商合伙破产程序与实体问题研究

正在修订中的我国新《破产法》将赋予商合伙破产能力,其原因在于对破产性质的正确认识,对商合伙民事主体资格、民事诉讼资格的肯认;商合伙破产原因应引入"停止支付"概念,并严格区分合伙与合伙人、合伙财产与合伙人财产;为落实合伙人对合伙债务的无限责任,合伙破产可能导致合伙人连带破产,但应允许合伙人在提供财产以清偿合伙债务后免除连带破产,并应尊重合伙人是否继续保持合伙的意愿;在合伙破产案件受理后应对合伙人财产采取一定破产保全措施,并应确立破产程序中平等保护合伙人债权人的制度与原则。     

公司破产边缘董事不当激励的法律规制

董事作出商业决策时的激励结构与公司的经营和财务状况具有直接的相关性。当公司具有持续营业能力时,董事的风险偏好是中性的。可是,当公司处于破产边缘时,董事则具有以债权人的利益为代价实施高风险、高收益商业决策的不当激励。许多国家公司法或破产法都提出了相应的法律策略,以约束董事的这种不当激励并保护债权人的利益。我国破产法应要求债务人承担一般性的破产申请义务,在此基础上,进一步规定董事承担在一定期限内提出破产申请的义务,否则就要对债权人因迟延申请破产所受的损失承担赔偿责任。     

Optimal Trust Design in Mass Tort Bankruptcy

Many firms have filed for bankruptcy to manage mass tort liabilities,most notably asbestos producers. We model a bankruptcy procedurethat optimally balances the liquidity needs of present claimantsand an uncertain number of future claimants. We find that futureclaimants should receive greater awards in expectation thanpresent claimants as compensation for bearing greater futureclaims risk. We also find that allocating more value to contractualcreditors in bankruptcy makes an earlier filing more likely,which may increase overall welfare. Optimal risk-sharing impliesthat creditors should receive equity in a trust fund, with tortclaimants receiving senior debtlike securities.     

The influence of bankruptcy law on equity value of financially distressed firms: A European comparative analysis

The reaction of stock prices to bankruptcy filing has been frequently analysed in the financial literature. In this paper we adopt a different approach to that of traditional study, and endeavour to determine whether the reaction of markets is conditioned by the orientation of bankruptcy law. Our results lead us to conclude that it is actually the type of bankruptcy law that conditions the valuation of firm's stocks. We have also found that the drop in share value is greater in creditor-oriented systems, while the negative returns are lower in debtor-oriented systems.     

绝对优先原则与我国破产法的缺失

绝对优先原则是破产重整程序中对破产财产的分配加以规制的一项重要法律制度。其制度价值在于它通过尊重和保护当事人的破产前权利和他们在破产前达成的利益分配格局来实现重整价值的公平分配,制约当事人在选择使用重整程序和进行重整计划内容谈判时具有正当的动机,促使当事人进行有效重整。我国破产法没有绝对优先原则加以明确和全面的规定。这一制度缺失引发了一系列消极后果。建议应在我国破产法第87条中对绝对优先原则加以清晰完整的规定。     

论企业破产重整信息披露时间节点的规范与细化

企业破产重整中债权人与债务人利益的平衡依赖于破产法上的正当程序,知情权的实现是保障债权人等利害关系人利益的基本前提。本文通过对26家上市公司重整程序中的信息披露情况进行实证分析并结合制度比较后发现,目前我国企业破产法上关于重整程序中信息披露的时间没有明确的规定,在实践和立法上均存在不足。建议结合我国实际情况按照破产重整程序推进的逻辑完善我国破产法上信息披露制度,规范信息披露的时间节点,在重整程序启动前、重整计划草案表决前和重整计划执行三个阶段对信息披露的时间节点与内容进行规范与细化。     

政府诚信论纲

现代政府是服务型政府,担负着为社会提供秩序、安全与自由的重任。社会成员对于政府的依赖正逐步增强。在此背景下,政府是否遵循诚实信用原则从事管理活动,能否为社会成员提供稳定的生活预期,便成为行政法学需要认真研究的课题。文章对政府诚信的含义、引入公法的理由、建立的基础、意义及具体作用领域等问题进行了勾勒,对现代政府所遵循的诚信原则做出了初步分析。     

管理人选任制度的反思与重塑

管理人在破产程序中承载着管理、协调与监督的职能,其职责的行使牵涉多方利益。因此,保证管理人身份上的独立、中立以及专业性显得至关重要。现有的中介机构可以分担管理人职责,应当设立管理人协会,负责管理人名册的编制、管理等工作。管理人的法律地位应为法定机构,由人民法院指定并决定其报酬,债权人会议享有异议权。对于＂无产可破＂的案件,建议设立专项基金作为支付管理人报酬的来源。     

" 'These Boots Are Made for Walking' ": A Reply

Erik Craft's comment on our 2000 article takes up a minor point,the impact of no-fault divorce on the gender of the spouse filingfor divorce. In the original article, we related the genderof the filing to rent exploitation during marriage, rent appropriationthrough divorce, and particularly child custody. We tested thehypotheses we generated using a sample of more than 46,000 divorcedecrees from the only four states collecting all the informationwe needed. The type of divorce ground was only a control variable,and not a strong one. We argue that Craft's comment misses ouressential point.     

侵权债权在破产程序中的优先受偿顺位建构——基于“给最少受惠者最大利益”的考量

破产法的公平理念以及侵权债权的非自愿属性,决定侵权债权具有从现行破产法所规定的普通破产债权中分立出来,并优先于一般交易债权受偿的正当性。基于侵权债权类型化以及罗尔斯的公平的正义理念——给最少受惠者最大利益,侵权债权在区分人身侵权债权和财产侵权债权的基础上,应做以下受偿顺位安排:破产费用和公益债务之外,人身侵权债权——工资债权和社会保险费用——劳动补偿金债权——财产侵权债权——国家税收——一般交易债权。人身侵权债权甚至有可能优先于担保债权,如果担保债权的设立发生于人身侵权债权产生之后。社会强制责任保险费用债权视其保障范围可以先于人身侵权债权或财产侵权债权。     

Section 525(a) of the bankruptcy code plainly does not apply to Medicare provider agreements

Section 525(a) of the Bankruptcy Code prevents government entities from discriminating against debtors based on the debtor's bankruptcy filing. This Article analyzes how this provision is applied to healthcare providers who file for bankruptcy. Some commentators have expressed concerns that because of Section 525, the federal government is unable to deny a bankrupt provider a new Medicare provider agreement due to the debtor's failure to pay debts discharged during bankruptcy. This Article, however, argues that Section 525 does not apply to a provider agreements because it is not a "license, permit, charter, franchise, or other similar grant" as defined by the statute. Therefore, the author concludes that debtor healthcare providers should not be allowed back into the Medicare program without first paying their statutorily required debts.     

'These boots are made for walking': why most divorce filers are women

Because of the financial and social hardship faced after divorce,most people assume that generally husbands have instigated divorcesince the introduction of no-fault divorce. Yet women file fordivorce and are often the instigators of separation, despitea deep attachment to their children and the evidence that manydivorces harm children. Furthermore, divorced women in largenumbers reveal that they are happier than they were while married.They report relief and certainty that they were right in leavingtheir marriages. This fundamental puzzle suggests that the incentivesto divorce require a reexamination, and that the forces affectingthe net benefits from marriage may be quite complicated, andperhaps asymmetric between men and women. This paper considerswomen's filing as rational behavior, based on spouses' relativepower in the marriage, their opportunities following divorce,and their anticipation of custody.     

中国内地与香港诉讼离婚法律制度比较研究

香港在法律渊源上属于普通法系,现行法律主要沿用英国法律.其<婚姻诉讼条例>关于离婚法定理由、离婚条件、离婚限制、离婚的诉讼程序及法律效力等方面均与内地婚姻法有着很大区别.在香港回归祖国后,两地居民通婚的情形日渐趋多,由此带来的婚姻家庭纠纷也日益凸现,如何协调两地因法律规定的差异所生"司法冲突",是今后一段时间内两地法律界需认真探讨的问题.     

EARLY INTERVENTION MEDIATION

Early Intervention Mediation was a fifteen-month research project conducted at the Court of Domestic Relations of Hamilton County, Ohio. The project's intent was to test the efficacy of the early introduction of mediation to resolve parenting issues. The project involved ordering half of all divorcing parents, who were unable to agree on custody arrangements for their children, to attend mediation within six weeks after filing for divorce. The other half of divorcing parents were a control group who followed existing court procedures. At the conclusion of the project, results were compared between the two groups. In 61% of divorce cases ordered to mediation, parenting issues were fully resolved. Families were spared damaging and costly litigation, and the court reduced judicial hours.     

When it pays to be honest: How a variable period of good conduct can improve incentives in personal bankruptcy proceedings

Consumer bankruptcy regulation in the United States as well as in many other countries allow consumers to petition for a partial debt discharge. Usually, a debt release is possible when the debtor behaves in the creditors’ best interest and after filing for bankruptcy signs over her entire disposable income for a fixed period. Depending on the country the period lasts between three and six years. We show that a fixed period distorts the consumer’s ex-post incentives to work hard. Instead, we suggest to adequately reduce the outstanding claim and to make debt release contingent on payment. When the consumer manages to pay back the reduced amount, the rest of the initial debt should be discharged immediately. In effect, the consumer becomes the residual claimant of her endeavors. The period of good conduct is effectively variable. JEL classification D18. D91. K29     

论商品房买卖中的失信问题及其规范

由于商品房买卖具有与其他商品买卖不同的特征,诚信成为一个很重要的问题。为了规范商品房买卖中的诚信问题,我国相继颁布了一些法律法规,最高人民法院于2003年5月7日发布了最新的关于商品房买卖的司法解释,对商品房买卖中的诚信问题作了比较具体的规定,是我们处理商品房买卖纠纷的重要依据。重点探讨商品房买卖中的失信问题及规范。     

论《合同法》的诚实信用原则

诚实信用原则是现代民法的最高指导原则,是适用整个民事合同的基本原则。尽管《合同法》的总则、分则的多处条文,对诚实信用原则均有明文规定,但对受主观因素影响较大的诚实信用原则来说,法律的规定显得十分单调、概括。正确理解《合同法》中诚实信用原则的精神,特别是正确掌握诚实信用原则在先合同义务、合同附随义务及后合同义务中的运用,无论对合同当事人还是对裁判人员都无疑具有相当的理论和实践意义。     

Maternal and joint custody

The present study examined differences between 40 couples who agreed to traditional mother custody and 12 couples who agreed to joint custody as the postdivorce arrangement for their children. Data were collected by interview and questionnaire within six months of the filing of the divorce petition. Differences emerged in the social context of the decision process, the criteria used, and the application of criteria to parents' particular circumstances. The findings are then organized into a framework that suggests a model for the process by which parents make their decision about custody.     

Compatibility of wireless services with enhanced 911--FCC. Proposed rule

The Commission seeks additional comment in wireless Enhanced 911 (E911) rulemaking proceeding with respect to an ex parte presentation filed by Ad Hoc Alliance for Public Access to 911 (Alliance) on September 17, 1998. In its ex parte filing and its accompanying engineering report, Alliance has presented an approach under which the Commission would require that, if the signal from the user's provider is "inadequate" at the time a 911 call is placed through the use of an analog cellular handset, then the handset must have the capability to select automatically the strongest available compatible channel of communications for purpose of completing the 911 call. Additional comment is sought to assist the Commission in determining whether to adopt the approach presented by the Alliance in its September 17 ex parte filing. The effect of adopting the Alliance approach would be to improve reliability of 911 services to wireless customers.     

CRITICAL ASPECTS OF PARENTING PLANS FOR YOUNG CHILDREN

The debate about the benefits and drawbacks of overnight schedules for young children is hotly contested in family law. This study investigated connections between occurrence of overnights, schedule consistency, number of caregivers, and young children's adjustment to parental separation and divorce. Families ( N = 161) with children aged 6 years or younger were recruited at the time of filing for divorce or child custody (if unmarried); follow-up data were obtained from 132 families 15 to 18 months later. Results indicated that parenting plan variables are related to children's social, cognitive, and emotional behavior, with caregivers and schedule consistency more salient than overnights. Girls benefited from overnights and more caregivers, whereas boys did not. Overnighting children aged 4 to 6 years when their parents filed manifested fewer problems 1.5 years later than did younger children. Even when controlling for parental conflict and parent-child relationship variable, the constellation of parenting plan variables contributed to young children's adaptation.