Topic Review
Kellogg–Briand Pact
The Kellogg–Briand Pact or Pact of Paris – officially the General Treaty for Renunciation of War as an Instrument of National Policy – is a 1928 international agreement on peace in which signatory states promised not to use war to resolve "disputes or conflicts of whatever nature or of whatever origin they may be, which may arise among them". The pact was signed by Germany, France, and the United States on 27 August 1928, and by most other states soon after. Sponsored by France and the U.S., the Pact is named after its authors, United States Secretary of State Frank B. Kellogg and French foreign minister Aristide Briand. The pact was concluded outside the League of Nations and remains in effect. A common criticism is that the Kellogg–Briand Pact did not live up to all of its aims, but it has arguably had some success. It was unable to prevent the Second World War, but it was the base for trial and execution of Nazi leaders in 1946. Furthermore declared wars became very rare after 1945. However, it has also been ridiculed for its moralism, legalism and lack of influence on foreign policy. The pact had no mechanism for enforcement, and many historians and political scientists see it as mostly irrelevant and ineffective. However, the pact did serve as the legal basis for the concept of a crime against peace, for which the Nuremberg Tribunal and Tokyo Tribunal tried and executed the top leaders responsible for starting World War II. With the signing of the Litvinov Protocol in Moscow on February 9, 1929, the Soviet Union and its western neighbors, including Romania, agreed to put the Kellogg–Briand Pact in effect without waiting for other western signatories to ratify. The Bessarabian Question had made agreement between Romania and the Soviet Union challenging and dispute between the nations over Bessarabia continued. Similar provisions to those in the Kellogg-Briand Pact were later incorporated into the Charter of the United Nations and other treaties, which gave rise to a more activist American foreign policy which began with the signing of the pact.
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  • 24 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Law of the Land
The phrase law of the land is a legal term, equivalent to the Latin lex terrae, or legem terrae in the accusative case. It refers to all of the laws in force within a country or region, including statute law and case-made law.
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  • 04 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Lawburrows
Lawburrows is a little-known civil action in Scots law initiated by one person afraid of another's possible violence.
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  • 11 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Legal Project Management
The terms legal case management (LCM), matter management or legal project management refer to a subset of law practice management and cover a range of approaches and technologies used by law firms and courts to leverage knowledge and methodologies for managing the life cycle of a case or matter more effectively. Generally, the terms refer to the sophisticated information management and workflow practices that are tailored to meet the legal field's specific needs and requirements. As attorneys and law firms compete for clients they are routinely challenged to deliver services at lower costs with greater efficiency, thus firms develop practice-specific processes and utilize contemporary technologies to assist in meeting such challenges. Law practice management processes and technologies include case and matter management, time and billing, litigation support, research, communication and collaboration, data mining and modeling, and data security, storage, and archive accessibility.
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  • 11 Oct 2022
Topic Review
Legislative System of Photovoltaic Industry Development in China
As one of the world’s largest energy consumers, China is facing the challenge of growing energy demand. Under this background, China is actively implementing the concept of green development and sustainable development route. As inexhaustible green energy, solar energy, has been established as an independent energy type by the Renewable Energy Law and has a broad development prospect. At present, the industrialization level of photovoltaic manufacturing in China is constantly improving, and the efficiency of photovoltaic power generation is constantly improving. However, from the perspective of the system, China’s photovoltaic industry supporting legal system is not perfect. There is a mismatch between the existing laws and industrial development needs, which restricts the future development of photovoltaic power generation in China. The legal environment is crucial to the development of a country’s relevant industries. Only with a good supporting legal system can the development and utilization of solar energy be carried out reasonably and orderly. The PV industry legislation should be adjusted and responded to in a timely manner according to the development situation of the PV industry and the PV market, so as to speed up the introduction of core laws in the PV field, continuously improve the supporting legal system, and effectively play the role of institutional protection of the law. 
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  • 20 Jan 2022
Topic Review
Marriage Equality (Same Sex) Act 2013
The Marriage Equality (Same Sex) Act 2013 was an act of parliament of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly that was intended to legalise same-sex marriage in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT). It was first presented to the ACT Legislative Assembly on 19 September 2013 by the ACT Attorney-General, Simon Corbell. The law intended to build on the existing recognition of same-sex unions in the Australian Capital Territory, which included recognition of de facto partners, civil partnerships and same-sex-only civil unions (with civil unions being replaced by same-sex marriage if the Act was successfully passed). The act was passed in the Legislative Assembly on 22 October 2013. It came into operation on 7 November although wedding ceremonies under the provisions of the Act did not occur until 7 December 2013. West Australian parliamentarian Stephen Dawson and his husband Dennis Liddelow were the first same-sex couple to marry under the new laws. Upon the law's commencement, the Abbott Government challenged the legal and constitutional validity of the Act, lodging an immediate challenge in the High Court of Australia. The case was heard on 3 December and a ruling was handed down on 12 December 2013. The High Court unanimously struck the act down in its entirety, on the basis that it was in conflict with the federal Marriage Act, which defined marriage in Australia as the union of a man and a woman. The court did however expressly confirm in its ruling that the Parliament of Australia had the constitutional authority to amend the definition of marriage in the Marriage Act, so as to allow same-sex couples to marry.
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  • 25 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Microgrids for Energy Transition
International, national, and subnational laws and policies call for rapidly decarbonizing energy systems around the globe. This effort relies heavily on renewable electricity and calls for a transition that is: (i) flexible enough to accommodate existing and new electricity end uses and users; (ii) resilient in response to climate change and other threats to electricity infrastructure; (iii) cost-effective in comparison to alternatives; and (iv) just in the face of energy systems that are often the result of—or the cause of—procedural, distributive, and historical injustices. Acknowledging the intertwined roles of technology and policy, this entry provides a cross-disciplinary review of how microgrids may contribute to renewable electricity systems that are flexible, resilient, cost-effective, and just (including illustrative examples from Korea, California, New York, the European Union, and elsewhere). 
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  • 08 Apr 2021
Topic Review
Obiter Dictum
Obiter dictum (usually used in the plural, obiter dicta) is Latin phrase meaning "by the way", that is, a remark in a judgment that is "said in passing". It is a concept derived from English common law, whereby a judgment comprises only two elements: ratio decidendi and obiter dicta. For the purposes of judicial precedent, ratio decidendi is binding, whereas obiter dicta are persuasive only.
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  • 18 Oct 2022
Topic Review
Obstacles for the Current IIAs in Addressing Climate Change
Global climate change has become a major concern today, and it has been described by the G20 as “one of our greatest challenges”. Climate change is characterized by externality and has a global, long-term, and intergenerational impact. To prevent climate change deterioration, the 21st United Nations Climate Change Conference adopted the Paris Agreement, which promotes climate finance and mitigates climate change worldwide. At the international law level, since Germany and Pakistan signed the first bilateral investment treaty (BIT) in 1959, international investment agreements (IIAs) have emerged as one of the most significant sources of international legal protection and promotion of foreign investments.
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  • 20 Feb 2024
Topic Review
Occupational Injury
An occupational injury is bodily damage resulting from working. The most common organs involved are the spine, hands, the head, lungs, eyes, skeleton, and skin. Occupational injuries can result from exposure to occupational hazards (physical, chemical, biological, or psychosocial), such as temperature, noise, insect or animal bites, blood-borne pathogens, aerosols, hazardous chemicals, radiation, and occupational burnout. While many prevention methods are set in place, injuries may still occur due to poor ergonomics, manual handling of heavy loads, misuse or failure of equipment, exposure to general hazards, and inadequate safety training.
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  • 25 Oct 2022
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