Rule Of Law Research Articles

Comparative analysis of environmental sustainability indicators: Insights from Japan, Bangladesh, and Thailand

This study analyses environmental sustainability indicators (ESIs) and explores their governance challenges in developing countries (Bangladesh and Thailand) and advances possible remedies in light of the practices of a developed country (Japan). A comparative analysis of countries’ performance based on the ESIs could help identify useful practices from countries with high ESI to improve the poor ESI countries. While it is broadly understood that renewable energy and effective governance support environmental sustainability, our findings extend this knowledge by detailing how these factors interact specifically within the contexts of developed and developing nations. The analysis delineates the complex relationship between GDP growth, fossil fuel reliance, and sustainability efforts, offering a detailed examination of the variance in ESI performance across these countries. Beyond established notions, this study empirically validates the relationships between environmental sustainability (ES) and its influencing factors, providing a country-specific analysis that emphasizes the differential impact of renewable energy adoption, governance quality, and economic policies on environmental sustainability in Japan, Bangladesh, and Thailand. The results also revealed that Bangladesh’s performance in terms of majority ESIs ranges from bad to worse, while Japan exhibits good performance in all its ESI indicators except for emissions. Thailand’s ESI performance indicates its vulnerability to climate disasters and slow growth of renewable energy. The ESI measures of Thailand have shown its susceptibility to climate-related calamities and a slowdown in the rate of renewable energy implementation. A noticeable discrepancy in the execution of regulatory frameworks was noted between developing countries, such as Bangladesh, and industrialized ones, such as Japan. The outstanding results of Japan's ESI may be credited to the successful practices of its citizens and their strong devotion to the rule of law.

The relationship between the rule of law and environmental sustainability: empirical evidence from the analysis of global indices

ABSTRACT The rule of law has been found central in promoting environmental sustainability. While existing literature has examined certain aspects of the rule of law and environmental sustainability in analyzing their association, there remains a gap in our understanding of the intricate linkages between these two concepts. Specifically, there is a lack of a holistic approach to exploring the relationship between the rule of law and environmental sustainability. To address this gap, this study aims to conduct a thorough examination of the relationship between the rule of law and environmental sustainability. Our study, based on the rule of law index (ROLI) and the environmental performance index (EPI), reveals that environmental performance is closely associated with the rule of law. Environmental performance is particularly related to certain dimensions of the rule of law, such as ‘constraints on government powers’, ‘open government’, ‘fundamental rights’, and ‘criminal justice’. However, it should be noted that regional variations exist. For instance, the ROLI and the EPI are not clearly associated in the least-developed countries. Overall, results show that the rule of law plays an important role in enhancing environmental performance across developing and developed countries. Our study suggests considering the importance of community engagement and an effective, impartial, and independent justice system to improve environmental performance.

Institutional governance priorities to foster exports in Egypt

PurposeThe paper studies types and mechanisms of vertical and horizontal multilevel institutional governance (IG) (multilevel governance [MLG]). The relation with exports is reviewed and quantified to attempt prioritizing institutional reforms fostering merchandise exports in Egypt.Design/methodology/approachThe paper studies data (from 1996 till 2020) to estimate impact of IG on Egyptian merchandise exports using two autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) models: to test the World Governance Index (WGI) composite index, followed by its main indicators; and to determine governance priorities in Egypt. “Institutional” approach is adopted to assess mechanisms boosting Egyptian exports. Design comprises three sections – (1) conceptual and literature review, (2) main MLG mechanisms and (3) key findings of empirical results – to find out which institutional reforms enhance exports competitiveness in Egypt.FindingsAmong MLG different levels of governance, the macro level is highly related to boosting exports competitiveness. Institutional differentials between countries and regions affect competitive edge. In Egypt, results show that IG priorities that could foster exports are the rule of law, regulatory quality, government effectiveness and political stability and absence of violence.Practical implicationsBy adopting IG mechanisms, i.e. legislative, organizational and digital; and instruments, e.g. National Single Window, Time Release Standards and others, Egyptian exports could reach new heights.Originality/valueExports competitiveness does not rely solely on monetary and fiscal factors; IG dynamics could be more important in Egypt. ARDL model for Egyptian merchandise exports using WGI 2021 dataset.

Organizational Factors Influencing Good Governance Application of Thai Higher Education Institutions

The purposes of this research were: (1) to study organizational factors of Thai Higher Education Institutions; (2) to study good governance application of Thai Higher Education Institutions; (3) to find a relationship between organizational factors and good governance application of Thai Higher Education Institutions; and (4) to analyze organizational factors influencing good governance application of Thai Higher Education Institutions. The samples used in this study were 350 employees working in Thai Higher Education Institutions in Bangkok and suburban areas. The instrument used to collect data was a research questionnaire. Statistics used in this research consisted of percentage, mean, standard deviation, Pearson Product Moment Correlation and Multiple Regression Analysis (MRA). The research results showed that: 1) The opinions of respondents towards organizational factors of Thai Higher Education Institutions, in total, were at a high level. In particular, an organizational culture was perceived at the highest level, followed by organizational leadership and organizational structure; 2) Good governance application of Thai Higher Education Institutions, in total, was perceived at a high level. In particular, accountability had the highest mean value, followed by participation, virtue, rule of law, economy, and transparency; 3) Organizational factors were positively related to good governance application of Thai Higher Education Institutions; and 4) Organizational factors had a significant influence on good governance application of Thai Higher Education Institutions at the .01 level of statistical significance. Organizational leadership had the highest influence on good governance application of Thai Higher Education Institutions, followed organizational culture and organizational structure respectively.

Construction of Practical Teaching Mode of Law Course Based on Multi-Mode and Low-Resource Language Learning

China's legal profession is a new profession emerging in the process of China's rule of law. Its development and refinement are increasing in accordance with the rapid social, economic and political development. However, as a lawyer, people need to learn real kung fu. For complex and changeable legal practice problems, people should use the simplest and most effective way to solve them. Therefore, it is necessary to study the curriculum of law specialty to achieve its purpose. It is also necessary to reform the traditional education methods, introduce modern scientific and technological means, and improve their effectiveness, so as to construct a practical teaching mode of Professional Courses in Law (PCL). For practical legal courses, it can be conducted through multi-mode low-resource language learning method. This paper aimed to study how to study the ability of students to obtain information, process information and analyze and process information based on intelligent multi-image feature fusion. Based on the investigation of teaching objectives and teachers' teaching requirements, and the analysis and arrangement of the investigation results, a multi-task learning system model based on image intelligent features was established. In this experiment, 494 valid questionnaires were used to analyze the current situation of PCL practical teaching. Among them, 10.32% and 65.59% of the students were very satisfied with the results of PCL practical teaching, and 18.02% and 59.31% of the students liked PCL practical teaching very much. In the survey on the influencing factors of PCL practical teaching activities, 61.34% of the students thought that the students did not know enough and were not enthusiastic enough. On the whole, the students are satisfied with the practical teaching arrangement of PCL, but from the actual situation, the effect of practical teaching is not very good, and the expected goal has not been achieved.

The Dilemma and Solution of Juvenile Delinquency – Reflection on the Murder of a 13-year-old Boy in China

On March 10, 2024, a 13-year-old junior high school student in Handan City, Hebei Province, China was killed and buried by three classmates under the age of 14. The method of committing the crime was cruel and had a negative social impact, once again bringing topics such as "juvenile delinquency" and "lowering the age of criminal responsibility" to the hot search. Since entering the new era, with the rapid development of the social economy, minors have shown an overall trend of "precocious puberty". The problem of juvenile delinquency and violence has also become increasingly severe, causing adverse social impacts. According to data released by the Supreme People's Procuratorate of China, juvenile delinquency in China is characterized by a sharp increase in the number of crimes, a clear trend towards younger age groups, and cruel criminal methods. The Eleventh Amendment to the Criminal Law, which came into effect in March 2021, lowered the age of criminal responsibility and individually lowered the statutory minimum age of criminal responsibility to 12 years old. Therefore, this case may become the first case to hold young minors accountable for crimes after the age of criminal responsibility has been lowered, which is of great significance to the construction of the rule of law and judicial practice. In practice, we should clarify the situation of "heinous circumstances" stipulated in the Amendment to the Criminal Law (XI), and establish an independent juvenile justice system to comprehensively and effectively correct and prevent the misconduct and illegal behavior of minors, rather than simply lowering the age of criminal responsibility. At the same time, reduce excessive interference of online public opinion in judicial trials.

ROLE OF GOVERNANCE IN TRANSITION FROM MIDDLE-INCOME TRAP

This study examines the role of governance in transitioning from middle-to high-income status in 20 countries. All the growth models indicate that the rule of law plays a significant role. Significant interactions among government effectiveness were observed in the post-transition period. A significant effect of political stability and corruption control and a significant interaction effect of government effectiveness were also observed in the transition to high income, using extended Cox regression. The probit regression revealed that the interaction of low government effectiveness, low insurance, heavy reliance on agriculture, high fertility rates, high inflation, limited foreign investment and excessive public debt posed obstacles to achieving high-income status. The weak rule of law, corruption control and regulatory quality also affected the failure of the 42 upper-middle-income countries to reach a high-income level.

Основные факторы, определяющие правосознание российского общества

The concept of legal consciousness in Russian society is multifaceted and deeply rooted in historical, economic, and social factors. This article aims to dissect these factors and their impact on the formation of legal attitudes and perceptions among the populace. Legal consciousness in Russia has evolved over centuries, shaped by a complex interplay of historical events and socio-economic conditions. From the pre-Christian era to the tumultuous transformations in the 1990–2020s, the understanding of law and justice has been deeply intertwined with the fabric of Russian society. A significant aspect of legal consciousness formation lies in the experiences of the peasantry, from the era of serfdom to the collectivization efforts of the Soviet era. Economic factors, including income distribution and access to resources, play a pivotal role in shaping legal attitudes and behaviors among citizens. In the modern era, cultural-economic and legislative trends such as counter-sanctions and digitization have further influenced legal consciousness. The concept of legal nihilism, characterized by a disregard for legal norms and institutions, underscores the need for proactive measures to address this phenomenon. In conclusion, the analysis reveals a complex tapestry of factors influencing legal consciousness in Russian society, with economic disparities playing a significant role. The correlation between legal nihilism and income levels highlights the urgency of implementing targeted interventions to foster a culture of legal compliance and respect for the rule of law.

When do state-owned enterprises innovate? The moderating role of pro-market institutions

ABSTRACT I explore how pro-market institutions moderate the relationship between private or state ownership and innovation. Due to political and social connections, state-owned enterprises (SOEs) have several advantages over private-owned enterprises (POEs) in China, but I hypothesise that these advantages wane when institutional environments prioritise market competition, rule of law, and the rewards to profitable enterprise. Using data from the World Bank’s Enterprise Survey in China, the results suggest that POEs are more innovative than SOEs but only in market-oriented provinces. In provinces that are not market-oriented, SOEs are more innovative than POEs.

Human Rights-based, Based On the Rule of Law, Democratically Binding

Human Rights-based, Based On the Rule of Law, Democratically Binding

Conflict and democratization in Afghanistan

ABSTRACT The Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan in 2021 terminated the country’s democratisation. The crisis was more an outcome of the two-decade-long flawed state-building and democratisation, and the escalation of the insurgency than an overnight change in the country’s politico-military landscape. This paper examines Afghanistan’s failed democratization from 2001 to 2021 by focusing on five variables including stateness, welfare, rule of law, political regime, and political community. The paper explains how flawed progress in the five areas gradually eroded the democratisation process resulting in state collapse and the restoration of the Taliban’s Islamic Emirate.

Nonlinearities and a pecking order in cross-border investment

Nonlinearities can arise in international investment factors because of a pecking order in barriers. When direct barriers are severe, improvements in governance factors such as rule of law and expropriation risk can increase investment. Only when severe barriers are ameliorated can factors such as firm-specific information, transaction costs and hedging motives become more important. Evidence from unconditional quantile regressions provides support for a pecking order hypothesis, as we find that investment factors vary across the distribution. Specifically, our empirical results indicate that access to basic information is important everywhere, governance and familiarity matter where barriers are high, roles for information and hedging motives become more apparent where barriers are moderate, and where there are no barriers small improvements in governance have little effect on investment. Going forward, analysis should incorporate nonlinearities inherent in cross-border barriers and investment.

Interrelation of processes of parliamentary control over the implementation of laws adopted by the parliament

The article is devoted to the problems of ensuring effective legal regulation based on the optimization of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine's performance of two interrelated functions – the adoption of laws and the implementation of parliamentary control. The laws of any country, first of all, establish the legal regulation of the activities of state authorities at all levels in a harmonious combination with the legal regulation of modern social relations. The provisions of the legislative act are mandatory not only for their implementation, but also require monitoring of their implementation. The question of who should monitor the compliance of this or that Law of Ukraine with the concept of “law” and “rule of law” remains open, and not only at the legislative level. The answer is simple – “parliament” (although its feature is the presence of chamber systems) entities of management, to evaluate the discipline of the implementation of legislative acts, but also to make a decision about how effective the legal regulation itself is in this or that sphere of management, what changes should be made to the regulatory and legal acts to improve the state of their implementation, as well as to what extent regulatory acts correspond to the essence and regularities of social relations. The analysis of statistical data on the number of registered draft lawsand adopted laws of Ukraine, the hearings held by the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine of the VIII and IX convocations showed that, recently, the function of adopting laws dominates in comparison with the exercise of control over their proper implementation.

The Impact of ESG Regulations and Taxonomy on the Credit Process in Commercial Banks

The purpose of the article is to present the impact of legal regulations in the field of sustainable development (ESG) and taxonomies on the course of credit processes in commercial banks. Methodology refers to studies of legal regulations, comparative analysis of cases (case study) and inference. Results of the research show that the implementation of ESG regulations and taxonomies and the adaptation of credit processes in commercial banks will result in structural changes in loan portfolios in the near future while moving away from financing dirty industries towards the green ones. As a result, the financing stream for green assets and those supporting sustainable development will be increased, while the financing of dirty assets will be significantly reduced due to the increase in risks and accompanying costs for customers and banks. It is expected that even if some banks grant loans to finance dirty assets, they will only be short-term loans and will require high servicing costs (commission, margin, legal security, and insurance). This is due to the fact that the portfolio with credit exposures in the so-called dirty industries (mining, construction, trade) will escalate the increase in ESG risk. Such a portfolio with dirty exposures will require banks to secure additional reserve capital to maintain higher general and sector systemic risk buffers. Some banks will completely stop financing assets from dirty industries, which will mean that some of them will be abandoned due to the lack or high costs of their modernization, intensifying the negative socio-economic consequences. The ongoing process of redirecting the financing stream to green assets in banks means that enterprises and households need to take earlier adaptation actions. These include actions against financing constraints in dirty sectors and likely future losses in infrastructure and assets related to them.

Popular Lynching as a modality of Parastatal Justice

The present study brings together reflections on the collective aggressiveness that results in modalities of parastatal justice, such as popular lynching. The phenomenon of collective aggressiveness has only recently been studied in order to identify the multiple forms acquired by intraspecific human violence, as well as the social, legal and institutional weaknesses under the broad context of the Democratic Rule of Law. Furthermore, it seeks to assess whether the State model is fulfilling its functions and whether there are points of erosion in the social environment.

IMPLEMENTATION OF THE RULE OF LAW PRINCIPLE IN THE PRACTICE OF UKRAINE: CONCEPT, STRATIFICATION AND ECONOMIC JUSTIFICATION

The subject of the study is the segmental manifestation of the rule of law principle and its elements in the activities of justice authorities, courts and public associations, taking into account the economic basis of its influence. The purpose of the study is to examine the forms of manifestation of the rule of law principle and its individual elements in the activities of justice and court authorities, to clarify the role of the public in its practical application, and to identify opportunities for its economic support. Methodology. The study used general scientific and special methods of scientific knowledge: the method of system analysis, the dialectical method, the formal logical method, the structural and functional method, as well as a number of empirical methods. In particular, the method of comparison was used to determine the transformation of penitentiary bodies and their transformation into penitentiary justice bodies. The results of the study demonstrated the need for: qualitative consideration of the aspect of ensuring the correction of a convicted person after serving his or her sentence; involvement of representatives of civil society institutions in the resocialisation processes; and identification of potential ways to implement effective reforms that can increase the efficiency and fairness of the judiciary. Conclusion. The article reveals the relationship between the transformation of the penal system into the penitentiary system and the implementation of the rule of law in this area and its comprehensive enforcement. It is noted that the criminal executive system takes into account the aspect of ensuring the serving of sentences, and in the penitentiary system, which operates under the rule of law, the authors additionally identifies such a qualitative component as ensuring the correction of a convicted person after serving his/her sentence and his/her resocialisation. It was found that the economic rationale for the transformation of the judiciary based on the rule of law consists in reducing the costs of: court functioning due to the possibility of digitalization of the preparatory stages before the court hearing and the holding of court hearings in videoconference mode; reducing costs for the court apparatus through optimization of its functions; reducing the number of court cases due to active mediation and other possible options for resolving disputes peacefully, etc. It is noted that justice in judicial proceedings means not only formal compliance with the law, but also the exercise of rights and freedoms of individuals with due regard for equality, objectivity and impartiality. The authors prove that non-governmental organisations are an important institution capable of promoting the principle of justice as an integral element of the rule of law, since they ensure the right to apply to court and the right to protection of members and third parties. The role of the public in shaping the economic basis for reforms and the proper functioning of state bodies was also highlighted. It is noted that national legislation needs to be amended in terms of granting NGOs the right to apply to court in the interests of third parties, in particular, in cases where a person is unable to protect his or her rights for valid reasons. The study analyses the fundamental provisions on economic support for the implementation of the rule of law in various spheres of public relations.

Ensuring Environmental Justice (EJ) through Public Interest Litigation (PIL) in Bangladesh

The legal system in Bangladesh has recently adopted the term Public Interest Litigation (PIL), which is a novel idea that provides complete rationale for the widely acknowledged notion that humans are social animals. It is founded on the necessity of the public interest or the violation of the public rights and is known as constitutional jurisprudence. The Public Interest Litigation (PIL) mechanism was established to enable common persons to submit a letter and bring this matter to the attention of the highest court. PIL proceedings are now an essential component of the nation's legal system. Notwithstanding these drawbacks, judicial activism is a highly significant potential tool that the judiciary can use in Bangladesh to uphold and advance the rule of law and human rights. Enhancing the rule of law, advancing fundamental rights, and applying the law equally to citizens and states are the responsibility of the judiciary. Laws can be shaped by the judiciary, which can also provide them direction and consistency. However, the nomination mechanism of the current government and judges' commitment to uphold the values of their specific jurisdictions serve to restrain the radicalism of the judiciary. Judges in Bangladesh are more inclined than other government bodies to make unpopular but ultimately wise verdicts since they are not engaged in political politics. The public anticipated that the courts would play a more significant role in resolving environmental problems as a result of the court's broadening of the definition of the right to life to include environmental protection. This essay explores the concept of access to justice via public interest litigation in a number of Bangladeshi court rulings.

The light and the dark side of judicial resistance

AbstractHow can courts resist political attacks? Despite the rich empirical studies of attacks on courts, we lack better understanding of how judges react to these challenges. Little or no attention has been paid to the theoretical aspects of judicial resistance; the structural, personal or socio‐economical motives of judges, or the dynamics between the resistance, democratic resilience and the rule of law. This article draws a novel concept map and suggests that the future scholarship should focus on three dimensions of judicial resistance. The first captures the variety of techniques available to judges who wish to avert, punish or invalidate an attack, whether they act individually or collectively and on‐bench or off‐bench. The second dimension zooms in on the motives for resistance, including the ability of judges to recognize an attack and see it as critical. It outlines factors that potentially form the cost‐benefit analysis behind judges' decisions to resist. Finally, the third dimension prompts to look into the effects of resistance (the dark and the light side), it analyses the conformity of judicial resistance with or against the principle of the rule of law and suggest its repercussions on how the public trusts and understands the courts (long‐term perspective).

Contemporary Aspects of Legal Doctrine and Interpretation - Challenges and Perspectives

In the countries where we have the construction of the legal system with the new laws, the ambiguity of the legal norms in the new laws in some cases is almost inevitable. But commenting on laws and judicial practice will be of great help to bring about the implementation of all legal norms as was the intention of the legislator, because the correct interpretation of legal provisions is a necessity of any legal order that creates a legal security for all citizens equally. Of course, the object of legal interpretation or clarification is not only written legal-civil norms, but also those that are part of customary law. The issue of interpretation of laws currently represents a fundamental concern for citizens and legal institutions, looking for a smart and innovative approach to address this issue effectively and sustainably. In this context, this paper aims to identify and analyze the advantages and challenges of legal doctrine and interpretation in the contemporary context.

The Rule of Law Under Pressure: A Transnational Perspective

The Rule of Law Under Pressure: A Transnational Perspective