The Legislative Origins of the MPs' Expenses Scandal

The MPs' expenses scandal of 2009 was one of the most controversial Parliamentary events of modern times. It had a profound impact on public perceptions of MPs and led to the Parliamentary Standards Act 2009. Little academic consideration has, however, been given to the legislative origins of the scandal and the role of ministers and MPs in the creation of the system for MPs' expenses under the Finance Act 1984. Using official documents obtained by Freedom of Information requests, we construct a comprehensive historical analysis of how – without one word of debate in Parliament and only minimal media coverage – ministers and MPs created a special statutory scheme for their own benefit, which they had effective control of and which exempted their expenses claims from the rules applying to other UK taxpayers and the jurisdiction of the Inland Revenue.     

公立高等学校性质的行政法透视

近些年发生的以高校为被告的案件层出不穷,但司法机关应当以何种立场来解决涉高校的诉讼案件却缺乏统一标准,究其根本原因乃在于对高等学校性质是什么或者应当是什么没有足够的认识。事实上,无论是将公立高等学校定位于一般的事业单位,还是行政法意义上的法律法规授权的组织抑或第三部门,都难以自恰地解释高等学校在实践中存在的多重身份以及由此产生的多重法律关系和法律纠纷,但如果将其定位于公务法人则可以在某种程度上克服上述缺陷。     

论社会公共事务管理主体的多元化

社会公共事务日益复杂和繁重 ,公共事务管理主体必然走向多元化。从发展趋势来看 ,公民社会将不断壮大和成熟 ,大量公共事务应由社会来自行管理 ,一些特定事务才由政府组织承担。自 1970年代以来 ,与政府 (公域 )、市场 (私域 )相对应的第三部门 (第三域 )在全球迅速壮大发展 ,它为解决政府失灵和市场失灵提供了新的可能 ,成了社会管理与发展的又一基本组织体系。我国自改革开放以来 ,社会中介组织、社区组织、民办非企业组织和其他社会团体迅速发展 ,在社会事务的管理中发挥越来越重要的作用。     

用荧光显微镜观察Y小体确定骨骼肌的性别

作者将人骨骼肌经冰冻切片,0.5％阿的平染色,用荧光显微镜观察,计数Y小体的出现率以确定性别。53例中34例男性Y小体的出现率在20～76％,平均为50.38％;19例女性的类Y小体的出现率在0～3％均值0.89％,将两者行t检验,t值等于13.93,P(0.01,差异极显著。通过对41例检材进行盲测,结果准确率达100％。     

Provocation and Pluralism

What is the best way to reflect human diversity in the structure of the provocation defence, and similar excusatory defences in the criminal law? The House of Lords recently concluded that the right way is to allow the jury to personalise and thereby qualify the apparently uniform ‘reasonable person’ standard mentioned in section 3 of the Homicide Act 1957. In this paper we argue that this is not the right way at all. We argue that the reasonable person standard, unqualified, already accommodates the only variations between people that the law should want to accommodate in an excusatory defence. To defend this view we revive the common law's tripartite analysis of the ‘objective’ (or impersonal) issues in the provocation defence: first, was there an action capable of constituting a provocation? second, how provocative was it? and third, how much self‐control should have been exhibited in the face of it? We show that these questions each have a built‐in sensitivity to certain variations between different defendants' situations, but that this does not detract from their objectivity (or impersonality). We argue that no more sensitivity is needed in the name of human diversity, and what is more that no more sensitivity is desirable.     

IRC § 71 MAY IMPOVERISH CHILDREN,ENDANGER EX‐WIVES,AND DISRUPT FEDERALISM1

The Internal Revenue Code provides that alimony will be deductible to the payor and taxable to the payee. Although this treatment may seem contrary to the payee's interest, compared to making the payments non‐deductible and nontaxable, it can increase the payee's after‐tax income. The payor's deduction will allow larger payments at no after‐tax cost increase; if the payee is in a lower tax bracket, then even after paying taxes the payee will have more resources. Because this favorable treatment of alimony does not apply to child support, children of divorce are poorer. Nor does the favorable treatment apply to lump‐sum payments, making this option less generous, even though many states have phased down the grant of alimony. Because the definition of alimony requires that it end with the payee's death—to protect the treatment provided for lump sums—the tax system is on the wrong side of the issue of violence against ex‐spouses (typically the ex‐wife). The article proposes extending to other similar payments the favorable tax treatment now provided for alimony.     

当代中国妇女解放是一个历史的过程

妇女解放主要包括经济、政治和思想解放3个方面.由于受主客观条件的制约,妇女解放必然要经历一个长期的历史过程,为了加速实现妇女解放的过程,既需要妇女自身的努力,也需要创造一个良好的社会环境.     

我国现行宪法章节名称之由来及评析

＂名＂是一个极其重要的范畴。宪法章节名称是一个不可回避、不容轻视的问题。我国现行宪法的章节名称,主要是对1954年宪法章节名称的继承。1954年宪法的章节名称,在多方面借鉴了前苏联宪法,但也有创造,如＂国家机构＂的章名。现行宪法的章节名称,还有完善的空间。