Refining the definition of death for Australian legislation

In the article Mr. Smith considers the need for reform in the area of defining when death occurs and the various approaches that exist to define death. He then analyses the stages of the developments in the various Australian jurisdictions and discusses the substantive content of the basic definition adopted and the practical implications of any enactment. The author suggests that the concept of death should be legislatively enacted in relevant pieces of legislation which call for a resolution of the question at the present time and a more general separate statement defining death should be avoided at the moment. Conceptually death should be defined as the permanent and irreversible loss of consciousness of the individual as determined by irreversible cessation of the brain stem function. The actual operational criteria of death should form the subject of a circular published by the relevant statutory health authority for the guidance of medical practitioners in relation to the specific problems they face.     

Brain Death - Too Flawed to Endure, Too Ingrained to Abandon

The concept of brain death has become deeply ingrained in our health care system. It serves as the justification for the removal of vital organs like the heart and liver from patients who still have circulation and respiration while these organs maintain viability. On close examination, however, the concept is seen as incoherent and counterintuitive to our understandings of death. In order to abandon the concept of brain death and yet retain our practices in organ transplantation, we need to either change the definition of death or no longer maintain a commitment to the dead donor rule, which is an implicit prohibition against removing vital organs from individuals before they are declared dead. After exploring these two options, the author argues that while new definitions of death are problematic, alternatives to the dead donor rule are both ethically justifiable and potentially palatable to the public. Even so, the author concludes that neither of these approaches is likely to be adopted and that resolution will most probably come when technological advances in immunology simply make the concept of brain death obsolete.     

The Whole-Brain Concept of Death Remains Optimum Public Policy

"Brain death," the determination of human death by showing the irreversible loss of all clinical functions of the brain, has become a worldwide practice. A biophilosophical account of brain death requires four sequential tasks: (1) agreeing on the paradigm of death, a set of preconditions that frame the discussion; (2) determining the definition of death by making explicit the consensual concept of death; (3) determining the criterion of death that proves the definition has been fulfilled by being both necessary and sufficient for death; and (4) determining the tests of death for physicians to employ at the patient's bedside to demonstrate that the criterion of death has been fulfilled. The best definition of death is "the cessation of functioning of the organism as a whole." The whole-brain criterion is the only criterion that is both necessary and sufficient for death. Brain death tests are used only in the unusual case in which a patient's ventilation is being supported. Brain death critics have identified weaknesses in its formulation. But despite its shortcomings, the whole-brain death formulation comprises a concept and public policy that make intuitive and practical sense and that has been well accepted by many societies.     

The Ideal Socio-Legal Order. Its "Rule of Law" Dimension

Abstract. The author aims at defining the borderlines of the concept "rule of law." This has been often inflated to encompass several dimensions of an ideal legal order. The author on the contrary believes that the "rule of law" ought to be a "thin" ideal. As a matter of fact, when the "rule of law" signifies almost any dimension of an ideal legal order, it comes to stand for nothing essential in particular. Deflation is then advocated for the rehabilitation of the normative content of the "rule of law." This means that the "rule of law" should be defined as a concept covering only some well delimited dimensions of an ideal legal order.     

Claiming "Victim" to Harassment Law: Legal Consciousness of the Privileged

Sociologists of law have long been concerned with the effectiveness of rights; the emergence of diversity training in the 1990s spurred renewed attention to questions of how laws are enacted in daily life. Much scholarship has constructed the managerialization of civil rights law and popularization of diversity concepts as diluting efforts to redress structural discrimination. In studying diversity and antiharassment trainings in practice, I argue that these are sites where civil rights find expression of their obligations, and I find that much of the "dilution" of content stems from diversity trainers' efforts to negotiate with the resistance of trainees to their new obligations under civil rights law. The trainees evince a variable legal consciousness in relationship to this legality of rights-promotion, to which they are being exposed in these trainings; the findings suggest further research is needed into the legal consciousness of the privileged.     

英国法上"死亡"定义之考察

本文从英国判例法和医学行业标准两个方面考察了英国法上“死亡”这一概念的发展过程,阐释了传统的心跳和呼吸停止标准与脑死亡标准的关系以及英国社会目前对死亡定义所存在的疑虑和争议,并且指出了英国法对我国的借鉴意义。本文通过对英国法上死亡定义的考察,以期对我国目前正在进行的脑死亡法的起草工作有所助益。     

“亚裔美国人”概念的起源及其含义的变迁

亚裔美国人是美国多种族社会中正在崛起的一支族裔集团,它在美国社会生活的各个方面日益显示出其强大的潜力,亚裔美国人这个概念的形式得益于1960年代末的亚裔美国人运动,它既是亚裔集团泛亚的归属意识的要求,也是美国联邦统计体系的规定,并且因着不同的历史条件其含义也随之发生变化;从自定义的美国人到精选出的“模范少数民族”再到种族类别的亚裔美国人和朝向多种族／族裔类别发展。     

杨朱思想之法律观辨析——以“一毛”与“天下”之辩为切入

杨朱思想体系中所阐发的“为我”“贵己”等思想蕴含着极为宝贵的个人本位和权利意识，它在当时是对人与人之间的关系重新诠释。“轻物重生”所揭示的人与物的关系引发了对“公私财产”理论的重新理解，而这两点正是当代法律观念极为重要的思想渊源，从法律观念史的角度对杨朱思想进行解读可加深对杨朱思想的整体把握和恰当理解。     

The Tantric Context of Ratnākaraśānti’s Philosophy of Mind

The conflicting positions of the two early eleventh century Yogācāra scholars, Ratnākara?ānti and his critic Jñāna?rīmitra, concerning whether or not consciousness can exist without content (ākāra) are inseparable from their respective understandings of enlightenment. Ratnākara?ānti argues that consciousness can be contentless (nirākāra)—and that, for a buddha, it must be. Mental content can be defeated by reasoning and made to disappear by meditative cultivation, and so it is fundamentally distinct (bheda) from the nature of consciousness, which is never defeated and never ceases. That mental content is thus separable from the nature of consciousness is unimaginable to Jñāna?rīmitra, who argues that all mental content cannot be so defeated, nor can it disappear completely, and who concludes that Ratnākara?ānti’s commitment to this idea can be based on nothing but faith (?raddhā). Contra Jñāna?rīmitra, I will suggest that Ratnākara?ānti’s view is based not only on faith, but is also driven by a certain (often implicit) theory of buddhahood, the implications of which he is committed to working out. Because Ratnākara?ānti’s theory of buddhahood is developed in part in his tantric work, our understanding of his position benefits from our reading it in this context, wherein buddhahood and the most effective techniques for attaining it are explored.     

Esophageal-atrial fistula resulting in systemic "meat and vegetable" emboli.

An 85-year-old demented woman died in the state hospital and her death was investigated by our office, based on allegations of neglect. At autopsy, a feeding catheter was found passed through an esophageal-atrial fistula into the left atrium. Fragments of striated muscle and plant wall (cellulose) embolized to the systemic organs including heart, kidney, and brain. Her dilated esophagus suggests a premortem esophageal motility disorder that contributed to the formation of the fistula. This is the first reported case of an esophageal-atrial fistula in the medical literature.     

The neurological determination of death: what does it really mean?

The recent Canadian forum's recommendations regarding "neurological determination of death" claim to have determined a "Canadian definition, criteria, and minimum testing requirements for neurological determination of death." In this review the problems with this statement are discussed. The criterion of neurological determination of death does not fulfill the definition of death, because there is continued integration of the organism as a whole. The tests for neurological determination of death do not fulfill the criterion of neurological determination of death because they do not show the irreversible loss of all critical brain functions. The forum has provided no coherent argument for why neurological determination of death should be considered death. I suggest that one cannot invoke expert opinion to clarify a criterion of death, and tests for this criterion of death, without a clear concept of what death is. The forum has clarified tests for what they call "neurological determination of death," but this is not death itself; rather, it is a neurologically devastating state. Whether this state of "neurological determination of death" is enough to justify the morality of harvesting organs prior to death is the real question. A potential solution to this question is discussed.     

“公共利益”的困境与出路——美国公用征收条款的宪法解释及其对中国的启示

本文从美国政府征收权的渊源以及联邦宪法第五修正案征收条款的原始意义出发,探讨了“公共用途”的宪法概念在美国判例史上的嬗变及其最近的发展趋势。文章指出,由于“公共用途”或“公共利益”是极难界定的概念,法院难以发展出可操作的判断标准。在美国,对征收的公共利益之保障主要在于立法控制而非司法限制。根据民主原则,法院高度尊重立法判断,凡是议会决定符合公共用途的征收一律被认为合宪。在这个意义上,议会是一个“公益机器”,通过民主代议自动产生代表公共利益的法律和决定。文章最后建议,中国应该将注意力从“公共利益”的理论界定转移到制度建设,让全国和地方人大及其常委会在征收和补偿方案的决定中发挥更大的作用。     

中国传统契约中的“契约自由”与“主体平等”——以清水江文书为视角

中国法律传统虽以"公法"为主要特征,强调以身份关系为纽带的"公权力",但在"私法"领域,却并非不重视以自由和平等为基础的"私权利"。在中国传统契约与清水江文书中,均普遍存有关于"契约自由"与"主体平等"这样一种"契约型社会"的私法观念。在契约自由方面,主要通过"二主和同"、"两和立契"等契约语言来体现契约是双方协商一致,达成合意的结果;在主体平等方面,则通过"两共平章"、"平中立约"等用语来表明立约双方具有平等的人格与主体地位。而这样一种注重合意、平等立约的私法观念,以及尊重契约、敬畏契约,通过契约保护自身合法权利的精神,是当今我国法治化建设过程中重要的本土资源与宝贵财富。在提倡尊重契约精神、保护私权利等法治观念的今天,亦能够为我国法治的现代化进程提供历史的和本土的基因。     

“正当防卫”四十年:“于欢案”映射刑法第20条的修改

自1979年刑法颁布以来至今已整整四十年,"正当防卫"几经博弈甚至1997年刑法中的重大修改,但运行中仍然暴露出许多问题。尤其是山东"于欢案"的出现与发酵,透射着刑法第20条的亟待修改。通过对该案多层面的分析提出我国刑法中"正当防卫"立法上的一些缺陷与不足,包括对"不法侵害"的解读及修改,"明显超过必要限度"与"造成重大损害"的"绑定"关系,刑法第20条第1、2款"正当防卫"概念的歧义等。指出,"明显超过必要限度"应具有行为上的独立性与条件上的主导性,"造成重大损害的"应修改为"造成不应有重大损害的",建议在"正当防卫"与"防卫过当"之上增设"防卫行为"的上位概念,以厘定相关的刑法规制关系。     

Mastery Over the Time of the Other: The Death Penalty and Life in Prison Without Parole

Derrida’s seminar on the death penalty is a deconstructive reading of the debate over the abolition of the death penalty beginning in eighteenth century Europe. The main imperative of the reading is to address the limits of abolitionist discourses, which historically have been based on natural law conceptions of the right to life. Derrida’s interest in undertaking such a reading is to develop an abolitionist argument that would hold up in principle against the death penalty. However, in this paper I take Derrida’s insights into the meaning of the death penalty to explore what they reveal about political sovereignty, and in particular its relation to violence. The paper begins by addressing several relevant moments in Derrida’s reading of texts on both sides of the death penalty debate and shows how the arguments are each limited by some ‘unavowed’ interest that conditions the fundamental principles upon which they are based (Derrida, in Death penalty, Volume I. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, p. 142; 2014). These unavowed interests relate to what Derrida describes as the ‘compromise’ on the question of cruelty in the context of the death penalty. Based on these readings, the paper develops a concept of the death penalty defined as a relation to time, specifically, a relation of mastery over the time of the life of the other. It then connects this concept to Derrida’s analysis of political sovereignty found in Rogues (2005) and ‘Force of Law’ (2002) to make two arguments. First, the conception of the death penalty as a relation to time redefines so-called ‘death penalty alternatives’, such as life imprisonment without the possibility of parole as manifestations of the death penalty through other means; and, second, changes in the appearance of the death penalty reflect changes in the institution of political sovereignty, and in turn the status of the state.     

民法上“法益”概念的探源与本土化

《民法总则》第126条中的"利益",与我国民法学界持者甚众的狭义法益说中的"法益"含义大致相同,指的是权利之外应当受到法律保护的客体,是立法者为解决其预见性不足的弹性规范设计。上述界定与"法益"概念的原意不符,和刑法学界的惯常用法存在明显差别,属于概念移植过程中的本土化改造。"民事权利和利益"的二分法和狭义法益说在法理、逻辑上都不能成立,也不具备法益理论应当具备的分类、区分保护和评价功能,必然会造成立法表述与司法裁判说理中的冲突。"法益"概念的本土化界定,应当建立在共识的基础上,寻求统一的、适用于包括刑法、民法等在内的各个部门法的"法益"概念。"法益"是应当受到法保护的利益,此处的法既包括实然意义上的法律,也包括应然意义上的法。法益是权利的上位而非平行概念,《民法总则》第126条中的"利益"实质上是未被立法明文规定的未上升为权利的法益,未来修法时应将该条修改为"民事主体享有其他民事权利和未上升为权利的法益"。     

一种以中国为根据的"全球化观"的论纲

作为国家社科重点项目"经济全球化与中国法学"中核心部分的导论,在对"全球化"概念进行背景性阐发的基础上,确立全文的分析框架及参照依据,并概要性地说明相关理论问题的建构以及具体的论证步骤。通过阐明当下的"全球化"实为一种可争辩的过程,从而开放出全球化的话语斗争维度以及中国或中国法学参与并型塑全球化的可能性,进而主张应当从中国立场出发,以中国为思想根据、以"世界结构中的中国"为分析框架、根据中国自己的理想图景就当下全球化进程及其方向进行积极的反思和重构。     

“以人为本”与公安工作

“以人为本”思想有古老的渊源，并对人类历史产生了重要的影响。它在现代的提出，与人类历史进入现代史紧密相联。作为一种思想观念，它为现代历史提供思想基础和导向，作为一种制度，它为现代历史的展开提供方式和途径。当代中国的“以人为本”思想作为指导思想的核心内容，既体现了我们对历史发展趋势的理论自觉，也确立了我国明确建设“和谐社会”的目标，由此规定了公安工作的具体方位，它因此给公安工作提供的关键性的思路和方略在于，着重从制度性建设的维度来推动公安工作的现实展开。     

Enemies Everywhere: Terrorism, Moral Panic, and US Civil Society

Since the attacks of September 11th, 2001, terrorism has experienced a prominence in discourse across the U.S. The representations of terrorists and terrorism by the news media and politi have contributed to the edifice of terrorism as a moral panic. This treatise examines the social effects that have or may occur due to the social construction of a moral panic of terrorism. The thematic frame is situated within Cohens stages of a moral panic. We offer an analysis of the medias depiction and coverage of acts of terrorism, and legislative, political and legal responses in the form of social and cultural changes occurring from the creation of a moral panic. In addition, we offer an analysis of the states vested interest in the social construction of this panic, leading to increased levels of fear, targeted at the general publics consciousness. This article concludes that the presentation of terrorism and terrorists by the media and politi have contributed to unnecessary levels of panic and fear, misguided public consciousness, and the development of legislation creating negative social ramifications yet be seen.     

促进稳定发展的法律类型之比较研究

现代国家的治理,主要仰赖政策与法律。促进经济与社会稳定发展是政府不可推卸的责任,由此,也促进了法律的发展,法律对促进经济与社会稳定发展有着独到的优势。现代性法律中具有促进型结构的规范类型的集合,可以概括为"促进型法"。英美法系限制干预型立法以"稳定"促进发展,大陆法系国家依法调控型立法以"鼓励"促进发展。"促进型法"具有内在的促进发展的特定规范结构,是专门促进经济与社会稳定发展的抽象性、类型化的规范概念,既有核心内核和中心体系,又有边缘结构。