“快乐点”网站竞拍购物是欺诈拍卖费用的骗局。
这个“快乐点”网站自称“中国首创竟拍购物第一网”，实际上是国外网站Swoopo.com的翻版：Swoopo名为拍卖，实为赌博网站，很多人参与之后方知上当，可谓害人不浅。维基百科的介绍称swoopo是典型的欺诈拍卖费用骗局。（Swoopo is a prominent example of a bidding fee scheme on the internet.）考虑到“快乐点”网站对swoopo的全盘照抄，该评论也可适用于“快乐点”网站。
关于Swoopo.com的介绍和讨论，另见(该文本为英文)：
http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/guorui/2009/02/03/how-to-beat-swoopo/
另见：“快乐点”的骗局（2）
(Editor’s Note: This post is based on a client memorandum by Martin Lipton, Steven A. Rosenblum, and Sabastian V. Niles of Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz.)
Despite increasing political and media focus on and criticism of risk assessment and risk management efforts by corporate boards, yesterday’s In Re Citigroup Inc. Shareholder Derivative Litigation, No. 3338-CC (Feb. 24, 2009), decision by the Delaware Court of Chancery is a welcome indication that the business judgment rule will survive the financial crisis intact. Continue reading
Directors and Officers Liability Insurance
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By David Gische of Ross, Dixon & Bell, LLP |
In recent years, directors and officers liability insurance has become a core component of corporate insurance. As many as 95% of Fortune 500 companies maintain directors and officers (“D&O”) liability insurance today. Furthermore, it has become a commonplace of the financial world that disappointed investors will charge corporations and their officers and directors with securities fraud whenever a company’s stock drops significantly in price. Studies indicate that the average settlement of securities fraud litigation in 1999 was greater than $8 million, with average defense costs exceeding $1 million. In light of these numbers, it should not be surprising that such litigation has become almost routine, and D&O liability insurance plays a large role in handling it. At the same time, the D&O insurance industry has become highly specialized and new products are constantly emerging to meet the needs of specific markets. This article will discuss the historic and current trends in the industry. In addition, this article will address some of the primary legal and coverage concerns that must be considered by underwriters, claims handlers, corporations and their executives, and the attorneys who represent them.
A. History of D&O Insurance
In the 1930s, in the wake of the depression, Lloyd’s of London introduced coverage for corporate directors and officers. At the time, corporations were not permitted to indemnify their directors and officers. Joseph P. Monteleone & Nicholas J. Conca, Directors and Officers Indemnification and Liability Insurance: An Overview of Legal and Practical Issues, 51 Bus. Law 573, 574 (1996). However, directors and officers did not perceive a great risk, and the insurance did not sell. Well into the 1960s, the market for D&O coverage was negligible. In the 1940s and 1950s, courts, corporations and directors and officers began to see benefits to corporate indemnification and prompted state legislatures to enact laws permitting it. Then, during the 1960s changes in the interpretation of the securities laws created the realistic possibility that directors and officers themselves, and not only corporations, could face significant liability. See Roberta Romano, What Went Wrong with Directors’ and Officers’ Liability Insurance, 14 Del. J. Corp. L. 1, 21 & nn. 74-77 (1989). Insurers responded to these changes by reviving specialty coverage for the “personal financial protection” of directors and officers.
The historic focus on “personal financial protection” distinguished D&O insurance from other kinds of commercial insurance that cover identified areas of corporate risk. Insurers had defined corporate risks they would insure. General liability insurance provided corporate insurance for bodily injury or property damage claims; fidelity bonds afforded specified first-party coverage for losses corporations incur due to certain acts of their officers, directors, or employees. D&O coverage, on the other hand, was not intended to be corporate insurance, much less an attempt at general corporate insurance for liability caused the corporation by virtue of the acts of its directors and officers. In recent years, however, D&O coverage has undergone a number of changes. Continue reading
(Editor’s Note: This post comes from Mats Isaksson of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development.)
The OECD Steering group has recently issued a report entitled “Corporate Governance Lessons from the Financial Crisis.”
This Report concludes that the financial crisis can be to an important extent attributed to failures and weaknesses in corporate governance arrangements. When they were put to a test, corporate governance routines did not serve their purpose to safeguard against excessive risk taking in a number of financial services companies. A number of weaknesses have been apparent. The risk management systems have failed in many cases due to corporate governance procedures rather than the inadequacy of computer models alone: information about exposures in a number of cases did not reach the board and even senior levels of management, while risk management was often activity rather than enterprise-based. These are board responsibilities. In other cases, boards had approved strategy but then did not establish suitable metrics to monitor its implementation. Company disclosures about foreseeable risk factors and about the systems in place for monitoring and managing risk have also left a lot to be desired even though this is a key element of the Principles. Accounting standards and regulatory requirements have also proved insufficient in some areas leading the relevant standard setters to undertake a review. Last but not least, remuneration systems have in a number of cases not been closely related to the strategy and risk appetite of the company and its longer term interests.
The Report also suggests that the importance of qualified board oversight, and robust risk management including reference to widely accepted standards is not limited to financial institutions. It is also an essential, but often neglected, governance aspect in large, complex non-financial companies. Potential weaknesses in board composition and competence have been apparent for some time and widely debated. The remuneration of boards and senior management also remains a highly controversial issue in many OECD countries.
The current turmoil suggests a need for the OECD, through the Steering Group on Corporate Governance, to re-examine the adequacy of its corporate governance principles in these key areas in order to judge whether additional guidance and/or clarification is needed. In some cases, implementation might be lacking and documentation about the existing situation and the likely causes would be important. There might also be a need to revise some advice and examples contained in the OECD Methodology for Assessing the Implementation of the OECD Principles of Corporate Governance.
The full report can be found here.
“一些所谓左派的朋友不同意零八宪章的观点，我完全可以理解，因为我本人也并不完全同意这个文本。但是像“乌有之乡”网站那样呼籲镇压宪章参与者，我觉得简直不可理喻：这些以文革派自诩的朋友难道不知道自己的主张也不符合“主旋律”吗？他们号召起来“造反”，号召打倒“党内走资本主义道路的当权派”，难道他们认为刘晓波就是这样的“当权派”？今天假如真有所谓毛派，他们如果不想搞“武装斗争”，不也只有寄希望於言论自由吗？这大概也是“马列主义毛思想 ”承认的大道理吧？”
–秦晖：谈《零八宪章》
from SINA.com
“牢”有所养
70岁的湖南村民付达信因为贫穷无法养老，选择来北京抢劫，享受监狱中的“福利”
若不是上了电视，村里人还以为付达信仍在广西柳州收废品。
去年8月，在同乡带领下，付达信去了柳州。3天，他没收上一个废品。而且，70岁的他发现自己已骑不动小三轮。他决定赴京反映情况。
一路上，他不断捡着破烂，以凑足一张火车票的钱。
9月8日下午，付达信出现在北京站广场。一名妇女排队买票。付抢了她一张百元钞票，持刀笑着。
“神经病。”妇女嘟哝着走了。
“我当时这个气啊，想她怎么不喊啊，如果一喊，警察来了不就行了吗。”事后，付达信这样对媒体说。
他的下一个目标是回家的女大学生。这次警察来了。
付达信乐了，“我可以不做事，我可以进监狱享受福利了。”
“他生活得很苦，2003年每天生活费最少时只有1块钱。”付东文是付达信的邻居。她说，付达信早在2007年就曾赴京上访，不过那次没有结果。
村里人还说，付达信这辈子都是孤身一人在广西、广东打工，从没娶过媳妇。付在出事后说，他之所以没有结婚，就是因为穷。
付达信现在的屋子租给了一个叫胡俭的外村人住。胡俭说，记得一次天黑，付达信一个人捧着个大碗蹲在门口吃饭，除了饭和凉水，碗里没有菜。
付达信进监狱后3个月胖了10斤。他对狱警说，在狱中，这是两年来他第一次吃肉。每次吃饭，他总是一小口一小口小心地吃。
当法院判处他2年有期徒刑时，付达信对法官说，“您再好好审审吧，判得太轻了。”他说，留在监狱里，就不用为以后的生活发愁了。
记者 陈欢
http://www.sachina.edu.cn/Htmldata/news/2008/12/4536.html
基层法院经费将纳入中央预算摆脱地方依赖
11月28日，中共中央政治局召开会议，会上原则通过了《中央政法委员会关于深化司法体制和工作机制改革若干问题的意见》(以下简称《意见》)。
《意见》中明确了多达50项下一轮司法改革的指导意见，其中提出了优化司法职权配置、落实宽严相济刑事政策、加强政法队伍建设、加强政法经费保障等四项重点改革内容。
记者获悉，目前基层法院财力改革方案已由财政部牵头，最高人民法院司法行政装备管理局等部门联合在制定。据测算，地方司法经费纳入中央财政保障之后，中央财政每年将因此增加支出400亿左右。
在11月28日当天的中央政治局会议上，分析研究明年的经济工作，落实经济刺激计划，明确明年继续实施积极的财政政策和适度宽松的货币政策亦是重要议题之一，在当下积极扩大财政支出的背景下，这一重大司法财政制度改革适当其时。
“这是一个特别好的消息，司法界呼吁了多年，考虑中央现实财力的情况，当下正是改革的好时机，”法学专家贺卫方表示，“长期以来基层法院由于经济上不独立，过度依赖地方，为地方经济服务，这不符合市场经济所追求的公平、平衡的法律体系的目标。”
财政缺口的由来
法院经费保障由同级财政负责在我国由来已久。1996年、1999年，财政部、最高院两次改革诉讼费用管理办法，基本确立了“收支两条线”的法院经费管理制度。其核心是诉讼收费全额上交财政，法院经费由财政根据预算安排划拨。
这一制度的初衷是避免法院乱收费，多收费。但在地方财政状况不佳的地区，普遍存在“以收代支”情况，即由诉讼收费填补财政拨款的缺口。因此，在中西部等贫困、案源少的地区，法院办案经费难以得到保障，中西部基层法院财政捉襟见肘。
2007年4月1日，国务院通过了新的《诉讼费用缴纳办法》。但这一新的诉讼费用缴纳办法原本用意在于降低诉讼费用，改变公民打官司难、打官司贵的情况。比如，离婚案件一起的受理费用仅有50元，分割财产的费用也从之前的财产额的1%降为0.5%。
但是新办法无意中进一步加大了部分基层法院的经费困境，一方面诉讼费用降低，另外一方面案件增多，办案成本增加。
江苏省苏州市虎丘区法院有过统计，在新诉讼费缴纳办法实施后一个月内，该院收案数上升近1倍，而诉讼费收入仅30万元，仅为改革之前的1/4。而维持这样一个区级法院的运转，一年的费用一般在千万元左右。此间落差可想而之。
这还是东部沿海地区的情况，中西部基层法院的财政缺口比较严重。在河南省永城市，2007年永城法院所有收入一共有400万元左右，这已经囊括了县财政和中央政法专款。但永城法院年一般支出需500万元以上，每年都有100万元左右的缺口。
为了化解中西部地区基层法院经费保障不足的情况，2007年底，中央财政拨出30亿元专项资金，专门用于补助因诉讼收费制度改革给地方法院带来的经费困难和帮助地方建立人民法院经费保障长效机制。
2008年，中央财政同样安排补助基层人民法院办案经费40亿元(含2007年预留10亿元)。
中央专款一定程度上缓解了基层法院财力紧张的状况，相比全国地方司法经费缺口，问题尚未得到根本解决，但这一做法则为正在草拟的中央财政保障地基层法院经费做了准备。
分地区分级别
经常性的经费缺口的另一方面，即法院经费依赖同级财政，并导致司法带上地方主义印记，这不利于防止地方保护主义，也影响全国性的公平公正的市场体系的建立。
记者从前述权威方面获悉，此次改革方案基层法院经费保障纳入中央财政预算是一个一揽子方案，包括基层法院、中级法院、高级法院在内的各级法院财政经费保障都将纳入中央财政的总盘子。
根据统计数据，目前全国有基层法院3300多个，中级法院300多个，高级法院31个(除港澳台)，若以平均一个法院一年办公经费1000万计(实践中差距巨大，从数百万到8000万不等，难以统计)，中央财政每年需增加开支400亿。
目前，各级各地法院的经费保障办法在制定过程中，参考之前的中央财政补助地方法院办案专款管理办法，据相关人士透露，很可能采取分地区，分级别，结合案件数量和诉讼费收入情况，采用因素计算法确定各法院应得财政拨款数。
即根据各地诉讼费收入变化情况、办案经费支出情况、案件受理和审结情况、经费投入状况、专项管理使用情况等客观因素，依据各因素对经费需求的影响程度，和东、中、西部地区财政经济状况，确定各因素的权重和差异系数，通过公式计算分配。
从去年4月开始，最高人民法院司法行政装备管理局和财政部已经组成了联合调研组进行了专项调研。据了解，调研组以省份和东、中、西部地区为单位，按高院、中院、基层法院三个层次，将来，省，东、中、西部，高院、中院、基层法院、办案数量、诉讼费收入将对应不同的权重，成为确定中央财政拨款的重要依据。
同时，此次改革的重点是确保基层法院经费，最高院的统计显示，我国80%以上的案件在基层法院，按照中央改革的精神，在高级、中级、基层三级法院中，基层法院是财力缺口最大的单位，也是中央财政拨款将倾斜的单位。
东部的声音
基层法院经费保障纳入中央财政一盘棋，对中西部基层法院无疑是喜讯，但对东部沿海地区的基层法院来说，则有另外一层忧虑。
“现在的状况是，东部沿海地区法院收入和中西部有比较大的差距，但这是由于地区差异，最主要的是办案数量以及办案难度决定的，全国一盘棋之后，对东部基层法院的办案质量和办案效率是不是会有影响？”东部沿海某基层法院院长向记者表示。
以上海市为例，该市的基层法院经费全部由区财政保障，在浦东新区、闵行区、长宁区这些财力充裕的地方，虽然诉讼费收入仅不到2000万，但每年法院可保障的经费开支在六七千万之多。若纳入中央财政预算之后，是否还能保证如此充裕的经费开支是一个问题。
在上海市，每年收案数最高的基层法院案件数量接近5万件，中等程度的基层法院年案件数也接近1.5万，而在山东中部某基层法院，一年案件数量不过2000件，在青海等西部地区，基层法院案件一年只有几百件。
因此，纳入中央财政的总盘子之后，办案数量，办案难度这些权重要加强考虑，基数可以考虑地区平衡，但是办案专款、办案津贴等方面一定要体现差距。”前述上海一基层法院院长表示。
福柯和米秾教授谈权利理论
1. from Two Lectures Power/Knowledge (Foucault):
The essential role of the theory of right, from medieval times onwards, was to fix the legitimacy of power; that is the major problem around which the whole theory of right and sovereignty is organized. When we say that sovereignty is the central problem of right in Western societies, what we mean basically is that the essential function of the discourse and techniques of right has been to efface the domination intrinsic to power in order to present the latter at the level of appearance under two different aspects: on the one hand, as the legitimate rights of sovereignty, and on the other, as the legal obligation to obey it. The system of right is centered entirely upon the King, and it is therefore designed to eliminate the fact of domination and its consequences.
2.from Martha Minow, Interpreting Rights: An Essay for Robert Cover,
Yale Law Journal 96 (1987): 1860-1915, 1867.
“Rights” can give rise to “rights consciousness” so that individuals and groups may imagine and act in light of rights that have not been formally recognized or enforced. Rights, in this sense, are neither limited to nor-coextensive with precisely those rules formally announced and enforced by public authorities. Instead, rights represent articulations — public or private, formal or informal — of claims that people use to persuade others (and themselves) about how they should be treated and about what they should be granted. I mean, then, to include within the ambit of rights discourse all efforts to claim new rights, to resist and alter official state action that fails to acknowledge such rights, and to construct communities apart from
the state to nurture new conceptions of rights. Rights here encompass even those claims that lose, or have lost in the past, if they continue to represent claims that muster people’s hopes and articulate their continuing efforts to persuade.
[The story of Toyota Prius–an icon for “green life style”–reminds us how much more we have to do in order to become truly “green.”]
The Dark Side of the Toyota Prius
By Paul Abowd
A new report alleges that Toyota, the world’s largest auto company, is violating workers’ rights at Prius hybrid plants in Japan.
The National Labor Committee (NLC), a New York-based human rights group, has been investigating working conditions at Toyota Motor Corp., and the labor used to produce its best-selling Prius hybrid cars.
