The Legal Research Society

Lawyers and social scientists alike have for a number of years agreed that environmental conditions and scarcity of natural resources have the potential to act as a catalyst for armed conflicts. Such assertions have strengthened the normative link between environmental law and the law governing armed conflicts on a general level. This linking is already recognised, in general, in the area of international law of armed conflicts, which, inter alia, lays down that the methods and means of warfare are not limited; and in particular in the international law of armed conflicts which provides for the protection of the environment during hostilities such as Articles 35(3) and 55 of the 1977 Additional Protocol I to the 1949 Geneva convention. In addition to this “environmental-armed-conflict-law”, considering the state of the environment as a cause of armed conflict has gathered consensus among policy-makers, diplomats and academics. This was most recently recognised when Al Gore, together wi

In light of Gerd’s excellent post on the Trump saga, today’s news from the Sunday Herald on the number of alleged breaches of European environmental law by the Scottish Government, does perhaps, not appear surprising. The article in the Sunday Herald is unfortunately the only information I have been able to obtain on the matter but here is, nevertheless, a short account of the story. It is alleged that over the last six years the Scottish Government (former Scottish Executive) has been facing infraction proceedings for more than 60 specific breaches of European Community law relating to the environment. This number is in sharp contrast to the 32 breaches that the Scottish Government had admitted to be facing, in 2005, when asked to reveal the figures under then recently passed Freedom of Information legislation. The latest number of breaches only saw light after the Freedom of Information Commissioner (Kevin Dunion, who previously happened to head Friends of the Earth Scotland), ordere

Scotland, the home of golf and an incredible number of golf courses is debating about yet another course. Donald Trump, the American multimillionaire applied for permission to establish a new ‘world class’ golf development complete with two championship golf courses and 1500 homes. Yet, rather than being grateful and hailing the millions of dollars potentially coming into Scotland, the nation is split into two camps. The crux is multi-layered – the golf course itself would impinge on one of the major conservation areas in the Northeast of Scotland; the residential development provides places for 1500 people without providing all the facilities and amenities that one would need in life – no shops, no medical surgery – a small town with just residences. The fear therefore is that it is only for the American super-rich and traffic in the area would significantly improve. Oh, by the way, it appears that one farmer has not agreed to sell his lands right in the middle of the prospective golf

Y esterday the ECJ delivered yet another judgment in one of the most fascinating areas of European law – the intersection and conflict between social policy and European internal market laws. The judgment in the matter C-438/05 The International Transport Workers' Federation and The Finnish Seamen's Union is a preliminary ruling in a reference from the Court of Appeal (Civil Division) (England and Wales). The case concerns a Finnish shipping company (Viking Line) that decided to reflag its ship to Estonia in order to benefit from lower wage costs. The International Transport Workers’ Federation took collective action on behalf of the Finnish seamen in order to dissuade Viking Line from effecting the proposed changes. Viking Line felt aggrieved by the action because it was of the view that it breached the company’s freedom of establishment per Article 43 ECT. The EU Observer reports that the case ‘was closely followed across the EU as it appeared to encapsulate mu

In Cervantes’ classic novel from the early 1600’s, Don Quixote de la Mancha bravely, but rather foolishly, sets out to fight windmills, which he mistakes for being the giants that any decent knight must fight. Although the encounter leaves Don Quixote battered, it now looks as if he will have to learn some new skills to keep up the fight. According to today’s New York Times, flying wind turbines might be a thing of the future. Although this might seem a bit far fetched, it has certain advantages. For instance, the wind blows constantly and steadily in the altitude of 10.000 feet and some estimates suggest that the flying turbines at that altitude will be able to generate energy at a very competitive price per kilowatt, compared to conventional methods of on-the-ground production. The NY Times reports that the turbines have the potential to prove particularly useful in rural areas and, so far, interest has been registered from a number of developing countries. However, some problems rem

A report concerning ‘Wild Animals in Travelling Circuses’ concludes that there is no scientific evidence to support a ban on using wild animals in travelling circuses. The Working Group that composed the report was chaired by Aberdeen’s own Mike Radford , who must be a very brave man for having chaired a group that included staunch animal welfare activists, and circus owners whose livelihood depends on the status quo remaining unchanged. The findings of the report go to the very heart of the debate concerning the precautionary principle. The report finds that the role of science (that is so often touted by environmentalists) must be limited in some cases. Indeed, it is right to say that legislative and administrative action is taken within certain bounds of rationality – in other words, there are certain questions where science can provide strong policy guidance, there are questions for which science can give an indication, and then there are questions where science provides

I suppose that everybody takes something different from an academic presentation. A spin-off discussion from yesterday’s lecture and seminar by AG Sharpston concerned the functioning of the EC’s legal system. On this somewhat hazy Saturday morning, I’ve been thinking about how the legal system could be made both efficient and coherent. The following are some Saturday morning thoughts (which means that they might only make as much sense as Friday night was sober – you may be the judge of that). It seems to me that the time has come for the Community to rethink its legal system completely. The legislative process is not entirely fit for purpose. A system of regulations and directives makes sense in the context of a Community whose competences are limited. However, Europe is fast-approaching a time when it will need to think in terms of Codes and Acts. Piecemeal legislation cannot be sustainable in the long-run. To my mind, the debate regarding the possible adoption of a European

DIY sperm donation is a financially risky business. So says the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority after Andy Bathie was ordered to pay £400 per month in child support to his two biological offspring (see news reports here , here and here ). Andy donated sperm to a lesbian couple on the condition that he would not play any part in the parenting of the children. He explained that "These women wanted to be parents and take on the responsibilities that brings. I would never have agreed to this unless they had been a committed family. And now I can't afford to have children with my own wife - it's crippling me financially." The crux of Andy's problem is that he did not donate his sperm through a licensed fertility clinic. He is therefore not exempted from parental responsibility. To add insult to injury, the non-biological mother bears no responsibility for the child’s maintenance. The House of Lords is presently discussing a Child Maintenance and Oth

As many of you know, I was fortunate enough to be able to submit my thesis last week. Hopefully it will produce a good result with the examiners soon. And not a moment too soon as well. As it turns out we may not even be in Aberdeen for much longer, because you really don't know what will happen when you wake up on the morning. I particularly want to thank two of our colleagues whom I've had the great pleasure to meet, Ole and Jernej, who really helped me a great deal through the whole PhD experience. I'm not sure I would have made it through without their support; and I look forward to reading great work from them in the years to come. Both are great colleagues, and I hope lifelong friends. I no longer feel it's appropriate for me to continue posting here. I've enjoyed writing here, and I hope others have enjoyed reading it. Of course I'll be continuing my own blog . I wish everyone the best of luck here; I hope you all can maintain the level of inform

On Friday 07 December Ms Eleanor Sharpston, Advocate General of the European Court of Justice, will return to the University of Aberdeen for the second consecutive year. She will deliver a lecture to LL.B. students in European Union Law (Institutions and Judicial System)’. The lecture will address ‘The role of the Advocate General’. All are welcome to attend. Following her recent opinion delivered in Case C-212/06 Government of the French Community and Walloon Government v Flemish Government (the Belgique Francophone case) , Ms Sharpston will also deliver a seminar to postgraduate students and members of staff to continue last year’s discussion regarding citizenship of the European Union. The title of the seminar is ‘Civis europeus – quo vadis?’ The programme is as follows: 12:00 ‘The role of the Advocate General’ (Regent Building, Lecture Theatre 12) 15:00 ‘Civis europeus – quo vadis?’ (KCF 22) Ms Sharpston comes to the University at the invitation of the School of Law and the Legal

There's an interesting apocryphal story told by journalist Bob Costas in Ken Burns' excellent documentary, Baseball . An Englishman and an American are having a conversation, and at some point it becomes an argument. The two resort to insults. The American says "screw the Queen". The Englishman says "Oh yeah, screw Babe Ruth". The American thinks he can insult the Englishman by insulting a person who has done nothing to achieve her position other than the luck of birth. As Costas says, it has nothing to do with any personal qualities good, bad or otherwise. Who does the Englishman think embodies America? Some scruffy kid who came from the humblest of beginnings, hung out as a toddler behind his father's bar in Baltimore, a big badly flawed individual, who strides with great spirit and possibility. I thought of that on reading a troubling story regarding the South Carolina State Supreme Court's decision to eliminate the results from one bar exam ques

“This Convention establishes a comprehensive system of cooperation among child support authorities, which we believe will result in more children receiving more support more quickly.” (USA delegation) A new global Convention on the International Recovery of Child Support and other Forms of Family Maintenance has just been finalised under the auspices of the Hague Conference on Private International Law . Just after the adoption of the Final Act, the United Stated of America become the first signatory of the new Convention. The Convention aims to resolve the problems of unpaid or uncollectible child support. I posted a brief report about the work in progress on this Convention just a couple of weeks ago. I had the opportunity to follow the negotiations since I worked as a recording secretary at the Diplomatic Session. I have the pleasure to report that the role played by Professor Beaumont gives the School of Law at the University of Aberdeen much to be proud of. Professor Beaumont w

Today’s NY Times has an interesting story on the perks and benefits many US law firms offer their employees in an attempt to keep them from leaving for other firms. Some of the perks include milkshakes (benevolently served by the happiness committee) and cold cash when you buy a hybrid car. Other firms offer money towards mortgages whereas others give their associates the choice of having a personal concierge to run errands for you. You can read the article here and figure out for yourself what the motives behind the largesse may be.

Conflictoflaws.net reports upon the following article written by Richard Oppong: “Private International Law in Africa: Past, Present and Future” (2007) 55 AJCL 677-719. The abstract can be found here . I had the pleasure to listen to a presentation by Mr Oppong at the Journal of Private International Law Conference held in Birmingham in June. I must say that the development of Private International Law in Africa, and the necessity of a private international law revival for economic development, is a truly fascinating subject. Mr Oppong's article is published at a time when the Hague Conference on Private International Law is doing sterling work to promote the development of the legal discipline in Africa. Amongst several other initiatives, the Hague Conference recently organised a seminar for francophone African Judges, reported here . I hope to find the time to comment upon the importance of these developments more in future. Till then, I would strongly recommend Mr Oppong's

Following recent elections in Denmark and Switzerland one would perhaps not be deemed far off the mark for thinking so. In Denmark, last week’s election meant that the centre-right government of Anders Fogh Rasmussen remains in power, although with a slightly smaller majority than before. In spite of his party loosing six seats in the Danish parliament, Fogh Rasmussen remains in power thanks to support from a strengthened Danish People’s Party – a populist far right anti-immigration party. In Switzerland, the far right Swiss People’s Party gained a record number of seats in the Swiss federal parliament and strengthened its position as the single biggest party in last month’s election. The Swiss People’s Party’s campaign, among other things, included a proposal prohibiting the building of minarets on mosques and a poster portraying three white sheep standing on the Swiss flag while kicking a black sheep off the flag. The results in Denmark and Switzerland follow general elections in Swe

Real Politicians, Fake Photos I have heard that appearances are deceptive but images can be deceptive too! I just came to know that Photoshop is quite popular with politicians now-a-days to create audience for their large public rally? I have to say it was a revelation for me that politicians can ridicule themselves in such a ludicrous manner. A couple of days ago I received an article written by Murtaza Shibli (Editor, Kashmir Affairs, London http://www.kashmiraffairs.org/ ) about this subject. I was interested in this topic because he mentioned among others Chief Minister of the Indian occupied Jammu and Kashmir; Ghulam Nabi Azad uses photo-editing software to manipulate crowds to show the world community how much public support he enjoys. (Photo attached) In Kashmir from last 60 years people are claiming self-determination and are victimised by the State terrorism. The surrogate local government in Kashmir has to survive on political spin and therefore unethical methods of staying i

Tenured Radical has some excellent advice on how to give a good paper presentation that I strongly recommend folks take a look at if they are going to be presenting any time soon. Linda Kerber has more good advice, and the Legal History Blog talks about how to incorporate all this into a legal presentation. Here are some excerpts. First, Kerber observes: Dorothy Kenyon, a great feminist and civil rights activist, who spent much of her time speaking in public, once observed that a public talk must “always seem to be improvised, but it must never be improvised.” If you want to hold your audience you must plan ahead, and plan very carefully. Observe time limits scrupulously. The usual rule of thumb is that a typewritten page [old fashioned courier, 12 point type] holds 250 words. It should take a minimum of 2 minutes to say 250 words out loud. If you have 20 minutes to speak your paper, it can be no longer than 10-12 pages. Do not think you can cheat by fixing the font. Begin with a

Approximately 100 States have gathered in the Hague to conclude a new Convention on the international recovery of maintenance obligations. The following are some extracts from the press release that was issued at the beginning of the Diplomatic Session: "A new Convention…designed to respond to the needs of children and other dependents by providing international procedures which are simple, swift, cost-effective, accessible, and fair." Unpaid child support – as well as support of other dependent family members – amounts to billions of Euros worldwide. When the person liable for support lives abroad, the difficulties of recovery are often insurmountable. At present, international procedures are typically slow, complicated, costly, and under-utilized. They are simply not serving the needs of the children and other family dependents who, in a mobile world in which multinational families are no longer exceptional, are increasing in number exponentially. The new Hague Convention

Collective memory is a curious thing. Just weeks after rampant abuses of human rights were screened worldwide from Burma, it seems that the plight of the Burmese people has slipped out of the world's collective conscience. Le Monde reports today on the visit of the UN emissary on human rights to Burma. Perhaps it would be over optimistic to hope that this visit will have any immediate impact or ascertain the facts of the extent of abuse with any degree of certainty. However, it is commendable that the UN is using its good offices to ensure that the world does not forget the human toll of contemporary breaches of international law.

The BBC News website today has a story on the most ludicrous laws in the UK. The story refers to laws supposedly prohibiting dying in the House of Parliament, the right for a pregnant woman to relieve herself anywhere she sees fit, and (my favourite) the prohibition of eating mince pies on Christmas Day. I can see the prohibiting of eating mince pies on Christmas Day causing a few problems in terms of enforcement. The story notes that many of the laws referred to may now be obsolete although they have never been repealed. Although these are just a few examples of strange UK laws, it would be surprising if even stranger ones would not exist elsewhere in the world.

Thursday November 8, at 17.00 in C28 "The Lex Situs Rule: A Poor Tool for Combating the Illicit Antiquities Trade" - Derek Fincham, in anticipation of the upcoming conference Location, Location, Location: the Role of Lex Situs in Modern Claims for the Return of Cultural Objects. Application of the lex situs rule is nearly unanimous in multi-jurisdictional cases involving movables. It has the dual advantage of simplicity and certainty. If an object has been acquired in good faith, the acquisition will be protected even if the location of the object changes in the future. Courts have been hesitant to bypass the lex situs rule in the past. However the singular nature of art and antiquities compel a more careful analysis on the part of courts. A convincing and compelling policy argument can be made that the general lex situs rule governing title to movable objects across national boundaries should be limited in some situations involving cultural objects. Before we can con

On Thursday 01 November at 5pm, the Society will hold its first roundtable discussion of this academic year in Taylor C28. The chosen topic is Iran and the Right to Nuclear Energy . The discussion will be moderated by Paula Herm and Ahmed Hassanein. Details of the society's programme for the coming weeks and months will follow soon.

A law degree can lead to many different careers and job possibilities. These include traditional law areas such as litigation, advising and perhaps even teaching the law. In the US, however, it seems that law graduates have an additional option open to them; that of entering the race to become President of the United States. The New York Times has an interesting article on the legal backgrounds of both sides of the current contenders for the upcoming US presidency. The article describes how the three Democratic candidates - Hillary R. Clinton, Barrack Obama and John Edwards - are all law graduates and that the three Republican candidates - Rudolph W. Giuliani, Mitt Romney, and Fred Thomson - hold similar law degrees. In fact, Sen. John McCain is the only serious contender not holding a law degree. All of the six lawyers have, bar Romney, to some extent, used their law degrees either in private practice or as prosecutors. In addition, Obama and Clinton have utilized their degrees in ac

Former Vice-President Al Gore today won the Nobel Peace Prize for his movie An Inconvenient Truth . Gore’s movie, from 2006, is based on talks and slide shows that Gore toured extensively with after loosing the presidential election to George W. Bush in 2000. It describes the scientific data on, and portrays the effects of, global warming in an easy-to-understand manner. Earlier this year, Gore won an Academy Award for best documentary feature for his movie. Gore has won popular accolades for the film, although it has, at the same time, been criticized for portraying the science behind global warming as overly simplistic, and for exaggerating the facts and evidence. Gore shares this year’s prize with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) – a UN body set up to assess the scientific evidence in relation to human-induced climate change. The Nobel Committee cites Gore’s and the IPCC’s “efforts to build up and disseminate greater knowledge about man-made climate change,” as w

As some of you might have heard already, the Leonardo da Vinci painting Madonna of the Yarnwinder was recovered yesterday by the Dumfries and Galloway Police after it was stolen from Drumlanrig Castle in Dumfriesshire four years ago. The press has already written extensively about the recovery (see The Times and BBC ) but nevertheless it warrants a bit of attention from the Legal Research Society. This is mainly down to our own Derek Fincham, who this morning appeared on the BBC radio programme Good Morning Scotland to give an interview on the significance of the recovery as well as to the general problem of art theft. Derek makes a number of good points, in particular with regard to the vulnerable situation of arts and antiquities stored in Scotland’s many country estates. Listen for yourself here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/player/nol/newsid_7020000/newsid_7029600/7029610.stm?bw=bb&mp=wm&news=1 . As a little side note, it is worth mentioning that four persons were arrested in c

Judge Mirjam Škrk, Vice-President of the Constitutional Court of Slovenia will deliver two lectures at School of Law, University of Edinburgh on 11 and 12 October 2007. Here are more details on the lectures: "A Constitutional Court in a New Member State", 5pm, Europa Institute, School of Law, University of Edinburgh, Old College, 11 October 2007 Venue TBC "The Agreement on Succession to the Former SFRY: Some International and Internal Legal Implications", 12 October 2007, School of Law, University of Edinburgh, L05, 6-8pm.

A couple of factors have put me in a contemplative mood this morning. The first is an outstanding article by Alec Scott, Exile on Bay Street , which details the life of lawyers in big North American law firms. Second, we arrived in Aberdeen two years ago today. In that time I've had a difficult time answering a common question. Why Aberdeen? I wanted to escape, just like Scott did. His account focuses on Toronto, but surely echoes the experience of any lawyer in any large law firm in any large North American city. Here’s what you won’t read in the glossy law school brochures, what many practising lawyers know, but deny: the practice of law has become a lousy way to make a living; it breaks all but the highest spirits. The profession can no longer lay claim to being a calling; it has become a soul-destroying business. The big downtown Toronto firms, which used to draw some of the country’s best and brightest, continue to draw its brightest, but no longer hold on to its best.