melton mowbray pork pies April 5, 2008
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedIf the EU’s Member States don’t object within the next 6 months, Melton Mowbray pork pies will only be able to be made near Melton Mowbray. The notice in the EU’s Official Journal describes some of the history of the pie:
From the middle of the eighteenth century seasonal foxhunters began to centre their hunting activities on the town of Melton Mowbray. During the autumn and winter months, pigs were slaughtered, pork pies were made. These pies were carried in the pockets of the hunt servants to be eaten as snacks as they moved the horses around the villages at the convenience of the wealthy foxhunter. These delicious simple peasant pies soon came to the notice of the hard riding fox hunter who then began to carry them in pouches and pockets to eat while involved in the chase.
These wealthy seasonal hunters took such a liking to the splendid pies that were served on their breakfast table that they expected them to be served at their London clubs. In 1831, Edward Adcock commenced exporting pork pies from Melton Mowbray to London using the daily Leeds to London stagecoach. So the commercialisation and promotion of the Melton Mowbray pork pie began.
Melton Mowbray has been producing these pies for a long time, although given that fox hunting was banned in the UK under the Hunting Act 2004, and the traditional pies are now sold in supermarkets, one wonders about the continuing relevance of the historical description. Melton Mowbray itself hasn’t changed as much as some other places over the last century or so:
the uk and the rome 1 regulation April 3, 2008
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedThe UK’s Ministry of Justice has published a consultation paper suggesting that changes to the proposed Rome I regulation (on applicable law) make it acceptable for the UK to opt in, and seeking views by June 25th, although the paper makes it clear that some people’s views are more desired than others’:
The consultation is open to everyone, but is particularly aimed at key stakeholders, especially those involved in the regular use of cross-border contracts such as participants in financial markets and international business contracting in the UK.
See also the Conflict of Laws blog entry.
presentations i wish i'd heard April 3, 2008
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedThis one by Richard Bartle. There are some provocative comments about law and mmos. For example, looking back from 2018, he says:
The main legal issues that brought down mmos were:
— Applying the laws wrongly
— Unfair contract laws
— Intellectual property laws
— Gambling/gaming laws
— Anti-Money-laundering laws
— Taxation laws
— Mad patent laws
And there are details. Unsurprisingly, law isn’t the only topic on which he makes provocative comments…..
Seen via Raph Koster.
avatars in congress April 2, 2008
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedThe House Committee on Energy and Commerce subcommittee on telecommunications and the internet held a hearing on Online Virtual Worlds: Applications and Avatars in a User-Generated Medium yesterday (april fools’ day) while Stagecoach Island was trying to persuade people that they could send smells through the internet. Phillip Rosedale of Second Life reassured the committee that:
Because there are a variety of conflicting gambling laws around the world, we chose last year to ban games of chance in Second Life. Residents are not permitted to operate casinos taking “virtual currency”on games such as Baccarat, Blackjack, Keno, Roulette, Pachinko, Gow, Poker, and any other game, new or old, that relies on chance. This policy also prohibits sports betting. Our “G-team”actively searches for such activities, and where we discover gambling, we remove all related objects from the in-world environment. We take escalated measures against egregious or repeat offenders, including suspension from Second Life.
Seen via Terranova where Greg Lastowka and Robert Bloomfield noted the focus on SL.
regulatory anachronisms? March 31, 2008
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedWhy does the antiquated term blueprint feature in the title of a document which purports to be about regulatory modernization?
financial regulation reform March 31, 2008
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedAnnouncing a hodge-podge of proposals for financial regulation in the US today (the full report is here), which grew out of the concerns about US market competitiveness post Sarbanes-Oxley, Henry Paulson said:
As recent events have demonstrated, investor protection and market stability are critical elements of competitiveness. Far from being at odds with one another, they are mutually reinforcing.
But as part of the short term planning involves eliminating the OTS (which last August proposed a new approach to dealing with unfair or deceptive acts or practices (see e.g. the objections of the New York Bankers Association)) and transferring its functions to the OCC which was the favoured regulator for banks trying to avoid state predatory lending regulation, this looks as though the competitiveness focus means helping financial firms rather than their customers. And combining the CFTC and the SEC – which seems to be designed to emphasise the CFTC’s approach to regulation – is also designed to be friendly to firms. Competitiveness is often code for getting rid of rules. On the other hand there are rules which don’t do much other than impede useful competition.
Longer term there is a (triple peaks?) model which:
holistically addresses the inadequacies of the current functional regulatory system… An objectives-based regulatory approach best represents the optimal regulatory structure for the future. The structure will consist of a market stability regulator, a prudential regulator and a business conduct regulator with a focus on consumer protection.
Recations are mixed, for example, over the weekend, SIFMA said non-committally that the plan was thoughtful and sweeping. The Financial Services Roundtable is more enthusiastic and has applauded the proposals.
fsa post northern rock recommendations March 26, 2008
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedThe FSA published some sections of its report on Northern Rock today, including its 7 high level recommendations for the future supervision of “high impact” firms:
– FSA senior management to have increased engagement with high impact firms;
– FSA to increase the rigour of its day to day supervision;
– FSA to increase its focus on prudential supervision, including liquidity and stress testing;
– FSA to improve its use of information and intelligence in its supervision;
– FSA to improve the quality and resourcing of its financial and sectoral analysis;
– FSA to strengthen supervisory resources; and
– FSA senior management to increase the level of oversight of firms’ supervision.
The FSA management response describes some of the ways in which the FSA is addressing the issues. The “profile of prudential risk management and business analysis in the FSA will be enhanced” by turning the risk review department into a division. However:
Our supervisory framework is not designed to ensure that any given institution cannot fail. Rather, it remains a balance between seeking to mitigate risk, particularly to consumers and market stability, while fostering innovation and competition (which by definition involve risk).
All of which just seems to raise more questions.
lobbying and experts in the eu March 25, 2008
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedALTER-EU, the Alliance for Lobbying Transparency and Ethics Regulation in the European Union, has published a very critical report on the EU’s use of expert groups.
The report makes the following recommendations:
The European Commission ought to reform the mechanisms by which it accesses expertise. It should ensure such mechanisms are both transparent and operate fairly. For the latter to be the case, different points of view must be balanced against one another where impartial scientific advice is sought in an atmosphere immune from corporate capture. Taking the following steps in relation to the Expert Groups would be a long overdue move in this direction:
1.Disclosure of Expert Group membership and key documents;
2.Full transparency around the launch of new Expert Groups;
3.Open and fair processes around the application for and selection of membership;
4.Strong safeguards against privileged access and unbalanced composition of these groups;
5.Dissolution of all Expert Groups controlled by industry (or any other special interests);
6.A broad review on the composition of all Expert Groups by the Commission’s Secretariat General.
youtube and governmental authorities March 24, 2008
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedThe UK Government has been posting videos on youtube for a while now, and the Treasury now (for about a month) has its own youtube channel, almost as exciting as the one for 10 Downing Street. The whole initiative has (justifiably) garnered more criticism than praise. Perhaps it’s a Scottish thing – although David Miliband of the Foreign Office (which also has a channel) isn’t Scottish, Jim Murphy, the Minister for Europe, is. The Scottish Executive has a channel too. But they can’t keep up with the Royal Channel for viewers and they are not so gutsy as the EU which has some quite provocative content on its channel, such as this video on ending child poverty in Europe [previously linked video no longer available as of June 2023].
workshop on the regulation of the practice of law March 17, 2008
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedThe School of Law of the University of Miami, in cooperation with the Miami-Florida European Union Center of Excellence, a partnership with Florida International University, and the Jean Monnet Chair, cordially invite you to a workshop:
Law Practice in the European Union and the United States
Friday, April 4, 2008, 9:00am-11:00
(breakfast will be served at 8:00am )
Faculty Room, School of Law Library, 4th FloorChair: Caroline Bradley, University of Miami School of Law
John Flood, University of Westminster, United Kingdom
“Will there be fallout from Clementi? The global repercussions for the legal profession after the Legal Services Act 2007”Ramon Mullerat, KPMG Abogados/University of Barcelona Law School
“Different approaches of civil law and the common law lawyers in Europe and the United States, regarding litigation and arbitration”Comments: Robert Rosen, University of Miami School of Law
For reservations: Tara Lora tlora@law.miami.edu
Phone: 305 284 4210
For information on the EU Center:
Astrid Boening
ASTRIDBOENING1@aol.com