Using a cognitive analytic approach to formulate a complex sexual and violent offender to inform multi-agency working: developing a shared understanding

Abstract

Cognitive Analytic Therapy (CAT) is a collaborative time-limited psychotherapy developed by Ryle. The approach aims to formulate how early experiences influence the development of unhelpful patterns that maintain a person's current difficult experiences. Within the UK, forensic services personnel are increasing their uses of CAT approaches within contextual, i.e. treatment teams, settings. Offending behaviour is relational (perpetrator to victim), and CAT is a relational model. Within the context of National Health Service consultation service (Serious Offender Liaison Service) working with the Police and Criminal Justice Social Work to assess, formulate and give advice regarding working with serious sexual and violent offenders, often with personality disorders, a case example is presented. The paper suggests that utilising a relational model, such as CAT, and applying one of the main the tools of this approach, through diagrammatic representations (maps) of the formulation, can enable agencies working with an individual to share a common formulation and language.     

Conclusion: Mental health and legal responses to the adolescent mental health crisis: Raising the bar on best interests and promoting family connectedness in divorcing families

We are currently facing an unprecedented increase in adolescent mental health problems resulting in alarmingly high levels of depression, anxiety, and suicidality. Significant mental health problems among youth pose unique challenges to families in the process of separation and divorce, as well as to family law professionals across all disciplines. The current adolescent mental health crisis calls for new ways of approaching our work with high conflict families to promote family connectedness and shift away from adversarial approaches that may exacerbate conflict and further destabilize families. As a conclusion to the special issue on adolescent mental health needs, the authors make multidisciplinary best practices recommendations and advocate for systems level changes in recognition of the needs of youth in crisis at this pivotal developmental stage.     

The relationship of work-family conflict with job stress among Indian police officers: a research note

Law enforcement is often described as a challenging occupation, and working in law enforcement can result in work–family conflict. This exploratory study was undertaken to examine how the different dimensions of work–family conflict are related to job stress among Indian police officers. There are four major dimensions of work–family conflict: strain-based, behavior-based, time-based, and family-based. Data was collected from a survey of police officers in the Sonipat and Rohtak districts of the Indian state of Haryana. Bivariate results revealed that an increase in any one of the dimensions of work–family conflict was associated with increases in stress from work. Multivariate analysis, however, revealed only three of the four dimensions of work–family conflict had a significant association with job stress. Specifically, strain-based conflict, behavior-based conflict, and family-based conflict were significantly associated with higher levels of job stress. These findings provide support for the job strain model.     

A history of the use of the concept of parental alienation in the Australian family law system: contradictions,collisions and their consequences

ABSTRACT

This paper presents insights into the history and current deployment of the concept of parental alienation in the Australian family law system. It begins in 1989, when an article on parental alienation syndrome was first published in an Australian law journal. It then traces aspects of the socio-legal and social science research, gender politics, law reform and jurisprudence of the following 30 years, paying attention to moments of significant change. The impacts of major amendments that emphasise the desirability of post-separation shared parenting outcomes in 1996 and 2006 are specifically considered. More recently, in 2012, reforms intended to improve the family law system’s response to domestic and family violence were introduced. The history reveals an irreconcilable tension between the ‘benefit’ of ‘meaningful’ post-separation parent-child relationships and the protection of children from harm. When mothers’ allegations of violence in the family are disbelieved, minimised or dismissed, they are transformed from victims of abuse into perpetrators of abuse – alienators of children from their fathers. Their actions and attitudes collide with the shared parenting philosophy. This is arguably an inescapable consequence of a family law system that struggles to deal effectively with family violence in the context of a strong shared parenting regime.     

改革完善换届后县市区党委领导体制和工作机制的调查与思考

随着全国省、市、县、乡四级党委换届工作全部结束，县市区党委领导班子配备改革后出现了县市区党委运行规则面临新的调整、权力分配及决策制衡机制亟待建立、干部的成长提拔路径如何明确、纪委功能的落实等新情况、新问题，而加强对领导班子配备改革后领导体制和工作机制的探索，提高班子运行效率，扩大党内民主，已成为当前地方党委工作的当务之急。     

Mediation,financial remedies,information provision and legal advice: the post-LASPO conundrum*

The near-total collapse in numbers of solicitors providing legal advice and assistance to publicly-funded clients attempting to settle private family law issues through mediation since the legal aid reforms implemented in 2013 raises important questions about how, if at all, clients in mediation can receive legal information and advice other than from lawyers in financial cases following divorce. This article explores, in a preliminary way, this aspect of mediation practice, drawing on small-scale qualitative data from a study conducted shortly prior to the legal aid reforms concerning the settlement of such cases. It explores how mediators then approached their (permissible) function of providing clients with legal information and how they dealt with cases where they felt that the proposed outcome was particularly unfair to one party or unlikely to be endorsed by a court, and asks how mediation practice – and legal practice – may come under pressure to change in this brave new world.     

Effective approaches to regulate mobile advertising: Moving towards a coordinated legal,self-regulatory and technical response

This article aims to contribute to the ongoing discourse about the issue of privacy in the mobile advertising domain. The article discusses the fundamental principles and information practices used in digital environments for protecting individuals' private data. Major challenges are identified that should be addressed, so that fair information principles can be applied in the context of m-advertising. It also points out the limitations of these principles. Furthermore, the article discusses a range of models that is available for regulating the collection, use and disclosure of personal data, such as legislation, self-regulation and technical approaches. It is intended to promote an effective approach to improve consumer privacy in the mobile advertising domain.     

澳大利亚、新西兰、香港、加拿大传闻法律改革及酝酿中的改革——以“先前不一致陈述”为重要视角

本文概览了澳大利亚、加拿大、新西兰、香港等四个主要的环太平洋普通法系国家和地区的传闻法律改革,尤其关注与先前不一致陈述相关的改革。指出先前不一致陈述事关"被告人获得公平对待"以及"证人的人权"等基本原则,因此,如何对待先前不一致陈述将成为一项有效的指标,通过该指标。我们得以评价传闻法律改革中的关键原则以及个人权利在大多数严重犯罪的起诉、审判过程中的境况。认为无论借助成文法还是借助先例,公正的传闻法改革应当适用某些相互一致的基本原则,包括放宽采纳传闻的条件决不能以错案数量增长或不公正审判为代价,将传闻改革与保护被告人、证人的基本权利紧密联系起来,保护证人不受任何形式的强迫或不当侦查行为的干扰,辩护律师必须能够无拘束地对陈述可采性加以质疑,通过充分、及时地开示证据来分析有争议的证据的可采性等。     

法与经济学视野中的外部性及其解决方法分析

对于外部性的含义,学者们多从经济学的角度进行界定;而对于外部性的解决方法,学者们又多从制度的角度加以寻求。从法律视角即权利和义务的角度,也可以对外部性进行界定,并由此提出法律解决的方法。在解决外部性方面,经济法机制优于民法和行政法机制,但经济法解决外部性也需要注意一些问题。     

China's campaign-style Internet finance governance: Causes,effects, and lessons learned for new information-based approaches to governance,

China's Internet companies and citizens are now world leaders in developing and using the Internet and related information technologies for financial transactions. Accordingly, it is important that China becomes a world leader in identifying challenges posed by Internet finance, and providing law and governance solutions to address these challenges. While the Internet and its associated technologies are now globally available, a core question is whether, and to what extent, regulatory challenges and opportunities are common across different jurisdictions, or whether they reflect local circumstances. In short, an interesting question is what can the world learn from China as it takes the lead in addressing Internet finance challenges, and what can China learn from the world as it seeks to do so?This article first identifies the landscape of China's burgeoning Internet finance market, including key technologies and services and government and nongovernment players. The article then turns to key regulatory challenges, with a focus on factors especially significant in China. The article then examines the “top down” “campaign style” approach to regulation, which is China government's initial response to emerging challenges. Following an analysis of the campaign, some suggestions are then made for future possible governance strategies. We explain how emerging “information” based and experiment-based approaches to governance are drawing on both global and Chinese experiences to harness the capabilities of the Internet and the collective energies of Internet finance enterprises and users to advance the regulation of the China Internet finance system in a way that is conducive to the public interest.     

Settlement of refugee women and children following the Second World War: challenges to the family

Abstract

Following the Second World War, refugees that were displaced as a result of conflict became a global concern. Many of these displaced persons were resettled under the auspices of the International Refugee Organization. Large numbers of European displaced persons settled in Australia, with significant numbers living in Queensland. The wartime and migration experiences of refugees have the potential to influence settlement experiences, and for displaced persons who settled in Queensland, these prior experiences continued to resonate within the family throughout the settlement process. Many refugee children became separated from their families, and while some were reunited, the process was lengthy and not without its difficulties. The effect of separation and loss experienced by these families dominated the post-war experience. It presented challenges to mothers, children and families as they negotiated the uncertainty of displacement and the potential for resettlement, and affected their approaches to separation and reunification. The separation and reunification of children and families played a significant role in the settlement process, influencing interactions with Australian organisations and the development of familial and social network connections during settlement. The legacy of conflict and separation continued to resonate within families and influenced perspectives of the ongoing settlement process for child refugees.     

On creating ethical,productive, and durable research partnerships with police officers and their departments: a case study of the National Justice Database

ABSTRACT

Translational policing science must begin with explicitly communicated research aims and a shared vision for promoting safety. For researchers to approach police departments without first considering the concerns held by officers and their departments at large, is unethical, unproductive, and undermines efforts to secure longstanding mutually useful researcher-practitioner partnerships. In presenting a case study analysis of the multi-method National Justice Database’s recruitment practices, this article highlights some of the challenges that emerge when articulating study aims that hold relevance for public safety; defining theoretically- and solution-oriented research questions; administrative police data collection, analysis, and dissemination; and bolstering human research subject protection protocols for sworn officers who may be justifiably reluctant to participate in social science research endeavors. Implications for ethical policing research practice, fostering collaborative researcher-practitioner partnerships, and leveraging the benefits of data science are also discussed.     

Bridging the gap: online materials to equip graduate entrants to a law degree with essential subject knowledge and skills

Graduate entrants to law degrees can be disadvantaged by being exempted from Level 4 modules. Many lack the law-specific knowledge and skills that they would have gained from their first-year studies, making it more difficult for them to achieve mastery of higher-level modules. This poses risks to their retention and progression. The Open University Law School sought to bridge this gap by providing optional online “catch-up” materials, including 12 sessions of knowledge-based learning. Each session was followed by a brief Moodle poll so that we could ascertain that session’s fitness for purpose, and which students had studied it. The sessions were highly rated by respondents, and most had been studied in the target time of around 15 minutes. Studying the sessions was statistically associated with academic success. This finding does not prove that the sessions contribute towards student's attaining higher grades, but it is encouraging. Only a small percentage of students studied any sessions, and most of those did not study all of them. Since the sessions met their intended purpose for those who studied them, the Law School has now decided on a range of initiatives designed to increase the number of LLB students who study most of them.     

Overriding Psychiatric Advance Directives: Factors Associated with Psychiatrists' Decisions to Preempt Patients' Advance Refusal of Hospitalization and Medication

Psychiatric advance directives (PADs) are intended to support patients' treatment decisions during a crisis. However, PAD statutes give clinicians broad discretion over whether to carry out patients' advance instructions. This study uses data from a survey of psychiatrists (N=164) to examine reasons for overriding PADs. In response to a hypothetical vignette, 47% of psychiatrists indicated that they would override a valid, competently-executed PAD that refused hospitalization and medication. PAD override was more likely among psychiatrists who worked in hospital emergency departments; those who were concerned about patients' violence risk and lack of insight; and those who were legally defensive. PAD override was less likely among participants who believed that involuntary treatment is largely unnecessary in a high-quality mental health system.     

新《证券法》下境外发行人参照适用上市公司规则的原理及径路--兼论保障“股东权益相当”的难易

境外发行人的法律管辖与适用冲突是我国深化金融改革开放过程中必须回答的问题。《存托凭证发行与交易管理办法(试行)》第2条概要性地要求境外基础证券发行人"依法履行发行人、上市公司的义务,承担相应的法律责任"。然而,法律责任是一个超越部门法划分、超越公司法、证券法以及所有关于"投资者保护的强制性规定"的庞大体系。世界银行在考察一国"保护中小投资者"的营商环境时,也是分"股东治理指数"与"纠纷调解指数"两个二级指标进行评估。由此,依据起源于货币金融学的全球要素"一价定律"理论,境外发行人除适用境外注册地公司法等法律法规外,在一线监管标准、投资者权益保护、社会责任承担等方面都应当原则性地参照东道国针对上市公司的既有规则。相较于实体法上具体规则的统一性,实现境内外投资者对等保护的难点在于我国商事立法事后救济的现状。对此,要增强制度自信,更要克服"司法失灵",从源头预防股东权益受损。