplines including law, anthropology, political theory, philosophy and geography, this book is both a contribution to the state of knowledge on the right to housing, and an entry into the broader human rights debate. It addresses profound questions on the role of human rights in belonging and citizenship, the formation of identity, the perpetuation of forms of social organisation and, ultimately, of the relationship between the individual and the state. The book addresses the legal, theoretical and conceptual issues, providing a deep analysis of the right to housing within and beyond human rights law. Structured in three parts, the book outlines the right to housing in international law and in key national legal systems; examines the most important concepts of housing: space, privacy and identity and, finally, looks at the potential of the right to alleviate human misery, marginalisation and deprivation. The book represents a major contribution to the scholarship on an under-studied and ill-defined right. In terms of content, it provides a much needed exploration of the right to housing. In approach it offers a new framework for argument within which the right to housing, as well as other under-theorised and contested rights, can be reconsidered, reconnecting human rights with the social conditions of their violation, and hence with the reasons for their existence. Shortlisted for The Peter Birks Prize for Outstanding Legal Scholarship 2013.

Information and the marketplace are uneasy bedfellows. The dissemination of information via media can have many different and overlapping purposes, including entertainment, art, ideology, and research. It is particularly among groups that need to share information - the academic and scientific communities, for example - that viewing it as something that can be bought and sold is intrusive and even damaging. There are many other reasons why the commodification of information, which continues to move from strength to strength with the expansion of international free trade, must be carefully scrutinized. To this end, a conference of specialists with expertise encompassing the area of law and practice where intellectual property, communications, privacy, free speech, collaborative research, and international trade all intersect met under the auspices of the University of Haifa Faculty of Law in May 1999. This book presents the analyses and recommendations that emerged from that conference. As one might expect, a broad spectrum of views is expressed, from commercialism as the liberator of free speech to commodification as de facto censorship.

This book advocates a new way of thinking about mortgage contracts. This claim is based on the assumption that we currently live in a political economy in which consumer debt fulfils a social function. In the field of housing this is evidenced by the expansion of mortgage credit through which consumers are to purchase residential property as a means of social inclusion and personal welfare. It is suggested that contract law needs to adjust to this new social function in order to avoid welfare losses in terms of default, over-indebtedness, and possibly eviction. To this end, this book analyses theoretical contract law frameworks and makes concrete proposals for contract law in the EU legal order.

Landmark Cases in Equity continues the series of essay collections which began with Landmark Cases in the Law of Restitution (2006) and continued with Landmark Cases in the Law of Contract (2008) and Landmark Cases in the Law of Tort (2010). It contains essays on landmark cases in the development of equitable doctrine running from the seventeenth century to recent times. The range, breadth and social importance of equitable principles, as these affect commercial, domestic and even political matters are well known. By focusing on the historical development of these principles, the essays in this collection help us to understand them more clearly, and also provide insights into the processes of legal change through judicial innovation. Themes addressed in the essays include the nature of the courts' equitable jurisdiction, the development of property rights in equity, constraints on the powers of settlors to create express trusts, the duties of trustees and other fiduciaries, remedies for breach of these duties, and the evolution of constructive and resulting trusts.

This book addresses the key issues, challenges and implications arising out of changes in the copyright law and corresponding judicial responses. Using concrete examples, the book does not assume any prior knowledge of copyright law, but brings together leading intellectual property researchers to consider the significant role of copyright law in shaping the needs of the modern digital world. It provides an insight into two distinct arenas: copyright and digital media. The exponential increase in the ability to multiply and disseminate information by digital means has sparked numerous conflicts pertaining to copyright - and in turn has prompted lawmakers to expand the scope of copyright protection in the digital age. Bearing in mind the new questions that the advent of the digital age has raised on the role and function of copyright, the book presents a collection of papers largely covering new frontiers and changing horizons especially in this area. The contributions intensively address core issues including the exhaustion principle, copyright and digital media, liability of hosting service providers, the originality requirement, accessibility to published works for the visually disabled, criminalization of copyright infringement, and software protection under copyright law, among others. Consisting of 14 papers, this book will be equally interesting to researchers, policymakers, practitioners and lawmakers, especially those active in the field of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR).

Sarnoff's Research Handbook on Intellectual Property and Climate Change is packed with varied perspectives and essential information and is therefore a very useful guide for anyone interested in IP and climate change (and beyond!). To have all this packed tightly into one book is a great thing. I m quite pleased to have it on my bookshelf.' - Eric Lane, Green Patent Blog Written by a global group of leading scholars, this wide-ranging Research Handbook provides insightful analysis, useful historical perspective, and a point of reference on the controversial nexus of climate change law and policy, intellectual property law and policy, innovation policy, technology transfer, and trade. The contributors provide a unique review of the scientific background, international treaties, and political and institutional contexts of climate change and intellectual property law. They further identify critical conflicts and differences of approach between developed and developing countries. Finally they put forward and analyze the relevant intellectual property law doctrines and policy options for funding, developing, disseminating, and regulating the required technologies and their associated activities and business practices. The book will serve as a resource and reference tool for scholars, policymakers and practitioners looking to understand the issues at the interface of intellectual property and climate change. Contributors: P. Ala'i, C. de Avila Plaza, D. Borges Barbosa, P. Bifani, M.A. Carrier, M.W. Carroll, J.L. Contreras, C.M. Correa, E. Derclaye, P. Drahos, C.H. Farley, S. Ferrey, S.E. Gaines, D.A. Gantz, D.J. Gervais, D. Hunter, The International Council on Human Rights Policy, D.S. Levine, C.R. McManis, R.K. Musil, S.K. Sandeen, J.D. Sarnoff, D. Shabalala, G. Tansey, B. Tuncak, J.M. Urban, D. Vivas-Eugui, H. Wang, P.K. Yu

Once regarded as an esoteric and arcane area of legal studies,intellectual property law is now recognised as a key foundation of the information society. Part of the legal system's response to the challenges of human creativity, intellectual property law seeks to balance rewards for innovation against the broader public interest. The contributors to this volume address some of the emerging controversies in this expanding area of law, including: property rights in data; cross-border infringement of copyright; dilution of trade marks; the expansion of the law of patents; and the interface between intellectual property law and the regulation of unfair competition. CONTRIBUTORS: The Hon Justice WMC Gummow, John Robinson, Thomas Marci Hamilton, John Simllie, Brian Fitzgerald, Sir Nicholas Pumfrey, Louise Longdin, John Adams, Graeme Austin, Susy Frankel, Sam Ricketson, Ian Eagles. TABLE OF CONTENTS 1 International Intellectual Property Law and the Common Law World - Introduction by The hon Justice W.M.C. Gummow Part 1: Intellectual Property and the Information Society 2 Database Protection and the Circuitous Route Around the United States Constitution - Marci A. Hamilton 3 Commodifying and Transacting Informational Products Through Contractual Licences: The Challenge for Informational Constitutionalism - Brian Fitzgerald 4 Shall We Shoot a Messenger Now and Then? Copyright Infringement and the On-line Service Provider - Louise Longdin 5 Copyright Across (and Within) Domestic Borders - Graeme W. Austin Part 2: Developments in Industrial Society 6 Dilution and Confusion: The Bases of Trade Mark Infringement or the new Australian Trade Marks Anti-dilution Law 1999 - Sam Ricketson 7 New Challenges for the Law of Patents - John Robinson Thomas 8 Patentability in Australia and New Zealand Under the Statute of Monopolies - John Smillie 9 The Protection of Designs - The Hon Sir Nicholas Pumfrey 10 Industrial Property in a Globalised Environment: Issues of Jurisdiction and Choice of Law - John N. Adams Part 3: Competition and Market Regulation 11 Unfair Competition Law -

Buying and Clearing Rights is the first work to consider the difficulties of rights clearances in all forms of media. It offers practical advice on how to plan, clear and pay for rights. Covering such areas as co-production and the co-financing of contracts, multimedia, text, pictures, footage, software, moral rights and production paperwork, this book will be of use to producers, directors, suppliers of creative material and distributors as well as academics and media studies students.

In recent years several cases concerning the liability of directors and officers have courted controversy. Arguments raised in such discussions oscillate between two extremes: on the one hand, the need for governing bodies to give a space to entrepreneurial discretion and on the other hand to ensure the protection of investors in and creditors of a company from the consequences of disadvantageous decisions by those bodies. In light of the geographical dispersal of the above stakeholders, the study offers a comparative insight into the liability of directors and officers in 10 key European jurisdictions (in particular, Austria, Czech Republic, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Spain and Switzerland) and 4 non-European jurisdictions (namely Brazil, Israel, Turkey and the United States). Amongst other things it investigates existing company law principles on the topic and examines their interaction with tort law and other fields with a view to suggesting principles for better stakeholder protection. National reports are complemented by an economic analysis and insurance, conflict of laws and comparative reports. The study also benefits from case study analyses.

As companies and organisations increasingly operate across national boundaries, so the incentive to understand how to acquire, deploy and protect IP rights in multiple national jurisdictions has rapidly increased. Transnational Intellectual Property Law meets the need for a book that introduces contemporary intellectual property as it is practiced in today?s global context. Focusing on three major IP regimes - the United States, Europe and China - the unique transnational approach of this textbook will help law students and lawyers across the world understand not only how IP operates in different national contexts, but also how to coordinate IP protection across numerous national jurisdictions. International IP treaties are also covered, but in the context of an overall emphasis on transnational coordination of legal rights and strategies. Providing detailed thematic coverage of the major IP rights, including Patents, Copyright, Trademarks, Trade Secrets and Design Protection, the book delves into the national laws and operational realities of these three jurisdictions, highlighting the issues and questions that are most frequently encountered in practice. Of special note are the many English translations of Chinese legal materials = providing the richest and most in-depth coverage of authoritative IP-related statutes, cases and commentaries currently available to students. The textbook draws heavily on cases and other primary sources to tease out the differences, commonalities, and ultimately, strategies for taking a global approach to IP protection. Thought-provoking questions and scenarios throughout the book will stimulate class discussion and cement understanding. Key features: Introductory problems allow students to identify and navigate the key issues An accessible layout with case extracts, questions and notes clearly highlighted illustrates examples of crucial issues, helps identify key information, and points to extensive practical and scholarly commentary on important issues? Comparative approach with numerous references to law and business context in China, the United States and Europe allows students to place national IP in a global context Expert analytical commentary on carefully selected cases guides readers on the key issues. Engaging and comprehensive, this textbook will be essential for all IP courses that aspire to teach the global dimension of IP, and for all students whose aim is to practice IP in what is an increasingly transnational marketplace.

This volume addresses the study of family law and society in Europe, from medieval to contemporary ages. It examines the topic from a legal and social point of view. Furthermore, it investigates those aspects of the new family legal history that have not commonly been examined in depth by legal historians. The volume provides a new 'global' interpretative key of the development of family law in Europe. It presents essays about family and the Christian influence, family and criminal law, family and civil liability, filiation (legitimate, natural and adopted children), and family and children labour law. In addition, it explores specific topics related to marriage, such as the matrimonial property regime from a European comparative perspective, and impediments to marriage, such as bigamy. The book also addresses topics including family, society and European juridical science.

The Research Handbook on EU Consumer and Contract Law takes stock of the evolution of this fascinating area of private law to date and identifies key themes for the future development of the law and research agendas. This major Handbook brings together contributions by leading academics from across the EU on the latest developments and controversies in these important areas of law. The Handbook is divided into three distinct and thematic parts: firstly, authors examine a range of cross-cutting issues relevant to both consumer and contract law. The second part discusses specific topics on EU consumer law, including the consumer image within EU law, information duties and unfair contract terms. The final part focuses on a number of important subjects which remain current in the development of EU contract law and presents a number of innovative solutions to the challenges presented in parts one and two. This timely and insightful Handbook will provide both a comprehensive survey of this area of law for the novice researcher and fresh food-for-thought for scholars who have been researching this area of law for many years. Contributors include: E.A. Amayuelas, H. Beale, J.M. Bech Serrat, C. Busch, R. Canavan, P. Cartwright, O.O. Cherednychenko, G. Comparato, G. Cordero-Moss, A. Cygan, L. Gillies, M. Graziadei, M.W. Hesselink, G. Howells, C. Mak, V. Mak, H.-W. Micklitz, B. Pozzo, P. Rott, J. Rutgers, J.M. Smits, Y. Svetiev, E.T.T. Tai, C. Twigg-Flesner, W.H. van Boom, J. Watson, F. Zoll

International child abduction occurs when one parent wrongfully (i.e. in breach of the parental responsibility of the other parent) takes a child to a country other than that of the child's habitual residence, or wrongfully keeps a child in such a country. The author of this work was part of a research team that conducted a study, partially funded by the European Commission, to examine this problem in Belgium and Hungary, analyzing cases from 2007 and 2008 and interviewing the affected parents. This book is a revised version of the Belgian research report, which sets the problem of child abduction within its international context. It looks at the families in which abductions took place, how preparations were made for an abduction, the quest for the return of the child (including legal proceedings), and the aftermath of the abductions. Throughout the book, the results of the quantitative and qualitative data are explained. What emerges is that when a child is abducted, the solutions offered by the law are often inadequate. Family conflict is a complex societal issue, and child abduction is a severe form of family conflict. Rather than responding to child abduction with strict and contentious legal proceedings, the book argues that solutions based on respect, psychological assistance, and a search for consensus should be favored. (Series: Studies in Private International Law)

Translational Medicine: Tools and Techniques provides a standardized path from basic research to the clinic and brings together various policy and practice issues to simplify the broad interdisciplinary field. With discussions from academic and industry leaders at international institutions who have successfully implemented translational medicine techniques and tools in various settings, readers will be guided through implementation strategies relevant to their own needs and institutions. The book also addresses regulatory processes in USA, EU, Japan and China. By providing details on omics sciences techniques, biomarkers, data mining and management approaches, case reports from industry, and tools to assess the value of different technologies and techniques, this book is the first to provide a user-friendly go-to guide for key opinion leaders (KOLs), industry administrators, faculty members, clinicians, researchers, and students interested in translational medicine.

Recent leading cases have demonstrated the urgent need to modernize the learning on breach of trust,which has lagged behind the flourishing scholarship on the creation of trusts. Since breach of trust or fiduciary duty occupies the centre of the legal stage, it comes as a surprise that, although one or two novelists have chosen 'Breach of Trust' as the title to their book, no lawyer has so far thought it necessary to produce a specialized work on the subject. To fill the gap, this book, written by a team of leading trust lawyers from a number of common law jurisdictions, investigates all the principal aspects of the subject. The nature of the trustee's duties and of the liability for breach is closely examined, and all available defences and excuses are reviewed. Two substantial chapters consider the consequences of assisting a breach or receiving trust property from a trustee acting in breach. The book closes with a critical overview of the entire topic. CONTENTS: 1 Robert Chambers 'Liability for Breach'; 2 Joshua Getzler 'The Duty of Care'; 3 Edwin Simpson 'The Conflict of Interest'; 4 David Fox 'Overreaching'; 5 Lionel Smith 'Property Transferred in Breach'; 6 Charles Mitchell 'Assistance'; 7 Peter Birks 'Receipt'; 8 James Penner 'Exemption clauses'; 9 John Lowry and Rod Edmunds 'Honest and Reasonable Breach'; 10 Jennifer Payne 'Consent'; 11 William Swadling 'Limitation'; 12 Gary Watt 'Laches, Estoppel and Election'; 13 David Hayton 'An Overview'.

As usage of the NEC (formerly the New Engineering Contract) family of contracts continues to grow worldwide, so does the importance of understanding its clauses and nuances to everyone working in the built environment. This set of contracts, currently in the third edition, is different to others in concept as well as format, so users may well find themselves needing a helping hand along the way. Understanding the NEC3 Engineering and Construction Short Contract uses plain English to lead the reader through the contract's key features, including: the use of early warnings programme provisions payment compensation events preparing and assessing tenders Common problems are signalled to the reader throughout, and the correct way of reading each clause explained. In addition, the things to consider when deciding between the ECSC and the longer Engineering and Construction Contract are discussed in detail. Written for professionals without legal backgrounds, by a practicing construction contract consultant, this handbook is the most straightforward, balanced and practical guide to the NEC3 ECSC available. An ideal companion for Employers, Contractors, Project Managers, Supervisors, Engineers, Architects, Quantity Surveyors, Subcontractors, and anyone else interested in working successfully with the NEC3 ECSC.