This talk will provide a critical explanation of the 2006 Act, including:
A brief examination of the origins, structure, process and objectives of the Company Law Review (which was probably the most ambitious attempt to reform commercial law ever) and its key recommendations and the main features of the Act which followed, focusing on: corporate form; company objectives and fiduciary duties; corporate governance in law and practice, including the "Think Small First" initiative for small companies and shareholder controls and remedies; disclosure and transparency; and governance of company law reform. It will also if there is time cover some of the key gaps in the legislation, areas where Review recommendations were rejected and its relationship with key EU developments.

Policy-makers and international development organizations have emphasized the importance of foreign direct investment (FDI) in reducing the global gap between wealthy and poor nations. However, the balance of evidence suggests that FDI will only contribute to sustainable development under certain circumstances. Particularly relevant is the regulatory context in which the investment is situated. Despite this acknowledgement, there has been very little research conducted on one of the most important regulatory mechanisms employed in developing countries with respect to foreign investment: the foreign investment contract. Foreign investment contracts, also referred to as ‘host government agreements’ or ‘state contracts’, are agreements made between a foreign investor (often a multinational corporation) and a government or state-owned entity acting on behalf of its government.  Foreign investment contracts govern the relationship between a private actor and a state, imposing rights and obligations on both parties.  In many cases they supplant national regulation and they may affect the implementation of international agreements. This presentation will examine several particularly controversial contracts that govern transnational pipelines, large hydroelectric dams, and exploration and production in the oil, gas and mining sectors.  The presentation will focus on ‘stabilization clauses’, clauses related to liability, and clauses on the environmental and social impact of the investments.  It is argued that the contracts examined are unlikely to promote sustainable development. Given the general lack of public disclosure of foreign investment contracts, it is difficult to determine whether these particular contracts are examples of ‘worst practice’ or are evidence of a more widespread problem.

Since January 1, 2007, Romania and Bulgaria are members of the European Union. This date marks, on the one hand, the end of a thirty year process of approximation of these two Balkan States to the European common space; and, on the other hand, the beginning of a new process, this time of real integration within the same. This second phase will not be easy due to the precautions, the amplitude of the safeguard clauses, the transitional dispositions and the established monitoring and control mechanisms. It will also not be easy due to the amplitude of the necessary economic and social reforms, which these two “lower Danube” countries must undertake and are undertaking. Furthermore, these two Balkan countries have benefited and they are still benefiting from a considerable financial pre-accession assistance and the current funds in order to make easier this hard process. In this sense, the aim of the presentation is double: firstly, to analyse the way which has lead to the signing of the Accession Treaty of these countries to the European Union; and, secondly, to emphasize the challenges and difficulties met by both these countries and the European Union to make real its integration in the European space.

This paper provides an investigation into the evolution of the criminological arguments against the death penalty from the beginning of the Council of Europe in 1949 to our present time. The issues of the deterrence value of the punishment, the possibility of the execution of the innocent, the failure of proportional retribution, and that the punishment brutalises society, will be explored. These criminological perspectives are then compared with the current human rights standards which remove the death penalty in the Council of Europe and the European Union. The thesis which is proposed is that the origins of the removal of the death penalty in Europe may be more accurately explained from criminological perspectives, rather than human rights values. However, the current removal of the punishment must be viewed as maintained through a symbiosis of criminology and human rights, and that the anti-death penalty discourse which results must be read an a “never-ending story.”

The Environmental Protection of the Guarani Aquifer: A Legal Perspective

The Environmental Protection of the Guarani Aquifer: A Legal Perspective

Professor Ireland is the Co-Director of Research at Kent Law School. His personal research interests include the historical development of company law, corporate governance and theory, law and neoliberalism and critical legal theory. Professor Ireland teaches on the undergraduate module Company Law and Capitalism, and on the postgraduate Corporate Governance module at Kent.

1^st October 2007 was the 48^th Anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China. It was also the date on which the Property Rights Law of PRC came into force. The actual and symbolic effect on this 2007 Law on land use rights in China was, and remains, highly controversial. When the law was enacted many outside commentators – and also many critics within the PRC – viewed it as a major step towards state recognition of private ownership of land, and the abandonment of socialist principles. The reality is, inevitably, more complex and less easy for anoutsider to grasp. At the heart of the difficulties lies the fundamental question: can our concept of private property ever be compatible with the Chinese concept of the rule law?

The JFS (Jews Free Schools) are part of a growing number of faith schools in the UK. They are entitled, once oversubscribed, to select pupils who conform to their religion; in JFS’s case, Judaism. The JFS exercised an admissions policy based upon what the Office of the Chief Rabbi (OCR) considered to be Jewish. This test required that the Mother of a prospective pupil be either born Jewish, or had converted prior to the student’s birth to Judaism through an Orthodox Synagogue; pupils applying after oversubscription who did not meet this test were liable to be refused.  A thirteen year old boy, ‘M’, was refused entry to the North London JFS because his Mother had converted from Catholicism to Judaism after he was born at a progressive synagogue; a subsequent appeal to the Admissions Appeals Panel failed.

M’s Father, ‘E’, sought a judicial review of this decision, contending that it was either (1) direct racial discrimination or, (2) indirect discrimination. The Supreme Court, affirming the Court of Appeal’s decision, on a 5:4 split, found the JFS admissions policy to amount to direct racial discrimination, and was thus unlawful. The minority, believed the policy to be based on religious, and not racial tests; two of whom found there to be indirect discrimination, and two found there no discrimination whatever. The policy was declared unlawful.

Victor Kattan is a Teaching Fellow at the Centre for International Studies and Diplomacy at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London.  He is the author of The Palestine Question in International Law (BIICL), and his most recent book, From Coexistence to Conquest:  International Law and the Origins of the Arab-Israeli Conflict 1891-1949 (Pluto Press) is the subject of his presentation. 

Among the challenges posed by globalised networks (whether reckoned in terms of flows of people, resources or information) is the emergence of new forms of corruption and the opportunities to extend, internationally, formerly localised corrupt practices. Global interconnectedness not only offers new opportunities for the spread of corruption but, simultaneously, poses significant governance problems. The manner in which such governance issues are resolved will be consequential for international relations, national freedoms and individual life-chances. It is ever more apparent that many corrupt acts now have the power to impact on an international scale, from the distribution of international aid, the securing of commercial contracts, to the application of responsibilities in international law.

This seminar will bring together an interdisciplinary group of international water experts to discuss the experience gained by in the sustainable management of the Guarani Aquifer System in the light of the current developments on international law of transboundary aquifers. Speakers will include experts who have been collaborating with the United Nations International Law Commission in the work that has led to the adoption of the Draft Articles on the law of transboundary aquifers and experts whose work focuses on the Guarani Aquifer System.

https://store.surrey.ac.uk/events/eventdetails.asp?eventid=29

Mr Ariranga G. Pillay (UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights; President, SADC Tribunal; former Chief Justice of Mauritius) will be speaking on the topic “Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and Climate Change” on Friday 29th October, 13.30, in 32MS03. A reception will follow the event. All are welcome.

If you would like to attend this seminar, please RSVP to Chrissie Leveridge (fmlevents@surrey.ac.uk).

This Seminar has been organised by Surrey International Law Centre (SILC) and forms part of the School of Law's Research Seminar Programme.

Professor Robert Blackburn (School of Law, King’s College London) will be presenting on “Monarchy and Hung Parliaments” for the School of Law’s Research Seminar series. All welcome. If you would like to attend this seminar, please RSVP to Chrissie Leveridge (fmlevents@surrey.ac.uk).

Please note the change of time and venue, to 81MS02 and 2-3pm.

Dr Christian Henderson (Department of Law, Oxford Brookes University) will be speaking on the topic “UN Security Council Resolution 1860 (2009) and the Contemporary Legal Nature of UN Security Council Resolutions” on Wednesday 8th December at 13.00.  All welcome.

This Seminar has been organised by Surrey International Law Centre (SILC) and forms part of the School of Law's Research Seminar Programme.

If you would like to attend this seminar, please RSVP to Chrissie Leveridge (fmlevents@surrey.ac.uk).

Professor Eric Barendt (Goodman Professor of Media Law, UCL) will be presenting on the topic "Academic Freedom in the UK" as part of the School of Law’s Research Seminar Series. All welcome. If you would like to attend this seminar, please RSVP to Chrissie Leveridge (fmlevents@surrey.ac.uk).

A round table discussion between academic members of the School of Law on pertinent issues related to the impact of EU law in their area of research post-Lisbon.

Catherine Heard (Fair Trials International) will be speaking on the topic “Justice Issues in Today’s EU” on Wednesday 9th March at 13.00.  All welcome.

This Seminar has been organised by Surrey European Law Unit (SELU) and forms part of the School of Law's Research Seminar Programme.

If you would like to attend this seminar, please RSVP to Chrissie Leveridge (fmlevents@surrey.ac.uk).

The Surrey International Law Centre and the Department of Politics of the University of Surrey join for a topical seminar where the key question that the international community is currently dealing with in regard to the situation developing in Libya will be dealt with: whether to intervene or not…

Dr. Mulugeta Ayalew l will be presenting on the topic "Regulation of Water Providers in Ethiopia and Kenya" as part of the School of Law’s Research Seminar Series.  

Dr. Glen Plant will be presenting on the topic "Legal Issues surrounding off-shore renewable energy development in Europe, with an emphasis on the British Isles" as part of the School of Law’s Research Seminar Series.  

Professor Christian Johnson (University of Utah, USA) will be presenting on “Extraordinary Actions: The U.S. Federal Reserve and the U.S. Financial Crisis” for the School of Law’s Research Seminar series. All welcome. If you would like to attend this seminar, please RSVP to Chrissie Leveridge (fmlevents@surrey.ac.uk).

All students and staff of the School of Law, University of Surrey, are cordially invited to the first LLM affirmative debate on the topic:

Does section 172 of the Companies Act 2006 signify a departure from the shareholder value approach in UK company law?

The Environmental Regulatory Research Group (ERRG) and School of Law Research Seminar Series are proud to present Professor Maria Lee, speaking on Tort, Regulation and Environmental Law.

Martin George (Birmingham Law School, University of Birmingham) will be speaking on the topic “Comity and Mutual Trust in Private International Law” as part of the School of Law’s Research Seminar Series. Further details to follow. All welcome.

If you would like to attend this seminar, please RSVP to Chrissie Leveridge (fmlevents@surrey.ac.uk).

With support from the Institute of Advanced Studies, SILC is pleased to announce an international interdisciplinary seminar on cultural legitimacy and the international law and policy on climate change that will take place on 21 June 2011 at the School of Law, University of Surrey.

This seminar seeks to contribute to research on the international law and policy of climate change by focusing on the issue of cultural legitimacy.  Beginning from the premise that legitimacy critiques of international climate change regulation have the capacity to positively influence policy trends and legal choices, we seek a range of papers, from across all the disciplines that investigate the link between the efficacy of international legal and policy mechanisms on climate change and cultural legitimacy or local acceptance.

Visit the Institute of Advanced Studies page for more details on the seminar programme and registration!

A recent Wilton Park conference examined the challenge of verification ‘…across the range of treaties where (it) is essential; biological weapons, whale conservationists, carbon emission specialists, political economists, and auditors…’. Reporting In his blog, Richard Burge, Chief Executive of Wilton Park, wrote pessimistically of the prospects for treaties without effective verification mechanisms. Despite decades of effort, the Biological and Toxins Weapons Convention which came into force in 1975, still lacks any such mechanisms. This seminar will give a scientific perspective on the quest to control the threat from biological weapons, contrasting its frustrations with apparent progress with other ‘weapons of mass destruction’ and asking whether we can agree with Mr Burge.

Surrey International Law Centre is proud to present Dr Douglas Guilfoyle, UCL, presenting on 'Somali Pirates and International Law'

The School of Law is proud to present Dr Myriam Hunter-Henin (UCL), to deliver this seminar.

The fight against corruption has figured high on the agenda of the international community since the mid 1990s resulting in the adoption of regional and international conventions. Civil society is regarded by many of these conventions as an important tool in this fight. While Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) have an obvious role in raising awareness, their more direct involvement in fighting corruption has proved vexing. For example, following the Third Conference of the States Parties to the UNCAC, Doha, 2009, proposals for a peer review mechanism were adopted. These were widely criticized by CSOs for allowing states would to produce reviews that were secretive and lacking transparency. Similarly, CSOs argued for observer status in the Implementation Review Group at the 2010 Fourth Conference in Marrakesh 2010, to be refused by the States Parties. 

This reluctance on the part of states to allow substantive involvement of CSOs raises a number of interesting questions that merit further delineation and investigation. The UN continues to insist that “CSOs are UN system partners and valuable UN links to civil society . . . .  and are indispensable partners for UN efforts at the country level”.

The School is Law is pleased to welcome Dr Arman Sarvarian to speak 

Biography

Dr Mohamed Elewa Badar is a former Chief Judge for the Egyptian Ministry of Justice (2001-2006). During July-September 2011 he was appointed to work as a Senior Investigator to the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry to investigate various human rights abuses and to examine the causes of an estimated 36 deaths during the unrest in the Kingdom of Bahrain, as well as allegations of disappearances, unlawful arrests and detention, torture and other forms of mistreatment. In 2008-2009, Dr Badar worked as an international expert for the United Nations Interregional Crimes and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI) and in 2010 he was selected to work as an expert for the United States Institute of Peace (USIP) on the Model Codes for Post-Conflict Criminal Justice. During 2004-2005 he worked as a Resident Representative of the International Institute of Higher Studies in Criminal Sciences (ISISC) (Siracusa-Italy) for the Interim Training for the Afghan Judiciary, Kabul, Afghanistan, where he lectured the Afghan magistrates on issues related to international human rights law, comparative criminal justice systems and Islamic law. In Year 2003 he had a position to work for six month period as an Intern with the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, Office of the Prosecutor/Appeals Section. He worked as a Senior Prosecutor at the Public Prosecution Office, Egypt, for several years (1997-2001). Prior to assuming these positions at the Ministry of Justice, he was a Police Captain at the Ministry of Interior - Public Property Investigation General Dept. (1991-1997). Dr Badar holds a PhD in international criminal law and LL.M. in international human rights (first class honours) from the Irish Centre for Human Rights, National University of Ireland, Galway. He also holds a Diploma in international legal relations from Ain Shams University, Egypt. He received his first University degree – Bachelors of Law and Police Sciences – from the Police College, Police Academy, Egypt.

Abstract

The Arab Spring has witnessed popular uprisings against despotic regimes which have captured the imagination of the world. One of the main concerns from the outside observers, however, has been a potential islamisation of the region once the old regimes have fallen. I shall discuss this matter using the drafting of the Egyptian constitution as a case study, and provide a critique of potential outcomes drawing a conclusion from the experiences of other countries who in some way or another use Sharia Law as (a source of) domestic law.

The School of Law would like to welcome Dr Mandeep K. Dhami to speak