Trade secrets versus Cost Benefit Analysis

We argue that administrative agencies should base their decisions on Cost Benefit Analysis (CBA) for two reasons: first the well known ex ante effect that CBA make public decisions more rational and second the little discussed ex post effect that the agency’s CBA provides valuable information to judicial or political bodies controlling the agency. The ex post purpose of CBA implies (judicial review of administrative decisions) or requires (political review) the public availability of the CBA. A conflict between this public availability and the protection of trade secrets arises, if the costs or benefits of a decision depend on information which are trade secrets. As a solution to this conflict, we propose a nonpublic in camera court procedure which leaves little discretion to the agency.     

Grundbuchsrecht

Rechtsprechung

Grundbuchsrecht     

Unautorisierte Eigenwerbung mit fehlerhaften Ratings – Haftet die Ratingagentur? Gleichzeitig ein Beitrag zur Auslegung des § 1300 ABGB

Die jüngste Wirtschafts- und Finanzkrise hat die gro?e Bedeutung, die Ratingagenturen zukommt, deutlich gemacht. Vermehrt werden die Voraussetzungen diskutiert, bei deren Vorliegen Ratingagenturen für durch fehlerhafte Ratings verursachte Sch?den zur Haftung herangezogen werden k?nnen. Der folgende Beitrag untersucht die Grundlagen und m?glichen Grenzen einer solchen Haftung; dabei zeigt sich, dass die bereits dem Urbestand des ABGB angeh?rende Bestimmung des § 1300 ABGB in der Lage ist, auch derart neue Sachverhaltskonstellationen zu bew?ltigen. Schlie?lich werden die gewonnenen Erkenntnisse dazu herangezogen, einen aktuellen, komplex gelagerten Fall n?her zu analysieren.     

Zum Erfordernis der Beglaubigung von Unterschriften auf einer von einer Gemeinde errichteten Privaturkunde im Grundbuchsverfahren

Dem Erfordernis des § 31 Abs 2 GBG ist nicht entsprochen, wenn eine blo? privatrechtliche Erkl?rung einer Gemeinde vorliegt, die zwar nach den Vorschriften der einschl?gigen Gemeindeordnung privatrechtliche Wirksamkeit erzeugt, aber eben keine "Erkl?rung einer Beh?rde des Bundes oder des Landes" umfasst.     

Who Controls the Content of Supreme Court Opinions?

Conventional arguments identify either the median justice or the opinion author as the most influential justices in shaping the content of Supreme Court opinions. We develop a model of judicial decision making that suggests that opinions are likely to reflect the views of the median justice in the majority coalition. This result derives from two features of judicial decision making that have received little attention in previous models. The first is that in deciding a case, justices must resolve a concrete dispute, and that they may have preferences over which party wins the specific case confronting them. The second is that justices who are dissatisfied with an opinion are free to write concurrences (and dissents). We demonstrate that both features undermine the bargaining power of the Court's median and shift influence towards the coalition median. An empirical analysis of concurrence behavior provides significant support for the model.     

Quantitative analysis of proinflammatory cytokines (IL-1beta, IL-6, TNF-alpha) in human skin wounds

Proinflammatory cytokines play an important role in the mediation of inflammation and trauma. They could be useful for the determination of vitality and wound age. In the present study, 144 human skin wounds due to sharp force were investigated. The material was collected during operations (N=96) and postmortem examinations (N=48). The wound age varied from several seconds or minutes to 9 days. Control skin was available in each individual. The tissue specimens were homogenized and extracted in a solution of PBS and protease inhibitors. Interleukin-1beta (IL-1beta), interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) were measured by quantitative ELISA analysis. Statistical evaluation was performed by the t-test using the quotients of levels (wound sample/control skin). In surgical specimens the cytokine levels revealed a clear tendency to increase with wound age. IL-1beta in early skin wounds (24 h, P<0.05). The quantitative analysis of proinflammatory cytokines in wound extracts can contribute to the determination of vitality and wound age, in particular in the very early post-traumatic interval (classic stab wounds).     

Gauging the potential for social unrest

It stands to reason that social unrest does not erupt out of the blue. Although there are a great many reasons why social dismay might descend into social disorder, only few yardsticks or indices can plausibly be used to gauge the potential for social unrest (PSU). If policy makers want to undertake public action to prevent social dismay escalating into social disruption, they obviously need to draw on practical sensors. This paper assesses critically the adequacy of two such measures, the polarization (P) index, and the total relative deprivation (TRD) index. The paper proposes a tentative guide to selecting between these two measures. A review of three stylized scenarios suggests that, where income redistributions reduce the number of distinct income groups, and when each group is characterized by a strong sense of within-group identity, the P index surpasses the TRD index as a basis for predicting PSU. When the within-group identification is weak, however, it is better to use the TRD index to predict PSU.