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Laws, Volume 3, Issue 3 (September 2014) – 10 articles , Pages 388-635

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263 KiB  
Article
Students vs. Jurors: Responding to Enhanced Video Technology
by Meredith Rossner, David Tait and Jane Goodman-Delahunty
Laws 2014, 3(3), 618-635; https://doi.org/10.3390/laws3030618 - 9 Sep 2014
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 6855
Abstract
This study investigated the influence of visual media technologies used in remote witness testimony, examining whether it is suitable to use students as mock jurors when measuring the impact of new technologies. A 2 × 2 mixed factorial design explored how student status [...] Read more.
This study investigated the influence of visual media technologies used in remote witness testimony, examining whether it is suitable to use students as mock jurors when measuring the impact of new technologies. A 2 × 2 mixed factorial design explored how student status impacted ratings of the quality of the technology and remote witness facilities. A sample of 79 students and non-empanelled jurors from the Victorian Metropolitan County Court viewed direct questioning of four lay witnesses who testified from a remote location via standard or enhanced video technology. Students differed significantly from jurors in their attitudes towards media and technology. In responding to technology enhancements, students were similar in rating changes in the quality of the technology, but differed significantly in how they rated changes to the design of remote witness facilities. Students were thus a suitable sample to measure the effect of technological change in court on perceptions of technology, but not on perceptions of design. We conclude by stressing such technology enhancements can improve the quality of experience for all jurors. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Technology, Social Media and Law)
217 KiB  
Article
Cyberbullying at Work: In Search of Effective Guidance
by Bettina West, Mary Foster, Avner Levin, Jocelyn Edmison and Daniela Robibero
Laws 2014, 3(3), 598-617; https://doi.org/10.3390/laws3030598 - 27 Aug 2014
Cited by 23 | Viewed by 9998
Abstract
With rapid technological change has come a blurring of boundaries between personal and workplace space. Employers are challenged to develop guidelines and policies to direct the appropriate use of technology to maintain a civil workplace. Because of the lack of shared understanding, or [...] Read more.
With rapid technological change has come a blurring of boundaries between personal and workplace space. Employers are challenged to develop guidelines and policies to direct the appropriate use of technology to maintain a civil workplace. Because of the lack of shared understanding, or even terminology, around the issue of cyberbullying, employers are seeking a response from lawmakers to assist with this issue. Lawmakers are reluctant to develop legislation prematurely, given the rapid change in the capabilities of technology, the diverse social norms about its use, and the uncertainty of the role and responsibility of employers in minimizing cyberbullying and facilitating a civil workplace environment. This Canadian study seeks insight into these emerging issues through in-depth interviews with human resource professionals representing diverse business and industry sectors. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Technology, Social Media and Law)
206 KiB  
Article
Juvenile Justice in Mexico
by Martha Frías Armenta and Livier Gómez Martínez
Laws 2014, 3(3), 580-597; https://doi.org/10.3390/laws3030580 - 26 Aug 2014
Viewed by 13623
Abstract
The first tribunal in Mexico was established in the central state of San Luis Potosi in 1926. The Law Regarding Social Prevention and Juvenile Delinquency for the Federal District and Mexican territories was promulgated in 1928. In 2005, Article 18 of the Mexican [...] Read more.
The first tribunal in Mexico was established in the central state of San Luis Potosi in 1926. The Law Regarding Social Prevention and Juvenile Delinquency for the Federal District and Mexican territories was promulgated in 1928. In 2005, Article 18 of the Mexican Constitution was modified to establish a comprehensive system (“Sistema Integral de justicia” in Spanish) of justice for juveniles between 12 and 18 years old who had committed a crime punishable under criminal law. Its objective was to guarantee juveniles all the due process rights established for adults, in addition to the special ones recognized for minors. The constitutional reform also provides a framework that includes special tribunals as well as alternative justice options for juveniles. With these reforms, institutionalization of minors was to be considered an extreme measure applicable only to felonies and to juveniles older than 14. In 2006, all states within the Mexican federation enacted the “Law of justice for adolescents”. This system, at both the federal and state levels, formalizes a new global paradigm with regard to the triangular relationship between children, the State and the Law. It recognizes that children are also bearers of the inherent human rights recognized for all individuals, instead of simply objects in need of protection. However, despite formally aligning Mexican juvenile justice law with the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), issues of actual substantive rights remained and new ones have appeared. For example, juveniles younger than 14 who have not committed a felony are released from institutions without any rehabilitation or treatment options, and alternative forms of justice were included without evaluating their possibilities of application or their conditions for success. In addition, the economic status of most juvenile detainees continues to be one of the most important determining factors in the administration of justice. Juveniles lack real access to an adequate defense because they cannot afford to pay lawyers. This disconnection between rights and reality undermines the new system, raising the question of whether recent modifications to bring laws in line with international norms are in fact advancing juvenile justice. By approaching the Mexican juvenile justice systems as a single, multilayered system combining international, federal and local laws and procedures, we can better describe some of the substantive inconsistencies that continue to prevail, even as new ones develop in terms of children’s rights. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Development of Juvenile Delinquency)
250 KiB  
Article
A Pirate too Needs to be Heard: Procedural Compromises in Online Copyright Infringement Cases in the UK
by Poorna Mysoor
Laws 2014, 3(3), 553-579; https://doi.org/10.3390/laws3030553 - 22 Aug 2014
Viewed by 6336
Abstract
Online copyright infringement is one of the toughest challenges the content industry has faced in the twenty first century. Article 8(3) of the Information Society Directive, implemented under section 97A of the UK Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988, provides an injunctive remedy [...] Read more.
Online copyright infringement is one of the toughest challenges the content industry has faced in the twenty first century. Article 8(3) of the Information Society Directive, implemented under section 97A of the UK Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988, provides an injunctive remedy in response to such online infringement. Given the elusive nature of the website operators and the sheer number of their users, rights owners have turned to the Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to implement the injunctions granted under section 97A to block websites with infringing content. In their battle to keep pace with online infringers, the UK courts have permitted significant compromises to the procedures while granting these injunctive blocking orders. One of the pioneers in this line of cases in the UK is the Pirate Bay case (TPB case), which ruled as a matter of law that the procedure under Section 97A does not require the alleged infringers to be made parties to those proceedings. TPB case also marks the trend of the ISPs consenting to an order of injunction, and not defending the proceedings. This has resulted in the absence of any adverse party in the proceedings under section 97A. This threatens the basic tenets of procedural fairness and propriety, having adverse consequences on both the substantive and procedural aspects, evident in the cases that followed TPB case. This article examines the aspects of the judgment in TPB case that led to these procedural compromises, whether it had any basis in the pre-existing case law, what the nature of an injunction under section 97A is and how the subsequent line of cases have followed TPB case as a precedent. It further explores the adverse consequences of the procedural compromises and whether any safeguards are available against such compromises. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Technology, Social Media and Law)
243 KiB  
Article
Crowdsourcing Sexual Objectification
by Carissima Mathen
Laws 2014, 3(3), 529-552; https://doi.org/10.3390/laws3030529 - 6 Aug 2014
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 8727
Abstract
This paper analyzes the criminal offence of the non-consensual distribution of intimate images (what some call “revenge porn”). Focussing on the debate currently underway in Canada, it notes that such an offence would fill a grey area in that country’s criminal law. Arguing, [...] Read more.
This paper analyzes the criminal offence of the non-consensual distribution of intimate images (what some call “revenge porn”). Focussing on the debate currently underway in Canada, it notes that such an offence would fill a grey area in that country’s criminal law. Arguing, more broadly, that the criminal law has an important expressive function, the paper posits that the offence targets the same general type of wrongdoing—sexual objectification—that undergirds sexual assault. While not all objectification merits criminal sanction, the paper explains why the non-consensual distribution of intimate images does and why a specific offence is legitimate. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Technology, Social Media and Law)
222 KiB  
Article
From Research “Involving” Humans to Research “Affecting” Humans: A Proposal for a Principled Expansion of Research Ethics’ Jurisdiction to Create Traction for a Philosophy of Technology
by Madelaine Saginur
Laws 2014, 3(3), 509-528; https://doi.org/10.3390/laws3030509 - 4 Aug 2014
Viewed by 4313
Abstract
The field of research ethics offers a new approach to addressing the issues created by the unchecked development of technology. Research ethics could make a contribution, both substantively and procedurally, to help create a framework for reviewing the social and political consequences of [...] Read more.
The field of research ethics offers a new approach to addressing the issues created by the unchecked development of technology. Research ethics could make a contribution, both substantively and procedurally, to help create a framework for reviewing the social and political consequences of actual or proposed technological developments. This paper puts forth a proposal for a principled expansion of research ethics’ jurisdiction, specifically a move from “Research Involving Humans” to “Research Affecting Humans”, and undertakes a case study of “Web 2.0” to analyze whether a philosophy of technology based on research ethics might work. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Technology, Social Media and Law)
298 KiB  
Article
Networked Memory Project: A Policy Thought Experiment for the Archiving of Social Networks by the Library of Congress of the United States
by Chloé S. Georas
Laws 2014, 3(3), 469-508; https://doi.org/10.3390/laws3030469 - 31 Jul 2014
Viewed by 6127
Abstract
This article explores the challenges posed by an archival interest in the broad palimpsest of daily life left on social networks that are controlled by private corporations. It addresses whether social networks should be archived for the benefit of future generations and proposes [...] Read more.
This article explores the challenges posed by an archival interest in the broad palimpsest of daily life left on social networks that are controlled by private corporations. It addresses whether social networks should be archived for the benefit of future generations and proposes a policy thought experiment to help grapple with these questions, namely, the proposal for the formation of the public interest-oriented Networked Memory Project by the Library of Congress for the archiving of social networks. My discussion of the challenges posed by this thought experiment will focus on the U.S. legal framework within which the Library of Congress operates and take Facebook. To the extent that social networks have user-generated contents that range from the highly “private” to “public” as opposed to other networked platforms that contain materials that are considered “public”, the bar for the historical archival of social networks is much higher. Almost every archival effort must contend with the legal hurdle of copyright, but the archiving of social networks must also address how to handle the potentially sensitive nature of materials that are considered “private” from the perspective of the social and legal constructions of privacy. My theoretical exercise of proposing the formation of the Networked Memory Project by the Library of Congress responds to the need to consider the benefits of a public interest-oriented archive of social networks that can counter the drawbacks of the incidental corporate archiving taking place on social networks. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Technology, Social Media and Law)
670 KiB  
Review
Reculer Pour Mieux Sauter: A Review of Attachment and Other Developmental Processes Inherent in Identified Risk Factors for Juvenile Delinquency and Juvenile Offending
by Dianna T. Kenny, Susan Blacker and Mark Allerton
Laws 2014, 3(3), 439-468; https://doi.org/10.3390/laws3030439 - 24 Jul 2014
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 10235
Abstract
The task of this paper is to identify the causes of juvenile delinquency and juvenile offending. The French proverb chosen for its title (Step back in order to jump better) reflects the inherent challenge in this task; that is, how far [...] Read more.
The task of this paper is to identify the causes of juvenile delinquency and juvenile offending. The French proverb chosen for its title (Step back in order to jump better) reflects the inherent challenge in this task; that is, how far back must we step in order to gain a complete understanding of these causes? Do we commence with adolescence, childhood, birth, pregnancy, conception, or the young person’s parents and their life experiences? How wide a net do we cast? Should we focus primarily on intra-individual factors, or the social ecologies in which young delinquents are found? Every story must have a beginning. In this story about young people who fall off the prosocial developmental trajectory, all sign posts point to attachment and the quality of the child’s first attachment experiences. This review will examine, from attachment and other developmental perspectives, how many of the more proximal causes of delinquency and youth offending have their origins in the emotional deficits suffered in early life. We will argue that delinquent and offending behavior represent attempts to redress these deficits. Consequently, interventions that attempt to prevent offending and reduce recidivism that do not address attachment ruptures and other early deficits cannot expect satisfactory outcomes. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Development of Juvenile Delinquency)
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264 KiB  
Article
Regulating Direct-to-Consumer Advertising of Prescription Drugs in the Digital Age
by Shannon Gibson
Laws 2014, 3(3), 410-438; https://doi.org/10.3390/laws3030410 - 9 Jul 2014
Cited by 18 | Viewed by 10906
Abstract
The increasing prominence of new Internet and social media technologies and their growing importance as a source of health information are pushing the pharmaceutical industry towards digital channels. This paper explores the potential impacts of the pharmaceutical industry’s increasing interest in online marketing [...] Read more.
The increasing prominence of new Internet and social media technologies and their growing importance as a source of health information are pushing the pharmaceutical industry towards digital channels. This paper explores the potential impacts of the pharmaceutical industry’s increasing interest in online marketing and considers how the existing regulatory framework in Canada translates into the social media sphere. Direct-to-consumer advertising (DTCA) of prescription drugs is prohibited in Canada, as it is in most industrialized countries. Although Health Canada has reaffirmed that the existing DTCA regulations apply to new Internet and social media technologies, new dynamics such as user-generated content, consumer propagation, and targeted marketing make applying the existing regulations an uncertain process. Moreover, certain problems often associated with DTCA may be exacerbated in the social media context. Finally, there is skepticism around whether government regulators have the resources or political will to effectively monitor new digital media. As such, this paper considers not only the role of direct government regulation in monitoring and enforcing the regulation of DTCA, but also the role of third party oversight and industry self-regulation—both of which may play an important role in filling the gaps in the regulation of the Internet and social media. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Technology, Social Media and Law)
229 KiB  
Article
Jones-ing” for a Solution: Commercial Street Surveillance and Privacy Torts in Canada
by Stuart Hargreaves
Laws 2014, 3(3), 388-409; https://doi.org/10.3390/laws3030388 - 4 Jul 2014
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 6871
Abstract
While street surveillance technologies such as Google Street View are deployed with no discriminatory intent, there is selective scrutiny applied to the published imagery by the anonymous crowd. Disproportionately directed at women and members of ethnic minority groups, this scrutiny means the social [...] Read more.
While street surveillance technologies such as Google Street View are deployed with no discriminatory intent, there is selective scrutiny applied to the published imagery by the anonymous crowd. Disproportionately directed at women and members of ethnic minority groups, this scrutiny means the social risks of street surveillance are not equal. This paper considers the possibility of invasion of privacy actions in tort brought against the commercial service provider as a possible solution. Analysis suggests that Canadian law has evolved in a way such that it is exceedingly difficult to make a claim for “privacy” in tort when the plaintiff is located in public space. This evolution exists in order to ensure that innocuous behavior not be rendered actionable. Furthermore, conceptual reasons exist to suggest that actions in tort are unlikely to be the best solution to the problems posed by commercial street surveillance. While any individual case of embarrassment or nuisance matters, broader “macro-harms” that impact entire communities reflect perhaps the most serious problem associated with the selective scrutiny of street surveillance imagery. Yet, it seems difficult to justify attaching liability for those harms to the commercial providers. While limits need to be placed on the operation of these street surveillance programmes, it is unlikely that invasion of privacy actions are the most effective way to achieve that goal. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Technology, Social Media and Law)
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