Search Results (412)

Justice Joseph Story’s Commentaries on the Constitution of the United States (1833) have long been regarded as the scholarly source for a nationalist account of the U.S. Constitution in Antebellum America. Yet recent scholarship has questioned whether the Commentaries should be viewed exclusively as a work of legal scholarship. This article reinterprets Justice Story’s three-volume work as a project of civic education during a period of political and constitutional uncertainty. Written during the Nullification Crisis and in the wake of codification efforts, Justice Story presents his Commentaries for the use of the American public, providing them, and not exclusively lawyers and judges, with a source to support a popular conception of American constitutionalism. Story’s project of civic education is clearly shown by his personal efforts to abridge his Commentaries on three separate occasions to ensure the wide distribution of the work to Americans of different ages, groups, localities, and levels of education. As such, this article offers Justice Story as a guide to contemporary judges who seek to engage in civic education projects. Full article

To ensure stability and transparency in the European logistics sector, in May 2017, the European Commission presented several proposals to change the regulation of the market—in particular, market access, driving and rest periods, and business trips. In the development of this package, several unfavourable decisions were made that go against Lithuanian transport companies, which will have a significant impact on the companies’ finances, as the frequent return of trucks will lead to additional fuel costs and is also in contradiction with the concept of green logistics. Thus, it is essential to study the Mobility Package’s pros and cons and compare researchers’ views. Accordingly, the subject of this article is the impact of the Mobility Package on Lithuanian logistics companies. This article employs various methods, including an analysis of the scientific literature and legislation, statistical data analysis, PEST analysis, and qualitative research based on expert interviews. The results allow us to identify that the content of the Mobility Package is driven by the goal of ensuring equivalent working conditions throughout the EU, which in this case is the most important object of the legal changes. Also, based on the results obtained, it can be stated that Lithuanian logistics companies that want to remain in the market have several solutions they can employ to achieve that goal, and to support their efforts, a competitiveness improvement model for Lithuanian logistics companies has been developed. Full article

There has been a widely held view for some time that school teachers and principals need to possess a level of knowledge and understanding of the legal regulation of schools and that of their workers. This study explores the level of understanding of legal matters pertaining to the school environment that independent school teachers hold in Queensland. This level of ‘legal literacy’ is investigated in a qualitative research study that explains the various areas of education law that are known and those that are less understood by such educators. Data was analysed using content analysis methodology, using a coding scale that was created specifically for the purposes of coding the participants’ scenario responses. Overall, it was discovered that the level of legal literacy held by Queensland independent school teachers was alarmingly low. This varied across the myriad topics, but essentially, the educators surveyed did not demonstrate an adequate legal understanding to successfully complete their roles. More education in this area should be made available for educators to better equip them with such an understanding to ensure they know when and how to more capably protect themselves and the children entrusted to their care. Full article

In the past decade, agricultural biogas plants have become one of the key tools driving the energy transition in rural areas. Nevertheless, their development in Poland still lags behind that in Western European countries, suggesting the existence of barriers that go beyond technological or regulatory issues. This study aims to examine how Polish farmers perceive the risks and expected benefits associated with investing in biogas plants and which of these perceptions influence their willingness to invest. The research was conducted in the second quarter of 2025 among farmers planning to build micro biogas plants as well as owners of existing biogas facilities. Geographic Information System (GIS) tools were also used in selecting respondents and identifying potential investment sites, helping to pinpoint areas with favorable spatial and environmental conditions. The findings show that both current and prospective biogas plant operators view complex legal requirements, social risk, and financial uncertainty as the main obstacles. However, both groups are primarily motivated by the desire for on-farm energy self-sufficiency and the environmental benefits of improved agricultural waste management. Owners of operational installations—particularly small and medium-sized ones—tend to rate all categories of risk significantly lower than prospective investors, suggesting that practical experience and knowledge-sharing can effectively alleviate perceived risks related to renewable energy investments. Full article

Famed lawyer Clarence Darrow (1857–1938) argued strongly for an early-life public health approach to crime prevention, one that focused on education, poverty reduction, and equity of resources. Due to his defense of marginalized persons and his positions that were often at odds with his legal colleagues and public opinion, he was known as the Big Minority Man. He argued that the assumption of free will—humans as free moral agents—justifies systems of inequity, retributive punishment, and “unadulterated brutality.” Here, the authors revisit Darrow’s views and expand upon them via contemporary research. We examine increasingly louder argumentation—from scholars across multiple disciplines—contending that prescientific notions of willpower, free will, blameworthiness, and moral responsibility, are contributing to social harms. We draw from biopsychosocial perspectives and recent scientific consensus papers calling for the dismantling of folk psychology ideas of willpower and blameworthiness in obesity. We scrutinize how the status quo of the legal system is justified and argue that outdated notions of ‘moral fiber’ need to be addressed at the root. The authors examine recent arguments for one of Darrow’s ideas—a public health quarantine model of public safety and carceral care that considers the ‘causes of the causes’ and risk assessments through a public health lens. In our view, public health needs to vigorously scrutinize the prescientific “normative” underpinnings of the criminal justice system. Full article

Video surveillance systems have become pervasive in contemporary society, prompting growing concerns about their psychological and behavioral effects on individuals. This study investigates how perceived surveillance influences self-censorship and behavioral regulation in monitored environments, drawing on the conceptual framework of panoptic self-regulation and surveillance-induced anxiety. A structured questionnaire was administered to 358 university students, and data were analyzed using exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis to validate latent constructs, followed by ordinal logistic regression and mediation analysis to test key hypotheses. The results indicate that individuals who perceive higher psychological pressure due to surveillance are more likely to modify their behavior, exhibiting heightened self-awareness and restraint. Additionally, belief in the active monitoring of surveillance footage significantly amplifies behavioral vigilance. The perception of the technological omnipresence of surveillance further intensifies psychological discomfort, which mediates behavioral change. These findings conceptualize video surveillance as a socio-technical system that exerts behavioral influence through internalized psychological mechanisms. The study highlights the importance of considering the unintended consequences of surveillance technologies on autonomy and freedom, and it suggests that regulatory frameworks should account not only for legal compliance but also for the psychological impact of surveillance. The results provide empirical support for viewing surveillance systems as dynamic regulators of human behavior. Full article

The growing recognition of animal sentience has led to notable progress in European Union animal welfare legislation. However, a significant inconsistency remains: while mammals, birds, and cephalopods are legally protected as sentient beings, honeybees (Apis mellifera)—despite robust scientific evidence of their cognitive, emotional, and sensory complexity—are excluded from such protections. This manuscript examines, from an interdisciplinary perspective, the divergence between emerging evidence on invertebrate sentience and current EU legal frameworks. Honeybees and cephalopods serve as comparative case studies to assess inconsistencies in the criteria for legal recognition of sentience. Findings increasingly confirm that honeybees exhibit advanced cognitive functions, emotional states, and behavioral flexibility comparable to those of legally protected vertebrates. Their omission from welfare legislation lacks scientific justification and raises ethical and ecological concerns, especially given their central role in pollination and ecosystem stability. In general, we advocate for the inclusion of Apis mellifera in EU animal welfare policy. However, we are aware that there are also critical views on their introduction, which we address in a dedicated paragraph of the manuscript. For this reason, we advocate a gradual and evidence-based approach, guided by a permanent observatory, which could ensure that legislation evolves in parallel with scientific understanding, promoting ethical consistency, sustainable agriculture, and integrated health under the One Health framework. This approach would meet the concerns of consumers who consider well-being and respect for the environment as essential principles of breeding, and who carefully choose products from animals raised with systems that respect welfare, with indisputable economic advantages for the beekeeper. Full article

Housing informality in Morocco has taken root within Rabat’s formal neighborhoods, quietly reshaping façades, extending plot lines, and redrawing the texture of entire blocks. This ongoing transformation runs up against the rigidity of official planning frameworks, producing tension between state enforcement and tacit tolerance, as residents navigate persistent legal and economic ambiguities. Prior Moroccan studies are neighborhood-specific or socio-economic; the field lacks a city-wide, multi-class analysis linking everyday tactics to long-term governance dilemmas and policy design. The paper, therefore, asks how and why residents and architects across affordable, middle-class, and affluent districts craft unapproved modifications, and what urban order emerges from their cumulative effects. A mixed qualitative design triangulates (i) five resident focus groups and two architect focus groups, (ii) 50 short, structured interviews, and (iii) 500 geo-referenced façade photographs and observational field notes, thematically coded and compared across housing types. In addition to deciphering informality methods and impacts, the results reveal that informal modifications are shaped by both reactive needs—such as accommodating family growth and enhancing security—and proactive drivers, including esthetic expression and real estate value. Despite their legal ambiguity, these modifications are socially normalized and often viewed by residents as value-adding improvements rather than infractions. Full article

Background/Objectives: To avoid becoming mired in prolonged deep dementia, some people seek to hasten death by advance instructions rejecting life-sustaining medical intervention (LSMI) at a point of cognitive decline they define in advance as unacceptable. When the time comes to implement such advance instructions and to allow the person in advanced dementia to die, many clinicians experience moral and ethical qualms. The decision makers face a clash between people’s legally recognized self-determination prerogative to control their post-competence medical fate and the decision makers’ conviction that humane treatment dictates sustaining the well-being, i.e., the physical “best interests,” of the patient who no longer recalls prior instructions grounded in concerns about personal dignity. The authors’ objective here is to provide guidance in resolving this anguishing dilemma confronting medical decision makers. Methods: The authors construct and analyze a case scenario involving a patient in a state of advanced dementia with a clear advance instruction rejecting LSMI at the current point of debilitation, but who is not ostensibly suffering, is experiencing a modicum of life satisfaction, and is making life-affirming utterances. The two lead authors present contrasting views on whether legal and moral factors impel the implementation of the advance directive rejecting treatment or rather dictate life-sustaining medical intervention. Results: At this early stage of jurisprudence involving persons in advanced dementia, there can be no definitive resolution of the difficult legal/moral clash confronting decision makers. Some sources would conclude that persons are legally entitled to define precipitous mental decline and complete dependence on others as intolerably undignified and inconsistent with their self-defined life narrative. Other sources would be guided by humane respect for the contemporary well-being of a non-suffering patient, especially one making life-affirming utterances. Conclusion: Through the lens of this illuminating case and contrasting analyses, readers should better understand how clinicians should weigh advance directives against shifting care preferences subsequently articulated by persons with advanced dementia. Full article

Purpose: This study aims to provide a comprehensive and objective view to investigate whether the motives of strong financial managers to adopt an accounting conservatism strategy have significant effects on improving financial growth opportunities in the context of banks listed on the Saudi Stock Exchange, while knowing how this relationship is affected by litigation risks. Design/Methodology/Approach: Using data from Saudi financial databases, this study examines how litigation risk moderates the relationship between accounting conservatism and financial growth in Saudi listed banks. Basu’s (1997) model and accrual-based metrics measure conservatism, whereas assets, liabilities, and business age are used to measure financial growth. Litigation risk factors included previous lawsuits. Validity was ensured using fixed-effects regression and robustness tests. Findings: The study found that accounting conservatism has a mixed impact on financial growth, litigation risk moderates the relationship between conservatism and financial growth, and litigation risk has a positive impact on accounting conservatism. Practical Implications: Use a balanced strategy to maintain accounting conservatism, lower litigation risk while maintaining the accuracy of financial statements, take legal risk into account when evaluating the quality of financial reporting, increase transparency without impeding growth, create guidelines tailored to a particular bank, and fortify governance to reduce lawsuits while permitting long-term financial growth. Originality/Value: In order to bridge the gap between conservatism strategies and long-term financial stability in emerging economies, this study examines how managerial decisions in accounting conservatism affect the financial growth of Saudi banks, incorporating litigation risk as a moderating factor. It also contributes to financial policies, risk management, and regulations. Full article

Forested areas are defined as wooded regions characterized by dense vegetation, largely preserved natural ecosystem features, and availability for recreational use. These areas play a critical role in maintaining ecological balance and are increasingly utilized as preferred sites for various outdoor activities. However, the growing intensity of recreational activities in such sensitive ecosystems contributes to increased waste generation and poses significant threats to environmental sustainability. The objective of this study is to calculate the carbon footprint resulting from waste produced during recreational activities in forested areas of Lithuania, Turkey, and Morocco, and to identify innovative waste management strategies aimed at achieving clean and safe forest ecosystems. This study includes a comparison of Turkey, Lithuania, and Morocco. Quantitative data and carbon footprint calculations were conducted, while quantitative methods were also employed through semi-structured interviews with experts. Firstly, carbon footprint calculations were carried out based on the types and amounts of waste generated by participants. Subsequently, semi-structured interviews were conducted with experts and participants from all three countries to identify issues related to waste management and innovative waste management strategies. The carbon footprint resulting from waste generation was estimated to be 1517.26 kg in Turkey, 613.25 kg in Lithuania, and 735.68 kg in Morocco. Experts from Turkey, Lithuania, and Morocco have proposed innovative solutions for improving waste management systems in their respective countries. In Turkey, the predominant view emphasizes the need for increased use of digital tools, stricter enforcement measures, a rise in the number of personnel and waste bins, as well as the expansion of volunteer-based initiatives. In Lithuania, priority is given to educational and awareness-raising activities, updates to legal regulations, the placement of recycling bins, the development of infrastructure, and the promotion of environmentally friendly projects. In Morocco, it is highlighted that there is a need for stronger enforcement mechanisms, updated legal frameworks, increased staffing, more frequent waste collection, and the implementation of educational programs. Full article

Religious beliefs influence many behaviors and perspectives relevant to well-being and mental health. In Christianity, beliefs about how one attains salvation may be particularly relevant to psychology, but limited scholarship has considered cognitive aspects of religiosity. This study developed and evaluated a new measure of Beliefs about Salvation (BAS) that assesses affirmations of salvation (a) by God’s grace alone and (b) by God’s grace after human repentance/ordinances, as understood by different Christian denominations. We examined the association of the BAS with three measures of mental health and six measures of influences on religiosity. In a sample of 1556 predominantly members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and Protestant Christians, which traditionally hold distinct views about the roles of divine grace and human works/ordinances necessary for salvation, the BAS data demonstrated evidence of reliability and validity in exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses with two subscales, faith and works. Neither BAS subscale was significantly associated with the other variables measured in this study, except for religious legalism, which was negatively correlated with faith and positively correlated with works. Additional analyses indicated that six measures of influences on religiosity were moderately associated with one another and tended to be more strongly associated with mental health than religious involvement, with spiritual transcendence being the most strongly correlated with well-being. Psychological research can benefit from evaluating multiple aspects of religiosity, including inquiry about the psychological influence of specific religious beliefs. Full article

This approach to Hölderlin’s translation of Sophocles’ famous play modulates in significant ways the usual readings in which Antigone has become, over the centuries, an example of an early claim for natural law. Hölderlin’s insights inaugurate a new and innovative view that significantly affects this understanding. His version points to the authentically Greek legal aspect of Antigone’s position as an epicler daughter, claiming her dynastic prerogative to take over the palace and her father’s legacy. Hölderlin’s clues guide us to a reading that restores the tragic dilemma beyond the black-and-white Christian polarization of saintly Antigone and evil Creon and enhances both the heroine’s and Creon’s ambiguities in this rich and ironic text. Full article

Background: The United States has the highest number of immigrants in the world, with over 46 million foreign-born residents as of 2022. A growing number of migrants originate from Latin America, driven by factors such as economic instability, food insecurity, and crime. This study explores their experiences and perceptions regarding trust in the criminal justice system (CJS) in both their home countries and the United States. Methods: This study surveyed 500 migrants at a transitional institution in a U.S.–Mexico border city in the summer of 2023. The survey assessed confidence in law enforcement, immigration officers, courts, and government institutions using a 5-point Likert scale. Results: Migrants reported significantly higher confidence in the U.S. CJS compared to that of their home countries. Multivariate analysis revealed that satisfaction with border officials, documentation status, English proficiency, and health were positively associated with confidence in the U.S. CJS, while employment status, traveling with family, and fear of crime correlated with lower confidence. Conclusions: This study highlights the stark contrast in migrants’ confidence levels between their home countries and the U.S. criminal justice system. While migrants view the U.S. system as more legitimate, challenges such as fear of crime and legal uncertainties persist. Full article

The electrical installation of a ship includes the generation, transport and distribution of the generated electrical energy to the electrical consumers on board. In recent years, there have been many attempts to replace traditional auxiliary generators with renewable energy sources, in particular solar panels, as this is a highly developed technology on land. Accordingly, this paper analyzes the different energy requirements on board a merchant vessel and carries out a feasibility analysis. The feasibility analysis considers technical, economic and legal aspects. Sustainable aspects are analyzed too, due to their importance nowadays. It is verified that the use of solar panels is only technically feasible for a small part of the ship’s total consumption, as the area required by the panels to cover the total demand would exceed the available area of the ship. Therefore, the possibility of installing solar panels for the fire detection system only was analyzed. This is a technically and legally feasible solution, but not an economically viable one. However, from a sustainability point of view, which takes into account economic, social and environmental aspects, this proposal is appropriate. This study concludes that, while solar panels are not a viable solution for covering all energy needs on merchant ships, they can be used for specific systems such as the fire detection network or similar small consumers, albeit with economic limitations. These findings provide valuable insights for future research and practical implementations of renewable energy solutions in the maritime sector. Full article