David and Goliath in the poll booth: group size,political power and voter turnout

ABSTRACT

This article analyses how the presence of a dominant group of voters within the electorate affects voter turnout. Theoretically, we argue that its absolute size affects turnout via increased free-riding incentives and reduced social pressure to vote within a larger dominant group. Its relative size compared to other groups within the electorate influences turnout through instrumental and expressive responses – in both the dominant and dominated groups – to the degree of electoral competition between groups. Empirical evidence from a large cross section of German municipalities is in line with these theoretical predictions. The observed effects should be taken into account when redesigning electoral jurisdictions through, for instance, municipal mergers or gerrymandering.     

企业混合合并的竞争法分析

企业合并控制制度一直是各国反垄断法中的重要内容。随着我国经济逐步融入全球经济和市场经济的不断发展，企业合并的经营者集中越来越成为我国企业的普遍选择，其中混合合并因为便于企业实现多元化经营和经营战略转移形成效率抗辩，且一般不直接限制或妨碍竞争而与反垄断法无涉，从而形成市场和政府的双重偏好。然而通过非合作效应和合作效应分析可以得出混合合并在一定条件下也会产生反竞争效果。近年来，欧盟、澳大利亚的立法变革都明显提高了对混合合并反竞争效果的立法警觉。我国需要从竞争法视角重新审视企业混合合并，对其反垄断规制要坚持效率抗辩和整体权衡，反对弊大于利的合并，使混合合并在我国经济发展中避害扬善。     

对反垄断法规制的垄断行为的分析与比较

市场经济中垄断行为纷繁复杂、多种多样。根据不同的分类方法,对垄断行为可做不同的分类,对各种不同类型的垄断行为及其相互变化关系进行比较研究有助于我们加深对其经济和法律性质的认识和了解。根据垄断力来源及其程度的不同,将垄断行为分为联合限制竞争行为、企业合并审查、滥用市场支配地位、行政垄断四大类;通过对它们进行经济分析和比较研究,从理论上深刻地揭示了它们之间的相互变化关系及其经济法律性质,为反垄断立法与执法提供了充分的理论依据。     

论自然垄断行业中企业合并的法律控制标准问题

由于自然垄断行业诸多的特殊性，有关这些行业中企业合并的法律控制标准问题相对比较复杂。它不仅涉及到反垄断法上控制标准与行业法上控制标准的适用，而且还涉及到因自然垄断行业的公益性而产生对控制标准的特殊需求。我们有必要适度借鉴相关国家和地区的做法来完善我国相关内容，保证自然垄断行业的健康发展。     

论外商投资合同法律效力争议解决

本文所称外商投资合同法律效力争议,是一个较为宽泛的概念,它不仅包括外商在中国境内直接投资签署的中外合资/合作经营企业合同及其变更的法律效力所产生之争议,也包括外资并购合同法律效力产生之争议,还包括外商投资中企境外企业所签署的合同法律效力所产生之争议。本文意图通过对上述三种不同形式的外商投资合同法律效力所产生之争议的不同方面进行比较研究,从而找出正确的解决这些争议的方法,以供业内人士、仲裁员、律师参考。     

The political economy of regulatory change: The case of British merger control

This article aims to explain the broader evolution of British merger control. To this end it outlines a novel critical political economy perspective on regulation and regulatory change which differs from established political economy approaches, such as the regulatory capitalism/state perspectives, in three main ways: it places regulatory ideas at the heart of the analysis, it differentiates between different degrees of regulatory change, and it links regulatory change in delineated issue areas with changing power balances between fractions of capital and labor. The application of this perspective to the analysis of the evolution of British merger control provides some important new insights, most notably that the content, form, and scope of merger control in Britain have been deeply transformed in accordance with neoliberal ideas since the 1980s and that this process, which was part of a broader regulatory and ideational shift, was premised on the ascendancy of transnational capital.     

Italian Utilities and Public Control: Evidence of Merger Effects

ABSTRACT

Increasing competition-induced mergers amongst public utilities may favour in Italy a reduction in public control and an increase in fair value accounting. In this context, conducting a multiple case study characterized by an innovative comprehensive approach, it is investigated how the peculiarities of the sector affect integration and the subsequent accounting representation of the post-merger entity. The findings show, firstly, the persistent will of the public shareholders to maintain control and, secondly, shed light on a form of interconnected ‘accounting levelling out’ that seems ill-suited to represent the economic reality of the most significant post-merger companies, despite New Public Management provisions.     

China's stance on the Google/Motorola merger: Implications for competition in intellectual property-intensive sectors

China's merger enforcement agency approved the Google/Motorola merger with conditions. This pattern of approval is not in full accordance with that in other jurisdictions, including the United States and the European Union, which made unconditional approvals. This contradiction attracted ample criticism; some critics believe that China's policy is designed to protect domestic industry. In investigating the Chinese merger agency's decision and the basis for its decision making, this article finds that much of the criticism is groundless and misleading because the critics have failed to incorporate all elements of the global value chain of mobile intelligent terminals into their analyses. The investigation also shows that, although the decision makers are less experienced, their decisions are based on Chinese competition law and market realities. It is important for international firms to be aware of this pattern in merger analysis.     

Comparing civil law and common law systems for mergers and acquisitions An economic analysis

＂From the economic point of view, common law is more efficient than civil law.＂ Is this recent statement published in an economic report valid for mergers and acquisitions （M＆A）？ The main objective of this paper is to compare the legal performance of M＆A in France and in the United States. The purpose is to quantify the impact of both legal systems on the long-term performance of M＆A transactions. To carry out this research, a specific methodology was developed and the results of which are evaluated. Two legal structures for M＆A transactions were retained： the purchase of shares （share deal）, and the purchase of assets （asset deal）. Each of these acquisition structures was then subdivided into eleven steps composing the process, for example from preliminary information, letter of intent, due diligence, stock or asset purchase agreement, closing, to litigation with formal summons. Performance was then measured by taking into account time, cost, and satisfaction factors. The time factor was broken down into person-days and the number of days, weeks, or months required to complete each step. French and U.S. respondents were asked to fill out a questionnaire with reference to a specific acquisition project. A typical question was for instance： What is your estimate of working days to complete this step （person-days）？ Radar charts were used to compare the mean of each performance factor. In order to check for correlations among the performance factors, an inter-factors analysis （regression） was carried out. The research findings are presented in this paper. Results show that a share deal in France is generally cheaper and participants indicate a significantly greater amount of satisfaction than in the U.S. However, for the time factor, the results vary. The conclusion is that the application of the civil code rather than common law does not reveal substantial differences as far as M＆A transactions are concerned. One reason is that in both France and the U.S. these transactions are carried out following standard procedures in compliance with common contractual practices.     

The GE/Honeywell merger controversy and the path to analytical convergence in international merger assessment: A critical commentary

Globalisation, with its concomitant rise in international merger activity, allied to the proliferation of merger control regimes vetting such activity, increases the likelihood of two or more competition authorities reaching divergent decisions in the same case. This article reveals that this situation arose in the proposed merger between two US-based companies, General Electric (GE) and Honeywell, with the EU prohibiting the merger, and the US Department of Justice approving it. Further, it discusses the analytical and interpretational differences which led to those divergent outcomes. The analytical debate centres on the appropriateness of the two theoretical approaches used to assess proposed mergers, with the EU using the range effects of competitive harm approach and the US giving greater weight to an economic efficiencies merger defence. The fallout from the GE/Honeywell case has given added impetus to progress analytical convergence in relation to the vetting of international mergers. This has found expression at the multilateral level, which links to EU initiatives. The article predicts that the EU is highly likely to incorporate an economic efficiencies defence into its merger control law, bringing it into line with other key players. Of course, analytical convergence cannot guarantee that interpretational differences will not arise, as was evident in aspects of the GE/Honeywell case. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.