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Two Understandings of Supremacy: An Essay

By: Vincent J. Samar

 

Does the supremacy provision of Article VI of the U.S. Consti- tution undermine the legal force of international law in the United States? Recently, there has been some debate on this issue arising out of the claim that if the U.S. Constitution is “the supreme law of the land,” and that only constitutional officers of the United States, in keeping with their responsibilities to uphold the Constitution, can de- cide what is international law for the U.S. 1 Such debates are not new to the history of the world. For much of world history, national rulers have claimed that their legal authority derives from some supreme source, be it: God, 2 tradition, 3 or, in more recent democratic times of which the Constitution is a part, the people.

 

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Stakeholder Theory in Corporate Law: Has It Got What It Takes?

By: Andrew Keay

 

There has been much debate for many years regarding what should be the objective of the large public corporation. This issue is important for a number of reasons, not least of which is that the theory nominated will underpin corporate governance and dictate, to a large extent, the kind of corporate governance system that will exist. As far as the corporation’s objective is concerned, two theories have been dominant: the shareholder primacy theory and the stakeholder theory. The former is operative in what I will call “Anglo-American jurisdic- tions,” namely jurisdictions that model their law and practice on one or both of the United States or the United Kingdom. Jurisdictions falling within this category also include Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. The stakeholder theory operates in many continental European and East Asian countries. Prime examples are Germany and Japan.

 

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Reforming Fairness: The Need For Legal Pragmatism in the WTO Dispute Settlement Process

By: Webb McArthur

 

The World Trade Organization (“WTO”) dispute settlement system is intended to be the central pillar of the international trade system by which trade disputes involving WTO member states are ad- judicated, 1 whether regarding trade in goods, services, or in intellec- tual property rights. 2 However, an innocuous statement such as this, when closely considered, indicates potential problems for the system. The WTO is an international treaty-based organization, established in 1994 by 123 countries in Marrakesh, Morocco. 3 In addition to settling disputes in international trade, the WTO is also a negotiating forum and a set of rules. 4 The organization is more than a “table” for its member states, as the WTO website implies: the set of rules includes common principles, which translate into purposes for the organiza- tion. 5 These include non-discrimination ( i.e. , treating domestic prod- ucts no more favorably than imported products), free trade, predictability, fair competition, and the encouragement of economic development.

 

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World Trade Organization Agreements and Principles as a Vehicle For the Attainment of Energy Security

By: Dennis J. Hough Jr.

 

Do you remember how you felt on Wednesday, January 7, 2009? Perhaps you do not. I know how some Europeans felt — cold. 1 That was the day that Russia stopped all natural gas exports to Ukraine. 2 By itself, this was a serious course of action. However, be- cause Ukraine is the main transmission corridor for natural gas pipe- lines shipping gas to Europe, 3 the situation commanded worldwide attention.

 

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Enhancing the WTO Tool Kit: The Case For Financial Compensation

By: Rebecca Ullman

 

World Trade Organization Dispute Settlement Understanding 160 represents an intersection of domestic law and international law. The subject of Dispute Settlement Understanding 160 (“DSU 160”) is the Fairness in Music Licensing Act, an American legislative act that extended copyright protection terms and carved out significant exemp- tions for commercial establishments. 1 The exemptions set forth in the Fairness in Music Licensing Act (“FMLA”) conflict with U.S. interna- tional intellectual property obligations such that one must question whether there should be new and different remedies available to assist parties in meeting their international obligation.

 

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