Planning for the succession of digital assets

Estate planners’ current strategies for the disposition of digital assets are quickly becoming out-dated. This is largely the result of ambiguities concerning proprietary rights of digital assets after death. When advising clients on how to plan for the succession of digital assets, it is important for estate planners to understand the nature of digital assets today and to recognize how these assets may evolve. In failing to take into account the evolving nature of digital assets, estate planners are liable to craft short-sighted and thus ineffective succession plans. As the popularity of digital executor businesses increases, estate planners ought to caution clients on their shortcomings. Additionally, legislatures must create statutes which outline the rights of individuals vis-à-vis online service providers.     

论跨境环境损害民事责任的法律适用——以冲突规范为研究对象

作为统一实体法规范的国际环境民事责任公约在高度危险活动领域如核能利用、石油污染等发挥着巨大作用,但对于一般环境损害未做任何规定,因此,需要由国内冲突法规范加以调整。由于传统的调整方法——侵权行为地法很难解决当今环境损害中的所有问题,笔者以为在继续追求冲突法正义的同时也应顾及到索赔主体实体利益的保护,于是,有必要考虑新的系属公式如当事人合意选择的法律、对受害人有利的法律等。但仍应赋予侵权行为地法最重要的地位,同时采用选择性冲突规则。     

村庄公共品供给中的“好混混”

1990年代以后,两湖平原村庄中出现了好混混。好混混的出现源于村庄公共品供给的困境。乡村组织难以抑制公共品供给中的搭便车行为,村庄公共品合作常常因此难以达成。好混混则可以依靠暴力和暴力威胁遏制搭便车行为,维系村庄公共品合作和供给,他们的好由此体现出来。取消农业税后,乡村组织的公共品供给能力更加弱化,农民因此对好混混的需求更甚。好混混这一怪异现象,反映了国家权力在基层社会存在局部不足。     

中国式离婚现象透视

我国婚姻法规定的＂离婚自由原则＂,反映了当代世界离婚立法的发展趋势,体现了我国立法的日趋完善和人性化,但同时也带来离婚率上升等一系列社会问题。面对目前离婚的特点,我国应健全婚姻立法和执法体系,以适当控制离婚,达到促进社会和谐发展的目标。     

反垄断法适用除外制度探讨

适用除外制度是指为了维护经济运行效率、保护社会整体利益,在某些特定行业或领域中允许一定的垄断状态及垄断行为合法存在的制度。社会本位是反垄断法适用除外制度的根本属性,其经济学基础在于竞争存在缺陷和垄断具有积极效应。适用除外制度的适用范围涉及农业、国家垄断行业、部分自然垄断行业、知识产权以及对外经济贸易领域等。适用除外制度的适用程序包括申请、审查、批准、撤销等内容。     

黑瞎子岛建设自由贸易区的构想与对策

发展对外贸易、促进跨境区域合作是现阶段东北亚区域经济合作的关键拉动因素。为了切实推进黑瞎子岛保税区建设规划,中央政府应给予更加优惠的政策支持,实施境内关外监管模式,从而降低贸易壁垒,提高贸易创造效应和贸易转移效应,进一步推动中俄国际经贸发展,并在远期将黑瞎子岛建成为商品自由流通、资本自由流动、货币自由兑换、人员自由进出的自由贸易区,加速东北亚国际区域经济合作与发展。     

Buying treaties with cigarettes: Internal side‐payments in two level games

Two‐level games models predict that domestic division within a state can alter the extent to which that state is able to reach agreements with other states, and also alter the content of any agreement that is reached. I extend the model by introducing internal side‐payments composed of unrelated domestic issues. Domestic opposition to an international agreement will inhibit cooperation most when the executive and median legislators are in relative agreement about other salient domestic political issues. Domestic opposition to an international agreement will inhibit cooperation least when the executive and median legislators are in relative disagreement about other salient domestic political issues. U.S. ratifications of the NAFTA and the Chemical Weapons Convention illustrate that not all types of domestic division inhibit international cooperation—some can facilitate it     

Civil Liberties and the Korean War

This article addresses the unsuccessful attempts to suppress free speech during the Korean War, and in particular explains the attempts to silence three reporters of alleged atrocities by United Nations forces. In the absence of carefully targeted legislation, the three individuals – Alan Winnington (a journalist), Monica Felton (a women's movement activist) and Jack Gaster (a solicitor) ‐ were threatened with or investigated for prosecution for treason or sedition, and Winnington was unable to renew his passport until 1968. Drawing heavily on archival sources (including MI5 files, which unusually fail to redact the identity of one of the lawyers who was reporting to Special Branch about Gaster's activities), the article explores the threat to civil liberties from the administrative as well as the legislative and the judicial power of the state. The article concludes by drawing contemporary parallels, and highlighting the continuing relevance of the writings of Winnington, Felton and Gaster.     

Mega-Regional Trade Deals in the Asia-Pacific: Choosing Between the TPP and RCEP?

The emergence of “mega-regional” trade agreements has recently become the most significant trade policy issue in the Asia-Pacific. Since 2010, governments in the region have launched negotiations for two new trade agreements: the United States-led Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and the ASEAN-led Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). Differentiated by their membership, scope and level of ambition, the TPP and RCEP embody competing visions for how the Asia-Pacific trade system should evolve, and regional governments must now make choices over which initiative better serves their economic and political interests. This article explores the trade policy choice posed by these mega-regional trade negotiations, reviewing the evolution of the Asia-Pacific trade system, the recent emergence of the TPP and RCEP, and the competitive dynamics inherent in the development of the two proposals. It argues that four key considerations (trade policy ambition, the role of ASEAN, US-China geopolitical rivalry and defensive concerns) will be of key importance in informing regional governments’ decisions as the TPP and RCEP move towards completion in 2015.     

台湾当局自由贸易协议实践的亚太转向及其前景

自20世纪90年代以来,为因应全球区域一体化的浪潮,台湾当局力推自由贸易协议（FTA）战略,但成效不佳。2008年马英九执政后,两岸关系在“九二共识”的基础上得以缓和并稳步发展,台湾参与区域经济一体化的问题被重新提上议事日程。当前,台湾当局的FTA战略目标逐渐从传统的中南美洲“友邦”逐渐转向亚太地区,从单纯的“政治驱动型”向“政治经济平衡型”特征转变。未来,台湾当局FTA实践的进展,并不单纯取决于台湾当局作为世界贸易组织成员的身份,更取决于两岸经济整合的深度和两岸政治互信的程度。台湾当局FTA实践的经验,对于未来参与TPP同样具有借鉴意义。