Het recht om invloed uit te oefenen op de besteding van de door de bevolking opgebrachte middelen - het budgetrecht - is een van de oudste rechten van het Nederlandse parlement. Dit recht waarborgt... Show moreHet recht om invloed uit te oefenen op de besteding van de door de bevolking opgebrachte middelen - het budgetrecht - is een van de oudste rechten van het Nederlandse parlement. Dit recht waarborgt democratische betrokkenheid bij de besluitvorming over de begroting en maakt dat het parlement wezenlijke invloed kan uitoefenen op het regeringsbeleid. De afgelopen jaren is het budgetrecht echter onder druk komen te staan. Als gevolg van de eurocrisis zijn de Europese begrotingsregels aanzienlijk aangescherpt en krijgen de EU-instellingen steeds meer grip op de nationale begroting en de wijze waarop nationale middelen worden besteed. Dit is problematisch omdat de bestemming van op nationaal niveau opgehaalde middelen bij uitstek een nationale bevoegdheid is. En aan die beslissing wordt democratische legitimatie verleend door de betrokkenheid van het parlement. In dit proefschrift staat de vraag centraal wat de gevolgen zijn van het Europees economisch bestuur – alle regels en procedures op economisch en budgettair terrein in de EMU – voor het budgetrecht van het Nederlandse parlement: in hoeverre kan het parlement nog (wezenlijke)invloed uitoefenen op de besteding van de op nationaal niveau opgehaalde middelen en het (begrotings)beleid van de regering als de EU-instellingen steeds meer grip krijgen op de nationale begroting? Show less
Steeds vaker treffen concurrenten elkaar bij de bestuursrechter. Dat is niet zo vreemd. Besluiten van de overheid kunnen immers grote gevolgen hebben voor de concurrentiepositie van ondernemers.... Show moreSteeds vaker treffen concurrenten elkaar bij de bestuursrechter. Dat is niet zo vreemd. Besluiten van de overheid kunnen immers grote gevolgen hebben voor de concurrentiepositie van ondernemers. In dit boek staat de vraag centraal hoe in het Nederlandse bestuursrecht, dat van oudsher is gericht op de bescherming van burgers tegen de overheid, wordt omgegaan met de gevolgen van besluiten voor concurrentieverhoudingen. Het onderzoek behelst een diepgravende studie naar de bescherming van concurrentiebelangen in het bestuursrecht en is gericht op het identificeren van mogelijke knelpunten die zich daarbij voordoen. Drie knelpunten komen in het bijzonder aan bod: de toegang tot de bestuursrechtelijke procedure, het doelgebonden karakter van bestuursbevoegdheden (specialiteit) en het relativiteitsvereiste. Deze knelpunten worden beschreven, geanalyseerd en in Unierechtelijk perspectief geplaatst. Aan het slot wordt een concreet voorstel gedaan om de bescherming van concurrentiebelangen in het bestuursrecht te verbeteren. Show less
This thesis examines the legal responsibility for human rights violations that may occur in the context of border control or return operations coordinated by the EU agency Frontex. Imagine,... Show moreThis thesis examines the legal responsibility for human rights violations that may occur in the context of border control or return operations coordinated by the EU agency Frontex. Imagine, for example, that during a border control operation at sea, a vessel forces a boat carrying migrants back to its place of origin, which may be in violation of the rights of persons on that boat. The operation is hosted by State A, coordinated and financed by Frontex, but the vessel in question is from State B. The contributions by State A, B, and by Frontex to the violation vary in nature and degree. But which contribution leads to legal responsibility? The thesis concludes that direct responsibility typically lies with the host state. In addition, participating states who contribute large assets and Frontex will often incur responsibility together with the host state, predominantly on the basis of their obligations to protect or supervise. However, the study also exposes just how difficult it may be for individuals to find a place for bringing complaints against violations of their human rights suffered at the EU’s external borders. This casts doubts on whether the current legal framework offers them an effective remedy. Show less
Looking for a global and corrective measure to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from international civil aviation has been facing legal obstacles. These obstacles took the form of conflicts of... Show moreLooking for a global and corrective measure to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from international civil aviation has been facing legal obstacles. These obstacles took the form of conflicts of norms linked to the general challenge of the interactions between international aviation law, climate change law and the law of the European Union. Using evolutionary interpretation of the Chicago Convention in order to reconcile norms of substantive and institutional nature emerged as the best solution. However, this method perpetuates legal uncertainty and poses the general challenge of flexibly and elasticity of the Chicago Convention in response to the climate change challenge. This study examines the above mentioned issues of interactions between legal orders and provides recommendations to restore legal certainty needed to ensure sustainable development of international civil aviation. More specifically, this study reveals the underestimated relevance of the ongoing distinction between the legal regimes of air navigation and international air transport, which is a key legal element in the search for a global and corrective solution to the impact of international civil aviation on climate change. Show less
Travel by air for persons with disabilities (PWDs) can be challenging. Their problems range from physical barriers in airports and aircraft to inaccessible information, extra fees for services,... Show moreTravel by air for persons with disabilities (PWDs) can be challenging. Their problems range from physical barriers in airports and aircraft to inaccessible information, extra fees for services, insufficient compensation for their mobility aids and different rules and practices among air carriers. This study explores issues facing PWDs from a legal perspective. The aim of this study is to balance the rights of PWDs with the duties of States, airport operators and air carriers. In light of this, multilevel legislations - namely international, regional and national rules from human rights law and aviation law - are compared, contrasted and analyzed. The study is primarily focused on access to air travel and remedial measures, for their lack of equal access for PWDs and for discrimination on the basis of disability. Suggestions have been addressed to the International Civil Aviation Organization, the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and to States. All parties should ensure that accessibility standards on air travel, and an interpretation of remedial measures, are consistently applied. Show less
Today, virtually every country in the world has a written constitution that contains a special amendment procedure. These procedures are designed to regulate constitutional change. However, formal... Show moreToday, virtually every country in the world has a written constitution that contains a special amendment procedure. These procedures are designed to regulate constitutional change. However, formal constitutional amendment is not the only way in which constitutional norms change, and in some systems not even the most important. To the contrary, it appears to be more common for constitutional norms to adjust to changing circumstances and demands through alternative, ‘informal’ processes of change.Key questions, central to this dissertation, are: how should we understand and identify constitutional change that takes place without prior formal constitutional amendment? Why do significant constitutional developments sometimes occur without new constitutional writing? And are alternative mechanisms of constitutional change capable of functionally substituting formal constitutional amendment mechanisms?Examining and comparing topical cases from Japan, the United States and Germany, this dissertation not only sheds new light on questions regarding the phenomenon of informal constitutional change itself, it also compels us to rethink our ideas about how the realms of law and politics relate to one another across time. Exploring the important – yet understudied – phenomenon of informal constitutional change is particularly relevant at a time when the context in which constitutional norms are embedded is changing more rapidly than ever. Show less
This study focuses on legal and normative principles of the transition from armed conflict to peace, often called jus post bellum. Jus post bellum is a phrase frequently used without definition,... Show moreThis study focuses on legal and normative principles of the transition from armed conflict to peace, often called jus post bellum. Jus post bellum is a phrase frequently used without definition, or with little understanding that others may use the term to mean something else. It is almost never used with anything approaching a full exposition of the intellectual history upon which it is built. Before recent scholarship, the laws and principles that constitute the jus post bellum were rarely expounded. This study helps to consolidate a firmer theoretical grounding for the term, as well as a clearer intellectual history and analysis of its content. Jus post bellum remains comparatively under-theorized, and frequently referenced without realizing that many authors be talking past each other, meaning different things while using the same term. The author’s hope for the thesis is not only to help clarify the debate over the term, but also to move the consensus towards a hybrid functional approach to jus post bellum, that is, to define an approach to this area of law that focuses on the goal of achieving a just and sustainable peace rather than a mere discussion of law that applies during early peace. Show less
In het EVRM vinden we expliciete procedurele rechten als het recht op een eerlijk proces (artikel 6) en het recht op een effectief rechtsmiddel (artikel 13). Steeds vaker ontleent het EHRM ook... Show moreIn het EVRM vinden we expliciete procedurele rechten als het recht op een eerlijk proces (artikel 6) en het recht op een effectief rechtsmiddel (artikel 13). Steeds vaker ontleent het EHRM ook procedurele waarborgen aan de verdragsrechten die op het eerste gezicht materieel van aard zijn. Het is van groot belang om op de hoogte te zijn van deze extra verplichtingen. In dit proefschrift worden de procedurele positieve verplichtingen volgend uit het recht op leven (artikel 2), het folterverbod (artikel 3), het recht op privé- en familieleven (artikel 8) en het eigendomsrecht (artikel 1 EP) in kaart gebracht. De nadruk ligt op de verplichtingen voor het (bijzonder) bestuursrecht. Bovendien wordt in deze studie gekeken in hoeverre de procedurele verplichtingen volgend uit deze materiële EVRM-rechten van toegevoegde waarde zijn ten opzichte van de procedurele eisen van de artikelen 6 en 13 EVRM. Daarnaast wordt in deze studie bezien of uit de toetsingspraktijk van het EHRM zelf nadere (indirecte) procedurele verplichtingen zijn af te leiden die in nationale procedures in acht moeten worden genomen. Dit onderzoek levert handvatten op die de nationale autoriteiten (bestuur en rechter) beter in staat stellen om EVRM-conforme nationale procedures in te richten en zo EVRM-schendingen te voorkomen. Show less
In the latest twenty years we have witnessed an exponential proliferation of international commissions of inquiry mandated to investigate serious violations of international law. However, the... Show moreIn the latest twenty years we have witnessed an exponential proliferation of international commissions of inquiry mandated to investigate serious violations of international law. However, the inquiry tool has been originally institutionalised at the beginning of the 20th century as mean of preventive diplomacy aimed at stating the facts for dispute settlement purposes. Since then inquiries have significantly evolved into mechanisms that denounce and shed light on serious violations of international law in order to provoke a response by the international community. What are the underlying causes of this new role and of the recent surge of inquiry commissions? Should commissions of inquiry be viewed as merely fact-finders or as law-applicable/adjudication bodies? Should their tasks be confined to finding the facts or may they perform more dynamic and political roles such as raising alert and provoking reactions? What (arguably) should be the role of commissions of inquiry in the criminal accountability process? These and other questions are the core of this academic contribution which, through a comprehensive analysis of the work and practice of commissions of inquiry, aims to shed more light on a topic that has increasingly become the focus of intense debate among academics, practitioners and international decision-makers. Show less
The main purpose of this research project is to inquire into the emerging civil dimension of international criminal law which, in contrast to the criminal dimension, focuses on reparation for... Show moreThe main purpose of this research project is to inquire into the emerging civil dimension of international criminal law which, in contrast to the criminal dimension, focuses on reparation for victims both at national and international levels. The ultimate goal of this project is to address how international criminal justice should develop in relation to civil redress for victims of international crimes. For this purpose, this study examines, compares and contrasts three analytical frameworks for the adjudication of the civil dimensions of international crimes. The analysis starts the first framework from a theoretical and conceptual discussion of theories of justice grounding the right of victims to reparation juxtaposed with the development of a duty of reparation imposed directly on individuals. I address the relationship between punishment and reparation and their impact on victims, offenders and societies in general, in a theoretical perspective. It then utilizes case studies at the international and national level, as well as the use of administrative mechanisms to discuss the operationalization of reparations for international crimes. Show less
This research investigates the application of competition law to abuse of dominant position in the software industry. The software industry is known as an innovation-driven market. It differs... Show moreThis research investigates the application of competition law to abuse of dominant position in the software industry. The software industry is known as an innovation-driven market. It differs substantially from traditional industries, which feature competition using low-priced products. Established competition law was formed in markets which featured price competition; applying it to an industry in which market players compete with innovative products challenges competition law enforcement. This research shows that when applying competition law to the software industry, although some traditional rules and criteria still apply, many are adjusted due to the different industrial characteristics. It shows that despite being widely applied, competition law assessment criteria and analysis approaches are subject to controversy. Show less
It is often said that international humanitarian law (IHL) “accounts for” military necessity, but its meaning and normative consequences have remained obscure. This thesis develops a theory... Show moreIt is often said that international humanitarian law (IHL) “accounts for” military necessity, but its meaning and normative consequences have remained obscure. This thesis develops a theory that offers a coherent explanation of the process through which IHL generates its rules. To planners, commanders and historians concerned with the effectiveness of fighting, military necessity embodies a truism that it is in each belligerent’s self-interest to maximise successes and minimise failures. To those concerned with articulating IHL standards of behaviour, military necessity offers weighty reasons for which the belligerent should be left at liberty to pursue necessities and avoid non-necessities – or to forgo opportunities and commit blunders at its own peril. To judges, observers and others concerned with IHL compliance, military necessity functions as a ground on which deviant conduct may sometimes be exempt from the main rule. In none of these contexts does military necessity obligate necessary acts or prohibit unnecessary ones. Rather, it permits any belligerent action. Military necessity’s normative indifference means that it never affirmatively conflicts with humanitarian considerations, despite suggestions to the contrary. It also invalidates the popular idea that conduct in conformity with positive IHL rules becomes unlawful if it lacks military necessity. Show less
Vermindering van regeldruk maakt al decennialang deel uit van het Nederlandse overheidsbeleid. Zowel op rijksniveau als op lokaal niveau hebben verschillende programma’s de revue gepasseerd om... Show moreVermindering van regeldruk maakt al decennialang deel uit van het Nederlandse overheidsbeleid. Zowel op rijksniveau als op lokaal niveau hebben verschillende programma’s de revue gepasseerd om het aantal regels terug te brengen, regels efficiënter te maken en het toezicht beter af te stemmen. De voortgangsrapportages van de overheid zeggen dat de aanpak succesvol is: deze zou het bedrijfsleven reeds miljarden aan besparingen hebben opgeleverd. Ondernemers zeggen daar echter weinig van te merken. Ook de Algemene Rekenkamer constateerde in 2006 dat de successen in de samenleving niet als zodanig voelbaar waren. In deze studie onderzoekt Esmeralda Vergeer het fenomeen regeldruk. Ze brengt in beeld hoe de regeldrukaanpak van de Nederlandse overheid zich in de loop der jaren ontwikkelde en hoe er in de wetenschap naar regeldruk wordt gekeken. Verschillende definities van regeldruk passeren de revue, maar geen ervan blijkt onomstreden. Vergeer richt zich op ondernemers en constateert dat zij een eigen, geheel nieuwe definitie toekennen aan regeldruk. Ze onderscheidt drie factoren die van invloed zijn op de ervaring van regeldruk: kosten, werkbaarheid en gepercipieerd nut. Het onderzoek biedt zo nieuwe inzichten om regeldruk voor ondernemers merkbaar te verminderen. Show less
