Fazhi vs/and/or Rule of Law?: A Semiotic Venture into Chinese Law

The paper is an investigation offazhi (rule of law) in China. The studyproposes a tentative semiotic framework for theinterpretation of the rule of law as a legalconcept to be applied to China in the light ofits recent incorporation into the ChineseConstitution. The paper argues that legalconcepts such as the rule of law are triadic innature and their constituents are relative,relational and contextual in the semioticinterpretative process. The study examines howthe concept can be explicated with the thin orformal theory of the rule of law as a frame ofreference, and how the semiotic model maycontribute to the understanding of the Chineserule of law or the lack thereof. This approachalso attempts to account for the gap betweenthe legal ideal and reality in China andcanvasses cross-cultural considerations. In thefirst part of the paper, a semiotic frameworkfor legal concepts is postulated forconstructing the meaning of the rule of law,followed by its application to contemporaryChina.     

Police Empathy and Victim PTSD as Potential Factors in Rape Case Attrition

This exploratory study investigated whether rape victims’ subjective perceptions of whether to proceed with legal action were associated with their experience of disclosing to the police during their initial interview. Specifically, the study investigated associations between symptoms of PTSD, shame and self-blame post-rape, subjective perceptions of police empathy and subjective perception of victims’ intentions to take the case to court. Participants (N = 22) were found to have elevated levels of PTSD severity, shame and self-blame. Police empathy was positively correlated with victims’ ratings of likelihood of taking the case to court, and negatively correlated with PTSD severity and shame. These preliminary findings suggest that training police officers how to respond more empathically to psychologically distressed rape victims may potentially help reduce victim attrition rates.     

For the Love of Darcie: Recognising the Human–Companion Animal Relationship in Housing Law and Policy

This paper identifies the law’s failure to recognise and protect the human–companion animal relationship in the housing arena. The nature of the human–companion animal relationship has striking similarities to human–human relationships in the socially supportive aspects of the relationship such as attachment, nurturance and reliable alliance. This contributes to the social life and sense of well-being of the owner. There is also evidence that the human–companion animal relationship can have physical health benefits such as lowering the risk of death by cardiovascular disease. It is clear that society benefits from the human–companion animal relationship, which many owners perceive as akin to family, in the form of healthier, less isolated people with better social networks. Yet in the key area of housing, the law does nothing to protect or even recognise this relationship. In consequence, every year thousands of tenants in both the public and private sector are faced with ‘no pet’ covenants in their leases and grapple with difficulties such as reduced housing options, higher rents or the traumatic decision to give up their companion animal for rehoming or euthanasia. This is especially prevalent amongst vulnerable people, like the elderly and mentally ill, who are more likely to need to move into supported accommodation. This article examines housing law in countries, such as France and Canada, that prohibit ‘no pet’ covenants in residential leases and provides arguments for the effective formulation and implementation of such law in the UK.     

Custodial Relationships Of Grandparents Raising Grandchildren:Results of a home-based intervention study

The phenomenon of grandparents raising grandchildren has increased significantly over the past two decades. The literature documents that health, financial, and legal worries top the list of concerns for grandparents who raise grandchildren. The authors describe the results of a multidisciplinary study that provides home visitation with social, nursing, legal, and educational support to grandparents raising grandchildren in parent absent households. This article examines the custodial relationships of one hundred and sixty-three children being raised in sixty-eight families headed by grandparents in an urban population in the South. The data showed that of the 163 children, 70 were in the guardianship of their grandparents, 40 of the children had no legal relationship with their grandparents, 28 were in the custody of the State Department of Family and Children's Services, 21 were in the temporary custody of their grandparents, and four were adopted by their grandparents. Recommendations from this study include educating service providers and grandparents raising grandchildren regarding the potential financial benefits under Title IVE adoption assistance and supporting legislative reform to increase the stability of intergenerational kinship care. This project demonstrates an innovative approach of combining university-based research with multidisciplinary education while providing cost-effective support services through a partnership with the community.