10 September 2020
Kooperation statt Kräftemessen
Der Untersuchungsausschuss zur Tötung des Kasseler Regierungspräsidenten Walter Lübcke droht mit einer Klage gegen das Oberlandesgericht Frankfurt. Grund dafür ist, dass das Gericht und der Generalbundesanwalt sich weigern, die Akten zum Fall herauszugeben. In diesem Konflikt zwischen parlamentarischem Untersuchungsrecht und dem Recht des Angeklagten auf ein faires, rasches Verfahren, sollten beide Seiten auf ein Kräftemessen verzichten und stattdessen miteinander kooperieren. Continue reading >>
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09 September 2020
Why Robert Spano should resign as President of the ECtHR
On 3-5 September 2020, the ECtHR’s new president Robert Spano paid an official visit to Turkey. Spano’s visit is scandalous for multiple reasons and has caused serious damage to the reputation of the ECtHR that warrants his resignation. Continue reading >>Violation of Freedoms and Judges in Turkey
Sometimes the voice of the president, who cannot be silenced, is one of the few that resound freely to recall the principles and values that are assumed to be typical of Europe. Holding a lecture at one of the Istanbul universities that offered him an honorary degree, the President of the European Court Robert Spano began by saying that he accepted that honour not only because it was a protocol moment, never refused in any member state of the Council of Europe, but also because the ceremony gave him the opportunity to underline the importance of academic freedom and freedom of expression in a democracy governed by the rule of law. Continue reading >>The Symbolic Downfall of the ECtHR in Turkish Public Opinion
The European Court of Human Rights was considered to be very important in Turkey, mostly because it was perceived as the last resort for the frequent injustices within that State. Continue reading >>
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Constitutional Dullness
Should the number of Italy’s Members of Parliament (MPs) be reduced from 945 to 600? Italian citizens will decide on that question in a constitutional referendum that will take place in less than two weeks. While other referendums in Italian history have been vectors of remarkable civic mobilisation, this one fails to capture the constitutional imagination of Italian citizens. What could – and should – be a radical public debate about Italy’s political system and the current order, in fact revolves around pettiness and trivial constitutional engineering. Continue reading >>08 September 2020
A Test for Sovereignty after Brexit
Speaking in the House of Commons on the eve of the publication of the Internal Market Bill and in response to an urgent question, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland Brandon Lewis stated that ‘Yes, this does break international law in a very specific and limited way'. Can the UK, by domestic legislation, limit the direct effect of the Withdrawal Agreement? Continue reading >>
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Contested Justice
As the UK and the EU are entering the final phase in the negotiations over a post-Brexit trade deal, it has become clear that there is a fundamental clash of interests not only about fishing and governance issues but also about human rights. For people outside the UK it has often been difficult to comprehend the persistent contestation of the HRA and the European Convention, as well as their lack of public support. There are three main reasons behind this conundrum. Continue reading >>
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Verbote sind Verbote sind Verbote
Letzte Woche hat die 65. Kammer des Landgerichts Berlin eine Entscheidung zur Praxis von „Schattenmieten“ veröffentlicht (Az. 65 S 76/20). Anders als zuvor die 67. und die 66. Kammer geht sie davon aus, dass die Vermieterseite auch weiterhin Mieterhöhungen vor Gericht durchsetzen kann, obwohl der Berliner „Mietendeckel“ (MietenWoG) laufende Mieten auf dem Stand vom 18. Juli 2019 einfrieren wollte. Die vertraglichen Vereinbarungen, so die Kammer, blieben nämlich durch die im MietenWoG geregelten Verbote überhöhter Mieten unberührt. Das Gesetz hindere während seiner Laufzeit lediglich, eine solche überhöhte Mietforderung durchzusetzen. Diese Lesart des Gesetzes hätte verheerende praktische Konsequenzen. Sie ist zivilrechtlich verfehlt und verfassungsrechtlich keinesfalls geboten. Continue reading >>07 September 2020
Inklusion als Kindeswohlgefährdung?
Um das Recht auf Inklusion nach Art. 24 UN-Behindertenrechtskonvention in der Schule ist es in vielen Bundesländern ohnehin schon nicht gut bestellt. Oft müssen Eltern von Kindern mit Behinderungen juristische Unterstützung in Anspruch nehmen, um gleichberechtigten Zugang zur Regelschule und eine angemessene pädagogische Förderung durchzusetzen. Bislang war dabei zumindest das Recht auf ihrer Seite. Ein Eilbeschluss des Bundesverfassungsgerichts vom Juli dieses Jahres stellt nun jedoch nicht nur das Recht der Eltern über die Wahl der Schulart in Frage, sondern gefährdet auch die Umsetzung der UN-BRK in Deutschland. Continue reading >>Wenn der Vorhang fällt
Das Transparenzportal FragdenStaat hat letzte Woche rund 900 Seiten interne Unterlagen des Bundesverkehrsministerium für Verkehr und Infrastruktur veröffentlicht. Darin finden sich E-Mailverkehr, Verordnungsentwürfe und Stellungnahmen zur 19. Schiffssicherheitsanpassungsverordnung. Aus den Dokumenten geht hervor, dass die Voraussetzungen für eine Verordnungsänderung durch das Ministerium nicht vorlagen, die offizielle Begründung für die Verordnungsänderung nur vorgeschoben war und das Verkehrsministerium rechtsstaatliche Verfahrensstandards missachtet. Der Blick hinter die Kulissen zeigt auch, worum es dem Verkehrsministerium wirklich ging: die zivile Seenotrettung zielgerichtet zu behindern. Continue reading >>Aux armes, comédiens!
Revolutionary spirit in Budapest: students of the University for Theater and Film Arts blockaded the main entrance of their institution. The reason for resistance was another attack on academic freedom by the Fidesz government. It decided to “privatize” the university and to delegate the rights of control to a foundation established by the state - yet another stage in the government's culture war. Continue reading >>06 September 2020
It’s Urgent II
On Friday 4 September 2020, Judge Anthony Collins of the General Court has ordered the suspension of operation and all consequential effects of the Decision of the Representatives of the Governments of the Member States, in so far as it purports to appoint Mr. Athanasios Rantos to the position of Advocate General of the Court of Justice. The significance of this development for the independence of the judiciary in the EU and the general articulation of the rule of law in Europe is difficult to overestimate. Continue reading >>04 September 2020
Political Economy in the European Constitutional Imaginary – Moving beyond Fiesole
The volume seeks to re-connect law and political economy, both understood in very broad terms. My contribution provides an additional perspective on this theme, and discusses the place of political economy (or rather its conspicuous absence) in the constitutional imaginary of Europe, which has dominated much of the last three decades. It originated, in the words of Antoine Vauchez, ‘in the hills of Fiesole between Badia Fiesolana and the Villa Schifanoia’ (now of course Villa Salviati). Joseph Weiler’s The Transformation of Europe is the foundational piece of this imaginary. I have recently analysed Transformation and discussed it at the place of its birth. This contribution builds on that analysis Continue reading >>
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Integrative Liberalism: A New Paradigm for the Law of Political Economy?
The new volume on the Law of Political Economy (LPE) devises a highly fruitful analytical approach for anyone interested in a better understanding of Europe’s current economic and political transformation, and in particular, the role of law in it. LPE has an adequate sensorium if one assumes (1) that society is not static but evolving and that theoretical approaches based on ideas of “equilibrium” (or, in the field of law, on “systemic coherence”) are therefore unable to understand social evolution; (2) that social evolution is not merely determined by individual economic interests or by the evolution of capitalism as a whole; (3) that legal structures are among the factors influencing that evolution; and (4) that law, or, to be more precise, public law and legislation (as the contribution by Emilios Christodoulidis insists), might even hold one of the keys to social integration. Continue reading >>
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03 September 2020
It’s Urgent
In a remarkable move, the Member States appointed, on 2 September 2020, an Advocate General put forward by Greece, who will enter into office on 7 September 2020 if Member States get their way. There is a ginormous problem with this move, as the office that this Advocate General will try to fill, as things stand, does not become vacant until October 2021. Eleanor Sharpston, the officeholder presently in situ, remains there until then. Any other reading of EU law is tantamount to the Member States sacking a member of the Court in direct violation of the primary law. This is a wholly unacceptable scenario in a Union grounded and predicated upon the rule of law. Urgent measures are thus necessary to save not only the legitimacy of the Court, but that of the EU. Continue reading >>What Comes After Neoliberalism?
For some, the term neoliberalism has acquired “such toxic connotations that nobody concerned with their public reputation would identify with it”. At the same time, though, no term better than neoliberalism is reputed to design the ideology prevailing worldwide since the 1980s. Continue reading >>Banana Republic Switzerland?
Lately, Switzerland’s system of justice has made plenty of negative headlines owing to its Federal Attorney’s failures and misconducts, its Federal Criminal Court’s internal grievances, the Federal Supreme Court’s deficient work as supervisory authority of the former, and the Federal Supreme Court’s president’s sexist verbal abuse made in the same context. These days, reports spread about yet another dubious story: about the election of judges to the Federal Supreme Court, Switzerland’s apex court. Continue reading >>The Contingency of Governance in the EU
Administrative lawyers are of course aware that the techniques they study and use have existed in different historical periods and have been deployed in different political regimes. But these comparative referents tend to disappear too quickly when it comes to deriving from the governance virtues of the EU, practiced by its institutions and agencies, and the law that may incorporate them, the ability to transform the constitutional characteristics of a political system. Continue reading >>
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02 September 2020
The Epic Battle for the Soul of Antitrust
Antitrust is back in the United States, and Big Tech might soon feel it. In July, the House Subcommittee Antitrust, Commercial, and Administrative Law summoned the CEOs of Amazon, Apple, Alphabet, and Facebook to a hearing. With Epic Games, Inc.’s (Epic) complaint against the app store operators Apple and Google, the core of the present antitrust debate has squarely reached the federal courts in the U.S.: what are the legal limits of Big Tech’s monopoly power? Continue reading >>
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The Choice of Paradigms in Political Economy: A Primer for Lawyers
What comes after neoliberalism? And why does this matter to lawyers? The backdrop for these questions is Duncan Kennedy’s portrayal of three paradigms of legal thinking, which successively gained influence across the globe. The first was classical legal thought, which rose to prominence in the second half of the 19th century and matched ideas of economic liberalism and laissez-faire. The second was socially oriented legal thought, which developed from the beginning of the 20th century and conceived of law as a regulatory instrument to advance social reforms. The third paradigm, which emerged in the second half of the 20th century, is referred to as neoformalism and could be termed neoliberalism as well, reflecting the related turn in economic thinking, law and policy-making. Continue reading >>
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Au revoir to Neoliberalism?
The oscillation between a social or a neoliberal paradigm in law as it appears prominently in this volume brings me back to my dissertation years when, between Trento (Italy) and Cambridge (U.S.), I was trying to map the role of la doctrine in the political economy of EU consumer law from the mid-1980s to the late 2000s. My puzzlement was always: where were European and private law scholars while these struggles were taking place in Brussels, Luxembourg and Barcelona? Continue reading >>
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01 September 2020
Systematische Diskriminierung oder nur rechtswidrige Praxis?
Im Juni 2020 trennte das Jugendamt Frankfurt a.M. eine Romni von ihrem neugeborenen Kind, nachdem sie aufgrund der Corona-Maßnahmen nicht mehr ihrer Tätigkeit als Sexarbeiterin nachgehen konnte. Ausschlaggebend für die Trennung waren die sozioökonomischen Verhältnisse der Mutter. Diese und die dadurch bedingte (drohende) Obdachlosigkeit für sich genommen können aber eine Inobhutnahme von Kindern durch das Jugendamt grundsätzlich nicht rechtfertigen. Continue reading >>
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Court Packing, Indonesia Style
Once, Indonesia’s democracy was hailed as the most stable in Southeast Asia. But recently, the Jokowi government and the House of Representatives proposed a Bill that shall revise the Constitutional Court Law. A successful promulgation will affect not only the Constitutional Court, but also the future of Indonesian democracy. Continue reading >>
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Toter Winkel
Allein in Berlin sind in diesem Jahr bereits fünfzehn Fahrradfahrer im Verkehr ums Leben gekommen, viele von ihnen bei Rechtsabbiegeunfällen mit Beteiligung von Lkw oder Bussen. Ab heute können die lokalen Behörden zu Rechtsabbiegeverboten für Lkw ohne Abbiegeassistenzsysteme ermächtigen und damit für mehr Verkehrssicherheit sorgen. Und das sollten sie auch tun. Continue reading >>The Path Back to the Law
We more than ever need a theory of law which allows us to imagine and, hopefully, to realise the conditions for social progress. This means, at a minimum, a theory which makes it possible to see how law can help address chronic problems of capitalism, including inequality and environmental degradation, which are now at the point of creating existential risks for democracy and, indeed, humanity. Continue reading >>
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The Myth of a Neoliberal European Private Law
Most of the contributions to the excellent collection of essays central to this symposium, refer to neoliberalism, in some cases quite frequently. None of them defines the concept, nor does any of them defend neoliberalism. The term is used mostly in a (very) critical sense, sometimes even dismissively. This book is far from unique in this respect. Indeed, the term neoliberalism is almost never used by politicians or scholars in order to vindicate a political ideal. Instead, during the past decade it has become a standard feature of left-wing political discourse, not only in academia and political activism, but also in mainstream left-wing politics. It is a term used by us to refer to them and their abominable politics. Continue reading >>31 August 2020
Of Dreams, Nightmares, and a Little Bit of Hope
If there is one common if, perhaps, unsurprising thread in all contributions to this book, it is the affirmation that law is not just the epiphenomenal product of an underlying political economy, nor a mere handmaiden of capitalist reproduction, but a central, perhaps the central, element in it. Continue reading >>
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Technology and Law Going Mental
On 28 August 2020, Neuralink gave a much anticipated update on their progress to connect humans and computers. In the near future, the activities within our brain will be recorded, analysed, and altered, shaking our conception of inaccessible mental processes. A multitude of legal issues will arise, in particular to what extent fundamental and human rights protect mental processes and neurological data collected by (therapeutic or enhancing) brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) from being accessed by states without the individual’s consent. To date, however, there remains a significant gap as neurological data does not enjoy absolute protection from any interference within the existing European human and fundamental rights frameworks. This gap could be remedied by introducing new mental rights. Continue reading >>
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What Comes After Neoliberalism?
What comes after neoliberalism? This is in many ways the question of our time. Or maybe neoliberalism doesn’t really exist at all? And if it does, what is the relevance for lawyers, legal scholarship and legal practice? Continue reading >>
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30 August 2020
Maskenpflicht an Schulen und Grundrechte der Kinder
Eine Maskenpflicht an der Schule kann je nach Ausgestaltung durchaus unverhältnismäßig sein. Deshalb ist im Prinzip nichts dagegen einzuwenden, wenn Länder, Gemeinden und Schulen mit Blick auf die Corona-Fallzahlen regional von einer Maskenpflicht an Schulen absehen, eine Maskenpflicht lockern und/oder Kinder bestimmter Altersgruppen ganz von einer Maskenpflicht ausnehmen. Continue reading >>29 August 2020
Grenzüberschreitung
Dass Bayern eine Grenzpolizei unterhält, ist nicht verfassungswidrig, so der Bayerische Verfassungsgerichtshof – wohl aber, dass sie grenzpolizeiliche Befugnisse über die bloße Schleierfahndung hinaus haben soll. Immer öfter scheitern wichtige Gesetzgebungsprojekte der Bayerischen Staatsregierung vor dem Verfassungsgerichtshof. Continue reading >>
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28 August 2020
Der Wahlrechtsbrei köchelt weiter
Mit der Angst im Nacken, dass die nächste Bundestagswahl das Parlament zu einem Volkskongress chinesischer Größe verwandeln würde, konnten die Spitzen der Regierungskoalition nun doch eine Reform des Wahlrechts zum Deutschen Bundestag verkünden. Bei genauerem Hinsehen entpuppt sich diese jedoch eher als zeitschindender Kompromiss. Continue reading >>27 August 2020
Juridifizierung von Symbolpolitik
Am 14. August veröffentlichte das Bundesverfassungsgericht (BVerfG) einen Beschluss, der eine Verfassungsbeschwerde gegen das Verbot der Verwendung von Kennzeichen verbotener Vereine nicht zur Entscheidung zuließ (Beschluss der 3. Kammer des Ersten Senats vom 9. Juli 2020 - 1 BvR 2067/17, 1 BvR 424/18, 1 BvR 423/18). Damit bestätigte die Kammer, dass die Mitglieder nicht verbotener Chapter eines Vereins Kennzeichen eines verbotenen Chapters wie die Kutte oder eine Tätowierung nicht mehr tragen dürfen. Der Kern der Begründung des BVerfG: Wenn ein legaler Verein das Logo eines verbotenen Vereins benutze, identifiziert er sich auch mit dessen strafbaren Aktivitäten. Bei näherer Betrachtung erweist sich die Begründung als realitätsfremd und nicht stichhaltig. Continue reading >>
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Why Proceduralism Won’t Save Us from Trump
Can procedural rules rein in the Trump Administration? Many people got their hopes up that they can and will, especially after the United States Supreme Court announced its decision on the DACA rescission. Trump's Department of Homeland Security, however, has announced that it intends to begin dismantling DACA yet again. Continue reading >>
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Die Corona der Coronaleugner und das Versammlungsrecht
Auch Coronaleugner und Rechtsextremisten haben das Recht, zu demonstrieren. Anlass für staatliche Restriktionen von Versammlungen kann nicht das "Ob" ihrer Durchführung sein. Sehr wohl aber das „Wie“. Continue reading >>26 August 2020
A Momentum of Opportunity for Belarus and a Cautionary Tale from North Macedonia
Belarus has an unprecedented chance to re-invent itself as a new democracy. Only three years ago, in 2017, North Macedonia was in a similar position, transitioning from a 10-yearlong dictatorship of Nikola Gruevski. Some of the mistakes that were made in this process can be avoided in the case of Belarus. Continue reading >>Fencing Off the Difference
Public statements of high-ranking politicians expressing hostility towards and disdain of sexual minorities have become common in the recent years in Poland. But the problem of “LGBT-Free Zones” has given the topic a new constitutional quality. Continue reading >>
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25 August 2020
„Wirtschaftliche Vernichtung“ unter Freunden
Die USA wollen den Bau der Nord Stream 2-Gaspipeline mit aller Macht verhindern. Angesichts der nahenden Fertigstellung drohen sie beteiligten europäischen Unternehmen nun offen mit gravierenden Wirtschaftssanktionen. Dies ist nicht nur politisch, sondern auch völkerrechtlich in hohem Maße problematisch. Continue reading >>Schrems II Re-Examined
The Court of Justice of the EU’s judgment in Data Protection Commissioner v Facebook Ireland Limited, Maximillian Schrems (“Schrems II”) of 16 July has already received significant attention. Now that the dust has somewhat settled, however, it deserves re-examination in light of its significant implications for the regulation of international data transfers under the EU General Data Protection Regulation. Continue reading >>24 August 2020
The Italian Government Enforces Gender Parity in Regional Elections
On 23 July 2020, the Italian government formally warned Apulia that if the region did not introduce gender parity election rules by 28 July 2020, it would do so in its place. Apulia failed to adopt a regional statute in that time frame. Thus, on 31 July 2020, the Italian government adopted Decree Law 86/2020 which essentially introduced a mechanism of “double gender preference” for the regional Parliament elections to be held on 20-21 September 2020. What is clear is that this summer’s events around the Apulia election are yet another example of the “irresistible rise of gender quotas in Europe”, where Germany increasingly stands out as the proverbial exception. Continue reading >>
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Warum die Reform des Geldwäscheparagraphen ihr Ziel verfehlt
Das Strafrecht tut sich bisher außerordentlich schwer damit, Geldwäsche effektiv [...] Continue reading >>22 August 2020
Dürfen oder Müssen?
Die politische Debatte in Deutschland verwendet im Meinungsaustausch mehr als in anderen Ländern verfassungsrechtliche Argumente. Ein interessantes Beispiel für diese Gemengelage von politischen Interessen und Grundrechtsfragen bietet die aktuelle Debatte um eine Maskenpflicht an Schulen. Exemplarisch sei die Gemengelage am Fall Schleswig-Holstein diskutiert, um eine verworrene und viele Menschen in Deutschland aktuell umtreibende Situation zu erhellen. Continue reading >>21 August 2020
Beredtes Schweigen
Die Antwort ist da, die eingehende Erklärung fehlt. Containern zu kriminalisieren, verstößt nicht gegen das Grundgesetz, so das Bundesverfassungsgericht. Doch wer gehofft hatte, dass Karlsruhe Licht ins Dunkel der juristischen Unklarheiten beim Thema Containern bringen und sich dazu positionieren würde, der hoffte vergeblich. Continue reading >>
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Parteinahe Stiftungen sind Partei-Stiftungen
Erneut ist die AfD vor dem Bundesverfassungsgericht mit dem Versuch gescheitert, eine Berücksichtigung ihrer Desiderius-Erasmus-Stiftung (DES) bei der staatlichen Finanzierung der parteinahen Stiftungen durchzusetzen. Mit dieser Entscheidung im Eilverfahren ist noch nichts gesagt darüber, ob die DES auch zukünftig leer ausgehen wird. Was das Hauptsacheverfahren betrifft, so erscheint dessen Ausgang nicht sehr klar. Continue reading >>
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Lebanon, a Captured State
Lebanon is a captured state. It's institutions have been occupied by the same group of people since the civil war. The sectarian power-sharing has established a balanced system of clientelism, nepotism, and corruption. Continue reading >>20 August 2020
Why the Key to the Past Lies in the Future
A few days ago, Namibian President Hage Geinob rejected the German government’s offer for financial compensation for the 1904-07 genocide committed by the German colonial power in what was then called Southwest Africa against the Herero and Nama peoples. Germany refuses to consider the payment as an act of reparation, arguing instead that it would serve the “healing of wounds”. The Namibian side considers this inacceptable, insisting that such payments should not be considered a mere act of grace. I find this terminological dispute highly intriguing and telling. It prompts me to react with three responses. Continue reading >>
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19 August 2020
A Grand National Assembly or Grand Bulgarian Chicanery?
Autocrats have a bag of tricks to control and appease the masses. Bulgaria’s Prime Minister Boyko Borissov plans to pull a long-forgotten constitutional trick out of his bag — the grand national assembly. Continue reading >>Abortion in Times of Disinformation
It should have been as straightforward as that. A ten-year-old is raped and now is pregnant. According to Brazilian law, she has the right to terminate her pregnancy at will. However, the girl from our tale yet again has her most fundamental rights violated. Continue reading >>
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18 August 2020
How to Make Whistleblower Protection in Europe more Effective
In April 2019, the European Parliament adopted the Whistleblowing Directive, which aims to protect whistleblowers in European Union (EU) countries. The directive entered into force on 16 December 2019 and EU Member States have until the end of 2021 to transpose the provisions of the directive into their legal systems. But how effective can and will this directive be? Some recommendations based on the authors’ personal experience as whistleblowers. Continue reading >>
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17 August 2020
When International Rules Come in Handy for an Autocratic Regime
Russian law is moving away from the acceptance of international rules in the domestic legal order. Under the thick fog of isolationist rhetoric, however, lay areas where quite a different attitude towards international rules thrives: one of overzealous implementation - for example when it comes to fighting money laundering. Continue reading >>
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