Seeing the improvement of the criminal trial structure from China’s criminal courtroom arrangements (tribunal design)

The setting of criminal court has become an important representation of the criminal trial structure due to its visual and vivid reflection of the legal position and relations among the three parties of litigation, i.e. the prosecuting party, the advocating party and the judge. As a result of the influence of ancient “inquest” centered trial mode, lack of the defendant’s right to silence and incomplete revolution of the criminal trial mode, the existing criminal court setting features an umbrella shaped structure. To reform the criminal trial structure in China, we should eliminate the air of “inquest” from the existing court interrogation mode, strengthen the hearing of evidence and set up a equiangular triangle shaped trial structure of neutral trial, equality between the prosecuting and advocating parties and litigant oriented. __________ Translated from the Jurist Review, 2005, (2) (in Chinese)     

警察出庭作证:透析与前瞻

警察作为证人出庭作证在国外十分普遍,然而我国一直将警察排除在证人之外,警察出庭作证少之又少。我国警察应当出庭作证,但应限制在特定范围之内。在目前情况下,警察出庭作证还存在较大障碍,这恰恰是我国刑事司法改革之所在。     

RETHINKING JUVENILE STATUS OFFENSE LAWS: CONSIDERATIONS FOR CONGRESSIONAL REVIEW OF THE JUVENILE JUSTICE AND DELINQUENCY PREVENTION ACT

Families struggling with a breakdown in communication, trying to control the behavior of an unruly child, or experiencing a crisis often look for outside help. Many families, particularly those without resources to pay for private support, turn to their local status offense system. Status offenders are young people charged with behavior unique to their status as juveniles such as running away, truancy, or disobedience. In 2007, Congress will begin to consider reauthorization of the Juvenile Justice Delinquency Prevention Act (JJDPA), the federal act related to status‐offender policy. By providing an overview of recent state status‐offense legislation and case law, this article identifies issues to be addressed by Congress in reauthorizing the JJDPA.     

NGOs and Ethnic Conflict: Lessons from the Work of the Project on Ethnic Relations in the Balkans

This article examines the impact of nongovernmental organization-sponsored contact and communication on fostering peaceful solutions to ethnic conflict via case studies of the activities of the Project on Ethnic Relations (PER) in Romania, Macedonia, Montenegro, Kosovo, and Serbia. It explores five operational principles that guide PER activity: creating credible, neutral forums for dialogue; maintaining momentum; working within political realities; encouraging indigenous solutions from within existing processes; and acting with the backing of powerful states. These principles explain PER's success as a "weak mediator" of ethnic conflicts. According to this analysis, PER also exhibits organizational characteristics that contribute to success, including nonpartisanship, area expertise and extensive networks of local contacts, and an ability to secure the trust of local actors.
A significant indicator of the success of PER activities is the establishment by conflicting parties of institutionalized mechanisms for addressing their differences. Contrary to the view that electoral competition contributes to conflict, this study finds that the possibility of achieving an electoral advantage by participating cooperatively in conflict resolution activities creates incentives for local actors to recognize opportunities offered by PER activities and leads local actors to heed PER's advice. Finally, the article offers a cautionary observation. While PER's perceived influence with major international actors may contribute to its local successes, once a state actor with the power to impose a solution has committed itself to ending a conflict, its preferences outweigh any local interests in determining the outcome and renders the efforts of a "weak mediator" such as PER irrelevant.     

中国调解与审判关系新论——从历史的视角

调解与审判合一,一直被认为是中国古代司法的优点。但正是因为调审合一有着明显弊端,我国古代司法向近代变迁时呈现出调解游离于审判之外的态势,这是利于依法治国及彻底解决纠纷的因素,值得我们在当代司法中借鉴。     

创设海关法院：现实与可能

为适应加入世贸组织的新形势 ,我国应建立与对外贸易相协调的专门海关法院。借鉴美国海关法院制度的经验 ,创设适应社会主义市场经济体制要求的中国海关法院制度 ,对扩大改革开放、促进国际贸易意义重大。     

澳大利亚侵权行为的法律适用问题

文章通过对澳大利亚侵权行为法律适用由古到今、由传统到现代的规则的论述 ,揭示了澳大利亚侵权行为法律适用规则之处 ,从而为中国的侵权行为法律适用提供一些借鉴。     

最高法院出版物:功能解读与成因分析

作为一种重要的治理方式和技术手段,最高法院的出版物通过承担一定的功能(直接功能和间接功能),对于最高法院审判职能以及其他延伸职能的实现发挥着重要的作用。从反馈的信息来看,最高法院出版物的积极效果较为明显。最高法院出版物的生成及其规模化运作,同中国特定的政治控制模式、法院管理体制和法院制度的转型有着密切的联系。当然,最高法院出版物的运作在一定程度上与审判独立原则存在矛盾和冲突。虽然如此,最高法院出版物仍将在今后一定时期内长期存在。     

USING EXTERNSHIPS TO INTRODUCE FAMILY LAW STUDENTS TO NEW PROFESSIONAL ROLES

Law schools are seeking ways to familiarize family law students with exciting new professional roles arising in connection with family court reform. This article describes the family law externship program at William Mitchell College of Law which includes a classroom component allowing students placed in different practice settings to compare and contrast their experiences. The program assists students in making career choices and enhances their ability to counsel future clients.     

日本最高法院的少数意见制

少数意见制主要是英美法系国家采行的一项裁判制度,日本战后受美国的影响,将少数意见制移入其大陆法系司法制度的母体之中.日本法院法规定,最高法院各法官必须在裁判书上表示自己的意见.关于最高法院少数意见表示制度,日本法律界曾经意见分歧很大,但经过近六十年运行,其长处充分显现,已获得定型化.少数意见制与整个司法制度是相符合的,将少数意见制引入我国将促进宪法的进一步贯彻实施,深化司法改革.考虑到目前在全国普遍实施的条件还不成熟,以及各级法院地位和作用的差异,在具体的操作步骤上,可从最高人民法院审判委员会开始实行.