Compensatory Damages in Personal Information Public Interest Litigation in China: Challenges and Prospects

In contrast to private interest litigation,public interest litigation provides a more potent solution to personal information infringements marked by extensive scope,unspecified victims,and limited individual loss.However,com⁃pensatory damages remain a contentious issue,both in theory and in practice,within the legal framework of personal in⁃formation public interest litigation.Through an empirical study conducted within China's judicial practice,this paper reveals that the pending issue concerning the nature and function of compensatory damages has caused highly contra⁃dictory verdicts regarding their calculation and allocation,as well as their relationship with other forms of pecuniary li⁃abilities.Only by acknowledging the role of compensatory damages imposed in personal information public interest liti⁃gation as"Skimming off Excess Profits",and affirming their function as deterrence rather than compensation can they truly achieve the broader objective of safeguarding personal information security and promoting public welfare,as well as avoid disrupting the harmony of the existing legal landscape.

Reform Dividends and Economic Convenience

Reform dividends refer to the improvements in certain economic actors under the new, reformed institutional system as compared against the original system. Reform leads to greater economic growth potential by changing the institutional environment, which in turn increases the vibrancy and innovation of economic actors. The most economically convenient system is also in actuality the most effective market economic system. Reform based on public and collective actions should be based on the following principle： if institutional reform is evolving towards the enhancement of economic convenience, then we can be sure that reform is embarking on the path of releasing dividends.

东周金文释证三则

据金文讹省、反书等现象,释证东周金文疑难字三例。徐王舟又觯铭文最后一字为“煁”,读为“湛”;徐王之子戈铭文人名之字为反韦之“利”;陈纯釜铭文"命左关师发敕"前一字为“公”,指公家。

Construction and Development of GMS Agricultural Information Network Based on Stakeholder Analysis

Based on stakeholder analysis, this paper analyzed influence of stakehold- ers on construction and operation of agricultural information network （AIN） in the Greater Mekong Sub-region （GMS）. It elaborated and analyzed stakeholders such as China, Asian Development Bank, other GMS state government agricultural depart- ments and users. Finally, it came up with pertinent recommendations for develop- ment of GMS-AIN.

Protection and Utilization of Cultural Landscape in a Forest Park in Ethnic Minority Region ——With a Case of Zhangjiajie

Presently, more and more attention is paid to cultural landscapes by peo-ple at travel ing, especial y for folk culture in ethnic minority regions where rich hu-man landscapes could be ful y made use of to improve landscape quality. In the research, cultural landscapes in Zhangjiajie National Forest Park were surveyed and evaluated to analyze characters of cultural utilization, as wel as problems existing in the Park. In addition, highlights were given to protection on cultural landscapes in a forest park construction, presentation of ethnic minority culture, and ful development of tourism products.

Operating Performance of Initial Public Offering Companies in Hong Kong

This study investigates the earnings performance of 418 initial public offerings （IPOs） listed on the stock exchange of Hong Kong. By analyzing several profitability measures of these 1PO companies from the third year prior to listing up to the fifth year post-listing, it is found that IPO companies＇ operating performances as a whole peak in the year of listing or the year preceding the listing, but exhibit a fall in post-issue profitability with the decline being most pronounced in the first financial year following the year in which the listing take place. Over 30% of these IPOs suffer a loss three years after the offerings. Deterioration of post-issue performance is found to be more severe for smaller finns, highly-geared companies, fast-growing enterprises, companies with lower ownership retention by original shareholders, and companies which have managed earnings upwards at the time of listing. These observations are consistent with the higher agency costs when firms go public and that managers have timed the issue at the peak of the companies＇ long-run performance. Further investigation confirms that IPO companies in general make use of income-increasing accruals to manage their earnings upwards in the year when they go public. The reversal of the accruals in post-issue years further exaggerates the decline in their profitability.

The Relationship Between Intellectual Capital （IC） and Stock Market Performance： Empirical Evidence From Italy

Intellectual capital （IC） is an important source of value for companies. The competitive firm invests in new productive ideas through scientific and technological researches of the human factor and services. The traditional factors of＂old economy＂ based on physical assets have been replaced or at least reinforced, with the belief that the ＂new economy＂ takes its steps mainly through IC. The knowledge workers, at every organizational level, have the knowledge that allows the organization to be competitive and deal with the complexity of the environment by creating intellectual added value. In particular, the proposed analysis consists with an empirical way to show other financial indicators and market-to-book （MTB） value from the perspective of creating value for shareholders based on the dynamics of companies＇ performance, as value-added intellectual capital （VAICTM） is capable of expressing a direct relationship with the return on equity （ROE）. The traditional financial information cannot ensure the high efficiency of a stock market and the need for IC reporting to explain intangible asset contribution in company performance.

On the Plaintiff's Subject Qualification for Environmental Public Interest Litigation Instituted by People's Procuratorates

Although it is not the main duty for the People's Procuratorate to institute environmental public interest litigation proceedings, the existence of "reserve" prosecution right of plaintiff not only is beneficial to timely prevention and cure of environmental damage, but also contributes indispensable judicial supervision force to the environmental legality construction. In order to safeguard environmental public interests, many local prosecutorial organizations have practiced environmental public interests litigation. Since Chinese law has not made explicit stipulation on the function of the People's Procuratorate instituting environmental public interest litigation, the plaintiff's subject qualification for environmental public interest litigation instituted by the People's Procuratorate is still in question. In order to propel the People's Procuratorate to completely and fully exercise their power of supervision and prosecution, there shall be corresponding legislation that provides powerful guarantee for the People's Procuratorate instituting environmental public interest litigation.

The Long-Run Performance of IPOs in Italy： A Comparison of Venture and Non-Venture-Backed Companies

The phenomena associated with the performance of newly listed companies has increased the interest of many researchers who have developed a vast literature on long-term underpricing and underperformance, which together with hot and cold issue markets, represent the three anomalies that have always accompanied with Initial Public Offerings （IPOs）. The objective of this work is to investigate the long-run performance of IPOs of venture and non-venture-backed companies. The analysis of a sample of 102 IPOs carried out in Italy in 1998-2005 revealed that both companies （venture-backed and non-venture-backed） showed negative values, thus, confirming the phenomenon of underperformance. During the 36 months following their listing, venture-backed companies seemed to register negative and statistically significant values both with the CARsVB methodology （-93.99%） and the Buy and Hold Abnormal Returns methodology （BHARsVB -88.37%）. Venture-backed companies, unlike non- venture-backed companies, seem to be able to restrain the losses, measured by both methods, in the first 12 months （CARsB - 12.38% -20.15% CARSNNVB; BHARsVB - 10.17%; BHARsNVB - 15.51%）. During the 36 months, however, the IPOs showed negative and statistically significant values regardless of whether they were venture or non-venture-backed. The test on the difference between the average abnormal returns of the two methodologies （CAARS and BHAARs） did not produce statistically significant results. The Wealth Relative was calculated and from the results it would appear that the portfolio of venture-backed IPOs does not register ＂brilliant＂ performances. The portfolio of 102 IPOs does not seem to beat the ＂market portfolio＂. In conclusion, therefore, the phenomenon of underperformance seems to be real in our country and is documented by strongly negative and statistically significant values obtained from the samples of IPOs analyzed.

Legal Value of the Demand Overflow Theory

So many legal issues can be handled in public interest method. As some commentators have pointed out, the public interest is an ancient and new topic. It＇s a highly abstract prone to ambiguities and shortcomings of the concept. And it＇s also a basket that strange, confused and can not be discarded. Even critics simply deny the existence of public interest and regard the public interest as a myth. As it＇s difficult to define the public interest from political perspective, a democratic theory, legal perspective a theory of law, economic perspective a public choice theory, philosophical perspective a public philosophy, and other common perspective. The paper explores the law theory of public interest from the framework of the overflow theory and the perspective of the concept function, and provides an easy to use identification method of public interest for the judicial practice and administrative practices.

A Model of Interest Rate and Loan Covenant Competition

This paper develops a model where two lenders to subprime borrowers compete with the interest rates charged and the severity of loan covenants. The model has a stable equilibrium, which demonstrates how an increase in the number of borrowers or an increase in the cost of meeting covenants will reduce the severity of the covenants required by lenders, and each of these changes will increase the difference in the severity of the loan covenant levels. An increase in the expected losses to the lender from relaxing covenants will increase the severity of loan covenants, and this will also make the levels of severity more dispersed. Additional analysis demonstrates how exogenous shifts affect the interest rates charged by the lenders and their profits

SOX A Comparison With the South African Status Quo

Auditor independence provisions enshrined in the Sarbanes-Oxley Act （SOX） were promulgated in 2002 in response to the Errron-Anderson scandal leading to a diminution of trust in the audit profession. In seeking to regulate auditor independence in the name of investor protection, SOX has been heralded as ＂ground-breaking＂ public interest reform. Ironically, when one considers the substance of these reforms and contrasts them with the situation prevailing in South Africa, a different impression results. Despite the fact that South Africa is classified as a ＂developing＂ nation and one which has only recently transitioned to democracy, many of the auditor independence principles legislated under SOX have been part of generally accepted practice in South Africa since the 1950s. Accordingly, SOX may not be the progressive example of auditor regulation that it is generally perceived to be.

The Demand of Ordinary People for Justice in Early China

In early China, ordinary people had a ＂right＂ to demand for justice and they often exerted that ＂right＂. Due to the nature of our sources, which are preoccupied with the concerns of the governing elite, the ordinary people＇s voices are often lost, but even the scanty evidence that we have suggests that ordinary people did not always passively wait for justice to be delivered to them by the authorities. On one hand, the elites recognized that all human being had the sense of justice and its expression was a natural tendency, on the other hand, ordinary people and elites actively demanded justice at least in three ways： they cried out to redress the injustices they had encountered; they honored the impartial judges for their honesty and fairness; and they protested against injustices through collective actions.

Analysis on the Cy-Pres Doctrine in the Public Benefit Trust

Public benefit trust is of great significance to the development of social public welfare, and the cy-pres doctrine as a special principle of public benefit trust, plays an important role in protecting the continuation of public benefit trust, and the realization and reasonable use of high-efficiency trust properties. In this paper, therefore, the origin, establishment, and development trend of the approximation principle as well as its current legislative situation in China are studied, and also its applicability of the Cy-Pres doctrine in China＇s public benefit trust is briefly evaluated, so as to further deepen the understanding of the Cy-Pres doctrine and develop the public benefit trust undertakings in China.

Corporate Governance, Sustainable Development and Value Creation Some Evidences From Italian Listed Companies

Modern corporate situations, characterized by the globalisation of the markets and of the information, highlight the need to link the potential of a not transient growth to the adequate reconciliation of all the expectations converging around the entrepreneurial formula and not only of those attributable to shareholders. In such a defined context, corporate governance tends to evolve from a situation of primary care for the expectations of shareholders （shareholder＇s view） and for the correlated financial responsibility, to a wide consideration of all the stakeholders （stakeholder＇s view） and related responsibilities （financial, environmental, social, administrative）. The correct carrying out of governance processes requires, therefore, a clear focus on sustainable development and on the related assumption of a concept of global responsibility. The decisions made by the governing bodies must be driven by the purpose to create value in the long term according to conditions of fairness and sustainable development. To sum up, this research aims to deepen the existing connections between corporate governance, sustainable development and value creation on the basis of the empirical analysis of a limited number of listed Italian companies afferent to the public utilities sector. The paper, based on a deductive approach, is composed of two distinct but strictly connected parts： the first theoretical and the second empirical. The empirical research consists of a content analysis of the most recent documents （sustainability reports and annual reports） worked out by the selected companies. The results obtained about the degree respect of sustainable development conditions by each company are linked to the related value dimension （social, economic, competitive and environmental performance） aimed at verifying if the assumption of a corporate governance approach inspired by sustainability is susceptible of favouring the company development in a medium long term. From the delivered research it emerges how public utilities that promote behaviours in line with the sustainability conditions are marked out by stable growth paths. Conversely, the companies that assume a vision mainly addressed to the economic dimension, neglecting the other areas are generally compromised in the performance realized.

An analysis on corporate governance

Corporate governance has become one of the major international issues that have succeeded in attracting a good deal of public interest in recent years, especially since the recent spate of ＂world famous＂ scandalous corporate failures. Today, it is considered that corporate governance plays an important role in the economic health of corporations and society in general. Improving corporate governance is a systematic project, it is necessary to the internal governance and external governance of the ways multi-pronged.

Private Car Travel Characteristics and Influencing Factors in Chinese Cities——A Case Study of Guangzhou in Guangdong,China

Taking Guangzhou as a case,this paper adopted a questionnaire survey to gather first-hand data and analyzed the characteristics and influencing factors of private car travel in Chinese cities.As the research indicated,trip purposes of private car travel are mainly commute and business affairs with a more flexible trip in the urban core area.And trip intensities are concentrated in a certain extent,with trip frequency being lower in the urban core area than the peripheral area.In addition,the trip time has two significant peaks occurring in the morning and afternoon,and one trough in the midday.And trip spatial distribution is mainly within commute with both residence and employment in urban area and inward commute with residence in suburban area while employment in urban area.Both kinds of commutes direct to the urban area.The study also shows that the characteristics of private car travel are principally influenced by two aspects:travelers' attributes and urban characteristics.The main travelers' social and economic attributes influenced it include the gender,education attainment,age,driving experience and per capita monthly household income.The urban characteristics influenced it mainly cover the land use pattern,public traffic facilities and spatial attributes of residential environment.

Forest Structure Analysis in the Oban Division of Cross River National Park, Nigeria

Information on forest structure is important for forest management decisions. This is inadequate in many situations, especially where timber is not of primary interest. We analyzed the structure of two forest types in the Oban Division of Cross River National Park, Nigeria. Systematic sampling technique was used to establish two transects measuring 2,000 x 2 m, at 600 m interval in the two forest types in four locations. Four 50 m x 50 m plots were located alternately at 500 m intervals along each transect, constituting 32 plots per forest type and 64 plots in all, Diameters at breast height （DBH）, base; middle and top; crown diameter; total height and crown length were measured on all trees with DBH 〉_ 10 cm. There were 159 stems/ha in the close-canopy forest and 132 stems/ha in the secondary forest. The mean DBH were 34.5 cm and 33.62 cm respectively. The mean heights were 24.79 m and 23.97 m, respectively. Basal area/ha were 41.59 m2 ha~ and 27.38 m2 hal for the two forest types. Majority of the trees encountered in the two forest types belonged to the middle stratum which has implication for small mammals＇ populations. Emergent trees which are otherwise scarce in other parts of the country were recorded, which also has implications for density thinning and seed supplies.

Geomorphological mapping for the valorization of the alpine environment. A methodological proposal tested in the Loana Valley(Sesia Val Grande Geopark, Western Italian Alps)

Geomorphological mapping plays a key role in landscape representation: it is the starting point for many applications and for the realization of thematic maps, such as hazard and risk maps, geoheritage and geotourism maps. Traditional geomorphological maps are useful for scientific purposes but they need to be simplified for different aims as management and education. In tourism valorization, mapping of geomorphological resources(i.e., geosites, and geomorphosites), and of geomorphic evidences of past hazardous geomorphological events, is important for increasing knowledge about landscape evolution and active processes, potentially involving geomorphosites and hiking trails. Active geomorphosites, as those widespread in mountain regions, testify the high dynamicity of geomorphic processes and their link with climatic conditions. In the present paper, we propose a method to produce and to update cartographic supports(Geomorphological Boxes)realized starting from a traditional geomorphological survey and mapping. The Geomorphological Boxes are geomorphological representation of single, composed or complex landforms drawn on satellite images, using the official Italian geomorphological legend(ISPRA symbols). Such cartographic representation is also addressed to the analysis(identification, evaluation and selection) of Potential Geomorphosites and Geotrails. The method has been tested in the upper portion of the Loana Valley(Western Italian Alps), located within the borders of the Sesia Val Grande Geopark, recognized by UNESCO in 2013. The area has a good potential for geotourism and for educational purposes. We identified 15 Potential Geomorphosites located along 2 Geotrails; they were ranked according to specific attributes also in relation with a Reference Geomorphosite located in the Loana hydrographic basin and inserted in official national and regional databases of geosites(ISPRA; Regione Piemonte). Finally, the ranking of Potential Geomorphosites allowed to select the most valuable ones for valorization or geoconservation purposes. In thisframework, examples of Geomorphological Boxes are proposed as supports to geo-risk education practices.

Public Deliberation in an Age of Visibility： Political Communication Analysis in Mexico

This paper reviews the importance of visibility in public deliberation in the theoretical construction of political communication. Political communication is the area that study social and political interactions of actors through discourses and practices within the public sphere. The social and political actors manage their public appearances in an exercise of visibility, allowing deliberation of public affairs. In recent years, Mexico has been a relevant case of study for understanding the opening of media into the public discussion of governmental affairs. As an example, this paper presents an analysis of public deliberation in the city of Quer6taro, Mexico. This study analyses political participation and openness of media, based on the concepts visibility, public sphere and citizenship. The analysis was built on the idea that the press concentrates most of the issues of public interest and that it reflects actors and arguments given for deliberation. In a qualitative approximation, we analyzed the discourses published in four journals and developed an analytical framework that illustrates the levels of access and visibility of a variety of political and social actors. This exercise demonstrates the importance of the concept of visibility in public deliberation and the media as managers in the current configuration of political communication.