Familienheimfahrt – jahresbezogene Beurteilung

Anspruch auf steuerliche Anerkennung der Aufwendungen für Familienheimfahrten, wenn ein Steuerpflichtiger einen vom Besch?ftigungsort entfernten (Familien-)Wohnsitz unterh?lt und in einem Streitjahr dessen Verlegung (zB im Hinblick auf die dort wohnhafte berufst?tige Ehefrau) unzumutbar ist. Dabei kommt es nicht darauf an, ob früher (insbesondere im zeitlichen Zusammenhang mit der Aufnahme der Besch?ftigung an einem neuen Besch?ftigungsort) die Zumutbarkeit der Wohnsitzverlegung gegeben gewesen ist. Demzufolge ist es steuerlich im Streitjahr unsch?dlich, dass in der Vergangenheit eine (nur in dieser) zumutbare Wohnsitzverlegung nicht durchgeführt wurde.     

The performance of charter schools in Wisconsin

How have charter schools in Wisconsin performed relative to traditional public schools? Two analyses provide an answer: First, a comparison of achievement test scores for students in Milwaukee charter and traditional schools from 1998 to 2002 for grades 3 through 10 finds a relative advantage for charter school students using fixed effects and first difference specifications. Second, a methodological approach new to the debate over performance in choice schools assesses schoollevel standardized tests in the fourth and eighth grades for 2000–01 and 2001–02. The results for fourth grade are generally favorable for charter schools; those for eighth grade are mixed. Overall, the results from these two analyses suggest that charter schools in Wisconsin are performing somewhat better than the traditional public schools from which they draw students. © 2007 by the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management     

The protection of confidential information in the human rights era: two aspects

Legal context: The Human Rights Act has had an obvious impact on the law ofbreach of confidence as it applies to private information. Itsinfluence on the law of confidence as it applies to commercialinformation has been subtle, but nevertheless significant. Key points: Confidentiality is a relative rather than an absolute concept.Whether information is in the public domain or retains the necessaryquality of confidence is a question of degree which dependson the circumstances of the case, and in particular the natureof the information. A compilation of information may be confidentialeven if the individual elements are in the public domain. Itis a defence to a claim for breach of confidence that disclosureof the information would be in the public interest whether theclam is based on an express contractual, an implied contractualor an equitable obligation. The balance of authority favoursthe view that an express contractual obligation carries greaterweight when balancing parties’ Convention rights thanan implied contractual or equitable obligation, but it is difficultto see why this should be so. The real difference between contractualand equitable obligations is that it is possible by contractto prevent the disclosure of information that is not confidential. Practical significance: The law continues to evolve. As matters stand parties are welladvised to seek contractual protection for their confidentialinformation.     

Event Studies and the Law: Part I: Technique and Corporate Litigation

Event studies are among the most successful uses of econometricsin policy analysis. By providing an anchor for measuring theimpact of events on investor wealth, the methodology offersa fruitful means for evaluating the welfare implications ofprivate and government actions. This article is the first ina set of two that review the use and impact of the event studymethodology in the legal domain. This article begins by brieflyreviewing the event study methodology and its strengths andlimitations for policy analysis. It then reviews in detail howevent studies have been used to evaluate the wealth effectsof corporate litigation: defendants experience economicallymeaningful and statistically significant wealth losses uponthe filing of the suit, whereas plaintiff firms experience nosignificant wealth effects upon filing a lawsuit. Also, thereis a significant wealth increase for defendant firms when theysettle a suit with another firm, in contrast to other typesof plaintiffs, and in contrast to the settling plaintiff firms.These findings suggest that, at a minimum, lawsuits are nota value-enhancing way for corporations to settle their disagreementswith other corporations. In addition, the market appears toimpose a higher sanction on firms than actual criminal sanctions,and reputational losses are of equal magnitude for civil finesas for criminal ones. The article concludes with some recommendationsfor researchers: the standards for conducting an event studyare well established; researchers can increase the power ofan event study by increasing the sample size, and by narrowingthe public announcement period to as short a time frame as possible.The companion article reviews the use of event studies in corporatelaw and regulation.