Regulating balance sheet audit: A game theoretical analysis

Summary  The decision situation implicit to balance sheet audit is modelled as a game theoretical model and examined for its behavioural implications. Possible types of decisions are identified as Nash equilibria. The basic game model is characterized by an equilibrium in mixed strategies. Its properties are discussed in detail with respect to alternative scenarios of statutory audit. The regulatory propositions of separation between audit and consulting, on the one hand, and the rotation of auditors, on the other, are analyzed in the context of the game. It turns out that these measures may have contradictory effects on the quality of the balance sheet audit and it depends on the specification of regulatory details and the reaction of the agents whether the one or the other effect dominates in the end. Another proposition to enhance the audit performance is the extension of the liability of statutory auditors. Prerequisites for the success of this measure are that either no professional liability insurance exists or that, if otherwise, deductibles are calculated as a fixed percentage of the loss. The examples refer to German legal rules, however, similar legal rules are valid for most of the developed market economies.     

汉语与越南语缩略语构成方式之比较

缩略语是各种语言中最为普遍的语言现象。缩略语是语言经济原则的一种表现。汉语和越南语中都有着数量较多的缩略语，其在人们的生活各领域中使用得十分普遍。汉、越缩略语的构成方式都很繁多。汉语和越南语之间有着许多相同点。那么，汉、越缩略语的构成方式有何异同？本文将做初步探讨。     

Reformierung der Vergütungssysteme für die Finanzbranche – Eine rechtsökonomische Analyse

Die Vergütungspraktiken bei Spitzenmanagern gelten als Mitverursacher der Finanz- und Wirtschaftskrise und stehen in der ?ffentlichen Kritik. Oft werden Spitzenmanager für kurzfristige Unternehmenserfolge mit gro?zügigen Bonuszahlungen ausgestattet, w?hrend Fehlverhalten nicht sanktioniert wird. Eine solche Vergütungspraxis setzt falsche Anreizmechanismen und f?rdert die Risikobereitschaft von Spitzenmanagern. In diesem Aufsatz werden zun?chst die derzeitigen Regulierungslücken im Lichte der Prinzipal-Agenten-Beziehung diskutiert. Anschlie?end wird anhand eines theoretischen Modells gezeigt, wie die kurzfristige Gewinnorientierung eines Managers zu einem Moral-Hazard-Verhalten führen kann. Des Weiteren werden m?gliche Reformma?nahmen diskutiert sowie die bisherigen Reformbemühungen beleuchtet. Mit der Verankerung der neuen Instituts-Vergütungsverordnung im deutschen Recht ist ein erster Schritt zu einer langfristigen und nachhaltigen Unternehmenspolitik erfolgt. Es kommt in naher Zukunft darauf an, dass alle Industrie- und Schwellenl?nder die internationalen Richtlinien in nationale Gesetzgebung umsetzen, damit keine Regulierungsarbitrage zwischen den einzelnen Staaten entsteht.     

Identity,rights and surveillance in an era of transforming citizenship

This review essay focuses on the problem of citizenship in three different areas, namely human rights, identity politics and surveillance. Heli Askola’s work focuses on the magnitude of demographic challenges that contemporary migrant-receiving states in the Global North face, and specifically focuses on the broader demographic picture of low birth rates, and increasing diversity and populations ageing; thus, focusing the problem of identity politics in the context of citizenship acquisition in Global North states. Richard Sobel’s book explores the empowerment of American citizenship, specifically through a unique reading of constitutional and political apparatus in the United States. Finally, Pramod Nayar’s work addresses state-based surveillance mechanisms like biometrics, biobanks and the internet within the context of citizenship and how new forms of subjectivity are forged within a culture of surveillance. These three works approach citizenship through a legal category of political membership, but also a process of political subjectivization.     

A Local History of Vietnamese Sinology in Early Twentieth Century Annam—the Case of the Bulletin Du học báo 遊學報

During the first two decades of the twentieth century, Sinology was known in Vietnam as “Hán h?c 漢學” (or occasionally as “Trung h?c 中學”), and due to the country’s long history of Confucian civil service examination, “Hán h?c”/“Trung h?c” was identified with Confucianism and Confucian learning. In order to avoid any grand narrative that overlooks the multifacetedness of reality, writing about the history of Vietnamese Sinology should start with “local narrative,” trying to answer a series of “WH-questions” to form a small piece of the jigsaw puzzle. Following this direction, the present paper focuses on the promotion of Confucian ethics in early twentieth century Vietnam through the case of a bulletin called Du h?c báo 遊學報 published under the sponsorship of the Nguy?n court in the protectorate Annam. In order to modernize their “half colonial, half feudal” kingdom technologically without touching the foundation of their political system, the Nguy?n court employed the bulletin as a forum to promote Confucian values interpreted accordingly to Western philosophy and ethics to keep their young elites away from socialist/communist influence during their overseas study.     

Two Intellectual Paths That Cross the Borders: Nguyen Huy Quy,Phan Van Cac,and Humanities in Vietnam’s Chinese Studies

The intellectual paths of two Vietnamese sinologists, Nguyen Huy Quy and Phan Van Cac, tell a distinctive history of Confucian scholarship in Vietnam. Through their intellectual growth, we hope to show how humanities have survived political upheavals of and between the two countries and returned in the process of national reform. The perseverance of humanist concerns demonstrates the relevance of individual determination in the evolution of Vietnamese scholarship on China, indicating an epistemological agency to transcend politics. Three particular aspects emerge as critical in the evolution of their scholarship: family, travelling, and determination. The mechanisms of historical cycles, strategic silencing, self-learning, and human judgment connect the individual paths to the larger historical context of Vietnamese sinology.     

Deaths in Unlicensed Alcohol Rehabilitation Facilities,

Non‐English‐speaking people do not always seek medical care through established institutions. This paper reports a series of deaths in unlicensed alcohol rehabilitation facilities serving Spanish‐speaking men. These facilities are informal groups of alcohol abusing men who live together. New members receive various treatments, including administration of ethanol or isopropanol, restraint, and seclusion. We reviewed 42 deaths in unlicensed alcohol rehabilitation facilities in Los Angeles County during the years 2003–2014. Data gathered included age, length of time spent in the facility, blood alcohol and drugs at autopsy, and cause and manner of death. Causes of death included acute alcohol poisoning, alcohol withdrawal, and a variety of other causes. Three cases were considered homicides from restraint asphyxia. The Department of Medical Examiner‐Coroner has worked with the police, district attorney, and State Department of Health Services to try to prevent additional deaths in unlicensed alcohol rehabilitation facilities. Nevertheless, prevention has been difficult.     

Investigation Delayed Is Justice Denied: Proposals for Expediting Forensic Examinations of Digital Evidence*

Abstract: There is an urgent need to reduce the growing backlog of forensic examinations in Digital Forensics Laboratories (DFLs). Currently, DFLs routinely create forensic duplicates and perform in‐depth forensic examinations of all submitted media. This approach is rapidly becoming untenable as more cases involve increasing quantities of digital evidence. A more efficient and effective three‐tiered strategy for performing forensic examinations will enable DFLs to produce useful results in a timely manner at different phases of an investigation, and will reduce unnecessary expenditure of resources on less serious matters. The three levels of forensic examination are described along with practical examples and suitable tools. Realizing that this is not simply a technical problem, we address the need to update training and establish thresholds in DFLs. Threshold considerations include the likelihood of missing exculpatory evidence and seriousness of the offense. We conclude with the implications of scaling forensic examinations to the investigation.