Social Justice in European Contract Law: a Manifesto

The Study Group on Social Justice in European Private Law are: Gert Brüggemeier (Bremen), Mauro Bussani (Trieste), Hugh Collins (London), Aurelia Colombi Ciacchi (Bremen), Giovanni Comandé (Pisa), Muriel Fabre-Magnan (Nantes), Stefan Grundmann (Berlin), Martijn Hesselink (Amsterdam) (Chairman), Christian Joerges (Florence), Brigitta Lurger (Graz), Ugo Mattei (Torino), Marisa Meli (Catania), Jacobien Rutgers (Amsterdam), Christoph Schmidt (Florence), Jane Smith (Bremen), Ruth Sefton-Green (Paris), Horatia Muir Watt (Paris), Thomas Wilhelmsson (Helsinki).     

Jacob LJ untangles the web of unopposed patent appeals and decides the patentee should pick up the bill

In this recent decision of the Court of Appeal, Lord JusticeJacob has clarified the previously unsatisfactory law on unopposedpatent appeals. The practice of restoring to the register patentsthat had been found invalid at first instance, where on appealtheir validity was not contested, has been criticized. In futuresuch restoration will not occur without a full considerationof the merits by the Court of Appeal.     

Tolerance and Intolerance, 1976–1998

Early students of political tolerance projected a rapid rise in levels of tolerance, but subsequent research has failed to offer conclusive evidence regarding whether tolerance has, in fact, increased. The General Social Survey (GSS) included the same 15 dichotomous tolerance items in the period 1976–1998, seemingly permitting assessment of trends in tolerance through examination of a standard 0–15 scale. Unfortunately, the validity of these data is uncertain because we cannot rule out the possibility that changes in affect toward the five GSS target groups, not true changes in tolerance, drive movement in the longitudinal series. To address this problem, we reexamine the GSS data from the perspective of past discussions of the meaning of tolerance and intolerance. We argue that that the GSS scale captures two aspects of tolerance: whether respondents are tolerant or intolerant; and, among the intolerant, the breadth and depth of their intolerance. We further argue that the first of these dimensions can be measured validly using the GSS data. Our analyses reveal that, at most, tolerance has increased only marginally in the period 1976–1998.     

褚某某等人寻衅滋事案：刑事和解在侵犯公共法益犯罪中的适用及阶段选择

褚某某（男，17岁，上海市某职技校学生）存康某（男，17岁．上海市某职技校学生）家中，见到初中同学芮某某（男．17岁,上海市某中学学生）的照片，提及二年前曾与芮发生矛盾．康也表示看芮不顺眼。褚、康二人与蔚某某（男，17岁．无业）、张某（男，17岁，上海市粜中学高三学生）、周某某（男，19岁，尢业）和郑粜（男，16岁，     

To support or not to support: The American debate on China’s WTO membership

This study surveys and analyzes divergent views in the United States regarding China’s WTO application. With various arguments, strong supporters, fierce opponents and moderates in the middle stand out as three major camps. Some look at the WTO case from their own, often narrow, perspectives; but all tend to link China trade to other, often broader, issues. People from various camps simply disagree on the means to achieve a common objective: a prosperous and democratic China that will not threaten America’s national interests. The American debate on China’s WTO accession has as much to do with domestic politics as it does international trade. The WTO controversy is part of the greater debate on America’s China policy in the post-Cold War era. The WTO debate suggests that a better understanding of the complex nature of the relationship is necessary for managing U.S.-China relations in the future. His research interests and publications have focused on global transformation and U.S.-Asia relations. The author wishes to thank three anonymous reviewers for their helpful suggestions.     

BUILDING A MULTIDISCIPLINARY, COLLABORATIVE CHILD PROTECTION SYSTEM

The process of preparing lawyers and other professionals to work for the benefit of troubled children requires an understanding of concepts that extend far beyond the traditional course structure currently employed in American law schools. It is clear that mental health problems of children and families, compounded by substance abuse, influence behavior, resulting in children entering family and juvenile courts as victims of abuse or neglect and committing criminal acts. It is incumbent on law schools to incorporate training in fields far different from the traditional didactic experience in legal curricula if they are to address the current needs of children and familes who are ensnared in the nation's juvenile justice system. The beginning point of this process is within the legal training apparatus of America. Law schools must expand their curriculum to incorporate other disciplines to produce an advocate capable of serving the interest of children and society.     

抢抓机遇，实现中俄经贸科技合作新突破——赴俄罗斯考察中俄经贸科技合作情况的报告

20 0 1年 4月 ,黑龙江省赴俄经贸考察团分四个组对俄罗斯远东、西伯利亚地区以及莫斯科市进行了考察活动。考察人员一致认为 ,目前俄罗斯政治局面基本稳定 ,经济出现了恢复性增长 ,俄制定了一系列促进经济发展的新政策 ;黑龙江省与俄地方友好往来逐年增多 ,已奠定了良好的经贸科技合作基础 ,但合作层次低、规模小、领域窄的问题仍然存在 ;黑龙江省与俄开展经贸科技合作的潜力巨大 ,前景广阔。通过此次考察还总结了促进中俄经贸科技合作的六点有益的启示。考察活动成效很大 ,达到了预期的效果。