A legal approach to real estate crowdfunding platforms

In the context of a financial and housing crisis, accompanied by credit constraints, a new alternative has recently emerged for those wanting to invest in real estate markets: real estate crowdfunding. Crowdfunding, which was originally intended to fund social projects through donations or loans from a large pool of individuals via Internet platforms, has developed into a more sophisticated method of financing. This is the case of real estate crowdfunding, a type of equity crowdfunding that aims to make housing investment available to retail investors, although several hazards have been detected that make these investments less secure. This paper addresses these hazards, analyses the information provided by five Spanish crowdfunding platforms to retail investors and determines whether or not real estate crowdfunding platforms in Spain, as a sharing economy mechanism, are making a contribution to the development of the housing market.     

Governmental filtering of websites: The Dutch case

Following the example of Norway and other European Countries, such as Sweden and Denmark, in April 2007 the Dutch government started filtering and blocking web pages with child pornographic content. In this paper we present a research into the technological, legal and practical possibilities of this measure. Our study leads us to the conclusion that the deployment of filters by or on behalf of the Dutch government is not based on any founded knowledge concerning the effectiveness of the approach. Furthermore, the actions of the Dutch law enforcement authorities do not avail over legal powers to filter and block internet traffic. Consequently the Dutch filtering practice was found to be unlawful. The government could enact a law that provides the police with the relevant powers. However, child porn filters always cause a certain amount of structural overblocking, which means that the government is then engaged in structural blocking of information that is not against the law. This would be in conflict with basic rights as laid down in the European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms and in national legislation. Maintaining a blacklist that is serious in size (a necessary condition for being effective), and at the same time is up-to-date and error-free (which is needed to prevent overblocking), is very labour-intensive, if not impossible to maintain. From the Dutch national police policy perspective it follows that putting so much labour in maintaining a blacklist cannot be considered as a police task. Why then did the Dutch police start filtering? In a society where child pornography is judged with abhorrence, in which safety is rated higher then privacy, and in which managers and politicians frequently have a naive faith in technology, the advocates of internet filters against child pornography quickly find wide-spread support. Although this paper refers to the situation in The Netherlands, it includes a number of elements and issues that are relevant to other European States as well.     

Armani found to infringe copyright of Dutch shoe designer

In preliminary relief proceedings against the Italian fashionhouse of Armani, the Dutch court allowed copyright protectionfor a shoe ‘that is almost no shoe’, but deniedthe requested rectification because of the publicity alreadygenerated by the case.     

不动产预告登记制度初探

不动产预告登记制度,是德国、瑞士、日本等国民法中的一项重要的物权制度,它将物权法理论和债权法理论结合起来,赋予债权请求权以物权的排它效力,有利于不动产交易当中各方利益的平衡.本文在探讨预告登记制度的理论基础、登记原因、效力、消灭等问题的基础上,分析了我国借鉴该制度的现实意义.     

论房地产行业的知识产权保护

伴随着我国经济的不断发展,房地产业也在不断升温,随之而来各种新的问题。知识产权问题尤为严重,同时我国又缺乏相关的法规来解决这一问题。本文拟从房地产业的版权、传统文化、商标权等方面进行阐述。完善我国知识产权方面相关的法律制度。     

论人肉搜索的合法界限

狭义的人内搜索指通过网络上现有资料将人肉搜索对象的资料乃至个人和家人的隐私暴露出来.其结果可能附带引发对当事人的骚扰甚至侮辱和伤害,侵犯当事人的隐私权、名誉权甚至身体健康权.合法的人肉搜索要区分个人隐私权和公众知情权的界限、言论自由和公众评论正当性的界限.普通公民和公职人员的个人隐私与私人行为应该受到保护,网民对国家公职人员的违法、违纪现象进行披露则应属于公众行使知情权的行为.在人内搜索中,如果搜索者在主观臆断的基础上对被搜索对象的信息进行复制、改变和传播,可能会侵害当事人的隐私权、名誉权甚至健康权,不属于行使言论自由;如果因此造成当事人的损失,言论者和网站管理者都应承担相应的法律责任.     

房产新政下的情势变更原则及其适用(上)

情势变更原则应当适用于异常商业风险,在房产新政已经导致合同实际履行困难或者不能履行的情况下,该房产新政具备异常因素而应当归属于情势变更事由。但即便如此,由于商事合同维系着社会经济交易稳定,而情势变更原则是保护合同的最后一道堡垒,房产新政下能否依当事人的请求而适用情势变更原则解除合同,仲裁员必须慎重对待,在双方未预见新政的情况下,应当先通过积极磋商的途径解决纠纷;在双方已预见新政且已作出相关风险防范的情况下,遵循有约定从约定原则,最大限度保护买卖双方合法权益。     

从经济学的视角看房地产市场宏观调控

目前,美国次贷危机的负面影响波及全球,而造成美国次贷危机的直接原因便是住房信贷的崩溃.由此可见,科学有效的宏观调控政策是促进房地产市场可持续发展的保障.本文从宏观调控法理论和房地产市场的现状入手,基于房地产市场上的不同主体存在的利益冲突以及出现的问题,引入博弈分析的方法,提出了调控房地产市场对策的大体方向.即重视公平与效率的关系,重视社会公共利益,重视发挥社会中间层的作用,以期为房地产市场的有序发展保驾护航.     

简析《物权法》不动产登记机关的赔偿责任

《物权法》规定,房地产登记机关囚登记错误,给他人造成损害的,登记机构应当承担赔偿责任。但适并没有具体说明申请程序,责任性质和对损害赔偿的责任标准。就这些问题,笔者提出了一些的意见。登记机关如果登记错误,登记的权利状态不符合申请人提交的申请材料中的所请求的状态。审查的准则包括正式审查的立法和实质性审查。对损害赔偿责任的确定应取决于赔偿责任的构成要素,包括的主要内容和行为因素,此赔偿责任的标准应适用过错责任的原则。     

经济法对宏观调控权的规制——以房地产市场、证券市场调控为例

经济法是国家调节社会经济之法。宏观调控是国家调节三方式之一,宏观调控应以市场调节为基础,需要处理好国家与市场之间的关系,调控措施应当科学、合理。需要依法调控,用法律控制权力,防止滥用宏观调控权损害民众利益。宏观调控包括控制与引导、宏观与微观管理相结合,不能片面理解为"控制"、从紧,也不能把各种行政干预措施都当成宏观调控,借宏观调控之名行行政命令计划管理之实。     

论不动产物权登记信息公开制度——兼评《物权法草案》第18条

不动产登记簿上记载的信息并不构成国家秘密、商业秘密和个人隐私,而是一种社会公共资源,为了实现不动产登记的物权公示功能,促进不动产交易秩序及交易安全与便捷,《物权法草案》第18条应予修改,不动产登记簿应无限制地向全社会公开。     

论担保物权的竞合——建构一种解决之道

担保物权的竞合,变称职物的提担保竞合,是指在同一标准上存在不同种类的担保物权,此时应以何类担保物权的效力优先的问题.然而对于这一问题,在《担保法》及其他法律中均没有作出规定.与此同时反观我国民法学界,对担保物权竞争合的研究几乎处于空白状态.司法实务中的法律缺席以及理论研究上的止步,于是以此为契机,我想通过本文写作以及对担保物权竞争合存在现象的研究,希冀能在理论上建构出一条最终解决之道.     

The decision to provide discovery: an examination of policies and guilty pleas

Journal of Experimental Criminology - Prosecutors’ decisions to provide discovery can have vast implications for defendants. When prosecutors do not provide exculpatory information in the...     

On the Question of Dutch Courts' Universal Jurisdiction: A Response to Mettraux

In response to Guénaël Mettraux's article regardingthe recent exercise of universal jurisdiction over torture andwar crimes by a Dutch court, the author disputes Mettraux'sreading of these cases on several points. These points includethe legal basis for exercising universal jurisdiction over violationsof Common Article 3 and the criterion of involvement of publicauthorities in the crime of torture.     

The individuality of fibres used to provide forensic evidence--not all blue polyesters are the same.

Fibres used in forensic casework suffer from a disadvantage common to other forms of trace evidence--it is not possible to state with absolute certainty that they originate from a specific source. Target fibre studies, population studies and research on 'blocks of colour' have effectively demonstrated the polymorphism of textile fibres (particularly man-made ones) and have shown that when a fibre is believed to have a specific putative source, the chance that it has originated from a different source purely by coincidence is extremely remote. A study by Houck MM (Houck MM, Inter-comparison of unrelated fibre evidence. Forensic Science International 2003; 135: 146-149) has shown that no coincidental matching fibres were recovered from items of clothing examined in 20 unrelated crimes. The study involved over two million comparisons. This work goes a step further, and using the example of blue polyester fibres shows that even within a very narrow segment of the whole general fibre population, many examples of a specific colour/type of man-made fibre taken from random sources can be compared and the chance of any two being the same is very low. These studies should help to show the specificity and value of transferred fibres in providing forensic evidence.     

Availability of funds to provide health services in the Pacific Basin--HHS. Notice of availability of funds

The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) announces that up to $331,000 is available under section 301 of the Public Health Service (PHS) ACT 42 U.S.C. 241, for funding public and non-profit private entities for projects to build capacity and improve health services and systems, particularly preventive health services, in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, American Samoa, Guam, the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands and the Republic of Palau and to provide technical assistance relative to such projects. In recognition of the extent of funding available, these funds will be available only to continue activities currently receiving funds under the section 301 Pacific Initiative grant authority. HRSA will entertain applications from current grantees for supplemental grants to modify project activities, and from eligible organizations for competing continuation grant awards to extend project activities.