Stepping Up to the Plate: Minor Leaguers Attempt to Remedy their Unconscionable Plight

Professional baseball players are often thought of as making multi-million-dollar salaries, but most professional baseball players have recently made under $15,000 a year. Minor league players toiled under an onerous system resulting from baseball's judicially created antitrust exemption and lobbying efforts that exempted them from minimum wage and overtime. These factors allowed teams to impose a uniform player contract (UPC) on players with numerous unconscionable provisions for years. However, a late-night Tweet in August of 2022 sent shockwaves through the sports and labor world, announcing that the Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA) was sending out authorization cards to represent minor league players. After years of fighting to maintain the authority to impose conditions on minor league players, through lobbying and litigation, Major League Baseball (MLB) turned over a new leaf and recognized the unionization of minor league players under the MLBPA less than three weeks later. In light of this long sought-after recognition, this article takes a novel approach. First, it provides historical context for baseball's unique ability to impose working conditions on minor leaguers without significant concern for legal ramifications. Second, it provides an overview of the doctrine of contractual unconscionability and analyzes the prior UPC as an unconscionable agreement. Finally, it details the historic unionization process and makes detailed recommendations to ameliorate the unconscionable conditions minor league players have faced when they negotiate with MLB owners to draft their initial collective bargaining agreement.     

Improved Area of Origin Estimation for Bloodstain Pattern Analysis Using 3D Scanning

An important component of crime scene reconstruction is bloodstain pattern analysis (BPA). Where BPA concerns impact patterns, estimating the area of origin is critical information for scene reconstruction. Traditionally, this is achieved by measuring individual bloodstains and performing trigonometric calculations; however, 3D scanning has been proposed as a viable alternative for overcoming logistical and practical concerns with the manual method. Therefore, this project aimed to establish whether the FARO Focus 3D scanner and FARO Zone 3D software can improve the accuracy of area of origin estimates relative to the manual method. We created a series of eight bloodstain impact patterns and performed paired analysis using the two methods to estimate areas of origin for each pattern. Our data suggested that FARO-derived estimates were generally more accurate than using the manual method. FARO-estimated heights of origin areas were generally closer to the true distance. Both methods underestimated the distance from the wall for most patterns originating 150mm or greater from the wall, but overestimated distances for patterns originating closer to the wall. The degree to which distances were underestimated increased significantly the further the blood source was from the wall and was greater for FARO-derived estimates. The results of this research contribute to the validation of these instruments for operational implementation for BPA and should be considered alongside the practical benefits of 3D scanning relative to manual methods. Further, 3D scanning can provide reliable BPA reconstruction documentation for technical review and court presentation.     

“韦伯命题”之争及其启示

上世纪初,韦伯提出并论证了韦伯命题——中国司法属于非形式主义的卡迪司法。近百年以后,中国大陆就这一命题的真伪进行了长达10多年的高水准学术论辩。如果正确理解了韦伯社会学思想的核心概念——理想类型——及其衍生的卡迪司法的真谛,并运用整体的观念来评价中国司法,则韦伯命题的成立是无可置疑的,否定论者所列举的实证材料,并不是韦伯立论的基点。韦伯命题之争有复杂的时代背景,它的背后涉及法律文化是否存在普适性价值、不同时空中的法律文化是否存在可比性、如何客观认知和理性对待本族法律文化传统、法律现代化是否可欲及其价值取向等重大的法理问题,特别是对形式主义司法的认知与评价这一重大的司法哲学问题。这些与中国司法未来走向息息相关的时代性问题都值得法学界认真对待。     

祖孙双单亲比对的匹配概率研究

目的推导祖孙双单亲比对的匹配概率(PMGDS)公式,并以随机模拟法进行验证。方法首先,根据定义推导PMGDS的数学公式,依据此公式在19个基因座上计算PMGDS的数值。其次,以随机模拟法设计实验,在19个基因座上计算PMGDS的模拟值。最后,以模拟值对比公式值的方式,对公式进行实验验证。结果研究获得了PMGDS的数学公式,经模拟实验验证显示出良好的符合。结论祖孙双单亲比对的错判概率较低,具有很好的应用价值。     

《中美经贸协议》中商业秘密的规定及我国应对路径

商业秘密的保护已经成为了《中美经贸协议》规制的主要问题,《中美经贸协议》对我国商业秘密保护提出了更高的要求。通过从文本格式和文本内容两个角度分析《中美经贸协议》关于商业秘密的规定,指出我国商业秘密保护法律模式及现行法律关于商业秘密保护的规定存在的不足和缺陷。我国应当从宏观上转变商业秘密保护的法律模式建立商业秘密专门法保护制度,现阶段应当加强我国涉外经贸中商业秘密保护的法律规范、修改商业秘密的刑事保护规定、增大政府商业秘密保护中的义务。     

法医学尸体检验职业防护指南(建议稿)

法医工作者的职业暴露风险极大,案件现场及尸体上的有毒有害物质、高致病性微生物以及利器、骨折等因素均可能给法医带来身心伤害甚至生命危险。随着经济社会发展,法医的工作环境已经较过去显著改善,但是针对个人防护的重视程度仍需提高。近年来公共卫生事件频发,给法医职业防护带来新的挑战,迫切需要借鉴生物安全领域的先进技术和防护理念,以满足新形势下法医工作的需要。本指南立足当前法医职业防护的实际需求,从暴露风险、防护分级、应急处置等角度阐述,希望能为制定法医职业防护相关标准提供参考,以指导法医工作者开展个人防护工作,为提升法医职业化水平和身心健康提供帮助。     

历程、问题与对策:凝聚全面建成小康社会的多重合力

全面建成小康社会是实现中华民族伟大复兴中国梦的第一步和关键一步,需经得起实践和历史的检验。从温饱、小康到全面小康,体现了我们党与时俱进地追求发展的进取精神。在全面建成小康社会过程中,仍然面临着城乡发展不平衡不充分、脱贫攻坚、城镇化推进、乡村发展滞后等诸多制约全面小康的短板问题,需要凝聚从理念到行动的诸多合力。面对问题,全面建成小康应充分发挥共享发展、精准扶贫、农业转移人口市民化、城乡融合一体发展、乡村振兴等合力作用,助力全面小康的实现。     

Red Tape,Rule Burden,and Legitimate Performance Trade-Offs: Results from a Vignette Experiment

Abstract

Goals in the public sector are complex and managers can face situations in which pursuing one legitimate goal necessitates performance trade-offs in other areas. This study tests how knowledge of legitimate performance trade-offs shapes the perception of red tape. Using a vignette experimental design and a sample of university students, between group t-tests and regression analyses suggest that, when evaluating increased rule burden, individuals that are provided with information about how objectively burdensome rules serve alternative values such as equity and effectiveness associate them with lower levels of red tape. A series of Monte Carlo simulations suggest that this effect is substantial.