Juriste international - 2013-4

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Rassembler les avocats du monde ● Bringing Together the World’s Lawyers ● Reunir a los abogados del mundo

Union Internationale des Avocats

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Sommaire Table of contents Indice Thème principal des illustrations : Barcelone I Main picture theme: Barcelona I Tema principal de las ilustraciones: Barcelona

Editorial I 2 Editorial du Président 3 President’s Editorial 4 Editorial del Presidente 5 Message du Rédacteur en Chef 7 Message from the Chief Editor 8 Mensaje del Redactor Jefe 9

Actualités de l’UIA I UIA News I Novedades de la UIA I 10 The UIA in Istanbul 11 The UIA in Brunico (Italy) 13 The UIA in Warsaw 14 The UIA in Houston 15 The UIA in São Paulo 16 L’UIA à Istanbul 17 Congrès de Macao - Macau congress - Congreso de Macao 18 Inaugural Speech of the 58th President of the UIA 24 Secretary for Administration and Justice of the Macau Special Administrative Region 27 Secretary for Justice of Hong Kong 28 Corruption and the Lawyer 30 UIA Young Lawyers 31 A young “Macanese lawyer’s” experience 31

Droits de l’Homme et de la Défense I Human Rights and Protection of Lawyers I Derechos Humanos y de la Defensa I 34 The Shot Heard Around the World 35 Certifying the Certification 38 Rencontre avec Karim Lahidji, Président de la FIDH 41 The Promotion and Protection of Freedom of Expression and Privacy in the Digital Age 43 Guinée Équatoriale, une médiation menée avec succès 47

La Profession d'Avocat I The Legal Profession I La Abogacía I 48 ABS : les nouvelles frontières de la profession d'avocat 49 Le Cloud Computing 52 El alcance del derecho de defensa y la libertad de expresión de los abogados en el debate forense en España 56

Pratique du Droit I Legal Practice I Ejercicio de la Abogacía I 62 Intellectual Property (IPR) in China and Macau SAR 63 Data Breaches - From an EU Perspective 65 Singapore’s Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA) - An Overview 66 El embargo internacional de créditos en la UE 70 Asset Preservation - Japanese Regulations 74 Tribune Libre - Opinion - Tribuna Libre 78

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Editorial

Editorial du Président

I Stephen L. DREYFUSS

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Il est approprié que j’écrive mon premier éditorial pour le Juriste international dans un avion à destination de Hong Kong, où je dois représenter l’UIA à l’occasion de la Rentrée Judiciaire et assurer l’exposé introductif de la Table Ronde des Présidents. C’est la première fois que je reviens en Asie depuis ma prise de fonction, à l’issue de notre congrès extraordinaire de Macao, et ce voyage est un symbole de mon engagement en faveur du rôle considérable et unique que l’UIA doit jouer dans la profession juridique, partout dans le monde.

Ceux d’entre vous qui ont assisté à mon discours inaugural à Macao m’ont entendu expliquer que la singularité de l’UIA tient au fait qu’elle est la seule association internationale de professionnels du droit qui soit multilingue et multiculturelle. À la différence d’autres associations internationales de juristes, nous n’imposons pas la prééminence d’une langue ou d’une tradition juridique particulière – au contraire, nous accueillons le droit de tradition civiliste tout autant que la common law, et l’anglais tout autant que le français, l’espagnol et cinq autres langues officielles. Nous bénéficions autant de la participation active d’avocats originaires de pays en développement et de pays industrialisés, que de celle de praticiens exerçant seuls et au sein de petits cabinets comme de ceux issus des plus grandes structures internationales, et celle d’hommes et de femmes dont l’exercice professionnel couvre toutes les disciplines imaginables du droit. C’est là où réside le génie de l’UIA, et c’est la raison pour laquelle le fait d’en être membre et de s’y investir,est si enrichissant pour chacun d’entre nous.

Parce qu’aucune bonne action ne reste impunie, le fait que nous ne communiquions pas uniquement en anglais a parfois donné la fausse impression que nous étions une organisation française où l’anglais n’avait pas sa place.Tous nos membres savent bien que c’est inexact, mais ce mythe a freiné notre développement dans les régions où l’anglais est une lingua franca reliant les juristes issus d’une série de pays dont les langues maternelles ne sont pas parlées à l’extérieur de leur territoire, et qui ont recours à l’anglais pour communiquer par delà les frontières nationales et régionales.Au premier rang

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de ces régions se trouvent l’Asie et le MoyenOrient, et l’une des priorités de mon mandat est de tirer parti du fait que je suis un Président de langue maternelle anglaise pour véhiculer le message que les juristes de ces régions qui s’expriment en anglais trouveront, au sein de l’UIA, un lieu d’accueil unique et enrichissant.

Mais il ne faut pas se méprendre sur un point : le multilinguisme est un atout dont il faut profiter, pas un fardeau à imposer. L’UIA regroupe plus de 40 commissions et groupes de travail qui promeuvent le développement de la réflexion juridique dans tous les secteurs. Tous n’ont pas besoin de fonctionner dans toutes nos langues de travail (anglais, français et espagnol). Selon le profil de ses membres et les aptitudes linguistiques de ses intervenants, une commission peut être amenée à travailler dans une seule, voire deux, des langues de travail. Il se peut que certaines commissions soient en mesure de fonctionner dans plus de langues que d’autres, et nous ne voulons surtout pas gêner leur travail en les obligeant à traduire tout ce qui s’y dit dans chacune de nos langues. Une telle démarche serait contreproductive, dans la mesure où elle réduirait, au lieu de l’accroître, le bénéfice que chaque membre retire d’un programme donné.

Mais l’UIA, dans sa globalité, est résolument multilingue – et ce multilinguisme s’exprime tout aussi bien dans un large choix de programmes menés dans une grande variété de langues,que dans l’exigence que chaque programme soit traduit dans chaque langue.

souhaite que nous assumions ce rôle dans la plus large mesure. À Hong Kong, j’ai partagé la Table Ronde des Présidents les préoccupations que j’ai exprimées à Macao, selon lesquelles les avocats communiquent mal sur les enjeux de notre action.

Quel que soit notre pays d’origine, un trop grand nombre de nos concitoyens semble ne pas comprendre la contribution fondamentale des avocats à la protection de l’État de droit – sans lequel la démocratie ne peut résister très longtemps. Nous donnons trop souvent l’impression de chercher à obtenir des privilèges particuliers pour nous-mêmes, quand, en réalité, ces « privilèges » que nous réclamons – le secret professionnel, l’indépendance des avocats et des juges vis-à-vis du pouvoir politique et le maintien de normes éthiques élevées – profitent principalement, non pas aux avocats, mais aux citoyens, entreprises, immigrants, syndicats et autres membres de la société civile que nous avons la charge de représenter.

Si nos concitoyens comprenaient et appréciaient la valeur de ce principe fondamental, ils œuvreraient pour que toute atteinte aux droits des avocats par les gouvernements soit politiquement intenable – parce qu’une telle atteinte entame parallèlement les droits de chacun des membres de la société civile, ce qui est le premier pas vers la tyrannie.

En bref, le multilinguisme de l’UIA n’a rien d’un diktat politiquement correct que nous imposons à nos membres, mais constitue plutôt un avantage unique auquel nous leur donnons accès, afin que chacun puisse choisir de participer aux programmes présentant le plus grand intérêt professionnel. Contrairement à d’autres organisations, vous avez votre place au sein de l’UIA si vous ne parlez pas anglais – mais vous y avez également votre place si vous le parlez.

Par conséquent, notre mission en tant qu’association internationale d’avocats, quelle que soit la langue que nous parlons, l’endroit où nous vivons, ou la taille de la structure dans laquelle nous exerçons, consiste à diffuser ce message : raconter notre histoire de manière à faire comprendre à nos concitoyens que les juristes sont là pour protéger la société, pas pour l’exploiter. Il est temps pour nous tous de nous élever contre la démagogie facile des gouvernements qui veulent affaiblir les juristes afin d’affaiblir leur propre peuple – et c’est ce que je compte faire en tant que votre Président.

J’invite chacun d’entre vous à se joindre à moi dans cette mission essentielle et noble.

Cette universalité naturelle confère à l’UIA un rôle unique sur la scène juridique internationale et je

Stephen L. DREYFUSS Président de l’UIA

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President’s Editorial

I Stephen L. DREYFUSS It is fitting that I am writing my first Juriste International editorial as UIA President on a plane to Hong Kong, where I will represent the UIA at the Opening of the Legal Year and make the opening presentation to the Presidents’ Roundtable there.This is my first trip back to Asia after taking office as UIA President at the end of our extraordinary Congress in Macau, and it symbolizes my commitment to the proposition that the UIA has a significant and unique role to play in the legal profession everywhere in the world.

Those of you who attended my inaugural speech in Macau heard me say that what makes the UIA unique is that we are the only multilingual and multicultural international association of lawyers.

Unlike other international lawyers’ associations, we do not impose the dominance of any particular language or legal tradition – on the contrary, we embrace the civil law as well as the common law, and English as well as French, Spanish and five more official languages.We enjoy the active participation of lawyers from the developing world as well as from the developed world, of sole practitioners and lawyers from small firms as well as those from the largest multinationals, and of men and women whose practices embrace every conceivable legal specialty.This is the genius of the UIA, and this is why UIA membership and active participation is so valuable for all of us.

Because no good deed goes unpunished, the fact that we do not communicate only in English has sometimes given rise to the misimpression that we are a French organisation where English has no place. All of our members know this is untrue, but this myth has inhibited our development in those regions of the world where English is the most common second language, a lingua franca linking lawyers from a range of countries whose native languages are not spoken outside their borders and who use English to communicate across national and regional frontiers. Chief among those regions are Asia and the Middle East, and one of the

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priorities of my presidency is to take advantage of the fact that I am a UIA President whose native language is English to communicate the message that lawyers from these regions who speak English will find a unique and enriching home within the UIA. But there should be no mistake about one thing: multilingualism is an advantage to be enjoyed, not a burden or a handicap to be imposed.The UIA has more than 40 commissions and working groups that advance the development of legal thought in every significant legal specialty. Not every one of them needs to operate in all three of our working languages (English, French and Spanish). Depending on the composition of a commission’s membership and the language skills of its active participants, a given commission may sometimes operate in only one, or perhaps two, of the working languages. Some commissions may be able to work in more languages than others, and the last thing we want to do is to inhibit the work of any commission by imposing on it the obligation to translate everything it does and every word that is spoken into each of our languages.That would make no sense and would actually be counterproductive, since it would inhibit rather than enhance the benefit that each member gains from a given program. But the UIA as a whole is resolutely multilingual – and that multilingualism is as well expressed by a variety of programs in a variety of languages as it is by requiring that each program be translated into every language.

during my presidency I intend for us to fulfill that role to the fullest. In Hong Kong, I shared with the Presidents’ Roundtable the concerns I expressed in Macau that as a profession, we lawyers are doing a poor job of communicating what we are about. No matter what country we come from, too many of our fellow citizens apparently do not understand the crucial contribution lawyers make to the protection of the rule of law – without which no democracy can long endure. Instead, too often we give the impression of seeking special privileges for ourselves, when in reality the benefit of the “privileges” we seek – professional secrecy, independence of lawyers and judges from political interference, and the maintenance of high ethical standards in our profession – is principally enjoyed not by lawyers, but by the citizens, corporations, immigrants, labor unions and other members of civil society whom lawyers represent.

If our fellow citizens understood and appreciated the value of this fundamental principle, they would make it politically untenable for governments and public officials to infringe on lawyers’ rights – because infringing on lawyers’ rights simultaneously erodes the rights of every member of civil society, and that is the first step on the road to tyranny.

In short, multilingualism in the UIA is not some tyrannical political correctness that we impose on our members, but rather a unique benefit that we make available to them so that each member can choose to participate in programs that will bring him or her the most professional value.

Unlike some other organisations, there is a place for you in the UIA if you don’t speak English – but there is also a place for you in the UIA if you do.

So our task as lawyers and as international associations of lawyers, no matter what language we speak, where we live or what size law firm we are in, is to spread that message: to tell our story in a way that will make our fellow citizens understand that lawyers exist to protect society, not to exploit it. It is time for all of us to stand up against the facile demagoguery of governments who want to suppress lawyers in order to suppress their own people – and that is what I intend to do throughout my term as your President. I invite each of you to join me in this crucial, and noble, task.

This natural universality gives the UIA a unique role to play on the international legal scene, and

Stephen L. DREYFUSS UIA President

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Editorial del Presidente

I Stephen L. DREYFUSS Escribo mi primera editorial del Juriste International como Presidente de la UIA precisamente durante un vuelo a Hong Kong, donde representaré a la UIA en el “Opening of the Legal Year” y realizaré la presentación inaugural en la Mesa Redonda de Presidentes. Es mi primer viaje de regreso a Asia después de asumir mi cargo como Presidente de la UIA al término de nuestro extraordinario congreso en Macao,y simboliza mi compromiso con la idea de que la UIA tiene un papel importante y único que desempeñar en la abogacía en todo el mundo.

Aquellos de ustedes que escucharon mi discurso inaugural en Macao, me oirían decir que lo que hace única a la UIA es que somos la única asociación internacional de abogados plurilingüe y multicultural.

A diferencia de otras asociaciones internacionales de abogados, no imponemos el dominio de un idioma o tradición jurídica concreto. Al contrario, abrazamos el derecho civil, así como el derecho común, y tanto el idioma inglés como el francés, el español y cinco idiomas oficiales más. Nos gusta que participen activamente abogados del mundo en vías de desarrollo, así como del mundo desarrollado, abogados que ejercen solos y en despachos pequeños, así como abogados de grandes multinacionales, y abogados y abogadas que ejercen cualquier especialidad jurídica imaginable. Ésta es la extraordinaria virtud de la UIA, y por eso nos enriquece tanto a todos ser miembros de la UIA y participar activamente en ella.

Pero,como reza el dicho,“el bien con el mal se paga”, y el hecho de que no comuniquemos sólo en inglés a veces ha dado la impresión equivocada de que somos una organización francesa en la que el inglés no tiene cabida. Todos nuestros miembros saben que no es así, pero este mito ha inhibido nuestro desarrollo en aquellas regiones del mundo donde el inglés es el segundo idioma más habitual, una lingua franca que une a abogados de diversos países cuyos idiomas nativos no se hablan fuera de sus fronteras y que emplean el inglés para comunicarse más allá de sus fronteras nacionales y regionales. Las principales de estas regiones son Asia y el Medio Oriente, una de las prioridades de mi presidencia es aprovechar el hecho de que soy un

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Presidente de cuya lengua materna es el inglés para transmitir el mensaje de que los abogados de estas regiones que hablan inglés encontrarán en la UIA un lugar único y enriquecedor.

Pero no debemos equivocarnos en un sentido: el plurilingüismo es una ventaja de la que disfrutar, no una carga o un hándicap que imponer. La UIA tiene más de 40 comisiones y grupos de trabajo que hacen avanzar el desarrollo de la reflexión jurídica en todas las especialidades relevantes del derecho. No todos ellos deben trabajar en todos los tres idiomas de trabajo (inglés, francés y español). Según los miembros que compongan una comisión y las competencias lingüísticas de sus participantes activos, una comisión determinada puede trabajar a veces en sólo uno, o quizá dos, de los idiomas de trabajo. Unas comisiones podrán trabajar en más idiomas que otras, y lo último que queremos es inhibir el trabajo de ninguna comisión imponiéndole la obligación de traducir todo lo que haga y todas y cada una de las palabras pronunciadas en cada uno de nuestros idiomas de trabajo. No tendría sentido y, en realidad, sería contraproducente, ya que más que potenciar inhibiría el provecho que pueda sacar cada miembro de un programa determinado. Pero, en su conjunto, la UIA es decididamente plurilingüe, y ese plurilingüismo se manifiesta de hecho en una diversidad de programas y en una diversidad de idiomas, pues se exige que cada programa sea traducido a todos los idiomas.

En resumen, el plurilingüismo en la UIA no es una corrección política tiránica que impongamos a nuestros miembros, sino una ventaja única que ponemos a su disposición, de modo que cada miembro pueda decidir participar en los programas que le vayan a aportar el mayor valor profesional. A diferencia de algunas otras organizaciones, en la UIA hay un lugar para usted si no habla inglés, pero también hay un lugar para usted en la UIA si lo habla.

Esta universalidad natural le otorga a la UIA un papel único que desempeñar en la esfera jurídica internacional, y durante mi presidencia espero que cumplamos esa función al máximo. En Hong Kong, compartiré con la Mesa Redonda de Presidentes las

preocupaciones que ya expresé en Macao de que, como profesión, los abogados estamos haciendo muy poco por comunicar nuestra labor. Vengamos del país que vengamos, muchos de nuestros conciudadanos no comprenden, al parecer, la contribución crucial que realizamos los abogados a la protección del Estado de derecho, que sin democracia no puede perdurar mucho. En cambio, a menudo damos la impresión de buscar privilegios especiales para nosotros mismos, cuando en realidad del beneficio de los “privilegios” que perseguimos – secreto profesional, independencia de los abogados y jueces respecto de interferencias políticas,y el mantenimiento de una ética rigurosa en nuestra profesión – no sólo disfrutan los abogados, sino también los ciudadanos, las empresas, los inmigrantes, los sindicatos de trabajadores y otros miembros de la sociedad civil a los que representan los abogados.

Si nuestros conciudadanos comprendieran y apreciaran el valor de este principio fundamental, a los gobiernos y representantes públicos les resultaría políticamente insostenible infringir los derechos de los abogados; porque la infracción de los derechos de los abogados menoscaba simultáneamente los derechos de cada miembro de la sociedad civil, y ése es el primer paso hacia la tiranía.

Así que nuestro cometido como abogados y como asociación internacional de abogados – cualquiera que sea el idioma que hablemos, el lugar donde vivamos o la estructura del despacho en el que trabajemos – es difundir ese mensaje: contar nuestra historia de modo que nuestros conciudadanos comprendan que los abogados están ahí para proteger a la sociedad, no para explotarla.

Es hora de que todos nos levantemos contra la demagogia simplista de los gobiernos que quieren anular a los abogados para anular a sus propios ciudadanos; y eso es lo que pretendo hacer durante mi presidencia. Les invito a todos a sumarse a esta importante y noble tarea.

Stephen L. DREYFUSS Presidente de la UIA

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Message du Rédacteur en Chef Rassembler les avocats du monde

I Bénédicte QUERENET-HAHN L’actualité de 2013, en matière de cybersurveillance et de cyber-espionnage, a mis en évidence toute l’acuité des travaux accomplis par la commission en droits de l’Homme numérique de l’UIA. Les révélations d’Edward Snowden ont permis de vulgariser et de faire prendre conscience des opportunités, mais aussi des risques des Big Data.

Les Big Data, c’est-à-dire l’exploitation en temps réel d’un très grand nombre de données, de nature diverse (texte, image, contenu multimédia etc.), permet de dégager des corrélations entre plusieurs informations et d’en inférer des lois. Ainsi, Google Translate intègre de nombreuses pages de traduction pour déterminer la meilleure traduction d’un mot, compte tenu de son contexte. En se perfectionnant au moyen des données de traduction disponibles, Google Translate affine peu à peu ses traductions et se perfectionne sans cesse, à la différence de ses ancêtres, les programmes de traduction, qui ne comportaient que des instructions de traduction, insuffisantes pour prendre en compte la diversité de sens possibles d’un mot.

Vu sous cet angle, les Big Data offrent de formidables opportunités.Ainsi, dans le domaine de la recherche et du diagnostic médical, les Big Data permettent d’établir des corrélations entre certaines informations et d’en déduire un diagnostic, avec une forte probabilité d’exactitude.

Les possibilités de déduction et de prédiction offertes par les Big Data risquent à terme de modifier notre manière de penser. La recherche de la causalité et du pourquoi, consommatrice de temps, risque de se faire rapidement dépasser par les déductions produites par les Big Data, qui nous permettront de connaître une solution ou de prédire un résultat, sans nous donner la peine d’en rechercher le pourquoi. Certains spécialistes affirment aujourd’hui qu’il serait possible à un médecin, sur la foi de l’analyse de données, de décider d’une intervention chirurgicale, sans néanmoins en comprendre la raison.

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Evidemment, l’aide que peuvent apporter les Big Data dans la prédiction du comportement humain apparaît comme une chance. C’est néanmoins également une menace. Comment réagirons-nous en effet et quel usage ferons-nous des Big Data, lorsqu’elles permettront de prédire et d’identifier les individus potentiellement dangereux?

Parviendrons-nous à conserver intacte la présomption d’innocence? Cette question se pose d’autant plus que les spécialistes des Big Data sont unanimes: les données peuvent demeurer anonymes tant qu’elles sont rares. Dès qu’elles sont nombreuses,il est possible d’identifier les personnes qu’elles concernent. Il est donc illusoire, avec les Big Data, de conserver l’anonymat des données.

Les questions soulevées par l’utilisation et l’exploitation des données nécessitent donc une réflexion de fond. La protection de la vie privée et des libertés individuelles, à l’ère des Big Data, ne peut se limiter au fait de donner ou non son consentement à l’utilisation des données par l’opérateur qui les collecte. En effet, l’utilisation secondaire des données dans le cadre des Big Data n’a, dans la plupart des cas, pas encore été imaginée au moment de leur collecte et donc au moment où l’individu qui les communique donne son consentement à leur collecte et à leur utilisation.

Il est primordial que l’UIA contribue à la réflexion que suscitent la collecte, le traitement et le croisement des données personnelles et plus généralement les nouvelles technologies, en matière de droits de l’homme. C’est pourquoi nous consacrons une large place à ces sujets dans cette édition, en publiant les articles de Marc Gallardo sur les droits de l’homme numérique, d’Elisabeth Thole sur le projet de directive européenne sur la protection des données personnelles, du Dr Andreas Respondek sur la nouvelle législation adoptée récemment à Singapour en la matière, et la synthèse des travaux du Sénat International des Barreaux sur le cloud computing, par Francis Gervais.

Je ne peux terminer cet éditorial sans une pensée pour Nelson Mandela. De son œuvre, je retiens

plus particulièrement la commission de la vérité et de la réconciliation. Cette commission avait essentiellement pour mission d’établir la vérité sur les exactions commises durant l’Apartheid. Pour ce faire, les coupables se voyaient offrir l’amnistie, à la condition de révéler et de reconnaître publiquement leurs torts, en face de leurs victimes.

Ces dernières étaient invitées à témoigner publiquement des sévices qu’elles avaient subis.

De cette façon, la commission poursuivait l’objectif d’établir la vérité, d’entendre les victimes qui n’avaient, des années durant, pas eu droit à la parole, d’obtenir le repentir public des coupables et ainsi, par l’écoute mutuelle des bourreaux et victimes, de permettre d’apaiser leurs relations, voire de susciter le pardon et la réconciliation.

Même si son bilan reste controversé – mais comment aurait-il pu en être autrement, après tant de violences, de discriminations et de crimes? –, l’idée n’en demeure pas moins remarquable et continue d’inspirer la justice dite « transitionnelle » de nombreux pays.

En initiant la commission de la vérité et de la réconciliation, Nelson Mandela poursuivait son objectif de « bâtir une société dans laquelle tous les sudafricains, blancs ou noirs, pourront marcher la tête haute sans aucune crainte au fond de leur cœur, assurés de leur droit inaliénable à la dignité humaine – une nation arc-en-ciel en paix avec elle-même et avec le monde » (extrait du discours d’investiture de Nelson Mandela du 27 avril 1994). En 2001, Nelson Mandela rappelait la mission qu’il s’était imparti à sa sortie de prison: « libérer à la fois l’opprimé et l’oppresseur », expliquant que l’oppresseur « qui prive un autre homme de sa liberté est prisonnier de sa haine, il est enfermé derrière les barreaux de ses préjugés et de l’étroitesse d’esprit ».

En hommage à Nelson Mandela, conservons la mémoire vive de ce plaidoyer pour la paix, en le transposant, chaque fois que nous le pouvons, dans notre exercice professionnel.

Bénédicte QUERENET-HAHN Rédacteur en Chef - Juriste International

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Message from the Chief Editor Bringing the world's lawyers together

I Bénédicte QUERENET-HAHN The news in 2013, with regard to cyberSurveillance and cyber-Espionage, has thrown light on the acumen with which the UIA’s Commission on the Rights of the Digital Person person has worked.

Edward Snowden’s revelations made it possible to popularise and make people aware of the opportunities, but also the risks involved with Big Data. Big Data, i.e. the use in real time of a vast number of data of different kinds (text, images, multimedia content, etc.) makes it possible to deduce correlations between different sets of information and to infer laws from them. Hence, Google Translate incorporates a number of pages of translation in order to determine the best translation of a word, taking its context into account. By improving the quality of its translations through the translation data available, Google Translate gradually refines its translations and constantly improves them, unlike its ancestors – translation programmes that only contained translation instructions that were not enough to take the diverse possible meanings of a word into account.

Seen from this angle, Big Data offers wonderful opportunities. Hence, in the field of medical research and diagnosis, Big Data makes it possible to establish correlations between certain information sets and to deduce a diagnosis from them, with a strong probability of accuracy.

The possibility of deducing and predicting offered

by Big Data is likely to change our way of thinking over time. The search for causality – the ‘why’ behind things, which takes up so much time, is likely to soon be surpassed by deductions produced by Big Data, which would enable us to find a solution or predict a result without it being necessary for us to take the trouble of searching for the ‘why’ behind the problem. In fact, there are some specialists today who assert that it would be possible for a doctor to decide to go in for surgery, based on faith on data analysis, without really understanding the reason why.

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Obviously, the help Big Data can provide in predicting human behaviour seems to be a wonderful opportunity. However, it is also a threat.

How would we react and how would we use Big Data, when it makes it possible to predict and identify potentially dangerous individuals? Will we manage to ensure that the principle of the presumption of innocence remains sacrosanct?

This question is all the more important since Big Data specialists unanimously hold that data can remain anonymous as long as it is scarce.As soon as substantial data is available, it is possible to identify the persons concerned. It would therefore be illusory to believe that the anonymity of data could be safeguarded once Big Data is available.

The questions raised by the use of data therefore call for in-depth reflection. The protection of privacy and individual freedoms in the era of Big Data cannot be limited to the operator who gathers the data merely granting or refusing consent for its use. In fact, in most cases, the secondary use of data within the framework of Big Data had not even been imagined at the time the data was gathered and, therefore, at the time the individual communicating the data had consented to it being gathered and used.

It is therefore essential for the UIA to contribute to the thinking on issues related to the collection, processing and cross-referencing of personal data and, more generally, new technologies, in the area of human rights. That is why we are devoting significant space to these subjects in this edition by publishing articles by Marc Gallardo on the rights of the digital person, by Elisabeth Thole on the draft European directive on the protection of personal data, by Dr. Andreas Respondek on the new legislation adopted recently in Singapore in this area and the summary of the International Bar Leaders’ Senate’s work on cloud computing by Francis Gervais.

I cannot end this editorial without a few words about Nelson Mandela. Of all his work, what has especially remained in my mind is his Truth and Reconciliation Commission. In fact, the

Commission essentially sought to establish the truth about the abuses perpetrated during Apartheid. To do so, the guilty were offered amnesty as long as they publicly revealed and acknowledged the wrongs they had committed vis-à-vis their victims. The latter were invited to publicly testify to the ill-treatment they had suffered.

Consequently, the Commission pursued the objective of establishing the truth, listening to the victims who, for years, were deprived of their right to speech, obtaining public repentance from the guilty and, thereby, through a process in which the torturers and the victims heard each other out, made it possible to instil peace in their relations, and even lead to pardon and reconciliation.

Although its final outcome may remain controversial – and how could it be anything else, after so much violence, discrimination and crime – the idea is no less remarkable and continues to inspire the so-called “transitional” justice in many countries.

By initiating the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, Nelson Mandela pursued his objective of “building a society in which all South Africans, both black and white, will be able to walk tall, without any fear in their hearts, assured of their inalienable right to human dignity – a rainbow nation at peace with itself and the world” (extract from Nelson Mandela’s inaugural speech on 27 April 1994). In 2001, Nelson Mandela recalled the mission that he had taken on when he had walked out of prison: “the oppressor must be liberated just as surely as the oppressed”, explaining that the oppressor “who takes away another man’s freedom is a prisoner of hatred, he is locked behind the bars of prejudice and narrow-mindedness”.

In homage to Nelson Mandela, let us ensure that his plea for peace lives on in our memory by transposing it in our professional practice whenever possible.

Bénédicte QUERENET-HAHN Chief Editor - Juriste International

4 ■ 2013 I Reunir a los abogados del mundo

Mensaje del Redactor Jefe Reunir a los abogados del mundo

I Bénédicte QUERENET-HAHN La actualidad de 2013, en materia de cibervigilancia y ciberespionaje ha puesto de manifiesto toda la agudeza de los trabajos realizados por la comisión sobre derechos de la persona digital de la UIA. Las revelaciones de Edward Snowden han permitido popularizar y han dado a conocer las oportunidades, así como los riesgos de los Big Data.. Los Big Data., es decir,la explotación en tiempo real de un grandísimo número de datos de diversa índole (textos, imágenes, contenido multimedia, etc.) permite establecer correlaciones entre varias informaciones y extraer de ellos leyes. Así, por ejemplo, Google Translate integra numerosas páginas de traducción para establecer cuál es la mejor traducción de una palabra según su contexto. Google Translate se perfecciona constantemente, para lo cual utiliza los datos de traducción disponibles con el fin de ir afinando poco a poco sus traducciones a diferencia de sus antecesores, los programas de traducción, que contenían simplemente instrucciones de traducción, insuficientes como para tener en cuenta la diversidad de sentidos posibles de una misma palabra.

Visto desde este ángulo, los Big Data. presentan magníficas oportunidades. Así, en el ámbito de la investigación y el diagnóstico médico, los Big Data. permiten establecer correlaciones entre determinadas informaciones y deducir un diagnóstico, con una fuerte probabilidad de exactitud.

Las posibilidades de deducción y predicción que ofrecen los Big Data.pueden llegar a modificar al final nuestro modo de pensar. La búsqueda de la causalidad y del por qué, que tanto tiempo llevan, pueden ser rápidamente superadas por las deducciones que producen los Big Data., que nos permitirán conocer una solución o predecir un resultado, sin que tengamos que buscar el por qué.

Algunos especialistas afirman hoy que a un médico le resultaría posible decidir una intervención quirúrgica basándose en el análisis de datos, aun sin comprender el motivo.

Evidentemente, la ayuda que pueden prestar los Big

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Data. para la predicción del comportamiento humano aparece como una oportunidad. Pero presenta también una amenaza. ¿Cómo reaccionaremos y qué uso haremos de los Big Data. cuando permitan predecir e identificar a los individuos potencialmente peligrosos? ¿Conseguiremos mantener intacta la presunción de inocencia? Esta pregunta se plantea sobre todo porque los especialistas en Big Data. son unánimes: los datos pueden permanecer en el anonimato mientras sean escasos. Pero en cuanto son numerosos, se puede identificar a las personas a las que conciernen.Así pues,con los Big Data.,conservar el anonimato de los datos es ilusorio.

Las cuestiones que plantean la utilización y la explotación de datos exigen, por lo tanto, una reflexión de fondo. En la era de los Big Data., la protección de la vida privada y de las libertades individuales no puede limitarse al hecho de que una persona dé o no su consentimiento para la utilización de los datos al operador que los recopila.

En efecto, todavía no se ha imaginado la utilización secundaria de los datos en el marco de los Big Data. en el momento de su recopilación y, por lo tanto, en el momento en que el individuo que los comunica da su consentimiento para su recopilación y utilización.

Es primordial que la UIA contribuya a la reflexión que suscitan la recopilación, el tratamiento y el cruce de los datos personales y, de manera más general, las nuevas tecnologías, en materia de derechos humanos. Este es el motivo por el cual en esta edición dedicamos un gran espacio a estos temas, con la publicación de los artículos de Marc Gallardo sobre los derechos de la persona digital, de Elisabeth Thole sobre el proyecto de directiva europea sobre la protección de datos personales, del Dr. Andreas Respondek sobre la nueva legislación aprobada recientemente en Singapur en la materia, y la síntesis de los trabajos del Senado Internacional de Colegios de Abogados sobre el “cloud computing”, por Francis Gervais.

No puedo terminar este editorial sin recordar a Nelson Mandela. De su obra, me quedo

especialmente con la comisión para la verdad y la reconciliación.

Esta comisión tenía fundamentalmente como misión establecer la verdad sobre las exacciones cometidas durante el Apartheid. Para eso, se aplicaba una amnistía a los culpables, a condición de que revelasen y reconociesen públicamente sus culpas ante sus víctimas.Estas últimas eran invitadas a dar testimonio públicamente de los malos tratos que habían sufrido.

De este modo, la comisión perseguía el objetivo de establecer la verdad, escuchar a las víctimas que durante años no tuvieron derecho a hablar, conseguir el arrepentimiento público de los culpables y así, mediante la escucha mutua de verdugos y víctimas, permitir que se apaciguasen sus relaciones, e incluso suscitar el perdón y la reconciliación.Aunque su balance sea controvertido – como no podía ser de otra manera después de tanta violencia, discriminaciones y crímenes –, la idea no es por ello menos relevante y sigue inspirando a la justicia denominada “transicional” de muchos países.

Con la pueseta en marcha la comisión para la verdad y la reconciliación, Nelson Mandela perseguía su objetivo de “construir una sociedad en la que todos los sudafricanos, blancos o negros, sean capaces de caminar con la frente en alto sin miedo en sus corazones, con la certeza de su derecho inalienable a la dignidad humana – una nación arcoíris en paz consigo misma y con el mundo” (extracto del discurso de investidura de Nelson Mandela de 27 de abril de 1994). En 2001, Nelson Mandela recordaba la misión que se había impuesto al salir de prisión:“liberar a la vez al oprimido y al opresor”, explicando que el opresor “que priva a otro hombre de su libertad es prisionero de su odio, está encerrado detrás de los barrotes de sus prejuicios y de su estrechez de miras”.

En homenaje a Nelson Mandela, conservemos la memoria viva de esta defensa de la paz, transponiéndola, siempre que podamos, a nuestro ejercicio profesional.

Bénédicte QUERENET-HAHN Redactor Jefe del Juriste International

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Actualités de l’UIA UIA News Novedades de la UIA

The UIA in Istanbul

I Hakan ÇINAR The UIA, held a seminar on Foreign Investment in & from Turkey, in Istanbul, on September 27 and September 28, 2013, at the Swissôtel The Bosphorus, which is a member of The Leading Hotels of The World and located in the heart of Istanbul.

On Thursday, September 26, a welcome cocktail took place in Karataş & Gültekin Law Firm’s premises, located by the sea, where the participants were fascinated by the magnificent Bosphorus view.

The seminar began on September 27, with Prof. Dr. Berin Ergin’s introductions of the esteemed participants, Prof. Dr. Metin Feyzioğlu, President of Turkish Bar Association and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ümit Kocasakal, President of Istanbul Bar Association. After the opening speeches, they gave their best regards to the UIA. The presidents mostly emphasized the infringements of law on the current lawsuit filed against the Istanbul Bar. The first presentation was carried out by Mr. Sefa Güven and Emrecan Doğan dually, in regards to the needs of the society and its connection with technology, societyadvancing investments, their financing models and legal infrastructure.

Mr. Michael Meyenburg, from Austria, gave an informative speech regarding the advancing investments, their financing models and legal infrastructure.

The third speech of the first session was conducted by Mr. Hakan Çınar. In the speech, issues such as the foreign direct investment (FDI) market in Turkey, direct foreign investment inflow, new legal updates on Turkish Law, tax exemptions, privisation movements were emphasized. Furthermore, the primary leading sectors were shown together with the statistics of foreign direct investment (FDI) in Turkey.

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After the coffee break, Mr. Pascal Petrel explained the FDI in Israel, Mr. Petrel underlined that unlike most countries, fewer taxes are collected from investors and that the liberal economic system, which protects investors, is regarded as one of the advantages of FDI in Israel.

Later on, Mr. Serhat Eskiyörük informed the participants regarding the current critical procedural issues and its effects in Turkey in regards to withdrawal from investment.

Following this speech, a lovely lunch was served while the participants interacted with each other, discussing and evaluating the first day session in the companionship of delicious Turkish food, in the Swissôtel restaurant.

In the second session, Federico Torzo presented the main legal and tax aspects, recent trends and developments of foreign investments into other countries and from other countries into Turkey.

Afterwards, Barbaros Karaahmet answered a lot of questions by carrying out an impressive presentation that informed the participants regarding the amount of FDI, which is $174.7 billion in US for the year of 2012, “the leading nations of FDI”, export – import index between US and Turkey, business entities for foreign investors, tax system, labour and immigration law issues.

Carlo Mastellone laid stress upon the legal framework and the reasons for relatively low

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r o f l l Ca s e l c i t ar L’équipe du Juriste International vous invite à devenir rédacteur!

Faites-nous parvenir vos propositions d’articles en français, anglais ou espagnol sur les sujets qui vous intéressent en matière de droits de l’Homme , de pratique générale du droit ou sur la profession d’avocat.

Juriste International invites you to become an author!

Send us your proposed articles in English, French or Spanish on a subject of your choice in the fields of human rights, substantive legal issues or the legal profession.

¡El equipo del Juriste International le invita a redactar un artículo!

Envíenos sus proposiciones de artículos en español, francés o inglés sobre la temática que le interesa en el ámbito de los derechos humanos, de la práctica general del derecho o relativo a la profesión de abogado.

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attractiveness of Italy in regards to FDI, commercial relationship and export – import index between Italy and Turkey.

Later on, Michael Meyenburg made a second presentation with respect to business investment in Austria with an EU perspective.

The coffee break between the sessions allowed the discussions to carry on interactively. After the break, Federico Torzo made a second presentation about the employment issues approaches when investing and/or divesting in Italy. He perfectly explained the employment contracts, the reasons for termination, and its procedure, the rights of the employees and the closure of a business as per the Italian legislation.

Following this speech, Mr. Mansur Pour Rafsendjani made a presentation concerning the Foreign Direct Investment from the German point of view. First, he underlined many intriguing facts about Germany concerning the population, the community and the state government. After acquainting the participants with this interesting information, he stated why Germany is one of the most significant EU member states and how this fact provides business safety for the investors. The taxation and social security system, brands and IP protection, export – import index of Germany and establishing business presence were also emphasized through the German perspective.

Mr. Miguel Torres’s speech concerned foreign (Turkish) investment in Spain. In this speech, he informed the participants that the Spanish companies invest more in Turkey, than Turkish companies invest in Spain and that the Turkish investment in Spain is regarded as being below the expectations of the Spanish authorities.

Eventually, the first day session ended after the brilliant presentation of Angus Forsyth, about investment vehicles from Turkey into Hong Kong and through Hong Kong into China.

After the first day session, a dinner was held with the attendance of the participants, in Adile Sultan Sarayı, which is a palace dedicated to reputable Adile Sultan, who was the sister of Sultan Abdülaziz, 32nd Ottoman Sultan.

The second day of the seminar consisted in three parts.The first section was moderated by

Prof. Dr. Berin Ergin. Mansur Pour Rafsendjani, first speaker of the second day session, gave a presentation concerning FDI in Ukraine. The second speech was made by Sandeep Singh, on the topic of Indian Law on FDI. Later on, the session carried on with the presentation of Pascal Petrel, entitled A Country Open to Foreign Investments and Talents, which finalized the first session.

After a coffee break, the second session of the day, moderated by Serhat Eskiyörük and consisting of two different topics, began.The first topic of the session concerned the investments in Russia, led by the speaker of the panel Mansur Pour Rafsendjani. The second presentation was carried out by Mr. Olufemi Sunmonu regarding the investments in Nigeria.

The last session of the day and the seminar, was moderated by Ms Yonca Fatma Yücel with the participation of two meritorious speakers. The first speaker, Mr. Philip Botha, informed the audience regarding the FDI in South Africa and the second speech related to the investments in Poland was given by Mr. Jacek Bak. Throughout this informative seminar, all of the speakers addressed the topic of Foreign Direct Investments in/from Turkey. By relaying significant facts and knowledge, each of the esteemed speakers enlightened the participants from all around the world, regarding FDI. Discussing foreign investments in/from Turkey gave participants an opportunity to analyse, compare and contrast the conditions of investment throughout the world. Specifically, the focus was on how Turkish investors and their lawyers approach investments in foreign businesses. Participants also had a chance to discuss possibilities for future mutual cooperation with each other.

The goal of this UIA seminar on Turkey’s role as a hub for international investments was twofold: providing information on how to invest in Turkey and give professionals a chance to present significant arguments on FDI. Hakan ÇINAR UIA Deputy Director of Legal Training Ankara,Turkey hakan@cinarlaw.com

4 ■ 2013 I Bringing Together the World's Lawyers

The UIA in Brunico (Italy)

FEB-MAR

23-01, 2014

Why you must come to the 2014 UIA Winter Seminar in Brunico I Francisco RAMOS ROMEU If you have never been to a UIA winter seminar, and there have been already eight, you cannot miss this one. It shall take place in Brunico (Italia!), from February 23 to March 1, 2014.The snow promises to be great.The food of course will be wonderful. The scientific program is spectacular. But, most important of all, a very enjoyable group of UIA lawyers will make for memorable times for sure.

For those of you that do not know about the format of this special UIA seminar, the only one of its type, let me say that it is the perfect combination of legal learning, exciting sports, and friendly networking. Scientific sessions are held in the early morning and late afternoon.

Fortunately, there are no simultaneous sessions going on so that at least you know where to go.And in between you can choose to work or go on the slopes. Not an easy choice for many UIA lawyers. And it lasts a week. If you have already been to one you know why, but otherwise you can come up for as many days as you want.

The title of the seminar this year is Legal Challenges for 2014, probably because it is going to be a challenge to retain all the good legal advice that you are going to get from your colleagues. We are going to hold sessions on a wide variety of topics, with lawyers from very different jurisdictions and experiences.

Monday: M&A involving emerging markets (China, India, African countries, etc.); Tuesday: Contract law, Sales of Goods, and Family Law; Wednesday: International Compliance and Real Estate; Thursday: Litigation (Libor claims, deferred prosecution agreements and civil litigation, etc.) and ADR; Friday: Administrative Law. Do you still want more? By the way, if you are willing to be a speaker, please contact the organizing committee as soon as possible before the panels are full.

The venue of the seminar is the Majestic Hotel.

Its name says everything you probably need to know. Let me add that it is a typical alpine 4*

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hotel, with an extensive breakfast buffet, it has a spa area also (I have never managed to use these facilities in prior seminars), and very attractive prices for the UIA. The ski resort is called Plan de Corones or Kronplatz, it boasts 116 km of ski slopes, and on top there is the “Concordia 2000”, a huge 2,2 meters bell that tolls for peace on a panoramic plateau with fantastic views. The closest international airports are Bolzano and Innsbruck, but larger nearby airports include Venice, Verona, Milan, Salzburg and Munich. There is also a train station with connections to and from Italy, Austria, and Switzerland.

If you want to know more about where you are going, it is interesting to note that Brunico is in the region of South Tyrol, that only became Italian after the First World War. 82% of the population actually speaks German, in spite of the fact that you are in Italy.This is why it is also called Brüneck. The town is in the Dolomites,

which was declared UNESCO World Heritage in 2009 because of its beautiful mountain landscapes, cliffs, rock pinnacles and deep valleys. And the controversial Italian film director Nanni Moretti, winner of the Cannes Golden Palm in 2001 with the movie La Stanza del figlio, was born there in 1953.

Whether you like skiing or not, if you love to be a UIA lawyer this is the place to meet and get to know closely interesting colleagues and share lively legal and non-legal discussions in an informal setting. The organizing committee is really looking forward to welcoming you in Brunico and sharing a very pleasant week with all of you.

Francisco RAMOS ROMEU Ramos & Arroyo Barcelona, Spain frr@rya.es

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The UIA in Warsaw

MARCH

14-15, 2014

Living with Competition Law Issues I Aleksander STAWICKI The UIA Competition Law Commission is delighted to invite you to join us in Warsaw for the “Living with competition law issues” seminar to be held on March 14-15, 2014.

Businesses understand the importance of implementing compliance programmes. But there is no “one size fits all” approach to building a compliance culture.

The seminar is organised under the honorary patronage of Dr Małgorzata KrasnodębskaTomkiel, the President of the Polish Office of Competition and Consumer Protection, in partnership with International League of Competition Law (LIDC), the National Bar Council (NBC) and the Warsaw Bar Council (WBC), with the support of MLex (as the media partner of the event) and the Polish Association of In-house Counsels.

During this panel, we will invite in-house counsels, external lawyers and business people to discuss what is required for compliance efforts to be really successful.We will also try to answer an important question: Is compliance the universal solution to all antitrust problems? Or rather – do we need to go further than this and, if yes, what else can be done to eliminate or at least minimise the antitrust risk?

This seminar will be a good opportunity to exchange and discuss views on the most important recent developments in competition law. The special focus of this event will be on practical aspects of competition law enforcement and guidelines for doing business in line with the law.

The seminar is structured around four main topics: Assessing Competition Law Risks – How to do it in practice?

Competition law is rarely “black and white”. In a significant number of situations, it is difficult to tell whether certain behaviour is risk free from the antitrust perspective. Even if we are able precisely to identify a risk, the big question remains – how to determine the extent to which it should influence business decisions.

During this panel, experienced in-house legal counsels, external lawyers and business people will discuss how they approach the problem of assessing competition law risk and translating it into business behaviour.

Managing Competition Law Risks – Compliance and Beyond It is trite to say today that “compliance matters”.

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Competition Law Today – What Is Hot And What Is Not During this panel, each of the invited experts will be given the opportunity to discuss one of the “hot issues” in today’s antitrust world. The experts will be asked not only to identify risks, but also – in line with the discussions held during previous panels – to give guidance to the audience on how to assess a given risk in everyday business practice and what should be done at the practical level to minimise its impact.

Dealing with Antitrust Investigations The world is not perfect. Even the best compliance program does not make a company 100% “waterproof”.

During this panel, we will ask in-house counsels and external lawyers what to do when a business is under investigation for a potential breach of antitrust rules. Issues such as the use of leniency applications, settlements and commitments, and the relationships between the administrative, criminal and civil regimes of liability and different national laws will be touched upon.

We are confident that our line-up of speakers will inform, inspire and influence the thinking of all delegates who attend this important event.

You will hear leading law practitioners from

Polish and EU-based firms as well as representatives of various business sectors who deal with competition law in their everyday work.

Warsaw, Poland’s main economic and business centre will be the host city of the seminar. Having enormous investment potential, it is also one of the most important and fastest developing metropolitan centres in the Central-Eastern Europe.

The seminar is a must-to-attend event for all lawyers and in-house counsels who are interested in providing high end legal advice that is effective and meeting the business-rooted expectations of our clients. Moreover, it is undoubtedly a unique opportunity to socialise with colleagues from other countries and firms.

Aleksander STAWICKI President of the UIA Competition Law Commission Wiercinski, Kwiecinski, Baehr SPK Warsaw, Poland aleksander.stawicki@wkb.com.pl

4 ■ 2013 I Reunir a los abogados del mundo

The UIA in Houston

MARCH

The 19th UIA World Forum of Mediation Centres Learn from the Best in One of the Great Mediation Centres of the World

21-22, 2014

I Jeffry S. ABRAMS

The first and last words said on the moon, the energy capital of the world, home to NASA and the world’s largest medical center, Houston is the 4th largest city in the United States and will be the venue for the 19th meeting of the World Forum of Mediation Centres. In 2012, Houston was voted the “coolest place to live” in the United States by Forbes Magazine. With its world-class arts and sports scenes, vibrant economy, diverse community and renowned culinary delights, Houston is a great place to live and visit.

Since 1980, Houston has been at the forefront of the modern mediation movement and is home to some of the best and most experienced mediators in the world. In that year, it opened one of the first Neighborhood Justice Centers in the nation and world, providing mediation services to Houston and its surrounding communities. When Texas passed its Alternative Dispute Resolution Act in 1987, Houston, along with other Texas cities, became, and remains, one of the busiest jurisdictions utilizing mediation anywhere in the world. Mediation has helped to significantly reduce case loads for the courts and improve the efficient administration of justice, often reducing the time necessary to get to trial by several years.While there are no statistics that I know of, I would estimate that over the last 25 years, there have been between 1,000,000

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and 2,000,000 mediations conducted in Texas, with several hundred thousands of these being in Houston, alone.

As such, the World Forum will be an opportunity to learn from and interact with mediators from Houston and around the world who have conducted more than 20,000 mediations and trained thousands of people in mediation. These include mediators from various countries who have been at the forefront of the mediation movements in their jurisdictions and are among the most respected and experienced mediators in these countries and beyond.

Come experience the uniquely interactive “Mining the Minds of Mediators” sessions where you will be able to ask the panelists and experienced audience of mediators from around the world any questions you may have about mediation, whether you are just beginning your practice or whether you have been mediating for years.

Other interesting sessions include Mediation: The Judicial Perspective Here and Abroad, International Mediation, and Energy Mediation in the Energy Capital, among others. Because of the number of very experienced mediators in Houston and Texas, the World Forum will be offering, for the first time, a limited number of

attendees from overseas an opportunity to observe a mediation, often with mediators who have themselves mediated several thousand cases.

It is a rare opportunity not to be missed.

The World Forum also prides itself on the lively social activities that always accompany the program. Houston will be no different, including a night of authentic Mexican food and Mariachi music and an evening of real Texas Blues and barbecue.

So come and join us as mediators from Texas, the United States and around the world gather together to share and compare their experiences, expertise and stories of mediation and its many facets. Observe Mediation: Texas Style and see why mediation has flourished there. As always, the program will consider in its unique interactive format the topical issues and best practices relating to mediation from around the globe.

We are looking forward to welcoming you to Houston!

Jeffry S. ABRAMS Attorney-Mediator Houston,TX, United States mediator7@aol.com

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The UIA in São Paulo

APRIL

11-12, 2014

Foreign Investment in Latin America I Eduardo Lorenzetti MARQUES The Foreign Investment Commission of the UIA will be organizing a seminar in Brazil about “Foreign Investments in Latin America”. The seminar will take place in São Paulo, the business capital of Brazil, the hub for foreign investment in Latin America, on April 11-12, exactly two months before the opening ceremony of the World Cup 2014.

The typical two-day seminar will cover most jurisdictions of the Latin American continent.

Speakers from the continent will be presenting on the subject of doing business in their respective countries and also covering the most recent legislative changes that can either make it easier or complicate things for foreign investors.

We will have practising lawyers speaking about Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, Venezuela and Central America. As is well known, Latin America has always been the

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destination for billions of dollars of foreign investment every year. We are not only talking about Brazil, one of the BRIC countries, but also about other important economic realities such as Mexico – a natural platform for doing business with the US, Argentina and Colombia – the other two big economies of South America, Bolivia and Peru – with Chinese yearly rates of growth and Chile and Uruguay – with its friendly environment for foreign investment.

Last, but not least Ecuador, Venezuela, Paraguay and Central America, which each present very interesting opportunities.

It is also important to note that the seminar format will promote the debate between speakers in a way that will enable a critical review of the environment for foreign investment in those jurisdictions. In this context, we will have also the participation of speakers who are practising lawyers from other continents. They will recount their concrete experience in doing business and

representing foreign clients in the Region. We will have also the testimony of some entrepreneurs and consultants.

The seminar, that will take place in one of the best five star hotels of São Paulo, close to Avenida Paulista, will be a great occasion to be informed and updated about the state of the art for foreign investment in the Latin American continent. But not only that! It will be a perfect occasion for networking with lawyers from all of Latin America, in a friendly and happy environment that will be enhanced by charming Brazilian hospitality.

Eduardo Lorenzetti MARQUES UIA Deputy Director of Commissions Campedelli, Marques e Zarif Advogados Associados São Paulo, Brazil emarques@cmzadv.com.br

4 ■ 2013 I Rassembler les avocats du monde

L’UIA à Istanbul

MAY

16-17, 2014

Le rôle des syndicats et des comités d'entreprise dans la vie d'une société I Federico TORZO La commission droit du travail de l’UIA organise un séminaire à Istanbul, le vendredi 16 mai et le samedi 17 mai 2014.

Le thème de ce séminaire, « Le rôle des syndicats et des comités d’entreprise dans la vie d’une société », sera l’occasion de réfléchir sur un sujet de grande actualité.

La participation des employés à la gestion de l’entreprise qui a pour but d’assurer une responsabilisation des employés dans la prise de décision des entrepreneurs est devenue, de nos jours, une réalité à laquelle les entreprises sont de plus en plus confrontées. D’ailleurs, on s’apercevra qu’une participation réelle des différents acteurs sociaux dans les décisions de la vie économique de l’entreprise, se répercute sur le rendement de la société et, par conséquent, sur le bien-être des employés.

Afin de pouvoir discuter des différentes situations dans lesquelles les syndicats opèrent aujourd’hui, non seulement d’un point de vue légal, mais aussi d’un point de vue économique et social, nous sélectionnons actuellement des experts provenant du monde entier, pour regrouper, par rapport à ces problématiques, plusieurs hypothèses de travail, dans l’approche des différentes législations.

Le séminaire se focalisera surtout sur l’apport des travailleurs à la vie de l’entreprise, à travers les syndicats et les comités d’entreprise, selon les différents systèmes juridiques.

Nous analyserons plus particulièrement les cas dans lesquels l’information et la consultation des syndicats et comités d’entreprises sont requises, pour prendre des décisions essentielles pour l’entreprise. Cela arrive surtout dans les situations qui ont été réglementées par des directives européennes, comme dans les cas de licenciements collectifs, de cession d’entreprise ou de branche de l’activité, pour lesquels la participation des syndicats et comités

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d’entreprise devient une condition de légitimité de la procédure.

Pour entrer dans le vif du sujet, nos experts internationaux interviendront sur le thème de la représentation syndicale, sous l’angle des différentes législations, ainsi que sur le thème des droits et des obligations des représentants syndicaux, sans oublier de débattre des différentes façons de participer aux négociations prévues par les contrats collectifs et les effets de ces contrats sur l’employeur et ses employés.

Le séminaire sera aussi l’occasion d’approfondir les changements les plus récents dans le rôle social des syndicats et l’impact de ces derniers sur la relation entre le management et les syndicats et comités d’entreprise.

Afin de donner une perspective pratique à la matière traitée, nous aurons l’occasion d’écouter et d’apprendre, grâce à des avocats de grande compétence tirée de leur propre expérience, les principaux moyens utilisés dans la négociation avec les syndicats, dans différentes situations.

Nous aurons la chance de tenir ce séminaire dans la charmante ville d’Istanbul, qui, centre

de l’empire byzantin, puis ottoman, a une longue et riche histoire et qui constitue un véritable trait d’union entre l’Europe et l’Asie, avec ses mosquées et ses musées qui regorgent de chefs-d’œuvre du passé, ainsi que sa cuisine à la charnière des saveurs orientales et occidentales.

Mais Istanbul est aussi une ville qui est en train de vivre une explosion économique et dans laquelle on peut retrouver des éléments, déjà palpables dans certains pays, caractérisant le rapport, pas toujours amical, entre les sociétés et leurs employés. Ce séminaire offrira donc l’occasion aux participants locaux de s’inspirer d’expériences d’experts d’autres pays et de pouvoir les utiliser pour rendre l’apport des représentants syndicaux des employés, aux entreprises locales, le plus efficace possible.

Nous espérons vous voir nombreux, à cette occasion, à Istanbul, les 16 et 17 mai 2014.

Federico TORZO Président de la commission droit du travail de l’UIA Studio Legale Macchi Di Cellere Gangemi Milan, Italie f.torzo@macch-gangemi.com

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October 31 - November 4, 2013

Opening ceremony

Jorge Neto Valente, Congress President

Florinda Chan, Macau’s Government Secretary for Administration and Justice

Jean-Marie Burguburu, UIA President

The opening ceremony took place at the Venetian Hotel. In his remarks, Jean-Marie Burguburu reminded us of the importance of Asia in today’s world economy: “The focus of the world is now pointing toward Asia, so we are delighted to be here in China.” Speaking about this year’s main theme, he added that China was at the forefront of the fight against corruption. Therefore during the UIA congress, legal experts would increase their knowledge about the corruption challenges that lied ahead.

Congress President, Jorge Neto Valente, addressed the audience in five languages stressing the multi cultural character of the UIA and of Macau “a unique place in history and a harmonious mix of cultures.”

Florinda Chan, Macau’s Government Secretary for Administration and Justice as well as Mr. Rimsky Yuen, Secretary for Justice of Hong Kong emphasized on international cooperation in the legal context.

Rimsky Yuen, Secretary for Justice of Hong Kong

Résolution sur la corruption

À l’issue du congrès, l’UIA a émis une résolution intitulée « corruption, transparence et justice » dans laquelle elle appelle les avocats, les États et les organisations internationales à agir pour faire progresser la lutte contre la corruption.

Aux avocats et aux organisations représentatives de la profession, elle a particulièrement demandé: ◗ qu’ils se forment et s’informent sur les mécanismes internationaux et nationaux existants pour la prévention et la lutte contre la corruption;

◗ qu’ils actionnent les mécanismes de contrôle des procédures en cas de constat de violation des droits de l'homme et libertés fondamentales; ◗ qu’ils mettent leur expertise à disposition des États et organisations internationales ou régionales spécialisées dans la lutte contre la corruption, notamment pour la création et l’évaluation périodique des instruments juridiques adoptés en la matière.

Cette résolution fait suite aux débats animés du thème principal de cette année: « L’avocat face à la corruption » coordonné par Stéphane Bonifassi, Cabinet Lebray & Associés, Paris – France.

Lawyers interested in being connected with law firms outside their own jurisdictions had been invited to present their law firm during a 3 min speed dating sessions dedicated to exploring opportunities of co-operation.

Law Firms speed-dating

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Durante la ceremonia de clausura, el 3 de noviembre, el Premio Monique Raynaud-Contamine al mejor informe científico del congreso fue entregado a Francisco Ramos Romeu (Barcelona, España) y a Motoyasu Hirose (Tokio, Japón) en la categoría Joven Abogado.

Los galardonados en el 57º congreso

Y, por primera vez, la UIA ha querido reconocer el trabajo realizado por su mejor comisión científica. Así, la Comisión Derecho Fiscal recibió a través de su presidente, Tiago José Farça Marreiros Moreira (Lisboa, Portugal), las felicitaciones del jurado por todas las actividades que ha desarrollado a lo largo del año 2013.

Francisco Ramos Romeu, Motoyasu Hirose, Joel Fox

Durante el congreso de Macao, la Union Internationale des Avocats (UIA Unión Internacional de Abogados) premió a varios participantes por la calidad de sus contribuciones científicas.

En la ceremonia de apertura del 31 de octubre, Delos Lutton, Presidente de Honor, entregó a Joel Fox (Jerusalén, Israel), el Premio Internacional Jacques Leroy – Mundo de los Negocios y Derechos Humanos, por su trabajo sobre el comercio justo Certifying the Certification - Fair Trade: how can we establish rules that are specific and realistic?

Proyección de la película Impunidad

El 1 de Noviembre, tuvo lugar la proyección del documental “Impunidad”, realizado en 2012 por Juan José Lozano sobre los juicios iniciados contra paramilitares colombianos en los años 90. Los asistentes abrieron luego un interesante debate sobre la justicia transicional, el modo en que esta se puso en práctica en Colombia y en otros países, sus riesgos y sus beneficios. Se plantearon varios interrogantes especialmente sobre el lugar de las victimas en este tipo de procesos, en los que la búsqueda de la paz no parece compatible con la obtención de justicia, refiriéndose al recurso a las jurisdicciones regionales o internacionales como eventuales soluciones a las fallas de las jurisdicciones nacionales.

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Acknowledgements

The UIA expresses its heartfelt thanks to Congress President Jorge Neto Valente for his commitment to the success of this 57th edition, and to the local organizing committee for its support.

The UIA would also like to thank its partners and exhibitors: Associação dos Advogados de Macau, Fundação Macau, Macau Governement Tourist

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Office, CIMA – Corte Civil y Mercantil de Arbitraje, LexisNexis, Consulegis EWIV, ALS Abogados, UGGC Avocats, Debevoise & Plimpton LLP, Ordre des Avocats de Paris, Swiss Chambers’ Arbitration Institution, FTM – Advogados Associados & Consultores, LDA, IE Law School, INVEST Hong Kong, JurisFlow, Kamae, Thomson Reuters, Abreu International, Aspen Traduction, Fragomen, Cathay Pacific as well as its media partners: Conventus Publishing (Asia) Limited, El Mundo del Abogado, Iberian Lawyer, International Law Office, La Semaine Juridique – Édition générale, Leaders League, Legal Today, Le Village de la Justice, The Global Legal Post.

SWISS CHAMBERS' ARBITRATION INSTITUTION www.swissarbitration.org

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Available on the congress Website: ◗ Certificate of attendance, ◗ List of participants,

Congress Website

◗ Reports, ◗ Pictures of the congress.

Petit-déjeuner des femmes UIA-ABA

www.uianet.org

Cette seconde édition du petit déjeuner des femmes UIA-ABA avait un air de speed dating!

Grâce à une forte participation des femmes congressistes, de nombreuses cartes de visite ont été échangées en vue de développer son réseau d’affaires dans une ambiance conviviale.

De prochaines réunions sont prévues tout au long de l’année dans différentes villes du monde.

Renseignez-vous auprès de l’UIA.

Lors de la cérémonie de clôture du congrès, Stephen L. Dreyfuss a reçu des mains de Jean-Marie Burguburu la Présidence de l'Union Internationale des Avocats. Moment clé du congrès, la passation de Présidence est une cérémonie importante dans la vie de l'UIA.

Passation de présidence

Stephen L. Dreyfuss, Président de l’UIA

Jean-Marie Burguburu, Président sortant – Stephen L. Dreyfuss, nouveau Président de l’UIA

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Dans son discours d'investiture, Stephen L. Dreyfuss a rappelé à l'assistance: « Dans tout ce que nous faisons, nous devons rappeler au monde que ce ne sont pas les intérêts des avocats que nous protégeons, mais les intérêts d'une société gouvernée par l'État de droit plus que par la loi de la jungle. » Il a également présenté son programme pour l'année à venir: amener un plus grand nombre de juges à s'impliquer dans les travaux de l'UIA et faire de même avec les juristes d'entreprises, afin que la profession d'avocat échange et apprenne des autres professions du droit.

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Congreso de la UIA

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macao Inaugural Speech of the 58th President of the UIA I Stephen L. DREYFUSS

Tout d’abord, je vous invite à vous joindre à moi pour remercier notre président sortant, Jean-Marie Burguburu, d’une présidence exemplaire où il a parcouru le monde au service de l’UIA, au service des avocats, et surtout au service de l’État de droit.

Alors que tu assumes d’autres hautes responsabilités en France, merci, Jean-Marie, pour tout ce que tu as fait pour l’UIA. Tu as tout donné. Et merci de ton amitié et de l’aide que tu continueras à m’offrir tout au long de ma présidence.

Antes de continuar, quisiera saludar a todos nuestros miembros de lengua española. Sin querer imponerles el peso de escucharme hablar en su idioma durante más tiempo que lo necesario (lo que hago además con acento francés según me han dicho), rindo un merecido homenaje a su compromiso con nuestra asociación, un compromiso que será recompensado sin duda por mi sucesor Miguel Loinaz y por nuestro congreso en Valencia en 2015. Entretanto, quisiera manifestarles formalmente mi deseo de que el español siga ocupando el lugar legítimo que le pertenece en la vida de la UIA. D’une certaine façon, je termine aujourd’hui un long parcours au sein de l’UIA, un périple qui a commencé à Strasbourg, il y a 23 ans, lors de mon premier congrès, et qui ensuite m’a amené aux quatre coins du monde. J’ai découvert, au début, une UIA extrêmement, voire exclusivement, francophone; en tant que cette créature rarissime, l’américain francophone, je m’en réjouissais. Mais ce soir, j’entame la présidence d’une UIA résolument multilingue et multiculturelle, forte dans sa diversité et fière de l’être! Si mes amis de l’UIA m’ont parfois appelé « le plus français des

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Américains », je suis d’autant plus fier ce soir d’assumer la présidence de la plus internationale des associations internationales d’avocats!

In American universities, the ceremony in which diplomas are awarded to graduating students is called “commencement”. That’s an odd name for an event that marks the end of a student’s university career. We call it that, of course, because it really represents the beginning of the student’s adult life – the moment when the student suddenly becomes a full-fledged member of civil society.

Though in a way, I am reaching the culmination of my UIA journey today, this is also the time when I begin its final chapter as the leader of this association for the coming year. This day has been many years in the making, and I want to take this opportunity to tell you what I’ve learned and what I intend to do at this commencement of my term as your president.

I want all of you to try to remember what things were like before you became a lawyer.

This is much harder than it sounds, because I think you will find that you can’t remember much about what you thought about the law and lawyers before you became one yourself.

In order to decide what I wanted to do as President of the UIA, I wanted to try to remember why I decided to become a lawyer in the first place. I wanted to remember what I thought lawyers did, what role they played in society, and why I wanted to become one of them.

I invite all of you to think back to those days.

No matter what country you are from, what language you speak, what legal tradition you are

trained in – I think you will agree that there is something that unites us all.

I think you all will agree with me, for example, that none of us chose the law for the money; there are plenty of other occupations whose economic rewards are far greater than those of the law.

And none of us chose the law in order to find an easy, carefree way of life: when your profession is to take on the problems of others and make them your own, carefree and easy does not describe your world.

And finally, none of us chose the law in order to have a career that would permit us to work only from 9 to 5, from Monday to Friday – always keeping evenings and weekends free for our families.

We knew then – and all of us certainly know now – that the law places demands on us 24/7 (7 j/7, 24h/24) – and our families know it too – in my case, my wife Lillian and our daughters Kate and Caroline, whom I am so proud to have with me here in Macau to share this moment. They have sacrificed again and again so that I could devote myself to the UIA, and I want to thank them publicly for their love and understanding over these many years.

So if it wasn’t for money, or for a carefree life, or for a non-demanding career leaving lots of time for our families, why in the world did any of us choose the way of the law?

One reason, certainly, was for the intellectual challenge.What makes our profession unique - as compared for example to our colleagues in the medical profession – is that for us there are no clear, scientific answers to the questions we are faced with every day.

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Everything is a matter of degree, nuance, a balancing of competing interests in order to achieve an outcome through which, we hope, the parties will find justice.

But there are many other occupations that are intellectually rigorous and demanding. What was it about the law that was unique, that made each of US want to become a lawyer rather than anything else?

La réponse est simple, mais universelle: il n’y rien de plus beau, de plus noble, que d’aider un autre être humain en détresse – que celle-ci soit pénale, financière, sociale ou émotionnelle.

Chacun de nous a choisi la profession d’avocat pour aider, pour protéger son prochain.

L’avocat est avant tout le bouclier du citoyen.

Seul l’avocat s’érige entre son client et l’autorité arbitraire et impitoyable exercée contre lui – que ce soit par l’État, ou par une personne physique ou morale.

En bref, nous sommes ceux qui empêchent les plus forts de se prévaloir sur les plus faibles – n’est-ce pas cela qui distingue une société civilisée de la jungle?

Nous en sommes tous convaincus, nous en sommes tous fiers, et nous avons raison de l’être. Mais parfois cette fierté se détourne vers l’orgueil, et quand nous nous félicitons trop nous perdons la bataille de communication, car c’est une vraie lutte pour nous de convaincre nos sociétés et nos concitoyens de la réalité et la sincérité de cette motivation bienfaisante qui nous anime.

A recent poll in the United States demonstrates this very well. The question: “please tell me how you would rate the honesty and ethical standards of people in these different fields” – very high, high, average, low, or very low. There followed a list of 21 professions and fields of work.

The winners were predictable: in first place came nurses: 85% of the respondents thought that nurses’ level of honesty and ethical standards was high or very high. The nurses were followed by pharmacists at 75%, and medical doctors and engineers at 70%.

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Some results, however, may surprise you: 58% of the respondents gave high or very high marks for honesty and ethics to police officers – but only 52% gave the same rating to members of the clergy.

So I know you are all wondering: what about lawyers? What did these Americans think about the honesty and ethics of lawyers? After all, ethics is central to everything we do, and we talk about it all the time.Yet, no more than 19% of the Americans polled thought that the level of honesty and ethics of lawyers was high or

our senators are), and we also finished ahead of stockbrokers (11%), members of the US Congress (10%) and, thank goodness, used car salesmen (8%).Yet hard as it may be to believe, lawyers were considered to be less honest and ethical than either bankers (28%) or journalists (24%).

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Choquant? Pas vraiment. Comme l’a remarqué un confrère australien lors du dernier congrès de l’American Bar Association à San Francisco, quand on arrive à l’hôpital se faire soigner, il n’y a pas deux équipes de médecins et

Seul l’avocat s’érige entre son client et l’autorité arbitraire et impitoyable exercée contre lui - que ce soit par l’État, ou par une personne physique ou morale. very high. 42% thought our honesty and ethics were “average”, and fully 38% of the respondents rated lawyers low or very low for ethics and honesty.

Of course, the news was not all bad: with our 19%, we came in slightly ahead of United States senators (14%) (and we all know from recent events in the United States how well-respected

d’infirmières, l’une qui essaie de guérir le malade et l’autre qui essaie de le tuer. Mais quand ils rentrent au palais de justice, nos concitoyens n’ont pas forcément la même impression.

Nous le savons tous: quand un client a gain de cause, ce n’est que son dû; quand il perd, c’est la faute de son avocat!

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Nous avons trop tendance, parmi nous et entourés par nos pairs, à penser qu’il va de soi que nous sommes dévoués à notre déontologie, que nous ne pensons qu’aux intérêts de nos clients, que nous n’existons que pour servir. Et c’est pourquoi nous nous autorisons à réclamer haut et fort que les gouvernements et les pouvoirs politiques respectent nos droits, nos prérogatives, nos privilèges.

answerable to the law – whether that person is a criminal defendant, a business owner, an employee, a labor union, an immigrant or a corporation – we must remind our governments and our peoples again and again that we do this not for ourselves, but for the people;

Mais de l’extérieur, nous n’avons pas toujours l’image que nous nous faisons de nous-mêmes.

Not for ourselves, but for the survival of the rule of law.

After all, to the society at large, we are in a real sense the priests of a temple of our own creation. If the law were not so complicated, citizens would not need lawyers to find a safe way through the legal maze. And this creates fear and doubt, and makes us the object of mistrust and suspicion.We do not deserve it, at least most of the time, but we cannot ignore it.

Within this context, my program for the UIA has several parts:

Because the consequences of society’s cynicism and distrust of lawyers are grave.

When national and international competition authorities want to open up the legal profession to competition from non-lawyers, supposedly in the name of protecting the consumer from high legal fees, it is because the politicians and the citizens they represent believe that we are not serving our clients as much as we are serving ourselves. And when lawyers, bars and international legal associations such as ours complain about these measures, we often play right into the image of

Not for ourselves, but for our countries and our fellow citizens;

First, in everything we do we must preserve, strengthen and especially communicate to the world what makes us unique: we are an international, multilingual, and multicultural association of lawyers united around our commitment to serve our clients and the cause of justice, not just ourselves.

Second, as lawyers we are part, but not the only part, of the system of law by which our countries are governed. We should recognize this. We should reach out to that other major part of the system of law – the judiciary – and bring them into the work we do. The independence of the judiciary, not merely the rights of lawyers, must be a fundamental focus of our concern and our action around the world. After all, what good is the independence and autonomy of the lawyer if that lawyer must

[…] The privileges we demand are not for our own benefit, but for the protection of those we represent. lawyers demanding special privileges for their own sake – when in reality, the privileges we demand are not for our own benefit, but for the protection of those we represent.

And that is the cornerstone of my program for the UIA in the coming year: in everything we do, we must remind the world that it is not the interests of lawyers we are protecting, but rather the interest of a society governed by the rule of law rather than the law of the jungle. If we are truly to play our fundamental role as the shield of the “justiciable”, the person

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practice before judges who are neither independent nor free: independent of the political power of the state, and free to render their decisions in accordance with the law, and only in accordance with the law?

In too many of our countries, the judges and the lawyers are permanent adversaries, when in fact we should be the closest of allies – united in the struggle against anyone who seeks to make lawyers less than free and justice less than independent.

So we must bring judges into the work of the UIA – and along the way, we will learn valuable lessons about what kinds of arguments are convincing and what kinds are self-destructive.

We will learn more about how judges think, the constraints that worry them and the courage that, all too often, they are called upon to display in the face of inadmissible interference with their independence.

And along with the judges, we must develop better contacts with lawyers who work within companies and other businesses: in-house counsel, juristes d’entreprise. In some countries, they are lawyers; in some countries, they are juristes; but in all countries, they are legal professionals who will bring much to the work of the UIA. Just as judges will help us learn what arguments are effective and what arguments are not, in-house counsel will help us understand our clients’ perspective – because without a client and a client’s cause to uphold, we lawyers are just an empty vessel.

And finally, as I said at the special meetings we had here in Macau with our women colleagues, and with the lawyers for whom this is the first UIA congress, I am committed to making opportunities for leadership in the UIA available to everyone who is willing to work: to women as well as men; to young lawyers as well as the not-so-young; to lawyers from the developing world as well as those from the developed world; and to lawyers from Africa, Asia and South America, as well as those from north America and Europe.Twenty-three years ago, I sat where you are sitting this evening, and the idea that I would one day be UIA president was less than improbable. But the UIA president of the year 2025 or 2030 is very likely sitting among you tonight – and that openness and possibility are what make the UIA great.

No matter where we come from, no matter what language we speak, no matter what the legal tradition in which we are trained, we have chosen this profession to help, to protect, to defend our fellow citizens.

That is why the UIA has defended, and will continue to defend, the cause of lawyers around the world who are persecuted, prosecuted, imprisoned and sometimes killed – simply because they had the courage to do

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what lawyers do: to speak the truth in the face of overwhelming pressure to remain silent, to place themselves between their clients and the implacable and pitiless power arrayed against them, to place their own lives at risk to defend those of their clients.

Most of us have never been called upon to make that personal choice in our own lives and careers as lawyers; but all of us are called upon to support the lawyers who, all around the world, make that choice and suffer those consequences every single day. And I pledge to you tonight that the UIA will always support their cause.

I conclude with what the French call “une profession de foi” – a statement of what I believe in, and what will animate everything I do as your president. I believe that lawyers are a force for good in the world. We should be proud of who we are, proud of what we do, and proud to devote ourselves above all to the protection of those who have placed their trust in us, and sometimes, have placed their very lives in our hands.

Quelles que soient nos nationalités, quelle que soit la taille de nos cabinets, quelles que soient les langues que nous parlons, nos origines sociales, nos conditions économiques – l’UIA est, et sera toujours, la seule association mondiale d’avocats où il y une place pour tous, un rôle pour chacun, une possibilité de lever son regard du quotidien et d’œuvrer ensemble à la réalisation de ces valeurs qui nous unissent dans notre diversité, ces valeurs qui sont si chères à nous tous: l’égalité de chacun devant une justice libre et indépendante, le droit de chacun à l’aide d’un avocat, et la préservation et l’expansion de l’État de droit, partout dans le monde.

Vive la profession d’avocat, et vive l’UIA! Stephen L. DREYFUSS Président de l’UIA Discours prononcé lors de la cérémonie de clôture du congrès de Macao, le 3 novembre 2013 sldreyfuss@hlgslaw.com

Secretary for Administration and Justice of the Macau Special Administrative Region Remarks Given for the Opening Ceremony of the 57th UIA Congress I Florinda CHAN is being held in Asia choosing the city of Macau.

I am delighted to offer my congratulations to the International Association of Lawyers and the Macau Lawyers Association.

The multiculturalism of Macau has viable examples such as in our being listed as the City of Heritage, internationally recognized by the UNESCO, and in the way of life and customs for the populace.

Your Excellency, Chief Executive of the Macau Special Administrative Region, Mr. Chui Sai On, Honourable President of the International Association of Lawyers, Mr. Jean-Marie Burguburu, Honourable President of the Macau Lawyers Association, Mr. Jorge Neto Valente, Distinguished guests and participants of the Congress, Ladies and Gentlemen: On behalf of the Government of the Macau Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China, I would like to greet the distinguish guests and to wish you a warm welcome, especially for those who visit Macau for the first time.

As you will have the opportunity to witness, Macau is an exiguous territory, being quiet and vibrant simultaneously combining its past with future, its tradition with modernity.

It is with great pleasure that the Macau Special Administrative Region is hosting and sponsoring this 57th Congress of the International Association of Lawyers.

Proudly, we note that over 85 years of the establishment of the International Association of Lawyers, it is the first time that its Congress

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It is also visible in the legal system, which belonging to the roman-german system of law and being reformed in a strong and qualitative legal tradition, has been compromising the local values and spirits, to be developed into a systematic enrichment of the legal order to reflect the harmony between a vast juridical patrimony of universal value and the sense of local characteristics.

Since the return of Macau to the Motherland and under the Macau Basic Law the implementation of the principles of “one Country, two Systems”, the “Macau governed by its people with a high degree of autonomy”, together with the efforts of the Macau Government and its people, our Region has since then excelled a remarkable success, notably of the progresses at different levels, such as from the economy to the culture, from the promotion of education to the reinforcement of the social security mechanisms.

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The challenge of this success urges our Government towards a constant surveillance over the economic and social development and to adapt its institutions to the evolution of the society, in accordance with the aspirations of the population of Macau.

Regarding the perspective of Law, our Government is safeguarding the principles and

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Your Excellency the Chief Executive of the Macau SAR, Mr Chui; Friends of UIA; Distinguished Guests; Ladies and Gentlemen: First of all, thank you for giving me this valuable opportunity to meet and address such a distinguished gathering of the international legal community. It is indeed my great pleasure and honour to join you at the opening ceremony of this year’s UIA congress.The UIA, or International Association of Lawyers, is certainly one of the most important international organisations of lawyers. This year’s congress is the first to be held in the territory of China.This is a matter of significance and I extend my warmest congratulations to both the UIA and the Macau SAR. values enshrined in our legal system, to adapt the legal institutions namely to promote the modernization of the laws and other legal instruments, to provide the means for a broader and stronger formation of the legal operators, to create conditions for the access and the achievement for a better realization of justice.

In an increasingly globalized world, professional enrichment is largely sought through the sharing of experiences and knowledge and by deepening relationship between people with different countries, cultures, and backgrounds.

In this regard, considering the decisive roles of the lawyers in our legal and judiciary system, whether in the prevention against the arising of conflicts, or in the mediation of the different interests, or as vital players in the reinforcement of justice, the dialogues that this Congress facilitates between the lawyers of Macau and those of the rest of the world are surely of special significance.

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Last but not least, allow me to wish, on behalf of the Government of the Macau Special Administrative Region, that the sessions of this Congress may be a success and that drawing from the exchanging of experiences and expertise amidst the professionals of different backgrounds, it may bring forth valuable contributions for a harmonious development of a global system of Law and a better application of Justice.

Thank you very much.

Florinda CHAN Secretary for Administration and Justice of the Macau Special Administrative Region Remarks given for the Opening Ceremony of the Macau Congress, on October 31, 2013

Asia’s economic performance has been remarkable in the past decade. Many Asian cities have become favourite destinations for commercial activities, with China ranked as the top choice. A natural consequence of this phenomenon is the ever increasing demand for international legal and dispute resolution services in the Asian region. It is therefore even more important now than before to have information sharing and exchange of experience amongst the legal communities of the Asian jurisdictions and the rest of the world. The UIA congress is an important platform for such exchange and crossfertilisation.

Over the years, Hong Kong and Macau have taken on a unique role in connecting the East and the West. The two cities used to be colonies, but are now each a Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China, under the principle of “One Country, Two Systems”. Macau continues with her continental legal system, whilst Hong Kong

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Secretary for Justice of Hong Kong Remarks Given for the Opening Ceremony of the 57th UIA Congress I Rimsky YUEN remains and is the only common law jurisdiction within the Greater China region.

I have no doubt that Hong Kong and Macau have plenty of room for long-term cooperation in the legal context and beyond.

Apart from international arbitration which I shall mention later, the two places have joined hands in projects which are of interest to the international legal community. For instance, the Asia Pacific Regional Office of the Hague Conference on Private International Law, which was set up in Hong Kong in December last year, organised, jointly with the Governments of Hong Kong and Macau, a very successful workshop in Macau this March on the 1993 Hague Intercountry Adoption Convention.

Judiciary is highly pro-arbitration. We have the presence in Hong Kong of leading arbitration institutes and bodies, such as the Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre, the Asia Secretariat of the ICC International Court of Arbitration and the CIETAC Hong Kong Arbitration Center. Our enforcement network is extensive. Arbitral awards made in Hong Kong are enforceable in over 140 jurisdictions under the New York Convention. In this regard, may I reiterate our gratitude to the Macau Government in respect of the conclusion of the Arrangement Concerning Reciprocal Recognition and Enforcement of Arbitral Awards with Hong Kong in January this year, which arrangement will become effective before the end of this year.

As the Secretary for Justice of Hong Kong, I do not think I can resist the temptation to make use of this valuable opportunity to market our steadfast policy to enhance the status of Hong Kong as the centre for international legal and dispute resolution services in the Asia-Pacific region.

As regards mediation, our new Mediation Ordinance came into force this January.

Further, in addition to the Hong Kong Meditation Accreditation Association which looks after matters relating to the accreditation of mediators, we have the Steering Committee on Mediation to oversee the development of mediation in Hong Kong.

Apart from being an international financial and commercial centre, Hong Kong provides a friendly environment for the international legal community. This explains the presence of so many international law firms and registered foreign lawyers in Hong Kong, which enables us to meet the needs of the international business community.

Put shortly, apart from being a springboard to Mainland China and the rest of Asia, Hong Kong has the necessary hardware and software to provide top-quality international legal and dispute resolution services. If our friends from the UIA are interested to know more, the Hong Kong Department of Justice is more than happy to assist.

Hong Kong places great importance in the provision of dispute resolution services, with special emphasis in international arbitration and mediation. Our current Arbitration Ordinance is based on the well-known UNCITRAL Model Law. Our independent

Coming back to the UIA, I am very delighted to note Hong Kong’s enhanced interaction with the association in recent years. I sincerely look forward to fostering closer ties between Hong Kong and the UIA in the years to come.

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On this note, I wish all participants of the congress a joyful stay in Macau. I would also strongly recommend the participants to join the trip to Hong Kong scheduled for next Monday, so as to experience its vibrant and cosmopolitan character. Last but certainly not least, I also wish the UIA congress another year of great success.

Thank you very much.

Rimsky YUEN Secretary for Justice of Hong Kong Hong Kong, China Reproduced with the autorisation of the Secretariat of Justice for Hong Kong SAR. Text first publish in www.doj.gov.hk/eng/copyright/index.html.

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macao Corruption and the Lawyer Main Theme of the 57th UIA Congress I Judith GIBSON

The 57th congress’s main theme, the role of the lawyer combating corruption, was the subject of spirited presentations and discussion. Held on the first day of the conference (November 1, 2013) and chaired by Stéphane Bonifassi (France),the discussion spilled over into the Criminal Law Commission (November 3, 2013), chaired by Jerome Roth (USA).

The session’s 5 panels divided the issue into two parts: indentifying/defining corrupt conduct, and discussing what lawyers can do to combat it.

Stéphane Bonifassi commenced the session with a series of excerpts from his televised interview with Nicola Bonucci of the OECD. Mr Bonucci described the comparatively recent phenomenon of the fight against corruption, commencing with money laundering legislation in individual countries in the 1990s, followed by the OECD Convention (1997) and the Merida Convention (2004). It is only since 2010 that fighting corruption has been a G20 priority. As was the case with many of the other speakers, he emphasised the scale and seriousness of the level of criminality involved.

Corruption is often seen as inevitable, or even as an effective way of doing business. However, in a powerful analysis of the dangers of acceptance of corrupt conduct, João Miguel Barros pointed out that corruption was not only illegal and immoral; it is also bad for business, because it enables weak or incompetent businesses to flourish and reduces business confidence. This was a theme to which many other speakers returned, such as Stephen D. Brodie (USA), who gave stark examples of the damage to the Indonesian economy arising from rampant and largely unchecked corruption, although some practical methods (such as credit cards for health check payments) were working.

Concern about corruption in Indonesia had, in addition, led to this being a significant issue in the forthcoming elections.

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How is China combating corruption? Professor Vincent Cheng Yang (Macau, China) provided sobering statistics on what he called the “massive” scope of corruption investigations in China. 84% of those investigated were charged, and 99% of those convicted, with convictions at the highest level, the most recent being the Bo Xilai trial; Bo is one of 32 officials at ministerial level to be investigated.

This is in contrast to the picture painted by Stephen D. Brodie (USA) of corruption in Indonesia.

What methods have been successful in combating corruption? Jerome Roth (USA) noted the success of aggressive methods of investigation such as competing investigatory agencies, high fines and leniency for self-disclosure. Maxime Delhomme (France), Professor Yang (Macau, China), Sascha Grosjean (Germany) and Dr Elizabeth Thole (Netherlands) reviewed the success of whistleblowers such as Edward Snowden and personal data protection. Liu Nanping (China) described how anonymous “netizens” in China used internet-based investigative methods to expose corrupt officials such as “Brother Watch” (Yang Dacai), whose corrupt activities were discovered after photographs of him wearing different expensive watches were publicised on Weibo.

Two speakers dealt with areas where corruption was most harmful. Juan Sierra Hierro (Spain) described the essential nature of trust in arbitration proceedings, and how corruption could undermine the whole process, with potentially serious ramifications for business efficiency. The vulnerability of emerging African countries is another particularly sensitive area, where collusion in the financing of development projects and bribes covering up illegal pollution were of particular concern to the Pan-African Lawyers Union.

What can lawyers do to combat corruption? The speakers in the last two panel sessions put forward three key messages: compliance, cooperation between countries, and cleverness.

UIA President of Honour Pascal Maurer (Switzerland) considered the key word was compliance, a view endorsed by Mansur Pour Rafsendjani (Germany), who pointed to how internal and external strategies were necessary for law firms dealing with corruption issues.

Professor Yang (Macau, China) considered international co-operation was essential; the UNCAC has 168 members, including China, and interactions between countries were essential in combating a crime without borders. Liu Nanping (China) described his own “trick or treat” method necessary to deal with the “guanxi” that only becomes corruption in China when it is misused.

Lawyers have to rely upon their professional and personal skills to outwit corrupt officials.

In summarising the session’s themes, Judith Gibson (Australia) noted that the skills UIA conference participants learned and discussed with each other could provide vital tools and contacts for combating corruption.

The discussion was continued in the Criminal Law Commission on November 3, 2013, where a panel discussion led by Jerome Roth (USA) reviewed the adequacy of legislation for prosecuting payment of bribes to foreign officials, ranging from successes (such as the UA and Canadian prosecutions following the UN “Oil for Food” scandal) to failures (such as Australia’s dismal record of one successful prosecution).

Judith GIBSON Disctrict Court of New South Wales jcgibson@courts.nsw.gov.au

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UIA Young Lawyers

A young “Macanese lawyer’s” experience

The Young Lawyers committee of the UIA held its inaugural committee meeting during the recent Macau congress.

The committee meeting was one of the best attended of the congress with 40-50 delegates from a total of 19 different countries.

The session, led by Annmarie Carvalho of the UK, included Agustina Loinaz of Uruguay, Hansjörg Frenz of Germany and Samantha Davies of the UK presenting on the topic of “Access to the legal profession: international regulation and development perspectives”.

These thought-provoking presentations sparked off a very interesting debate amongst the delegates. One of the most interesting themes included a discussion about whether the rising costs of studying to become a lawyer (in terms of a degree and the subsequent professional qualification) prevents those talented potential lawyers who are not from reasonably wealthy backgrounds from entering the profession.The delegates agreed that more diversity in the profession in terms of background, race, gender, etc., would be a positive development and that anything that could be done to encourage this could only be a good thing.

On a similar theme, access to justice was something of a hot topic amongst the delegates and it was encouraging to hear that many of the delegates regularly carry out ‘pro bono’ or not-for-profit legal work in their respective jurisdictions, alongside conducting their own client work. From a purely UK lawyer’s perspective working in a jurisdiction where sweeping cuts to legal aid have been brought in this year, the enthusiasm for pro bono work amongst young lawyers, who represent the future of the profession, is heartening to see.

Annmarie CARVALHO Farrer & Co. London, United Kingdom annmarie.carvalho@farrer.co.uk

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I Nuno SOARES DA VEIGA The 57th UIA Annual Congress held from October 31 to November 3, 2013 in Macau was a truly unforgettable experience, not only from a professional perspective, but also from a personal one. As a young Portuguese trainee lawyer who has been living and working in Macau for over a year and a half now, part of my training consists in attending seminars and conferences that the Macau Lawyers Association (AAM) deems relevant for our legal education, and preparing the respective reports. I must confess though that when the AAM first declared that it would be mandatory for trainee lawyers to attend, at least, one session in the morning and another session in the afternoon every day during the congress, I was not exactly thrilled by the idea of spending my whole weekend writing reports.

However, all the sessions I attended were so interesting and thought-provoking that I am very thankful that Jorge Neto Valente (President of both the AAM and the 2013 UIA Congress) decided to make it mandatory for us to attend the sessions. Indeed, my only regret was not being able to attend more than one session at the same time. This article is thus based on my reports of the sessions, as well as on my personal experience of the social events I attended.

Even though the congress only officially began on October 31, two related events took place on the two previous evenings. Fortunately, a few other trainee lawyers and I were invited to attend both of them, most likely because we offered to help out as volunteers during the congress. Both events took place at the Macau Military Club, which traces its roots back to 1870 when it was founded as a private cultural and recreational association for Portuguese army officers. On October 29, there was a dinner of the Association of Portuguese Speaking Lawyers (UALP), an association created in 2002 to enhance the strong ties which have always

existed between lawyers from Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Macau, Mozambique, Portugal and São Tomé and Príncipe. Today the UALP represents over 600,000 lawyers and essentially aims to promote co-operation between its members and the various Lawyers Associations.At this dinner, I had the opportunity to meet many distinguished guests, of whom I would highlight António Marinho e Pinto (Bâtonnier of the Portuguese Lawyer Association (OAP) and President of the UALP) and also Fernando Tonim (Representative of the UIA for the Portuguese Speaking African Countries).

On October 30, there was the UIA Executive Committee dinner, where I had the rare pleasure to sit at the same table and enjoy the company of Marie-Pierre Richard (Executive Director) and Marie-Christine Cimadevilla (Director of the Rule of Law Project). Before dinner actually started, I had already had the honour of being introduced to Jean-Marie Burguburu (now Immediate Past President) and Miguel LoinazRamos (now President Elect). Following a very pleasant dessert, Jorge Neto Valente and JeanMarie Burguburu both made speeches, stressing the importance of arriving at the Opening Ceremony before 6 pm, as the Macau Government Authorities were going to be present and the Ceremony would imperatively have to begin at 6 pm sharp.

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The following day, the trainee lawyers who volunteered to help out during the congress had a very busy time assisting all participants to register at the Conrad Macau Hotel. When the registration counter closed around 5 pm, we went straight to The Venetian Macau, where the Opening Ceremony was going to take place.We were asked to welcome the guests as they arrived and help them find their seats. It is only fair to say that we were welcoming la crème de la

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crème of the world’s lawyers, as well as Macau’s top judges, prosecutors, law professors and other legal professionals. By mere coincidence, I welcomed Paulo Lins e Silva (UIA President of Honour) who surprisingly recognized my family name, as he had met my grandfather Vasco Soares da Veiga (former Vice-Bâtonnier of the OAP) during a congress held years ago in Buenos Aires. I must say that this encounter made me feel proud that I was, at least to a small extent, following my grandfather’s footsteps. At around 6 pm, all guests of honour had arrived, including the Chief Executive of the Macau Government, as well as the Macau and Hong Kong Secretaries for Justice, and the Opening Ceremony finally began. In the spirit of UIA tradition, the Ceremony began with Jorge Neto Valente and Jean-Marie Burguburu welcoming all participants and wishing them successful sessions.Afterwards there were several performances on stage and the Ceremony was followed by a welcome cocktail at The Four Seasons Hotel pool, during which I was able to meet other young lawyers, such as Martin Pradel and Avi Singh, with whom I became very good friends.

The first day of the congress began with the main session. This year’s topic was “Corruption and the Lawyer”. It surely did not come as a surprise that the UIA chose this issue as the topic for the main theme, as the fight against international corruption has been a major issue for the international community since the OECD Convention was signed in 1997. Many distinguished speakers participated in this session, including Nicola Bonucci (member of the OECD) and Juan Serrado Hierro (member of CIMA – Corte Civil y Mercantil de Arbitraje). In his presentation, Juan Serrado Hierro stated that a good example of the international effort and concern with the fight against corruption is the Criminal Law Convention on Corruption (CLCC), which was opened for signature in Strasbourg on January 27, 1999, and entered into force on July 1, 2002 (upon being ratified by 14 States). As of November 26, 2013, the CLCC has been ratified by 45 States. Germany, Liechtenstein and the US, however, have thus far only signed, but not ratified, the CLCC. The signatory States are convinced of the need to pursue, as a matter of priority, a common criminal policy aimed at the protection of society against corruption, including the adoption of appropriate legislation and preventive measures.

Therefore, the CLCC establishes that States are

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required to provide for effective and dissuasive sanctions and measures, including deprivation of liberty that may lead to extradition. Moreover, the CLCC incorporates provisions concerning aiding and abetting, immunity, criteria for determining the jurisdiction of States, liability of legal persons, the setting up of specialised anticorruption bodies, and protection of persons collaborating with investigating or prosecuting authorities.

I did not stay until the end of the Main Session because I wanted to attend a very interesting but also unusual session, namely “Speed Dating for law firms”.This session was chaired by Fred Kan (Regional Secretary of the UIA for Asia) and had the following description: “Lawyers interested to be connected with law firms outside their own jurisdiction are welcome to go on stage to speak for 3 minutes to introduce themselves. Must register first before allowed to go on stage”.

Many lawyers from different jurisdictions had registered to take part in this session, for this was, without a doubt, one of the best opportunities for networking during the entire congress. Towards the end of the session all registered lawyers had made their presentation, but as there were still 5 minutes remaining until lunch time, Fred Kan asked the audience whether anyone else wanted to take the opportunity.At that moment, a curious sensation took over me, fueled perhaps by the fact that no lawyer from Macau had taken the stage, and I unexpectedly raised my arm. When Fred Kan

pointed in my direction, I even had to look behind my back to make sure he was not calling someone else. As I was making my way to the stage I was slightly nervous, but by the time I had finished a 3-minute presentation about my law firm (Rato, Ling,Vong, Lei & Cortés – Advogados, an IFLR1000 Top Tier Firm established in Macau since 1985 and one of the sponsors of the congress) and the audience was clapping, I felt quite relieved and glad that I had seized the opportunity.

Following an interesting lunch, where I had the opportunity to meet like-minded young lawyers from China and explore possible co-operation opportunities, I decided to attend a session concerning “Infrastructure Buildings and Construction Projects”. The speakers in this session analysed the business opportunities available for overseas contractors in Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan, as well as some of the challenges faced by contractors when doing business in these three territories. Moreover, the participants described the major construction projects that are currently under way in the above-mentioned territories, of which I would highlight the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge (HZMB), a proposed mega-size sea crossing linking Hong Kong, Zhuhai and Macau. The construction of the HZMB began in December 2009 and is expected to be completed by 2016.

As for the construction cost of the HZMB, the total contribution is expected to reach RMB¥15.73 billion.

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The working sessions of the first day of congress came to an end around 5:30 pm.The first day of congress, however, was far from over and one of the most exciting social events was about to take place that evening: the informal reception and cocktail dinner. This dinner was held at the outdoor plaza of the Macau Tower, which was inaugurated in December, 2001. The Macau Sky Tower is 338m high and besides a 360° viewing deck, it features the world’s highest bungee jump.

Not surprisingly, one of the performances held included a man jumping from the top of the Macau Tower and unfolding a banner that announced “Welcome to the 57th UIA congress” in both English and Chinese. Equally amazing were the stunning fireworks launched from a boat that was crossing the river. During the dinner I had yet another chance to meet many lawyers, but whom I was absolutely delighted to meet that evening was Jacqueline R. Scott (Co-Director of Human Rights and Protection of Lawyers, member the UIA Executive Committee). The night ended at China Rouge, the most prestigious club in Macau, with a party organised by the Law Society of Hong Kong.

On the second day of the congress, I started by attending a session concerning Banking Law/Tax Law/Mergers and Acquisitions/Foreign Investment.

This session, which was chaired by Pedro Rebelo de Sousa (SRS Advogados, RL) and included presentations regarding foreign investments into and from China, was particularly interesting because the presentations were made not only by lawyers, but also by top bankers. Indeed, one of the most fascinating presentations was made by the CEO of Banco Nacional Ultramarino (BNU), Pedro Oliveira Cardoso. BNU, which started its operations in Macau back in 1902, is the oldest bank in the territory and, as a commercial and note-issuing bank, it has strongly contributed over the past century to the economic and social development of Macau.

Pedro Oliveira Cardoso stated that foreign investors aiming to invest in Macau can do so through BNU, which provides a wide range of commercial banking services, including deposit taking, consumer and mortgage loans, trade financing, fixed assets financing and investment products. Already under his leadership, BNU’s business expanded by 19.1% in 2012. Moreover, net interest income was 8.2% higher than the previous year, amounting to MOP$434.9 million, an increase of MOP$32.9 million over the MOP$402 million recorded in 2011.

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Later that day, I obviously decided to attend the Young Lawyer’s session, which focused on the different frameworks regulating the access to the lawyer profession. The panel was chaired by Annmarie Carvalho and included Samantha Davies, Augustina Loinaz, and also Hansjörg Frenz. Following every presentation, there was always a thought-provoking discussion between the panel and the audience regarding the pros and cons of each regulation and perspectives for development. Joana Alves Cardoso, a fellow trainee lawyer in Macau, and I even had the chance to discuss the pros and cons of the AAM’s Regulation on the Access to the Legal Profession.

Like on the previous day, the working sessions came to an end around 5:30pm, but the day was only getting started. The UIA Gala Dinner, the most prestigious social event of the entire congress, was going to take place that evening at the Hotel Grand Lisboa. This emblematic building, inaugurated in 2006 and located in the heart of Macau, is shaped after a lotus leaf and is the highest building in Macau. I must confess that I was not at all expecting to attend the Gala Dinner, as the price of the dinner was quite high.

Fortunately, the very generous Partners at Rato, Ling,Vong, Lei & Cortés – Advogados decided to invite all the associates and trainee lawyers for the Gala Dinner. It was a splendid dinner, full of glamour, wonderful speeches and amazing performances on stage, including Jean-Marie Burguburu’s interpretation of an opera.

On the third and final day of the congress, I started by attending a session concerning Family Law. Various presentations were made focusing on the pre-nuptial agreements and marital regimes in various jurisdictions. Joana Alves Cardoso made quite a remarkable presentation about pre-nuptial agreements and marital regimes in Macau, particularly taking into consideration that she had only been invited as a speaker on the previous day. In the afternoon, I opted to attend the Human Rights/Labour Law session. During this session, which was a very intense one, I realised that there is still so much to be done in relation to improving basic human rights throughout the world, not only in less developed countries, but also in the developed ones. In fact, slavery and forced sex are still imposed on foreign women that desperately try to find jobs in the US (but the same could be said about Europe or China) and this is something

that should outrage each and every lawyer in the world and something against which we must fight with determination. Like someone said during the session,“Human rights are not here to make us go to heaven; they exist to prevent us from going to hell”.

The congress came to an end that evening with the Closing Ceremony held at the Conrad Macau hotel.The highlight of this Ceremony was the transfer of the presidency of the UIA from Immediate Past President Jean-Marie Burguburu to the current President Stephen L. Dreyfuss, who is the fourth American lawyer to become President of the UIA. Moreover, the Monique Raynaud-Contamine Prize for the best scientific report at the congress was awarded to Francisco Ramos Romeu and to Motoyasu Hirose, in the Young Lawyers’ category. Also for the first time, the UIA decided to honour the work done by its best scientific commission, which was the Tax Law Commission. Via its President, Tiago Marreiros Moreira (Vieira de Almeida & Associados, Sociedade de Advogados, RL), the commission received the jury’s congratulations for all the activities it had undertaken through the year 2013.

In the end, it is time to congratulate once again both the UIA and the AAM for this remarkable congress, but also the “invisible” work of all the translators who translated most of the presentations into English, French, Spanish, Portuguese and Chinese and thus made it possible for lawyers from all around the world to take part in the working sessions. Since its foundation in 1927, the UIA has always held a unique place amongst professional lawyers’ associations, not only because it is the oldest, but also thanks to its international, multi-cultural and multi-lingual dimension; and after this year’s congress, the UIA made me feel very proud to be working hard in order to become a lawyer, for it is the most honorable profession one can aspire to achieve in life.

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Nuno SOARES DA VEIGA Rato, Ling, Vong, Lei & Cortés - Advogados Macau, SAR, China veiga@lektou.com

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Droits de l’Homme et de la DÊfense Human Rights and Protection of Lawyers Derechos Humanos y de la Defensa

The Shot Heard Around the World The Self-Defense Case in the Trial of the State of Florida v. George Zimmerman I Emmanuel TEDDER Preamble Trayvon Martin could have been me.1 Those words, first uttered by President Barack Obama, have now become iconic when discussing the shooting death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin. The masses watched the proceedings and awaited the fate of George Zimmerman, the 29-year-old man charged in the murder of Martin. With many both intellectually and emotionally invested in the case’s outcome, it would take the jury a little more than 16 hours to deliberate and come back with a ruling – a ruling that came as dissatisfaction to many who desperately sought justice for the family of the slain teen.

On July 13, 2013, a six-woman jury acquitted George Zimmerman of the murder of Trayvon Martin – in large part thanks to poor prosecutorial work by the State of Florida and the state’s broad self-defense provisions. Thus, this article will explore the Zimmerman decision from this context. Particularly, this article will consider the jury instructions and examine Florida’s state laws on self-defense contained therein, including what makes a killing “justifiable” under Florida self-defense law. As part of Florida self-defense law, this article also will touch upon the Florida’s “stand your ground” law and explore this concept within the grander scheme of American selfdefense jurisprudence.

“We the People…”

The Case of the State of Florida v. George Zimmerman

I The Facts: What Happened?

While serving a ten-day suspension from school in February of 2012, Trayvon Martin, a 17-year-old African-American student, was visiting his father in Sanford, Florida. George Zimmerman, who was a 29-year-old part-time student and neighborhood watch captain at

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the time of the incident, lived in Sanford at the Retreat at Twin Lakes townhouse complex where the shooting occurred.

justification and self-defense laws, ultimately led to Zimmerman’s exoneration.

On the night of February 26, Zimmerman was patrolling his gated townhouse development.

At 7:09 pm, Zimmerman called the nonemergency police-response line from his vehicle to report a “suspicious person” (Trayvon Martin) in the neighborhood. Over the phone, Zimmerman was instructed by the dispatcher simply to keep an eye on Martin and to not approach the teenager. Zimmerman, however, disregarded these directives and pursued Martin.

I The Trial: Prosecution Dooms

The phone call to police ended at 7:13 pm.

Moments later, neighbors reported hearing gunfire. Law enforcement arrived on the scene at 7:17 pm, four minutes after Zimmerman ended his call with police. However, by the time they arrived, Zimmerman had already shot and killed Trayvon Martin. Zimmerman, showing injuries he alleged came from his altercation with Martin, claimed he killed the teen in selfdefense, despite the fact that Martin himself was unarmed.

Unable to disprove Zimmerman’s account of the events that led to Martin’s death, the State of Florida (“State”) was reluctant to file any charges against Zimmerman. However, as the case gained more notoriety in the national media this changed. Pundits and political figures, including President Obama, weighed in on the issue. A petition calling for Zimmerman’s arrest also formed and surpassed 1.3 million signatures. Rallies began to take place in cities across the country calling for justice to be served for Trayvon and the Martin family. It would take more than a month for the State to charge Zimmerman with second-degree murder. While the charge ameliorated many, as discussed below, this charge would be the first of several legal and evidentiary tactical errors the State would make in its case against George Zimmerman. This, in addition to the State’s

Its Case from the Start

Second-Degree Murder versus Manslaughter With an all-female jury empaneled, the case of State of Florida v. George Zimmerman began on June 24, 2013. Already with limited facts, the prosecution – from the outset – placed a nearly insurmountable burden upon itself by charging Zimmerman with second-degree murder, instead of the lesser crime of manslaughter. In Florida, to find a defendant guilty of second-degree murder, the State must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant committed an act imminently dangerous to another that demonstrates a “depraved mind” without regard for human life.To show that an act is “imminently dangerous to another and demonstrating a depraved mind,” the State must establish three things: 1) That the act is one in which a person of ordinary judgment would know is reasonably certain to kill or do serious bodily injury to another; AND 2) That the act is done from ill will, hatred, spite or an evil intent; AND 3) That the act is of such a nature that the act itself indicates an indifference to human life.

Manslaughter, on the other hand, only requires the State to show beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant intentionally committed an act or acts that caused the unjustifiable or inexcusable death of another. Obviously, compared with second-degree murder this threshold is a much easier burden for the State to meet, because there is no element that requires proof of ill will, hatred, spite, or evil intent.

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In the Zimmerman case, the difficulty for the prosecution in meeting its burden arose from having to prove the second prong. The State presented no conclusive evidence that showed beyond a reasonable doubt Zimmerman acted out of hate, ill will, or spite. Moreover, Zimmerman – wisely – elected not to testify, and thus did not allow the State to elicit testimony regarding his state of mind at the time of the shooting. With no sure evidence linking Zimmerman to ill, hateful, spiteful, or evil intent, the State found itself fighting a losing battle from the start, which only became more difficult as its case-in-chief continued.

Prosecution Witnesses Were Poorly Prepared In addition to “overcharging” Zimmerman, the prosecution also put on a poor case-in-chief, particularly in the witnesses they presented.

Throughout the trial, it was obvious that the State did not prepare its witnesses properly.

For example, when taking the stand more than half of the State’s witnesses confirmed Zimmerman’s account of what happened that tragic night. Other than Martin’s friend Rachel Jeantel, no prosecution witness really challenged the defense’s version of what happened that night. Additionally, other witnesses for the State, such as the State’s medical examiner, appeared far less polished than their defensive counterparts. All-in-all,

convince the jury that both the killing of and the use of deadly force on Martin was justifiable under the law. In her instructions to the jury, Judge Debra S. Nelson used much of the language of Florida’s justifiable homicide statute (Fl. St. § 782.02) and use of deadly force statute (Fl. St. § 776.013) to direct the jury as to what the law was and the jury’s requirements under it.

Justifiable Homicide and Use of Deadly Force In Florida, the killing of a human being is justifiable and therefore lawful under one of three conditions: 1) If necessarily done while resisting any attempt to murder such a person; OR 2) If necessarily done while resisting any attempt to commit a felony upon such person; OR 3) If necessarily done while resisting any attempt to commit a felony in any dwelling house in which such person shall be.

While somewhat broad, Florida’s justifiable killing provision is no broader than the justifiable homicide statutes of other comparable states. For example, under California law (Cal. Pen. Code § 197) a homicide

With no sure evidence linking Zimmerman to ill, hateful, spiteful, or evil intent, the State found itself fighting a losing battle from the start, which only became more difficult as its case-in-chief continued. witnesses that could have been great for the State seemed to leave the jury with far more doubt and questions – and in a case where the burden on the State is to prove each element of the offense beyond a reasonable doubt, this too was damning.

is justifiable when committed by any person while resisting any attempt to murder a person or commit a felony upon a person. California similarly provides a justifiable homicide defense if the killing was done while in defense of the home or property.

Within the Jury Instructions2:An Analysis of Justifiable Homicide, Use of Force, and “Stand Your Ground” Self-Defense

Additionally, in considering Zimmerman’s selfdefense claim, the court also instructed the jury to deliberate as to whether Zimmerman’s use of deadly force in self-defense was justified.

In Florida, it is a defense to second-degree murder and manslaughter if the death of a person resulted from the justifiable use of deadly force. A person is justified in using

The crux of Zimmerman’s defense rested upon the jury believing that he shot and killed Trayvon Martin in self-defense. In order to support this, Zimmerman’s team had to

36

deadly force if he reasonably believes that such force is necessary to prevent imminent death or great bodily harm to himself. In deciding whether Zimmerman was justified to use deadly force, the jury must judge him by the circumstances by which he was surrounded at the time. The danger itself need not have been actual; simply the appearance of the danger must have been so real that a reasonable person would have believed that the danger could only be avoided through the use of deadly force.This is key, because it renders the actual danger irrelevant. The jury need only decide whether a reasonable person, under Zimmerman’s circumstance, would actually believe that the danger from Martin was real. In finding for Zimmerman in this case, the jury clearly accepted that, given the circumstances, it was reasonable for Zimmerman to actually believe his life was in danger during his altercation with Martin. Because of this, the use of deadly force – at least in the minds of the six on the jury – was justified.

“Stand Your Ground”: Not Just a Florida Law Probably the most famous fixation to come out of the Zimmerman trial was the craze over Florida’s infamous “stand your ground” law.

However, it is important to note that the defense never raised the “stand your ground” defense as justification for Zimmerman killing Martin. In fact, Zimmerman waived his right to a “stand your ground” pretrial immunity hearing and decided instead to try the case as one of self-defense.3 However, while the defense elected not to use “stand your ground” in the formal sense the judge nevertheless instructed the jury on the law when discussing the defense of justifiable use of deadly force. In Florida, if a person is attacked in a place where he or she has a right to be while engaged in a lawful activity, he or she has no duty to retreat. In fact, according to Florida law (Fl. St. § 776.013(3)), he or she “has the right to stand his or her ground and meet force with force, including deadly force if he or she reasonably believes it is necessary to do so to prevent death or great bodily harm.”

Traditionally only extended to the bounds of one’s home, Florida’s law extends “stand your ground” and the use of deadly force doctrines to nearly any and all lawful activity.

4 ■ 2013 I Bringing Together the World's Lawyers

While Florida’s “stand your ground” law has come under fire in the aftermath of Martin’s death, the “stand your ground” directive is not unique. In truth, it is generally the case in American tort law that there is no duty to retreat when attacked. California, for example, also provides that a person is under no obligation to retreat and can try to repel their assailant with force if necessary.4 In fact, nearly two dozen other states have similar “stand your ground” self-defense measures on the books (i.e., Ohio, North and South Carolina, etc.). This indicates that the philosophy of “stand your ground” is not just a Florida notion, but a fairly ubiquitous principle in American self-defense law.

scale – many issues that had receded from the national consciousness.

Truly nothing positive can be taken away from Trayvon Martin’s death. But at the very least America is once again engaging in dialogue and action around issues of race and racial profiling, guns and gun control, equity or lack thereof in the criminal justice system, and fairness in the law.Through this tragedy, we can only hope that the national “soul-searching” that President Obama so eloquently called upon all Americans to undergo is actually accomplished – and with any luck, the death of Trayvon Martin shall never be in vain.

Emmanuel TEDDER Munger Tolles & Olson Los Angeles, USA Emmanuel.Tedder@mto.com

“In Order to Form a More Perfect Union…”

Where Do We Go From Here?

The acquittal of George Zimmerman of both the murder and manslaughter of Trayvon Martin has led many to wonder whether “stand your ground” self-defense laws are overbroad, confusing, or inconsistently applied. When complemented with the obvious issues of race, guns, and justice, these thoughts, among many others, have led to a national examination of these types of self-defense laws. Since Zimmerman, there has been a continued outcry of support in favor of reformation. Sybrina Fulton, Martin’s mother, spoke to a Senate panel, in which she said that states must clarify or otherwise change “stand your ground” selfdefense laws. Fulton contended that in being unclear as to when and how it is applied,“stand your ground” in its current form is far too open to abuse. Others, including more mothers of similarly slain teens, have joined Fulton in her outrage over the structure and application of “stand your ground” state selfdefense laws.

Sadly, most states with “stand your ground” self-defense laws are conservative and lean toward policies that defend the rights of gun owners. Zimmerman comes at a time in the nation’s history where more than 85 gunrelated deaths occur each day. It is at a time when African-Americans already suffer a disproportionate share of firearm homicide deaths in America.5 And while the senseless killing of Trayvon Martin remains very much a mystery, it has served to highlight – on grander

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1

See, e.g., www.cnn.com/2013/07/19/politics/obamazimmerman (July 7, 2013).

2

www.flcourts18.org/PDF/Press_Releases/Zimmerman_ Final_Jury_Instructions.pdf.

3

Had Zimmerman elected to have a hearing, however, the court would have ruled whether his actions were protected under Florida’s “Stand Your Ground” law, and depending on the outcome it could have meant that Zimmerman would have faced no criminal or civil trial at all.

4

See CALCRIM 3470.

5

In 2010, African-Americans were 55% of the shooting homicide victims while only making up 13% of the U.S. population. See www.pewresearch.org/daily-number/blackssuffer-disproportionate-share-of-firearm-homicide-deaths/ (May 21, 2013).

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rblanch@uianet.org Tél. : +33 1 44 88 55 66 Fax : +33 1 44 88 55 77

37

macao Certifying the Certification

2013

JACQUES LEROY Prize

Fair Trade: How Can We Establish Rules That Are Specific and Realistic?

I Joel A. FOX

I Introduction The market for fair trade goods is growing.

Recent research has estimated international trade in fair trade goods at $7 billion.1 In 2004 the market was estimated at $1 billion.2 With such rapid increase, one question whether products sold as fair trade are actually fair trade.

What rules and regulation could prevent fraud and misuse of the term fair trade? While we wish to regulate the market to insure compliance with fair trade standards, we also want rules that are realistic and allow fair trade practices to grow and expand.

Answers to the questions above demand thinking outside the box, and actually thinking about the box itself. A comparative analysis of similar markets, primarily kosher certification in the United States, shows that the best way to achieve regulation and compliance to certification standards while allowing ongoing growth is by creating a regulated framework for preexisting semi-private certifying agencies. A good legal framework can ensure the growing success of fair trade programs that protect human rights in developing countries.

I Part I - The fair trade market Definitions Fair trade in general is a social movement that promotes sustainability of producers in developing countries. It is defined by FINE, an informal association of the four main fair trade networks, as follows: Fair Trade is a trading partnership, based on dialogue, transparency and respect, that seeks greater equity in international trade. It

38

contributes to sustainable development by offering better trading conditions to, and securing the rights of, marginalized producers and workers – especially in the South.3

a small scale operation. However, the guarantee of better trading conditions in developing countries is vital to accessing the mainstream market for fair trade goods.11

This definition is not simple nor is regulating fair trade. Many organizations have been created for the purpose of regulation. Fairtrade International (FLO) is the leading certification organization.

The first fair trade label was developed in the Netherlands in 1988 by Max Havelaar.4 Today there are more than a hundred different certifications.5 Each has its own definitions and own operational fair trade activities.6 This multiplicity of activities and definitions leave many consumers bewildered and unaware of the essential differences between the different organizations and their seals of certification. It is vital to create certification regulation that is intelligible to the consumers of fair trade products.

Cooption of fair trade products12 is another outcome of rapid growth mentioned in research.

This refers to a situation where commercial organizations influence regulatory organizations.

Entities tasked with protection the public interest, instead serve special interests they should be regulating.13 This is not only a problem of fair trade and it is common if other regulated fields where economic players try to influence regulation.

Geoff Moore suggests comparing fair trade certification to certification of other “ethical” products, particularly organic.14 This is exactly the attempt of this paper.

Value market

I Part II - Comparing to

The international fair trade market expanding rapidly and the fair trade market in the United States was estimated at $1.1 billion in 2009.7 A recent survey by Business Insights, claimed that, “The global retail market for fair trade certified products has grown at a compound rate of 32.5% over the period 2004-09”8 and that “the value of the fair trade market could reach €25 billion [$32 billion]”.9 Along with growth come problems, some of which directly influence the legal regulation for this unique market.

Kosher, organic and fair trade are all consumer moral choice based markets. In each of the relevant markets, the consumer can choose whether or not to purchase product with the special certification. This is different from certifications or regulations such as food safety inspection15 or product labeling regulations.16 In the latter cases, products not certified are removed from the shelves.

Growing pains As fair trade becomes a global market, it no longer embodies the notions of “dialogue, transparency and respect,” 10 basic elements of the concept of fair trade.These elements work in

other ethical certifications

In addition, kosher, organic and fair trade markets are regulated by third parties who provide certification that the product is as marketed.

Organic certification In general, “Organic food refers to food

4 ■ 2013 I Reunir a los abogados del mundo

macao produced without using conventional inputs of modern, industrial agriculture…”17 However, this definition in not universally accepted.

Today, the kosher certified food market in the United States has been estimated at $200 billion in 2009.24

food market suggests the following twopronged solution for creating a better fair trade market and yet not limiting it scope.

At first the organic market in the United States was regulated by states.18 The agricultural industry wanted federal action. The Organic Foods Production Act (OFPA) of 199019 was passed in order “to assure consumers that organically produced products meet a consistent standard.” 20 This act was very controversial because of the attempt to create one universal standard of organic food.21

The success of kosher certification is based on the disclosure model, educated consumers, and competition among certifying organizations.The kosher market grew rapidly during the 20th century and fraud increased as well due to the premium consumers were willing to pay for kosher produce. To prevent fraud, New York passed a kosher fraud statutes.25 State legislators tried to define a common standard for kosher certification. However, the New York state kosher fraud law was struck down in 2002 because it created excessive government involvement in religious matters.26 To prevent interference in religious practices, New York modified regulations to focus on the certifiers and not the food product. The Kosher Law Protection Act of 2004 requires that information identifying the person or organization certifying the food as kosher be available to consumers.27 In the so called disclosure model,28 attention shifts from the food to those who certify it as kosher. The consumer can choose which products to buy according to the standards and principles of the certifying organizations.

First is a regulatory solution. To protect the fair trade market from fraud and deception there must be strong statutes in each country where fair trade products are marketed.This is parallel with the third tier in Sigman’s work Kosher Without Law.31 Statutes are needed to allow consumers to buy that which they intend to buy.

This regulatory tool prevents fraud but does not restrict the scope or the variety of different standards.

Today use of the USDA seal of organic is monitored by the National Organic Program (NOP). This governmental authority regulates the standards used to define organic and the use of the USDA seal of organic.22 The goal of setting one government standard was to bring the consumer the best and most reliable standard of products, however by doing so, the ethical pluralism that exists in the organic market is lost.

Following the Organic Certification model in the fair trade market would cause more problems than it solves. Implementing government regulation or applying another international standardizing regulation to the fair trade market would destroy pluralism and restrain expansion. With strict diatomic regulation, where one can be certified or not, those who do not uphold the governmental standard would not be able to claim being fair trade. There would be no alternative certification. Consumers with a different concept of fair trade would not be able to find products that fit their varied definitions of fair trade.

Kosher certification Perhaps the development of kosher certification offers a better model for fair trade certification.

Kosher food is food produced according to Jewish law. Jewish law regarding food preparation is based on the Old Testament and rabbinic writing.23 There are many different opinions regarding the proper standard of kosher food, and all of the opinions claim to be kosher.There are kosher certifications organizations that places greater emphasis on certain Jewish laws and others that place emphasis of different laws.

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While the disclosure model creates information, the second component of a successful system is educated consumers who can make sense of the various standards.The more information the consumer has the better choice he can make but knowledgeable consumers are vital to making the model work. Shana Starobin and Erika Weinthal write that “end consumers play a key role in oversight of the global food supply chain – not only by ‘voting’ with their dollars but also by participating actively in the oversight and enforcement initiated by certifying agencies.”29 A third element that plays a significant role and explains why the kosher certification system works well is competition amongst the certifiers.30 Since different consumers of kosher products have different ideas about what is acceptably kosher for them, the competition amongst the certifiers helps the consumer get a better, “more kosher” product.

Application to the fair trade market

Second, consumers need to differentiate between different standards. Individual certification organizations must meet this challenge. Consumers need to be educated to better understand the standards behind each certification organization. Websites like standardsmap.org were created for this purpose.

Strandardsmap.org’s goal is “to provide comprehensive, verified and transparent information on voluntary sustainability standards” and “provides users with information enabling them to analyze and compare information on 100 voluntary standards”.32 The private market should determine which specific standards are chosen by certifiers, as is in the case of the kosher market. When certifiers are required to divulge information about their standards, the consumers can decide with their purchase whether or not they agree with those standards. This will create competition amongst fair trade certifiers to uphold higher standards, for those with higher standards attract more customers. This is not the case in the organic market which has one governmental standard. Certifiers will also be motivated to educate their consumers and explain their standards. Regulation to prevent fraud, information about standards of certification and educated consumers are the keys to controlling and enhancing the fair trade market.

Joel A. FOX Tel Aviv University Buchman Faculty of Law Tel Aviv, Israel joelfox@mail.tau.ac.il

The above analysis of the organic and kosher

39

macao

Wendela Huisman, Mark Boonman, Elmy SarruccoFedorovtsjev and Terya Sarrucco, A Success story for Producers and Consumers,The Dutch Association of Worldshops(2011), available at www.european-fair-trade-association.org/efta/Doc/ FT-E-2010.pdf.

9

2

Ibid

3

Fair Trade Definition and Principles as Agreed by FINE (Fair Trade Advocacy Office ed., 2001). available at www.fair-trade-hub.com/support-files/fair-trade-definition.pdf

4

Marie-Christine Renard, Fair trade: quality, market and conventions, 19 Journal of Rural Studies (2003).

1

5

6

Standards Map: Comparative Analysis and Reveiw of voluntary Standards, available at www.standardsmap.org/.

A few of the major organizations are: Fairtrade International (FLO) www.fairtrade.net/fileadmin/user_upload/ content/2009/standards/documents/2012-04-02_GTS_EN.pdf; The World Fair Trade Organization (WFTO) www.wfto.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id =889&Itemid=290; European Free Trade Association (EFTA) www.efta.int/about-efta.aspx

7

Wendela supra note 1

8

Fair Trade Strategies for Food and Drinks Companies. pt. 82 (2011). available at www.marketresearch.com/Business-Insightsv893/Fair-Trade-Strategies-Food-Drinks-6424791/

40

Ibid

19

Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act (1990). available at www.law.cornell.edu/topn/food_agriculture_conservation_and _trade_act_of_1990

20

Ibid

21

Gutman supra note 18 , p. 2373

22

Mentioned in Emilly Ullman, Organic and Kosher Foods: A Tale of Two Certification systems (2009), available at www.google.co.il/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd =1&cad=rja&ved=0CCgQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fdash.ha rvard.edu%2Fhandle%2F1%2F8592150&ei=gYvQUdTOGYbzs gbTlYDoCA&usg=AFQjCNHfjkIr8aXVaw3Ic0oGDWW1rXa -rw&bvm=bv.48572450,d.Yms; See also For a detailed analysis of the final regulations, see Jessica Ellsworth, The History of Organic Food Regulation (2001), available at http://dash.harvard.edu/bitstream/handle/1/8889458/Ellsworth. pdf?sequence=1.

23

The Kosher Primer, Orthodox Union (2004), available at http://oukosher.org/blog/industrial-kosher/the-kosher-primer/.

24

Market Trend: Kosher - and halal - certified foods in the U.S. Summary. (2009). available at www.marketresearch.com/Packaged-Facts-v768/MarketTrendKosher-Halal-Certified-Foods-1282406/

25

New York Agriculture & Markets - Article 17 - § 201-A Kosher Food and Food Products; Packaging available at http://law.onecle.com/new-york/agriculture-markets/ AGM0201-A_201-A.html

26

Commack Self-Service Kosher Meats, Inc. v.Weiss, 294 F. 3d 415 - Court of Appeals, 2nd Circuit 2002 available at http://scholar.google.co.il/scholar_case?case=23938488101245 71213&hl=en&as_sdt=2&as_vis=1&oi=scholarr&sa=X&ei=XV HQUZaFB4HUswaKjoCIDQ&ved=0CCcQgAMoADAA

10

FINE supra note 3

11

Geoff Moore, The Fair Trade movement : parameters, issues and future research, 53 Journal of Business Ethics (2004).

12

This issue has been extensively reviewed by Philip H. Howard Daniel Jaffee, Corporate cooptation of organic and fair trade standards, 27 Agriculture and Human Values (2009). and Geoff Moore, The Fair Trade movement : parameters, issues and future research, 53 Journal of Business Ethics (2004).

27

New York Department of Agriculture and markets available at www.agriculture.ny.gov/KO/KOHome.html

28

Shayna M. Sigman, Kosher Without Law: The Role of Nonlegal Sanctions in Overcoming Fraud Within the Kosher Food Industry, 31 Florida State University Law Review (2004). p. 587

13

Ibid

29

14

Ibid

15

Federal Meat Inspection Act (1906). available at www.fda.gov/RegulatoryInformation/Legislation/ucm148693.htm

Shana Starobin and Erika Weinthal, The Search for Credible Information in Social and Environmental Global Governance: The Kosher Label, 12 Business and Politics (2010). p. 15.

30

Much has been written on this subject on the religious consequences see Gil S. Epsteinand Ira N. Gang, The political economy of kosher wars (2002); On the economic consequences see Sigman supra note 28.

31

Sigman supra note 28.

32

Standards Map supra note 5

16

Fair Packaging and Labeling Act (1966). available at www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/STATUTE-80/pdf/STATUTE-80-Pg 1296.pdf

17

The Business of Food: Encyclopedia of The Food and Drink Industries (Gary J. Allen and Ken Albala ed., Greenwood Press.

2007). available at http://books.google.co.il/books?id=gNzmOUyiFRAC&pg=PA2 88&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false

18

Benjamin N. Gutman, Ethical eating: Applying the Kosher food regulatory regime to organic food, 108 The Yale Law Journal (1999).

P. 2370

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Rencontre avec Karim Lahidji, Président de la FIDH I Karim LAHIDJI Karim Lahidji a succédé à Souhayr Belhassen à la tête de la Fédération internationale des ligues des droits de l’homme (FIDH) en mai 2013. Cet avocat iranien engagé a pris la défense de plusieurs centaines d’opposants politiques, avant d’être contraint à l’exil. Il est membre fondateur de plusieurs organisations de défense des droits de l’homme qui ont été interdites par le régime islamique en 1981.

Juriste International: Vous avez été élu à la Présidence de la FIDH en mai 2013. Quel est le travail de la fédération?

La FIDH est une fédération des ligues nationales des droits de l’homme. Le nombre de membres s’élève à 178 organisations représentant 117 pays.

La fédération est dirigée par un bureau international dont la mission est de s’assurer que les organisations membres peuvent jouer leur rôle de contre-pouvoir pour faire respecter les droits de l’homme et les libertés fondamentales. À la création de la FIDH en 1922, on entendait par « pouvoir » le pouvoir politique. Mais depuis que la thématique « Business and Human rights » est discutée par le Haut-Commissariat des Nations Unies aux droits de l’homme, il faut aussi considérer, à côté du pouvoir politique, le pouvoir économique comme une potentielle menace pour les libertés et les droits fondamentaux.

Défendre les défenseurs des droits de l’homme au sens de la Déclaration des Nations Unies sur les défenseurs des droits de l’homme en 1998, c’est là notre but principal. Mais nous défendons également les couches vulnérables, les populations déplacées lors de conflits, de guerres ou d’interventions militaires; ou les victimes de préjugés qu’il s’agisse d’enfants, de femmes, de handicapés, de travailleurs. Dans une grande partie du monde, la question du genre et le statut des homosexuels, ne sont pas reconnus mais condamnés, devenant une raison d’exécution légale.

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JI: Quels sont vos modes d’action?

Notre but est que les organisations puissent mener leurs activités. Pour que ce soit possible, nous organisons des missions, menons des enquêtes pour renforcer la crédibilité de nos organisations sur place. Avec la présence de représentants de la FIDH, du bureau international ou de chargés de missions, parmi lesquels souvent des avocats, nous pouvons faire du plaidoyer auprès des autorités du pays, en présence de nos ligues membres. Cela leur donne plus de force et de représentativité.

Cela permet aussi de découvrir l’aspect intolérable de certaines situations. Ce matin1, j’ai appris qu’au Nord du Mali à la suite du coup d’État de l’année dernière, a été découvert un charnier d’une vingtaine de cadavres des Bérets Rouges. Vous savez que le Général putschiste a été inculpé il y a deux jours par la justice malienne. Ces deux dernières années, nous avons effectué plusieurs missions dans cette partie de l’Afrique en présence d’avocats qui nous ont mis en mesure de donner des éléments de preuve pour que les autorités et les responsables de ces crimes graves soient poursuivis et punis.

JI: Vous avez démarré votre carrière d’avocat en Iran.

Pourquoi avoir choisi cette profession? Dans ce pays? À cette époque?

J’étais âgé de treize ans au moment du coup d’État qui renversa Mohammad Mossadegh, premier ministre démocrate libéral en 1953.

Mohammad Mossadegh était un grand juriste, premier docteur en droit de l’histoire iranienne qui avait étudié en France et en Suisse. Je me rappelle parfaitement le bombardement de son domicile par l’armée car à l’époque notre maison n’était pas très loin.

Quelques mois plus tard, j’ai vu dans la presse la photo de ce premier ministre âgé de 74-75 ans en tenue de prisonnier devant une cour militaire, entouré de deux colonels de l’armée comme avocats. Je me suis posé la question: pourquoi

une cour militaire alors que c’est un civil, et pourquoi deux militaires pour avocats? J’ai suivi ce procès dans des revues qui publiaient le compte-rendu de chaque audience. En tant que juriste et victime, c’est Mohammad Mossadegh qui a fini par assurer sa défense. Peu à peu, prenant conscience de l’absurdité de la situation, j’ai senti monter en moi l’envie de devenir avocat.

Nous venions d’une famille de théologiens depuis 10 générations et par conséquent, c’était une destinée fatale pour les hommes de la famille. Je me suis donc préparée à faire des études parallèles avant d’atteindre mon objectif.

Après un stage de deux ans dans le cabinet d’un avocat arménien d’origine russe, j’ai obtenu en 1966 mon permis d’avocat et créé mon propre cabinet. Même si je savais que sous régime dictatorial, la marge de manœuvre de l’avocat en matière pénale était restreinte, j’ai quand même choisi de me spécialiser en droit civil.

Dans les années 70, au début de ma carrière, il y avait en Iran deux juridictions : juridiction pénale pour les affaires de droit commun et juridiction pénale militaire pour les affaires politiques.

Puisque les avocats civils ne pouvaient pas plaider devant les cours militaires, notre rôle était par conséquent limité à la défense des accusés de droit commun.

C’est pour cette raison qu’avec une dizaine de confrères, nous avons créé un groupe d’avocats qui s’appelaient « les avocats avant-gardistes ».

Notre idée était de faire entendre que notre profession devait pouvoir s’exercer de manière totale pour qu’il y ait une justice indépendante et une seule voix de recours pour les citoyens.

C’est dans ce contexte que nous avons cherché à tenir tête au pouvoir. Nous avons organisé des manifestations pendant 4-5 ans au terme desquelles nous étions parfois arrêtés et incarcérés. La plupart des gens du groupe était déjà identifiée comme militants, avocats gauchistes, opposants politiques, y compris par nos confrères au sein du barreau.

41

JI: À quel moment de votre parcours personnel avezvous décidé de vous engager dans la défense des droits de l’homme?

Trois événements internationaux m’ont définitivement décidé: ▪ l’assassinat de Martin Luther King en mai 1968, ▪ l’invasion de la Tchécoslovaquie, ▪ la tenue à Téhéran de la 1re conférence mondiale des droits de l’homme.

Organisée par l’ONU, il y avait un panel très important d’ONG. J’ai effectué toutes les démarches envisageables pour m’y rendre mais malheureusement, je n’ai pas eu l’autorisation d’y assister. C’est là que j’ai décidé de partir à l’étranger.

J’avais notamment appris la création d’Amnesty International à Londres et il fallait absolument que je rencontre ses responsables. J’ai entamé des démarches et ai finalement obtenu mon passeport en 1971. Grâce à mes déplacements professionnels, je me rendais 4-5 fois par an chez Amnesty. J’ai aussi rencontré la FIDH et l’association internationale des juristes démocrates.

Pendant 7-8 ans, ces activités ont été clandestines.

Mais à partir de 1977, avec l’arrivée du démocrate Jimmy Carter à la tête de l’administration américaine et son message orienté droits de l’homme, la situation en Iran – quartier général des États-Unis – s’est assouplie et j’ai pu créer l’organisation des juristes iraniens et l’Association iranienne pour la défense des libertés et des droits de l’homme qui devait annoncer le bilan désastreux des atteintes aux droits de l’homme pendant le régime impérial.

C’est la raison pour laquelle j’ai été attaquée en avril 1978 par la police secrète devant mon fils, et mon cabinet a été plastiqué. L’UIA avait fait une demande aux autorités iraniennes pour rencontrer le roi et a rédigé un rapport. Quelques mois plus tard, le gouvernement de l’époque faisait un pas en autorisant les avocats à plaider devant les autorités militaires. J’ai été le premier à le faire depuis 1953.

Début 1979, les organisations que j’avais fondées étaient considérées comme les plus importantes du pays. Nous protestions contre les exécutions extrajudiciaires, les atteintes aux droits de l’homme, d’expression, de la presse.

L’association des juristes iraniens a même publié une brochure contre le premier code pénal qui avait en vue d’instaurer une justice islamique: loi du talion, châtiment corporel, peine de mort pour une trentaine de crimes et délits tels que: boire de l’alcool, avoir des relations homosexuelles, adultères, etc.

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Khomeiny a considéré que la brochure dévalorisait les valeurs islamiques. Il a décrété une fatwa disant que ceux qui mettent en cause les valeurs islamiques doivent être considérés commes hérétiques et encourent la peine de mort. Début 1982, après avoir passé 10 mois dans la clandestinité, j’ai quitté le pays.

Shirin Ebadi – sont actuellement en prison: Abdolfattah Soltani et Mohammad Seifzadeh.

Parmi les 178 organisations de la FIDH, nous comptons deux associations iraniennes en exil.

Celle précitée et l’autre dont je suis à l’initiative et qui a été créée en 1983 à Paris dans le cadre de la loi 1901.

JI: Le Président Hassan Rohani en fonction depuis 6 mois est lui-même docteur en droit. Cela constitue-il un espoir pour l’Iran?

Il faut que ces deux organisations puissent retourner exercer leur mission en Iran. C’est la raison d’être de la FIDH que de pouvoir aider nos organisations membres à exercer librement leur mission dans leur pays. En tant que Président de la FIDH d’origine iranienne, voilà la requête que j’adresse au Président et aux autorités iraniennes.

Hassan Rohani est très différent de son prédécesseur, plus modéré, moins extrémiste. Il a fait du droit en Iran puis des sciences politiques en Grande-Bretagne. Pendant une trentaine d’années, il a exercé diverses professions au sein du Parlement, de commissions et d’instances de sécurité nationale. Il a eu pour mentor un ancien Président de la République, modéré lui aussi, Hachemi Rafsandjani. Ceci explique peut-être qu’il se soit imposé dans cette élection.

Mais son pouvoir reste relatif. Même si lors de sa campagne, il a parlé du respect de la constitution, des libertés fondamentales, de la libération des prisonniers politiques, il faut garder à l’esprit qu’en Iran, selon la constitution, le Président n’est pas le chef de l’Exécutif. Il est sous l’autorité du chef de l’État, qui lui n’est pas élu, puisque c’est le guide suprême religieux. Le système politique iranien oscille entre le droit humain et le droit divin. De fait, la plupart des difficultés en Iran trouvent leurs racines dans la Constitution théocratique.

Alors il faut espérer que le nouveau Président puisse s’imposer et effectuer quelques réformes au sens large du terme, sur la justice par exemple où il y a beaucoup à faire, mais il faut aussi relativiser son champ d’action qui est très limité.

JI: Pensez-vous avoir un rôle à jouer en tant que Président de la FIDH sur les questions droits de l’homme en Iran?

Après mon départ du pays, pendant quinze ans, plus personne n’a parlé de droits de l’homme en Iran.

Puis dans les années 90, surtout après la guerre Iran / Irak, et l’arrivée du pragmatique Rafsandjani à la tête de la Présidence, les droits de l’homme ont refait leur apparition dans les débats.

Cinq avocats dont une femme que vous connaissez, Shirin Ebadhi, Prix Nobel de la paix 2003, ont créé un Centre des défenseurs des droits de l’homme.

Ces avocats ont repris le combat des droits de l’homme pendant une quinzaine d’années, mais deux d’entre eux – sans parler bien sûr du cas de

JI: Quels sont les autres pays du monde où la profession d’avocat est, selon vous, en plus grand danger?

La profession est menacée partout. J’étais en Lituanie le mois dernier. Notre organisation biélorusse qui n’a pas été autorisée à organiser un séminaire sur place, l’a organisé à Vilnius avec la participation d’une cinquantaine de militants, notamment avocats. Nous faisions le même constat: les avocats biélorusses sont dans le même cas que les iraniens. Le prix de la défense des prisonniers politiques est trop cher à payer pour les avocats. Le président de l’association biélorusse est lui-même condamné à trois ans de prison.

Il y a d’autres avocats emprisonnés en Syrie, en Turquie où d’ailleurs, nous avons mené une action conjointe avec l’UIA dans le cadre de l’Observatoire pour la protection des défenseurs des droits de l’homme.

Dans le cadre de l’Observatoire également, nous avons effectué une mission judiciaire dernièrement au Bangladesh à la suite de l’arrestation de responsables de notre ligue bangladaise. Grâce à cette mission, nous avons finalement obtenu une mise en liberté sous caution.

Par le biais de l’Observatoire, nous passons un message afin que les barreaux et la profession d’avocats soit respectés; que cette dernière obtienne une immunité professionnelle quand nécessaire. Il faut libérer nos collègues et l’ensemble des défenseurs des droits humains dans nos pays.

Karim LAHIDJI Président de la FIDH klahidji@fidh.org 1

Entretien réalisé le 4 décembre 2013 par Martin Pradel, Co-directeur droits de l’homme et défense de la défense de l’UIA et Marie-Pierre Liénard, Chargée communication et site Web de l’UIA.

4 ■ 2013 I Bringing Together the World's Lawyers

The Promotion and Protection of Freedom of Expression and Privacy in the Digital Age I Marc GALLARDO MESEGUER

I 1.The context The influence of Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) infrastructures and extensive flows of information have become natural in our dayto-day lives. The changing interaction between ICTs and society clearly brings with it a wide range of new human rights opportunities – in form of big possibilities for communication, expression and empowerment. At the same time, ICTs give rise to increased threats for human rights – in form of State or companies’ interferences, particularly the rights to freedom of expression and privacy.

In its resolution of the promotion and protection of human rights on the Internet1, in July 2012, the Human Rights Council affirmed, “that the same rights that people have offline must also be protected online… regardless of frontiers and through any media of one’s choice”. It is the first-ever resolution to affirm the extension of human rights to the Internet to the same degree and with the same commitment as human rights in the real world, which also means ICTs, including the Internet and telecommunications, should never be taken as a pretext to include new restrictions to the exercise of human rights such as censorship or surveillance.

However, an increasing number of States are introducing laws and practices that have a negative impact on the ability of citizens to exercise their human rights through the use of ICTs – i.e. the Internet and mobile telephony.

Indeed, after the PRISM scandal and Snowden’s revelations related to the scope of mass surveillance of private communications, there is considerable debate about the protection of human rights, in particular freedom of expression and privacy, and especially how to preserve both rights in the digital age considering that an infringement upon one right can be both the cause and consequence of an infringement upon the other.

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In addition, companies, especially those operating across national boundaries that have gained unprecedented power and influence in the Internet environment can also cause significant harm by abusing human rights, either at the behest of governments and/or for their own purposes and benefit. Too often, most companies’ engagements with human rights have been through voluntary codes and initiatives but more should be done.

interference with his privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to attacks upon his honor and reputation. Everyone has the right to the protection of the law against such interference or attacks’.

Ideally, to better promote and protect human rights in the digital era, it is important to reach mandatory global principles and standards aimed to address the human rights responsibilities and obligations for both States and companies.

This article is aimed at giving a broad overview on the principles and standards that could drive the necessary change towards a better protection of the right to freedom of expression and the right to privacy in the digital age. It merely represents a set of opinions and proposals under discussion in many human rights advocacy organizations and in the United Nations as well.

Thus, the starting point for an international effort to protect both rights in the digital era should be to reaffirm and develop such international frameworks – which should also include companies. For example, in August 2003, the UN Sub-Commission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights approved the UN Norms on the Responsibilities of Transnational Corporations and Other Business Enterprises with Regard to Human Rights (also known as the UN Norms).This document represents the most authoritative and comprehensive set of standards on business and human rights issued to date and can serve as a good baseline to develop some of the principles and standards referred in this article.

I 2. A good foundation

I 3. First of all... the right

The protection of privacy and freedom of expression across national borders benefit from the internationally recognized laws and standards for human rights set out in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.

Although it is controversial whether the right to access to the Internet can be considered a human right, it is certainly critical for the realization of a whole range of human rights, including the right to freedom of expression.

Despite this, a greater part of the world still has no access to the Internet. According to a recent survey2, for those living on less than US$2/day, entry-level broadband costs an average of 40% of monthly income, and in many countries this figure exceeds 80% or 100%. As a consequence, billions cannot afford to connect to the network, therefore limiting the economic and social improvements that access could promote.

is already in place

The right to privacy and the right to freedom of expression are both well established in the UDHR: Article 12: ‘No one shall be subjected to arbitrary

Article 19: ‘Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers’.

to access to the Internet

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Therefore, the right to access to, and make use of, the Internet should be ensured for all and it shall not be subject to any restrictions except those which pass the so-called three-part test: ▪ It must be provided by law, meeting a standard of clarity and precision that is sufficient to ensure that individuals have advance notice of and can foresee their application – principles of predictability and transparency; ▪ It must be strictly and demonstrably necessary to achieve a legitimate aim – principle of legitimacy; ▪ It must be proportionate and not employed when less invasive techniques are available which have not yet been exhausted – principle of proportionality.

States must commit to developing effective policies to attain universal access to the Internet. Otherwise the Internet will become a technological tool that is only accessible to a certain elite of people while perpetrating the ‘digital divide’.

Moreover, as a minimum requirement, the right to access to the Internet should preserve: ▪ Quality of service, which should evolve in line with advancing technological possibilities; ▪ Freedom of choice of system and software use facilitating interoperability and the growth of open standards; ▪ Ensuring digital inclusion, requiring that all people has access to ICTs and tools in general for information managing and processing.To this end, public Internet access points should be made available, such as libraries, community centers, clinics and schools.

▪ Net neutrality: basically meaning that all data on the Internet should be treated equally, not discriminating or charging differentially by user, content, site, platform, application, type of attached equipment and modes of communication. This principle is enshrined in Article 23 of the EU Commission Regulation Proposal on the

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single market for electronic communications and subject to restrictions only when necessary to apply reasonable traffic management measures – i.e. to implement a court order, to preserve the integrity and security of the network, to prevent spam or to reduce the effects of network congestion.

I 4. Freedom of expression The right to freedom of expression on the Internet is an issue of increasing interest and importance as the rapid pace of ICT enables individuals all over the world to use the Internet and other technologies to communicate worldwide.

Similarly to the above-mentioned right to access to the Internet, the right to freedom of expression may be subject to restrictions – i.e. when necessary to respect the rights and reputations of others, but only if they pass the three-part test – transparency, legitimacy and proportionality. A restriction on this right can take various forms, from technical measures to prevent access to certain content such as blocking and filtering, to inadequate guarantees of the right to privacy, which inhibit the dissemination of opinions and information.

As a minimum requirement, the right to freedom of expression should cover3: ▪ Freedom of online protest, consisting on the right to use the Internet to organize and engage in online and offline protest; ▪ Freedom from censorship, meaning freedom from any restriction designed to intimidate Internet users or close down expression online. Consider, for example, the obligation to register all blogs with a State authority that can monitor them, a heated topic in several European Countries where a number of bills have been proposed to that aim; ▪ Freedom from arbitrary blocking or filtering of content, that is to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through the Internet at any time. For example, several countries continue to block video-sharing websites like Youtube or block access to any website containing terms such as

‘democracy’ and ‘human rights’. It should also comprise the right to open data from governmental sources of information; ▪ Freedom of media: freedom and pluralism of the media must be honored; ▪ Freedom of hate speech: beliefs and opinions of others must be respected.

When required to restrict communications or remove content by any government, companies should evaluate the impact of such requirements. This could be done through the following actions4: ▪ Seek clarification or modification from authorized officials when government restrictions appear overbroad or excessive, not required by domestic law or appear inconsistent with international rights and standards on freedom of expression; ▪ Request clear written communications from the government that explain the legal basis for government restrictions to freedom of expression, including the name of the requesting government entity and the name, title and signature of the authorized official; ▪ Challenge the government in domestic courts or seek the assistance of relevant authorities, international human bodies or non-governmental organizations when faced with a government restriction that appears inconsistent with domestic law or procedures or international human rights laws and standards on freedom of expression.

All these measures are a good desideratum and must be preserved even though they are not easy to apply in practice because they either leave room to different interpretations and the fact of not complying with government requests could end up with civil and even criminal sanctions.

It is also important to consider the imposition of intermediary liability as a type of restriction on the right to freedom of expression. Many States have adopted laws that impose liability upon intermediaries – i.e. search engines, ISPs, blogs, online communities, etc. if they do not filter, remove or block content generated by

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users which is deemed illegal. Several States, and it is the case for all EU countries, have adopted what is known as ‘notice-andtakedown’ regime that protects those intermediaries from liability provided that they take down unlawful material when they are made aware of its existence. Despite this, in recent years, intermediaries’ protection from liability has suffered certain erosion, especially through case law. For example, on October 2013, the European Court of Human Rights5 concluded that a news portal has editorial control over the comments’ section on its site and therefore has to prevent unlawful thirdparty comments from being published even though it takes down the offensive comments immediately upon being notified of them.

In respect of users, companies should be transparent and: ▪ Clearly disclose to users the generally applicable laws and policies which require the company to remove or limit access to content or restrict communications; ▪ Disclosure to users in a clear manner the company’s policies and procedures for responding to government’s demands to remove or limit access to content or restrict communications; ▪ Give clear, prominent and timely notice to users when access to specific content has been removed or blocked by the company or when the company due to government restrictions has limited communications.

I 5. Right to privacy In November 2013, the United Nations adopted a resolution titled ‘Right to Privacy in the Digital Age’6 to protect the right to privacy against unlawful surveillance through the rule of already established international law.

Although this resolution is not legally binding it’s important because it reflects world opinion and carry political weight after the dramatic revelations in June 2013.

In particular, this resolution reaffirms that States must ensure that any surveillance measures taken to combat terrorism are in compliance with their obligations under

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▪ To take measures to put an end to violations of those rights and to create the conditions to prevent such violations, including by ensuring that relevant national legislation complies with their obligations under international human rights law;

is subject to the three-part test and thus comply with the principles of transparency, legitimacy and proportionality. It is also of the utmost importance that individuals have a legal right to be notified when they are subjected to communications surveillance and have had their communications data accessed by the State, unless it is duly justified not to do so.This legal framework should be set internationally in order to avoid conflicting laws or where the laws of one jurisdiction conflict with the laws of another and governments should work together to resolve the conflict.

▪ To review their procedures, practices and legislation regarding the surveillance of communications, their interception and collection of personal data, including mass surveillance, interception and collection;

Furthermore, a group of 329 civil society organizations from all regions launched a set of principles8 that interpret State’s human rights obligations in light of new technologies and surveillance capabilities.

▪ To establish and maintain existing independent, effective domestic oversight mechanisms capable of ensuring transparency, as appropriate, and accountability for State surveillance of communications, their interception and collection of personal data.

The Principles look beyond the current set of revelations to take a broad look at how modern communications surveillance technologies can be addressed consistently with human rights and the rule of law. The Principles can be used by States around the world to push for stronger legal protections at the United Nations and other international bodies as well as at home.

international law. And it also calls upon the States: ▪ To respect and protect the right to privacy, including the context of digital communications;

Accordingly, a formal protection of the right to online privacy has to reach the transactional data arising from today’s communications via online and mobile telephone - the so-called metadata - that include personal information of individuals, their location, their online activities and related information about the e-mails and messages they send or receive. As Snowden’s revelations have proven, ‘metadata’ can be as sensitive and even more than the content of the communications itself and therefore deserves strong human rights protection.

States must ensure that effective national legal frameworks and effective enforcement are critical for ensuring full compliance with international human rights law against unlawful or arbitrary intrusions on the right to privacy.

In this sense, the European Court of Human Rights lately ruled 7 that European countries violate privacy rights if they lack an adequate legal framework that prohibits secret videotaping or picture taking and fails to provide effective remedies.

In particular, legal frameworks should ensure that any communication surveillance measure

The Principles make clear that: ▪ Critical Internet infrastructure must be protected: No law should impose security holes in ICTs in order to facilitate surveillance.The assumption underlying such efforts – that no communication can be truly secure – is inherently dangerous, leaving people at the mercy of good guys and bad guys alike.

It must be rejected; ▪ Monitoring equals surveillance: Much of the expansive State surveillance revealed in the past year depends on confusion over whether actual “surveillance” has occurred and thus whether human rights obligations apply. Some have suggested that if information is merely collected and kept but not looked at by humans, no privacy invasion has occurred. Others argue that computers analyzing all communications in real-time for key words and other selectors are not “surveillance” for purposes of triggering legal protections. These differences in interpretation can mean the difference

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between targeted and mass surveillance of communications. Definitions matter. States should not be able to bypass privacy protections on the basis of arbitrary definitions; ▪ Metadata must be protected: What is important is not the kind of data collected, but its effect on the privacy of the individual.Thus, the law must require high standards for government access. Metadata needs to be treated with the same level of privacy as content.

▪ Privacy must be protected across borders: Privacy protections must be consistent across borders at home and abroad. Governments should not bypass national privacy protections by relying on secretive informal data sharing agreements with foreign States or private international companies. Individuals should not be denied privacy rights simply because they live in another country from the one that is surveilling them. Where data is flowing across borders, the law of the jurisdiction with the greatest privacy protections should apply.

required by applicable law or inconsistent with international human rights laws and standards on privacy; ▪ Request clear communications, preferably in writing, that explains the legal basis for government demands for personal information including the name of the requesting government entity and the name, title and signature the authorized official; ▪ Adopt policies and procedures to address how the company will respond when government demands do not include a written directive or fail to adhere to established legal procedure.

▪ Challenge the government in domestic courts or seek the assistance of relevant authorities, international human bodies or nongovernmental organizations when faced with a government restriction that appears inconsistent with domestic law or procedures or international human rights laws and standards on privacy; In respect of users, companies should be transparent and:

▪ Proportionality must be restored: Authorities must have prior authorization by an independent and impartial judicial entity in order to determine that a certain act of surveillance has a sufficiently high likelihood to provide evidence that will address a serious harm. Any decisions about surveillance must weigh the benefits against the costs of violating an individual’s privacy and freedom of expression. Respect for due process also requires that any interference with fundamental rights must be properly enumerated in law that is consistently practiced and available to the public. A judge must ensure that freedoms are respected and limitations are appropriately applied.

▪ Clearly disclose to users which generally applicable government laws and policies require the participating company to provide personal information to government authorities, unless such disclosure is unlawful;

Similarly to what should be assessed by companies that are required to restrict access to certain content or remove it, companies facing government demands that compromise privacy online, should also encourage governments to be specific, transparent and consistent with international laws and standards on privacy.

What needs to be done…

Therefore, companies should: ▪ Seek clarification or modification from authorized officials when government demands appear excessive and unlawful, not

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▪ Disclose to users in a clear manner what personal information the company collects, and the company’s policies and procedures for responding to government demands for personal information; ▪ Assess on an ongoing basis measures to support user transparency, in an effective manner, regarding the company’s data collection, storage, and retention practices.

The duty of governments to protect human rights includes ensuring that national laws are consistent with international human rights laws and standards on freedom of expression and privacy. At the same time, all companies and foremost those belonging to the ICT sector (i.e. telecommunications operators, electronic communications providers and other Internet companies) have the responsibility to respect the freedom of expression and privacy rights of their users.

Many of these standards and principles are now being discussed and developed by relevant international organisations, both public and private. And due to the fact that individual countries have a tendency to repress rather to liberate the use of ICTs it’s crucial to seek protection at the highest international levels and closely monitor that these principles and standards, once adopted, are not brusquely interrupted at the national level.

Lawyers worldwide have a central role to that end and time has come to work together to uphold human rights in the digital realm. Debates on human rights need no longer be limited by national or cultural boundaries and we, as lawyers, should have the ability to spur to action policymakers and business around the globe to ensure that the Internet remains a place where human rights are realized, not violated.

It is time for us to call upon all States and companies to promote and respect human rights to the best extent in the digital age.

Marc GALLARDO MESEGUER President of the Privacy and Rights of the Digital Person Commission Lexing Spain Barcelona, Spain marc.gallardo@lexing.es

1

The promotion, protection and enjoyment of human rights on the Internet: A/HRC/RES/20/8.

2

Affordability Report 2013: http://a4ai.org/affordability-report-2013-launched/

3

Internet Rights & Principles Charter at http://internetrightsandprinciples.org/wpcharter/

4

Global Network Initiative (GNI) at www.globalnetworkinitiative.org/principles/index.php

5

Delfi AS v. Estonia, nº 64569/09.

6

United Nations – General Assembly, 68 session of 20 November 2013: Promotion and protection of human rights: human rights questions, including alternative approaches for improving the effective enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms. A/C.3/68/L.45/Rev.1.

7

Söderman v. Sweden: Judgment (Grand Chamber) of 12 November 2013.The ruling stems from a case in Sweden where a man secretly videotaped his stepdaughter while she took a shower.

8

The 13 International Principles for the Application of Human Rights to Communications Surveillance or more commonly, the ‘Necessary and Proportionate Principles’ http://necessaryandproportionate.org The principles are: legality, legitimate aim, necessity, adequacy, proportionality, competent judicial authority, due process, user notification, transparency, public oversight, integrity of communications and systems, safeguards for international cooperation and safeguards against illegitimate access.

4 ■ 2013 I Rassembler les avocats du monde

Guinée Équatoriale Une médiation menée avec succès conduit à la levée de la sanction disciplinaire contre Me Ponciano Mbomio L’UIA se félicite du succès de sa mission de médiation conduite en janvier dernier auprès de l’Ordre des Avocats de Guinée équatoriale.

Menée par Me Fernando Tonim, cette médiation a conduit à la levée immédiate de la mesure de suspension de deux années ordonnée par l’Ordre à l’encontre de Me Mbomio en date du 27 avril 2012.

La sanction prise à l’encontre de Me Mbomio reposait sur l’expression par ce dernier « d’opinions, de jugements et de critiques contre le gouvernement et ses institutions ». Les propos litigieux relevaient d’une plaidoirie tenue dans le cadre de la défense du Dr. Wenceslao Mansogo Alo, défenseur des droits de l’homme et membre de l’opposition au gouvernement en place. Ce dernier avait été condamné en mai 2012 à trois ans de prison à l’issue d’un procès décrit par les observateurs internationaux comme éminemment politique1. Il a fait l’objet d’une grâce présidentielle et a été libéré en juin 2013.

Me Mbomio avait été suspendu en 2008 déjà, dans des circonstances similaires.

Saisie directement du contentieux par Me Mbomio, l’UIA s’est inquiétée de la motivation de la sanction disciplinaire. Elle a sollicité de l’Ordre des Avocats de Guinée équatoriale la transmission de tout élément permettant de comprendre cette motivation, et rappelé fermement les principes qui protègent la profession, notamment l’immunité civile et pénale qui doit être reconnue aux avocats pour toute déclaration pertinente faite de bonne foi dans le cadre de plaidoiries écrites ou orales.

La réponse de l’Ordre des Avocats a fait notamment apparaître un désaccord fondamental entre les parties sur les textes régissant la profession et par conséquent sur l’exercice des voies de recours dans le cadre de la procédure disciplinaire.

Le dialogue qui s’est installé avec l’Ordre a néanmoins permis d’envisager dès novembre 2013 la tenue d’une médiation entre celui-ci et Me Mbomio. Me Fernando Tonim s’est donc rendu à Malabo à la fin du mois de janvier 2013 et a pu conclure sa mission avec le plus grand succès.

L’UIA entend maintenir le dialogue avec les autorités de l’Ordre des Avocats de Guinée équatoriale et œuvrer par différentes voies pour une meilleure reconnaissance par ce barreau des principes liés à l’indépendance des organes régissant la profession.

1

Voir not. Le rapport de Human Rights Watch: www.hrw.org/news/2012/05/07/equatorial-guinea-oppositionfigure-wrongly-convicted

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La profession d'avocat The Legal Profession La AbogacĂ­a

ABS : les nouvelles frontières de la profession d'avocat I Bruno MICOLANO Le Sénat International des Barreaux, convoqué le 31 octobre 2012 pendant les travaux du congrès de Dresde, a largement traité le sujet des ABS (alternative business structures).

Nous le savons, elles sont considérées comme une nouvelle forme d’exercice de la profession d’avocat, très développée surtout dans le monde anglo-saxon.

En réalité, il s’agit de structures dans lesquelles les avocats sont reliés à d’autres professionnels, afin d’apporter un service complet au client.

Le débat est ouvert et l’UIA n’a pas encore exprimé son avis à ce sujet, chargeant, toutefois, son Président d’honneur Delos N. Lutton de réaliser une étude.

Le présent article entend apporter une contribution à ce débat, en rappelant que la Cour de Justice de l’Union européenne s’est déjà prononcée sur ce sujet dans un arrêt qui remonte à 10 ans. Le cas d’espèce concernait la compatibilité avec les normes communautaires d’une loi hollandaise qui interdisait l’exercice de la profession d’avocat en collaboration avec une société d’expertise comptable.

L’affaire avait été soulevée par la voie préjudicielle pour savoir si cette réglementation restrictive violait les principes de la libre concurrence ou était licite, voire nécessaire au bon fonctionnement de la profession d’avocat.

La Cour a répondu que cette réglementation est tout à fait licite, renforçant ainsi le principe de l’incompatibilité de l’exercice de la profession d’avocat avec d’autres professionnels.

Voyons l’affaire: C-309/99, arrêt du 19 février 2002: M. Wouters, avocat au barreau d’Amsterdam, est devenu, en 1991, associé de la société Arthur Andersen & Co. Belastingadviseurs (conseillers fiscaux). À la fin de l’année 1994, M. Wouters a

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informé le comité de surveillance de l’ordre des avocats de l’arrondissement de Rotterdam de son intention de se faire inscrire au barreau de cette ville et d’y exercer sous la dénomination « Arthur Andersen & Co., advocaten en belastingadviseurs ».

Par décision du 27 juillet 1995, ce comité a considéré que les associés de la société Arthur Andersen & Co. Belastingadviseurs entretenaient un lien de collaboration, au sens de la Samenwerkingsverordening 1993, avec les membres de la société Arthur Andersen & Co. Accountants, c’est-à-dire avec des membres de la catégorie professionnelle des expertscomptables, de sorte que M. Wouters enfreignait l’article 4 de la Samenwerkingsverordening 1993. En outre, le comité a considéré que M. Wouters violerait l’article 8 de la Samenwerkingsverordening 1993 s’il entrait dans une collaboration dont la dénomination collective mentionnerait le nom de la personne physique « Arthur Andersen ».

Par décision du 29 novembre 1995, le Conseil général a rejeté comme non fondés les recours administratifs que M. Wouters,Arthur Andersen & Co. Belastingadviseurs et Arthur Andersen & Co. Accountants avaient formés contre cette décision.

Au début de l’année 1995, M. Savelbergh, avocat au barreau d’Amsterdam, a fait part au comité de surveillance de l’ordre des avocats de l’arrondissement d’Amsterdam de son intention de nouer une collaboration avec la société Price Waterhouse Belastingadviseurs BV, filiale de l’entreprise internationale Price Waterhouse, qui regroupe non seulement des conseillers fiscaux mais aussi des experts-comptables.

Par décision du 5 juillet 1995, ce comité a déclaré que la collaboration envisagée était contraire à l’article 4 de la Samenwerkingsverordening 1993.

Par décision du 21 novembre 1995, le Conseil

général a rejeté comme non fondé le recours administratif formé par M. Savelbergh et la société Price Waterhouse Belastingadviseurs BV contre cette décision.

M. Wouters, Arthur Andersen & Co. Belastingadviseurs et Arthur Andersen & Co. Accountants, d’une part, et M. Savelbergh et Price Waterhouse Belastingadviseurs BV, d’autre part, ont alors introduit un recours devant l’Arrondissementsrechtbank te Amsterdam. Ils ont notamment fait valoir que les décisions du Conseil général des 21 et 29 novembre 1995 étaient incompatibles avec les dispositions du traité en matière de concurrence, de droit d’établissement et de libre prestation des services.

Par jugement du 7 février 1997, le Rechtbank a déclaré irrecevables les recours introduits par Arthur Andersen & Co. Belastingadviseurs et Arthur Andersen & Co. Accountants et rejeté comme non fondés ceux formés par M. Wouters, M. Savelbergh et la société Price Waterhouse Belastingadviseurs BV. Le Rechtbank a considéré que les dispositions du traité en matière de concurrence n’étaient pas applicables aux litiges au principal. Cette juridiction a relevé que l’ordre néerlandais des avocats est un organisme de droit public institué par la loi afin de promouvoir un intérêt général. À cet effet, il utiliserait, entre autres, le pouvoir réglementaire que lui a reconnu l’article 28 de l’Advocatenwet. Il serait tenu de garantir, dans l’intérêt général, l’indépendance et la partialité de l’avocat qui fournit une assistance juridique.

Dès lors, l’ordre néerlandais des avocats ne serait pas une association d’entreprises au sens de l’article 85 du traité. Il ne saurait non plus être considéré comme une entreprise ou comme un groupement d’entreprises occupant une position dominante collective au sens de l’article 86 du traité.

En outre, selon le Rechtbank, l’article 28 de l’Advocatenwet ne transfère nullement des

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compétences à des opérateurs privés d’une manière qui porterait atteinte à l’effet utile des articles 85 et 86 du traité. En conséquence, cette disposition ne serait pas incompatible avec l’article 5, second alinéa, lu en combinaison avec les articles 3, sous g), 85 et 86 du traité.

Le Rechtbank a également écarté l’argumentation des requérants selon laquelle la Samenwerkingsverordening 1993 serait incompatible avec le droit d’établissement et la libre prestation des services énoncés aux articles 52 et 59 du traité.

L’aspect transfrontalier ferait défaut dans les litiges au principal, si bien que lesdites dispositions du traité seraient inapplicables. En tout état de cause, l’interdiction de collaboration entre avocats et experts-comptables serait justifiée par des raisons impérieuses d’intérêt général et ne serait pas démesurément restrictive. En l’absence de dispositions communautaires spécifiques en la matière, il serait, en effet, loisible au Royaume des Pays-Bas d’assortir l’exercice de la profession d’avocat sur son territoire de règles visant à garantir l’indépendance et la partialité de l’avocat fournissant une assistance juridique.

Les cinq requérants ont fait appel de cette décision devant le Raad van State.

Le Raad van de Balies van de Europese Gemeenschap (Conseil des barreaux de la Communauté européenne), qui est une association de droit belge, a été admis à intervenir devant le Raad van State à l’appui des conclusions du Conseil général.

Par un arrêt rendu le 10 août 1999, le Raad van State a confirmé l’irrecevabilité des recours formés par Arthur Andersen & Co. Belastingadviseurs et Arthur Andersen & Co. Accountants. S’agissant des autres recours, il a considéré que la solution des litiges au principal dépendait de l’interprétation de plusieurs dispositions de droit communautaire.

Le Raad van State se demande, d’une part, si, en arrêtant la Samenwerkingsverordening 1993 en vertu des pouvoirs qu’il tient de l’article 28 de l’Advocatenwet, le Collège des délégués n’a pas violé les articles 85 et 86 du traité et, d’autre part, si, en habilitant, par l’article 28 de l’Advocatenwet, ledit Collège à arrêter des règlements, le législateur national n’a pas violé les articles 5, 85 et 86 du traité. En outre, il se

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demande si la Samenwerkingsverordening 1993 est compatible avec la liberté d’établissement, énoncée à l’article 52 du traité, et avec la libre prestation des services, énoncée à l’article 59 du traité.

Aussi le Raad van State a-t-il décidé de surseoir à statuer et de poser à la Cour les questions préjudicielles suivantes: «1) a) Convient-il d’interpréter l’expression association d’entreprises figurant à l’article 85, paragraphe 1, du traité CE (devenu article 81, paragraphe 1, CE) en ce sens qu’on ne se trouvera en présence d’une telle association que lorsque, et dans la mesure où, une telle association agit dans l’intérêt d’opérateurs, si bien qu’il convient de distinguer, pour l’application de cette disposition, les activités que l’association déploie dans l’intérêt général des autres activités, ou le seul fait qu’une association peut également agir dans l’intérêt des opérateurs suffit-il pour la qualifier d’association d’entreprises au sens de cette disposition pour l’ensemble de son action? Le fait que les règles généralement contraignantes adoptées par l’organisme en cause l’ont été en vertu de pouvoirs législatifs et en qualité de législateur particulier a-t-il une incidence pour l’application du droit communautaire de la concurrence? b) S’il est répondu à la première question, sous a), qu’il ne s’agira d’une association d’entreprises que lorsque, et dans la mesure où, une association agit dans l’intérêt d’opérateurs, le droit communautaire détermine-t-il – également – quand il s’agit de la sauvegarde de l’intérêt général et quand ce n’est pas le cas? c) S’il est répondu à la première question, sous b), que le droit communautaire intervient à cet égard, permet-il également de considérer que l’adoption par un organisme tel que l’ordre [néerlandais des avocats], en vertu d’un pouvoir législatif destiné à garantir l’indépendance et la partialité de l’avocat fournissant une assistance juridique, de règles généralement contraignantes régissant la conclusion de collaborations entre avocats et autres professionnels poursuit l’intérêt général?

2) S’il y a lieu de conclure, sur la base des réponses à la première question, sous a), b) et c), qu’un règlement tel que [la Samenwerkingsverordening 1993] doit également être considéré comme une décision prise par une association d’entreprises au sens de l’article 85, paragraphe 1, du traité CE (devenu article 81, paragraphe 1, CE), y a-t-il dès lors lieu de considérer qu’une telle décision, dans la mesure où elle arrête des règles généralement contraignantes régissant la conclusion de collaborations du type en cause en l’espèce afin de garantir l’indépendance et la partialité de l’avocat fournissant une assistance juridique, a pour objet ou pour effet de restreindre la concurrence à l’intérieur du marché commun dans une mesure telle que les échanges entre États membres en sont affectés? Quels critères découlant du droit communautaire sont pertinents pour répondre à cette question?

3) Y a-t-il lieu d’interpréter le terme entreprise figurant à l’article 86 du traité CE (devenu article 82 CE) en ce sens que, si un organisme tel que l’ordre [néerlandais des avocats] doit être considéré comme une association d’entreprises, ledit organisme doit également être considéré comme une entreprise ou un groupement d’entreprises au sens de cette disposition, bien qu’il ne déploie lui-même aucune activité économique?

4) Si la réponse à la question précédente est affirmative et si, dès lors, il faut estimer qu’un organisme tel que l’ordre [néerlandais des avocats] occupe une position dominante, un tel organisme abuse-t-il de cette position en contraignant les avocats qui lui sont affiliés à se comporter, sur le marché de la prestation de services juridiques, vis-à-vis d’autres personnes d’une manière qui restreint la concurrence?

5) Si un organisme tel que l’ordre [néerlandais des avocats] doit être considéré dans son ensemble comme une association d’entreprises aux fins de l’application des règles communautaires de concurrence, y a-t-il lieu d’interpréter l’article 90, paragraphe 2, du traité CE (devenu article 86, paragraphe 2, CE) en ce sens qu’en relève également un organisme tel que l’ordre [néerlandais des avocats] qui arrête des règles généralement

4 ■ 2013 I Reunir a los abogados del mundo

contraignantes concernant la collaboration entre avocats et autres professionnels dans le but de garantir l’indépendance et la partialité de l’avocat fournissant une assistance juridique?

6) S’il y a lieu de considérer l’ordre [néerlandais des avocats] comme une association d’entreprises, ou comme une entreprise ou un groupement d’entreprises, les articles 3, sous g), du traité CE [devenu, après modification, article 3, paragraphe 1, sous g), CE], 5, second alinéa du traité CE (devenu article 10, second alinéa, CE), 85 et 86 du traité CE (devenus articles 81 CE et 82 CE) font-ils obstacle à ce qu’un État membre confère à cet organisme (ou à un de ses organes) le pouvoir d’arrêter des règles pouvant avoir trait, entre autres, à la collaboration entre avocats et autres professionnels, alors que la tutelle des autorités sur ce processus ne leur permet que d’annuler un tel règlement sans pouvoir substituer leur propre règlement à celui qu’elles ont annulé?

7) Une interdiction de collaboration entre avocats et experts-comptables, comme en l’espèce, est-elle soumise à la fois aux dispositions du traité consacrées au droit d’établissement et à celles consacrées à la libre prestation des services, ou y a-t-il lieu d’interpréter le traité CE en ce sens qu’une telle interdiction doit satisfaire soit aux dispositions en matière de droit d’établissement, soit aux dispositions en matière de libre prestation des services, par exemple selon la manière dont les intéressés souhaitent effectivement réaliser leur collaboration?

8) L’interdiction d’un lien de collaboration intégré entre avocats et experts-comptables, comme en l’espèce, constitue-t-elle une restriction au droit d’établissement, à la libre prestation des services, ou aux deux?

9) S’il résulte de la réponse à la question précédente que l’on se trouve en présence de l’une des deux restrictions qui y sont citées, ou des deux, ladite restriction se justifie-t-elle alors au motif qu’elle ne recouvre qu’une modalité de vente au sens de l’arrêt [du 24 novembre 1993,] Keck et Mithouard [(C-267/91 et C-268/91, Rec. p. I6097),] et n’est donc pas discriminatoire, ou

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au motif qu’elle répond aux conditions que la Cour a développées à cet effet dans d’autres arrêts, notamment dans l’arrêt [du 30 novembre 1995,] Gebhard [(C-55/94, Rec. p.

I-4165)]?».

La Cour a ainsi établi, entre autres: À cet égard, il convient de prendre en compte le cadre juridique applicable aux Pays-Bas, respectivement, d’une part, aux avocats et à l’ordre néerlandais des avocats, composé de tous les avocats inscrits dans cet État membre, et, d’autre part, aux experts-comptables.

S’agissant des avocats, il convient de rappeler à titre liminaire que, selon une jurisprudence constante, en l’absence de règles communautaires spécifiques en la matière, chaque État membre reste, en principe, libre de régler l’exercice de la profession d’avocat sur son territoire (voir arrêts du 12 juillet 1984, Klopp, 107/83, Rec. p.

2971, point 17, et Reisebüro Broede, précité, point 37). Les règles applicables à cette profession peuvent, de ce fait, différer substantiellement d’un État membre à l’autre.

Selon les conceptions en vigueur aux Pays-Bas, où l’ordre national des avocats est chargé par l’article 28 de l’Advocatenwet d’arrêter la réglementation devant assurer l’exercice correct de la profession d’avocat, les règles essentielles adoptées à cet effet sont notamment le devoir de défendre son client en toute indépendance et dans l’intérêt exclusif de celui-ci, celui, déjà mentionné, d’éviter tout risque de conflit d’intérêts ainsi que le devoir de respecter un strict secret professionnel.

Ces obligations déontologiques ont des implications non négligeables sur la structure du marché des services juridiques, et plus particulièrement sur les possibilités d’exercer conjointement la profession d’avocat et d’autres professions libérales actives sur ce marché.

Ainsi, elles imposent que l’avocat se trouve dans une situation d’indépendance vis-à-vis des pouvoirs publics, des autres opérateurs et des tiers, dont il convient qu’il ne subisse jamais l’influence. Il doit offrir, à cet égard, la garantie que toutes les initiatives qu’il prend dans un dossier le sont en considération de l’intérêt exclusif du client.

La profession des experts-comptables n’est, en revanche, pas soumise, en général et plus particulièrement aux Pays-Bas, à des exigences déontologiques comparables. À cet égard, ainsi que M. l’avocat général l’a relevé à juste titre aux points 185 et 186 de ses conclusions, il peut exister une certaine incompatibilité entre l’activité de « conseil », exercée par l’avocat, et celle de « contrôle », exercée par l’expert-comptable. Il ressort des observations déposées par le défendeur au principal que, aux Pays-Bas, l’expert-comptable exerce une mission de certification des comptes. À ce titre, il procède à un examen et à un contrôle objectifs de la comptabilité de ses clients, de manière à pouvoir communiquer aux tiers intéressés son opinion personnelle quant à la fiabilité de ces données comptables. Il s’ensuit que, dans l’État membre concerné, il n’est pas soumis à un secret professionnel comparable à celui de l’avocat, contrairement à ce que prévoit, par exemple, le droit allemand.

Il y a, dès lors, lieu de constater que la Samenwerkingsverordening 1993 vise à assurer, dans l’État membre concerné, le respect de la déontologie de la profession d’avocat qui y est applicable et que, compte tenu des conceptions de cette profession qui y prévalent, l’ordre néerlandais des avocats a pu considérer que l’avocat pourrait ne plus être en mesure de conseiller et de défendre son client de manière indépendante et dans le respect d’un strict secret professionnel s’il appartenait à une structure qui a également pour mission de rendre compte des résultats financiers des opérations pour lesquelles il est intervenu et de les certifier.

Au demeurant, le cumul des activités de contrôle légal des comptes et de conseil, notamment juridique, soulève également des questions au sein même de la profession des experts-comptables, ainsi que l’atteste le livre vert 96/C 321/01 de la Commission, intitulé « Rôle, statut et responsabilité du contrôleur légal des comptes dans l’Union européenne » (JO 1996, C 321, p. 1; voir spécialement les points 4.12 à 4.14).

Un règlement tel que la Samenwerkingsverordening 1993 a, dès lors, pu être raisonnablement considéré comme nécessaire pour garantir le bon exercice de la profession

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d’avocat, telle qu’elle est organisée dans l’État membre concerné.

Par ailleurs, le fait que des règles différentes soient, le cas échéant, applicables dans un autre État membre ne signifie pas que les règles en vigueur dans le premier État soient incompatibles avec le droit communautaire (voir, en ce sens, arrêt du 1er février 2001, Mac Quen e.a., C-108/96, Rec. p. I-837, point 33). Même si, dans certains États membres, les collaborations intégrées entre les avocats et les expertscomptables sont admises, l’ordre néerlandais des avocats est en droit de considérer que les objectifs poursuivis par la Samenwerkingsverordening 1993 ne peuvent pas, compte tenu notamment du régime juridique auquel sont soumis respectivement les avocats et les experts-comptables aux Pays-Bas, être atteints par des moyens moins restrictifs (voir, en ce sens, à propos d’une loi réservant l’activité de recouvrement judiciaire de créances aux avocats, arrêt Reisebüro Broede, précité, point 41).

Au vu de ces éléments, il n’apparaît pas que les effets restrictifs de la concurrence tels que ceux imposés aux avocats opérant aux Pays-Bas par un règlement tel que la Samenwerkingsverordening 1993 aillent au-delà de ce qui est nécessaire pour assurer l’exercice correct de la profession d’avocat (voir, en ce sens, arrêt du 15 décembre 1994, DLG, C-250/92, Rec. p. I-5641, point 35). À la lumière de cette motivation, la Cour a donc décidé: 1) Un règlement relatif à la collaboration entre les avocats et d’autres professions libérales tel que la Samenwerkingsverordening 1993 (règlement de 1993 sur la collaboration), adopté par un organisme tel que le Nederlandse Orde van Advocaten (ordre néerlandais des avocats), doit être considéré comme une décision prise par une association d’entreprises, au sens de l’article 85, paragraphe 1, du traité CE (devenu article 81, paragraphe 1, CE).

2) Une réglementation nationale telle que la Samenwerkingsverordening 1993 adoptée par un organisme tel que le Nederlandse Orde van Advocaten n’enfreint pas l’article 85, paragraphe 1 du traité, étant donné que

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cet organisme a pu raisonnablement considérer que ladite réglementation, nonobstant les effets restrictifs de la concurrence qui lui sont inhérents, s’avère nécessaire au bon exercice de la profession d’avocat telle qu’elle est organisée dans l’État membre concerné.

3) Un organisme tel que le Nederlandse Orde van Advocaten ne constitue ni une entreprise ni un groupement d’entreprises au sens de l’article 86 du traité CE (devenu article 82 CE).

Ainsi s’exprimait le Président Jean-Marie Burguburu, à la fin de la séance du Sénat International des Barreaux, tenue à Macao le 1er novembre 2013, dans le cadre du congrès annuel de l’Union Internationale des Avocats (UIA).

4) Les articles 52 et 59 du traité CE (devenus, après modification, articles 43 CE et 49 CE) ne s‘opposent pas à une réglementation nationale telle que la Samenwerkingsverordening 1993, qui interdit toute collaboration intégrée entre les avocats et les experts-comptables, étant donné que celle-ci a pu être raisonnablement considérée comme nécessaire au bon exercice de la profession d’avocat telle qu’elle est organisée dans le pays concerné.

Le Sénat International des Barreaux a été créé par l’UIA comme un organe consultatif pour permettre aux Bâtonniers, Présidents de barreaux et d’organisations internationales d’avocats, tant locales, que nationales et internationales, de débattre sur des sujets d’actualité touchant au droit, à la déontologie, à l’éthique et aux valeurs fondamentales de la profession d’avocat.

En Europe, le débat sur les ABS ne peut donc faire abstraction de cet arrêt important.

Bruno MICOLANO Président du 58e congrès de l’UIA Studio Micolano Milan, Italie micolano_avv.bruno@iol.it

Quel sujet plus d’actualité que celui du « cloud computing », connu au Québec sous le nom de « infonuagique » aurait pu être discuté?

L’avis de convocation à la séance, sous la responsabilité du Président et de la VicePrésidente du Sénat et de l’UIA, Jean-Marie Burguburu et Huguette André-Coret, se voulait provocateur: « Les valeurs fondamentales de la profession sont-elles menacées? » « À l’aire de la mondialisation, peut-on envisager de ne pas avoir recours à cette nouvelle technologie? » tout en proposant des pistes de discussion: ▪ La technologie du cloud computing est en constante progression dans les entreprises qui l’utilisent largement.

▪ La profession d’avocat se doit d’accom-pagner ses clients et de relever avec eux le défi de l’économie numérique.

▪ Les avantages de l’informatique en nuage sont certains, les dangers sont réels.

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Le Cloud Computing

macao

"Tout comme la langue d’Ésope, c'est à la fois la meilleure et la pire des choses !"

I Francis GERVAIS ▪ Comment arrêter le problème majeur de la protection des données et trouver des solutions qui prennent en compte les obligations professionnelles et réglementaires qui doivent rester une priorité absolue pour les avocats.

notre société: alors qu’auparavant, les villages faisaient appel à de la fourniture locale à l’électricité, aujourd’hui, ils se retournent vers des systèmes plus globaux et même externes: le cloud computing est une nouveauté de même nature.

Ouvrant la séance, le Président Burguburu, après avoir fait un court survol de la question et après avoir rappelé la mise en garde concernant les dangers potentiels, d’une façon provocatrice lançait:

L’un des avantages du cloud computing, c’est de ne payer que pour les services que l’on utilise. Il y a également des désavantages rattachés à la compréhension du système, de nos besoins et des risques qui viennent avec l’utilisation de cette nouvelle technologie.

« Y a-t-il encore un vrai secret professionnel? » La Vice-Présidente, Huguette André-Coret, nous rappelait que la profession avait été forcée d’évoluer rapidement au cours des dernières années: ▪ Une première révolution fut l’introduction de l’Internet et les moyens techniques et numériques auxquels la profession a dû s’habituer.

▪ La 2e révolution serait-elle le stockage de nos données sur des serveurs externes, le cloud computing?

La Vice-Présidente rappelait que différents organismes, dont le Conseil des barreaux européens (CCBE) ainsi que l’American Bar Association (ABA) ont émis des directives pour soutenir les avocats dans la transition vers ce nouvel outil et son utilisation.

Elle insistait également sur l’importance de bien saisir les enjeux rattachés au cloud computing en soulignant que comme professionnels, nous avions à participer à la réussite du barreau numérique.

Ce fut ensuite Nicholas Fluck, Président de la Law Society of England and Wales qui rappelait que la profession devait s’ajuster à ces nouvelles technologies, expliquant que leur mise en place s’inscrit dans la continuité de la modernisation de

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Le Président Fluck nous rappelait que même avec ces nouvelles technologies, les avocats ne peuvent oublier une des raisons fondamentales de l’existence de la profession, soit la protection de la confidentialité des informations appartenant à nos clients.

Ce fut ensuite au tour du Président Ambrose Lam de la Law Society of Hong Kong, qui nous mettait également en garde contre les risques pouvant découler de l’accès par les organismes gouvernementaux aux informations confidentielles que les avocats détiennent alors que certains États ont adopté des législations qui permettent un large accès à l’information détenue par tous, y compris les avocats, sans faire de discrimination entre la source de provenance de l’information.

Le Président Lam faisait remarquer qu’il n’y avait pas encore, à ce jour, de législation ou de convention internationale sur l’utilisation du cloud computing et que c’était là un des sujets auquel devait s’adresser l’ensemble de la profession par le biais d’organismes internationaux comme l’Union Internationale des Avocats.

Le Président Lam fut suivi par Monsieur Jani Trias, membre du Conseil de l’Ordre du Barreau de Barcelone. Ce dernier mentionnait le côté conservateur de la profession, soulignant que les avocats étaient friands de la conservation jalouse des documents qui provenaient de leurs clients et qui constituaient leurs dossiers.

De là, il conclut à une certaine imprudence dans la conservation des documents qui pouvait, malheureusement, se traduire trop facilement par un simple transfert vers du stockage numérique. Il était aussi d’avis que les ordres professionnels ont l’obligation de former et informer les avocats des risques qui découlent de l’utilisation du cloud computing tant par le biais de conférences que de textes et de publications.

Il notait que cette technologie est ici pour demeurer et qu’on ne peut tout simplement pas fermer les yeux en espérant qu’elle disparaisse; il constatait également que par tradition, la réglementation est toujours en retard sur les nouvelles technologies mais qu’il fallait tout faire pour rattraper ce retard.

Monsieur Trias rappelait que l’on devait sérieusement envisager l’obligation d’imposer des mesures de sécurité à la conservation d’informations confidentielles non seulement aux professionnels, mais faire en sorte que les entreprises de conservation de l’information sur base numérique, soient également liées par une obligation stricte de sécurité.

Nous avons ensuite entendu le Président du CCBE, Monsieur Evangelos Tsouroulis, qui exposait également les avantages de la technologie numérique et les risques auxquels on devait sensibiliser les avocats. Monsieur Tsouroulis soulignait l’obligation des professionnels de s’assurer de la protection du secret professionnel, et de façon corollaire, de vérifier les effets de l’implantation et de l’utilisation de cette nouvelle technologie sur cette obligation fondamentale.

Monsieur Tsouroulis souhaitait l’intervention des Barreaux étant d’avis que ces derniers ont l’obligation d’informer leurs membres, non seulement sur les lois nationales qui s’appliquent à eux, mais également sur le droit étranger qui pourrait devenir applicable dans la mesure où le serveur numérique se retrouverait dans une juridiction extérieure.

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macao Nous avons ensuite entendu Monsieur James Silkenat, Président de l’ABA. Il citait des sondages démontrant que déjà 30 % des avocats utilisent le système d’entreposage numérique, ce qui avait incité l’ABA à mettre en place un comité qui a déposé des recommandations dont les principales sont: ▪ Un avocat devrait savoir quel fournisseur de services d’entreposage détient des informations et comment elles sont protégées.

▪ L’avocat devrait s’assurer que son fournisseur procède à l’encryptage des données.

▪ Le système devrait pouvoir permettre la radiation complète et sans exception des informations qui se trouvent dans les systèmes de stockage numérique, tout en s’assurant que pendant qu’elles y sont, les avocats puissent en tout temps obtenir copie des informations emmagasinées.

▪ Lorsque l’information qui sera transmise pour fins d’emmagasinage dans les systèmes numériques, comporte des informations importantes pour le client, ce dernier devrait au préalable être informé de l’envoi de ces informations dans des systèmes numériques de stockage.

▪ Le contrat avec le fournisseur devrait contenir une disposition imposant au fournisseur d’informer l’avocat lorsque les données qu’il conserve font l’objet d’une procédure judiciaire quelconque, telle qu’assignation à témoigner, mandat de perquisition, commission rogatoire et autres.

Monsieur Silkenat a souligné que l’ABA était consciente des coûts d’implantation d’un système d’emmagasinage numérique, mais que la solution ne se trouve pas dans un système « bon pour tous » (one size fits all).

Finalement, nous avons entendu le Bâtonnier Yves Repiquet, qui avait accepté de représenter le Bâtonnier Christiane FéralSchuhl, laquelle, pour des raisons professionnelles, n’avait pu être présente. Les commentaires du Bâtonnier Féral-Schuhl étaient attendus. Cette dernière exerçant depuis de nombreuses années dans le secteur du droit de l’information et des nouvelles technologies et s’étant distinguée dans ce

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domaine. Le Bâtonnier Repiquet a fait part de la position du Bâtonnier Féral-Schuhl tout en y ajoutant une touche personnelle.

Plusieurs personnes ont observé que les ordres professionnels avaient un rôle actif à jouer: celui d’informer et de former leurs membres.

Ce dernier nous rappelait que le Barreau numérique devenait une réalité et comprenant le cloud computing. Il rappelait que les avocats devaient s’y adapter sans, toutefois, oublier les risques qui découlent de l’utilisation de cette nouvelle technologie.

Parmi les intervenants, le Bâtonnier Jean Castelain se demandait s’il ne serait pas opportun que les ordres professionnels participent à un programme de « labellisation des systèmes » ou de certification d’un système qui pourrait être utilisé par les membres. Ainsi, les membres pourraient, proposer à leurs clients d’utiliser un système d’emmagasinage numérique de données, garanti par la profession et garantissant la sécurité de l’information. Cette question a suscité beaucoup d’intérêt.

Tout comme plusieurs des orateurs qui l’avaient précédé, il évoquait les risques rattachés aux délais, à la restauration des services en cas de panne, les chaînes de contrats, les défaillances, les exigences de sécurité, les garanties que l’on peut exiger du fournisseur de même que la réaction que l’on doit avoir en cas de fouille par l’État, tout en exprimant l’avis que des ordres doivent s’investir dans la pédagogie mais non dans la fourniture des services.

L’intervenant insistait également sur le rôle des associations internationales, entre autre pour soutenir la mise en place d’accords internationaux, de recommandations ou de guides pour que ne se perde pas l’une des caractéristiques fondamentales de notre profession, la confiance que doivent avoir nos clients à notre égard sachant que nous ferons tout, comme avocat, pour conserver la confidentialité de leurs informations.

Après ces présentations, la Vice-Présidente Huguette André-Coret rappelait l’importance de la mise en place de ces systèmes et citait Pascal Buffard, Président du réseau des grandes entreprises CIGREF, lequel, lors d’une récente conférence, indiquait: « La transformation du monde et de l’entreprise à laquelle nous assistons est une rupture identique, par son ampleur, à celle de la Renaissance et du passage de l’écrit au manuscrit. Nous sommes en train de vivre la 3e révolution de l’humanité après le passage de l’oral à l’écrit et de l’écrit à l’imprimerie ».1 Ce fut ensuite aux personnes présentes dans la salle d’intervenir et de faire connaître leur point de vue sur le cloud computing. Plusieurs intervenants sont revenus sur différents points qui avaient été soulevés, en relation avec les avantages ou les désavantages découlant de la mise en place de cette nouvelle technologie.

Me Jean-François Henrotte, nous mettait en garde contre la diabolisation du cloud couputing.

Ce n’est pas parce qu’il y a des désavantages qu’il faut nécessairement repousser sa mise en place et son utilisation. Au contraire, nous devrons, comme professionnels, apprendre à mieux connaître les niveaux de sécurité et les dangers qui découlent de son utilisation pour éviter les écueils qui se présenteraient à nous.

Le Bâtonnier Gérald Tremblay, Président en exercice de la Fédération des Ordres Professionnels de Juristes du Canada, soulignait que la mise en place du cloud computing amenait un changement dans la terminologie. L’utilisation du numérique fait en sorte que plus jamais nous ne pourrons être certains de la “destruction totale” des informations, car en matière numérique, il existe toujours une trace ou, à tout le moins, des éléments retraçables par des spécialistes. Le Bâtonnier Tremblay se demandait si, avec ces prémisses, on pouvait quand même certifier, malgré notre bonne foi, la sécurité totale de l’utilisation d’un système de stockage numérique.

Les mesures de sécurité, dit-il, rendent plus difficile l’accès aux données mais personne ne peut certifier qu’il y a un accès impossible aux informations.

Le Président désigné, Stephen L. Dreyfuss, est également intervenu rappelant les avantages de l’utilisation du cloud computing. Par exemple, lorsque, pour différentes raisons, l’étude est paralysée dans son activité et même à l’occasion, complètement anéantie.

4 ■ 2013 I Bringing Together the World's Lawyers

macao Sur ce point, le Bâtonnier du Québec, Johanne Brodeur, signalait un événement récent dont plusieurs bureaux avaient été victimes, détruisant leurs locaux et entraînant la perte des informations que détenaient les avocats.

provient du cloud computing à cause de la quantité énorme d’informations s’y trouvant rendant ainsi plus difficile de repérer une information pointue qui pourrait, l’avoue-t-il, toutefois être retrouvée par hasard.

Elle suggérait à l’Union Internationale des Avocats de procéder à un recensement des différentes règles qui existent en matière d’utilisation de cloud computing, informations qui pourraient devenir accessibles par leur publication sur le site Web de l’UIA.

Donnant suite aux recommandations venant des participants, le Sénat International des Barreaux vous propose un court résumé de ce que l’on pourrait appeler, de façon non limitative, les avantages et les risques qui découlent du cloud computing. Cette liste embryonnaire est toutefois suffisamment élaborée pour permettre de continuer la réflexion.

Pour le mot de la fin, le Président Burguburu rappelait que le cloud computing est comme la langue d’Ésope: il est capable du meilleur comme du pire. À cet effet, il mentionnait que le cloud computing était à la fois utile et dangereux parce qu’il pouvait, par exemple, emporter la destruction des données tout comme il pouvait éviter leur destruction et perte totale.

Le Président Burguburu a fait part des conclusions qu’il retenait:

Avantages et risques DU CLOUD COMPUTING

I Avantages 1) Les données vous suivent partout;

▪ Il est impossible de travailler sans avoir recours à l’Internet et, de ce fait, au cloud computing.

2) Pas nécessaire d’acheter, d’installer et maintenir des logiciels;

▪ Il y a une absence de garantie totale de la confidentialité qui découlerait de l’utilisation de cette technologie.

3) Utilisation de l’espace requis uniquement;

▪ Il y a inefficacité de toutes les mesures de protection qui pourraient être mises en place, qu’elles soient techniques ou juridiques.

5) Pas de gestion de système à mettre en place;

Toutefois, ne voulant pas laisser une impression pessimiste, il concluait: ▪ Nous ne pouvons reculer, mais seulement continuer dans la mise en place de l’utilisation de ce service.

▪ Nous devons être plus attentifs que nous l’avons été quant aux risques et avantages qui découlent de l’utilisation du cloud computing.

▪ Nous devons être conscients de la protection de nos règles d’éthique et, à cet effet, il nous rappelait qu’il n’est peut-être pas approprié de consigner aveuglément toutes les informations que nous avons dans nos ordinateurs et que peut-être certaines d’entre elles pouvaient être conservées secrètes.

▪ Il y a toutefois une double protection qui

Rassembler les avocats du monde I 4 ■

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4) Mises à jour automatiques et instantanées;

6) Éviter des pertes de profitabilité lors de changements technologiques; 7) Réduction significative des frais généraux et des dépenses afférentes aux technologies de l’information (T.I.); 8) Possibilité de bénéficier de services informatiques réduits et modelés à ses besoins sans dépendre de leur localisation; 9) Façon rentable et commode d’entreposer du matériel et de partager des données électroniques avec d’autres, y compris des clients et d’autres avocats.

I Risques 1) La réputation du fournisseur: ▪ entreprise en démarrage; ▪ expectative de longévité;

▪ l’historique de l’entreprise; ▪ sa rapidité pour corriger des problèmes; ▪ ses références; ▪ sa fiabilité; ▪ sa rapidité pour la mise à jour des services fournis.

2) L’accès à vos propres données: ▪ accès doit être rapide; ▪ sans restrictions aucunes; ▪ solution possible: entiercement des données?

3) Interruption des services du fournisseur: ▪ la reprise des données; ▪ les mécanismes en cas de conflit lors de la terminaison des services; ▪ expurgation complète des données du serveur du fournisseur.

4) La nécessité de mots de passe: ▪ qualité et étendue de la protection; ▪ la surveillance par le fournisseur pour éviter des activités suspectes.

5) La politique du fournisseur quant à la gestion de données confidentielles: ▪ gestion des données par le fournisseur et ses employés; ▪ présence obligatoire d’obligations exécutoires quant à la protection de la confidentialité et la sécurité des données; ▪ présence obligatoire d’un avis en cas d’obligation de dévoilement à des tiers.

6) Usage de cryptage par le fournisseur.

7) La politique de sauvegarde des données du fournisseur: ▪ fréquence; ▪ dans un ou plusieurs lieux; ▪ procéder aussi à vos propres sauvegardes.

8) Le système de sécurité du fournisseur: ◆ Sécurité opérationnelle (procédures d’accès) ◆ Sécurité des programmes (logiciels) ▪ remise de ses procédures de base; ▪ mise en place de murs coupe-feu; ▪ mise en place de détecteurs de virus; ▪ fréquence des inspections du système.

9) Les systèmes de sécurité des lieux (sécurité matérielle): ▪ locaux du fournisseur ou ▪ sous location ou ▪ co-location

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10) Les conditions du contrat de services: ▪ examiner l’entente; ▪ examiner les accords de licence et autres ententes de service; ▪ identifier les dispositions traitant de confidentialité, sécurité et propriété des données; ▪ les clauses de non-responsabilité; ▪ les représentations; ▪ les garanties; ▪ les clauses de limitation de responsabilité; ▪ les clauses d’indemnisation; ▪ les couvertures d’assurance; ▪ la loi applicable; ▪ le niveau de services offert; ▪ la sous-traitance; ▪ les pénalités en cas de non-respect des obligations; ▪ les modalités et conditions en cas de résiliation.

11) Les règles quant à la confidentialité ou au secret professionnel en vigueur dans les lieux où le serveur se retrouve: ▪ le choix de l’État ou du pays; ▪ le choix de la loi applicable; ▪ les dispositions des lois concernant l’accès à l’information; ▪ les avis en cas d’atteinte à la protection des données.

12) Les moyens de relève mis en place en cas de: ▪ discontinuité des affaires; ▪ désastre naturel.

Bâtonnier Francis GERVAIS Président du Comité national du Canada de l’UIA Secrétaire Général du Sénat International des Barreaux de l’UIA Deveau, Bourgeois, Gagné, Hébert & Associées Laval, Canada fgervais@deveau.qc.ca

1

I I. Prólogo El abogado es el máximo valedor/interlocutor en el ejercicio del derecho de defensa de los intereses del ciudadano (art. 24.1), garantía constitucional inescindible del derecho fundamental a la libertad de expresión que dimana del art. 20 de la Constitución Española, y que el letrado plasma día a día ante los tribunales en nombre de su cliente.

Defensa y libertad de expresión se desenvuelven de forma inseparable formando las dos caras de una misma moneda, y esta técnica o facultad de expresión del abogado en ejercicio se considera en el mundo occidental especialmente resistente y cualificada dada la naturaleza fundamental de los derechos ejercitados, teoría que nace de la singular sentencia del Tribunal Europeo de Derechos Humanos de 22 de Febrero de 1.989, nº 3. (Caso BARFORD) y que en esencia viene a permitir una mayor beligerancia en la dialéctica del letrado, altamente inmune a ser censurada o corregida, dado el carácter fundamental de la tarea encomendada.

Esta resolución internacional se inspira y parte del art. 10.2 del Convenio para la protección de los derechos humanos y de las libertades fundamentales, hecho en Roma el 4 de noviembre de 1950 que determina el derecho de toda persona a la libertad de expresión, salvo “ciertas formalidades, condiciones, restricciones o sanciones, previstas en la Ley”, para garantizar “la autoridad y la imparcialidad del Poder Judicial” según la siguiente redacción:

Le Figaro, 2 juillet 2013

El ejercicio de estas libertades, que entrañan deberes y responsabilidades, podrá ser sometido a ciertas formalidades, condiciones, restricciones o sanciones previstas por la ley, que constituyan medidas necesarias, en una sociedad democrática, para la seguridad nacional, la integridad territorial o la seguridad pública, la defensa del orden y la prevención del delito, la protección de la salud o de la moral, la protección de la reputación o de los derechos ajenos, para

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impedir la divulgación de informaciones confidenciales o para garantizar la autoridad y la imparcialidad del poder judicial.

Por lo tanto, y como sucede con todos los derechos, incluso los fundamentales de la persona, existe o debe existir un límite en su ejercicio, y esta cualificada libertad de expresión no puede convertirse en una patente de corso que permita, por ejemplo, verter críticas gratuitas, innecesariamente exacerbadas o incluso injuriosas o difamatorias hacia los intervinientes en el proceso o miembros de la carrera judicial, habiéndose perfilado y definido casuísticamente por la doctrina constitucional el alcance del escudo protector del derecho de defensa, anulando o confirmando las correcciones o sanciones disciplinarias impuestas a letrados por las Salas de Gobierno españolas.

Por cierto, estas medidas disciplinarias, impuestas por los tribunales y confirmadas por las Salas de Gobierno de los TSJ han sido consideradas desde antiguo por el Tribunal Supremo (S. de 19 de Julio de 1997) a raíz de la sanción a un letrado cacereño dictada por la Sala 2ª de la Audiencia Provincial de Cáceres, y el Tribunal Constitucional (Sentencias 38/98 y 92/95) como resoluciones jurisdiccionales y no meros actos administrativos, al darse contra abogados en el curso de un procedimiento, y dictadas con todas las garantías, aún tratándose de funciones de policía de estrados, y por tanto, excluidas de su revisión por la vía contencioso administrativa, no siendo susceptibles de recurso contencioso.

Recientemente, en el asunto Reznik contra Rusia, Tribunal Europeo de Derechos Humanos (Sección 1ª) Sentencia de 4 de abril de 2013. TEDH 2013\66, el Tribunal otorga el amparo a una abogada rusa, sancionada por el Colegio de abogados de Moscú por una supuesta extralimitación en sus declaraciones ante un programa televisivo, y ello manifestando que:

4 ■ 2013 I Reunir a los abogados del mundo

El alcance del derecho de defensa y la libertad de expresión de los abogados en el debate forense en España I Juan Manuel ROZAS BRAVO El demandante es abogado de profesión y presidente del Colegio de Abogados de Moscú. Cierto es que el status especial de los abogados les confiere una posición central en la Administración de Justicia como intermediarios entre ciudadanos y tribunales, y tal posición explica las restricciones habituales en el comportamiento de los miembros del Colegio de Abogados. Sin embargo, tal y como el Tribunal ha subrayado en repetidas ocasiones, los abogados también tienen derecho a la libertad de expresión y a opinar públicamente sobre la Administración de Justicia, siempre y cuando sus críticas no rebasen ciertos límites (véase, entre otras, Sentencias Kyprianou contra Chipre (GS), núm.

73797/2001 [JUR 2006, 237] , aps. 173-174, TEDH 2005-XIII; Amihalachioaie contra Moldavia, núm. 60115/2000 [JUR 2004, 122814] , ap. 27, TEDH 2004-III, y Nikula contra Finlandia, núm. 31611/1996 [JUR 2002, 78022], ap. 45,TEDH 2002-II) Sobre las injerencias en el derecho a la libertad de expresión en el ámbito de la justicia pueden consultarse, en esta misma línea, las siguientes sentencias a favor de la independencia y la libertad de los letrados en su actuación: TEDH (Sección 2ª). Caso Ayhan Erdogan Turquía, sentencia de 13 de enero de 2009.

TEDH\2009\7.

TEDH (Sección 1ª). Foglia Suiza, sentencia de 13 de diciembre de 2007.TEDH\2007\91.

TEDH (Sección 2ª). Steur Holanda, sentencia de 28 de octubre de 2003. JUR\2004\73140.

TEDH (Sección 4ª). Nikula Finlandia, sentencia de 21 de marzo de 2002. JUR\ 2002\78022.

Española Reguladora del Poder Judicial, aun parcamente, asegura en la misión profesional del abogado español la libertad e independencia necesarias para su desenvolvimiento ante los Tribunales de Justicia, ello en conexión inevitable con los derechos de defensa (art. 24.1 CE) y libertad de expresión (art. 20).

Esta vital independencia puede y debe hacerse valer ante los propios tribunales de justicia tal y como recoge el art. 59 del recién renovado Estatuto General de la Abogacía aprobado el 12 de junio de 2013, aún no publicado (Antiguo 41 del Estatuto de 10 de junio de 2001), que prevé una especie de causa de amparo – si bien más dialéctica que operativa – ante el propio tribunal y a través de las Juntas de Gobierno de los Colegios correspondientes; esta protección no deja de ser, sin embargo, un mecanismo limitado de denuncia, pues deja en manos del tribunal que conoce el asunto el eventual

pronunciamiento en favor del letrado que ve minada su independencia, lo cual sólo suele ser efectivo cuando el ataque proviene de partes o terceros intervinientes en el proceso, más no del propio tribunal, como sucede, a veces, en la práctica.

El artículo citado del nuevo Estatuto de la abogacía establece que:

I II. La garantía de

El actual artículo 542.2 de la Ley Orgánica,

2. Si el abogado considerase que la autoridad, juez

Bringing Together the World's Lawyers I 4 ■

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3. Los Colegios notificarán los amparos concedidos a las autoridades, jueces o tribunales que hayan coartado la libertad o independencia de los abogados y denunciarán dichas conductas, cuando proceda, ante el Consejo General del Poder Judicial y las instituciones pertinentes.

Asimismo, los Colegios de Abogados promoverán fórmulas para ser oídos ante las Salas de Gobierno de sus respectivos Tribunales Superiores de Justicia en los expedientes gubernativos seguidos contra cualquier abogado y sus recursos.

El Consejo consideró que el ejercicio razonable y ponderado de la función jurisdiccional por Jueces y magistrados requiere preservar el respeto debido que merecen todos los ciudadanos que se relacionan con la administración de justicia.

1. En su actuación ante los Juzgados y Tribunales los abogados son libres e independientes, gozarán de los derechos inherentes a la dignidad de su función y serán amparados por aquéllos en su libertad de expresión y defensa.

independencia y libertad de los abogados

o tribunal coarta la independencia y libertad necesarias para cumplir sus deberes profesionales, o que no guarda la consideración debida a su función, podrá hacerlo constar así ante el propio juzgado o tribunal y dar cuenta a la Junta de Gobierno. La Junta, si estimare fundada la queja, adoptará medidas activas para amparar la libertad, independencia y dignidad profesionales.

En aplicación de estas garantías, el Pleno del Consejo General del Poder Judicial confirmó la sanción de 180 Euros impuesta a un Juez titular de uno de los Juzgados Centrales de lo Contencioso Administrativo de la Audiencia Nacional por la Sala de Gobierno de dicho tribunal, al haberse excedido en la reprensión pública a un letrado al que el Juez increpó, mandando callar al letrado, todo ello en tono crispado, alto, y de modo descortés. El Consejo consideró que el ejercicio razonable y ponderado de la función jurisdiccional por Jueces y magistrados requiere preservar el respeto debido que merecen todos los ciudadanos que se relacionan con la administración de justicia.

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Esta misma figura se recoge en el texto de la LOPJ, que determina, según en artículo citado, la obligación de amparo de los abogados en su libertad de expresión y defensa, mandato que vincula igualmente a los poderes públicos, según dicción del art. 542 del mismo texto orgánico.

Desde el citado caso Barford, y comenzando por la STC nº 25, de 1981, el TC español ha diferenciado claramente la libertad de expresión del abogado respecto de otros supuestos calificados de ordinarios, elevando la manifestación del letrado en ejercicio a la categoría, más reforzada, de expresión política o libertad de cátedra, y esta tan cualificada y particular catalogación (por su conexión con los derechos fundamentales de los que dimana) la hace especialmente resistente e inmune a las restricciones que en otro contexto podrían operar, tesis esta que se plasma en el seno del TC español desde la SS nº 205/1994.

La cuestión a analizar en estos especiales supuestos de expresión por parte del letrado es cual es el límite de la dureza de sus manifestaciones y frente a quienes debe ponderarse. Este segundo interrogante tiene sencilla respuesta, dado que la extralimitación sólo puede predicarse de los intervinientes en el proceso o de la autoridad o funcionarios judiciales, y es aquí donde se han enjuiciado, generalmente por la vía disciplinaria de la LOPJ (a la espera del tratamiento práctico que se de por los tribunales a las novedosas y no menos férreas sanciones/correcciones de la Nueva Ley de Enjuiciamiento Civil, inaudita parte y sin recurso posible por cierto, y objeto de las mayores repulsas por parte de la abogacía), y mínimamente por el cauce penal, las faltas de respeto o actitudes injuriosas de los abogados, provocadas en el seno del derecho de defensa.

I III. La Doctrina Constitucional

En este sentido, el TC mantiene la misma línea divisoria que para el tratamiento del derecho fundamental a la libertad de expresión versus derecho al honor, rechazando toda conducta rayana con el menosprecio, la ofensa, el insulto, o el maltrato de palabra, excluyendo a partir de aquí el parapeto de la tutela fundamental del

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derecho de defensa, si bien es doctrina constante y pacífica del alto Tribunal que en el tema de la colisión entre los derechos fundamentales de libertad de expresión y/o información y de protección al honor, ambos de proclamación constitucional, no se pueden establecer apriorísticamente los límites o fronteras entre uno y otro derecho, y que dicha delimitación ha de hacerse caso por caso.

Partiendo de las ideas anteriores, el TC ha denegado el amparo, y confirmado las correcciones disciplinarias de origen impuestas a letrados por su extralimitación en los siguientes supuestos, provenientes casi siempre de ataques contra la autoridad judicial y el ministerio fiscal: ▪ La Sentencia de 11 de julio de 1994, nº 205, Recurso 2379/91, deniega el amparo solicitado contra la corrección disciplinaria impuesta al letrado que, actuando en Sala, abandonó la misma “dando graves de disconformidad”, “sacándose la toga y quedando en magas de camisa” al habérsele negado una determinada prueba pericial, actitud que por el TC es de falta de respeto y menosprecio al Tribunal, amén de dejar en ese momento desasistido a su patrocinado.

▪ El Auto de fecha 16 de marzo de 1998, nº 76, inadmite el recurso de amparo por carencia manifiesta de contenido constitucional de la demanda, por la afirmación dirigida al tribunal de instancia que denunciaba la infracción sistemática de normas procesales con la frase “no sabemos en aras de que intereses” lo que le valió al letrado la sanción de 25.000 pts., confirmada por la Sala de Gobierno del Tribunal Superior de Justicia de Asturias. El TC ahonda en el contenido de la frase la cual considera grave e injuriosa por tratarse -de ser cierta- de la existencia de un delito de prevaricación imputado al órgano judicial; en este caso, para el TC, la libertad de expresión se utiliza para lanzar una velada acusación, absolutamente gratuita e innecesaria.

▪ El Auto de 11/1/00, nº 10, niega el amparo, por la vía de la inadmisión motivada del recurso, en el caso de un letrado que en los trámites de un juicio civil de desahucio de la LEC de 1.881 acusó por escrito de ser autores de oscuras maniobras al

secretario y explicaciones.

juez

titular,

sin

más

▪ El Auto de 13/12/00, nº 299 inadmite el recurso de amparo contra una sanción de 150.000 pts. impuesta al abogado por falta de respeto a la autoridad judicial al emplearse afirmaciones tales como esto es un cachondeo, o el tándem que forman el Ministerio Fiscal y el juez instructor para coger en bocadillo al abogado defensor es escandaloso, siendo de destacar aquí que el TC valora negativamente la sosegada actitud del letrado que, por escrito, y reflexivamente, plasmó tales expresiones con posterioridad a los hechos objeto de su desmedida repulsa.

▪ La STC 226/01, de 26-11-01, dictada en el recurso 3325/98, trata el supuesto de un abogado que ante el interrogatorio de un testigo declaró por escrito que la actitud del titular del juzgado fue parcial, violenta, hostil y maleducada, únicamente tendente a exculpar al denunciado, confirmando la sanción disciplinaria impuesta por el juzgado y resuelta en el mismo sentido por la Sala de Gobierno del TSJ correspondiente.

▪ La sentencia del Tribunal Constitucional de 8 de abril de 2002, Sala Primera, Ponente Excmo. Sr. Don Fernando Garrido Falla, deniega el amparo solicitado a una letrada sancionada en su día por interrumpir la confesión judicial de su propio cliente, pretendiendo que se reflejara en el acta determinadas matizaciones y/o explicaciones que el examinado no manifestaba, y asimismo por intentar escribir en el acta de la prueba su disconformidad con el contenido de la misma.

En esta sentencia (publicada por la Revista Actualidad Jurídica Aranzadi, nº 531 de 9 de mayo de 2002) y a pesar de los votos particulares del propio magistrado ponente y de Doña Maria Emilia Casas Baamonde, y sin apartarse de la doctrina contenida en las sentencias nº 157/96, 113/00, y 184 y 226/01, y coordinando o cohonestando el derecho a la libertad del abogado y el respeto a las demás partes y sujetos procesales, el alto intérprete ratifica el carácter reprochable de la conducta de la letrada en el aspecto particularmente relevante de iniciar de propia mano la escritura en el acta de la

4 ■ 2013 I Rassembler les avocats du monde

confesión de una frase que no pudo terminar por la intervención del Juez, cuando lo lógico hubiera sido limitarse a estampar la firma, actitud ésta que la letrada no podía desconocer en cuanto a su antijuricidad por su cuantificación profesional.

El auto del Tribunal Constitucional (Sala Segunda) núm. 178/2010 de 29 de noviembre. RTC 2010\178 confirma la sanción disciplinaria por expresiones descalificadoras e irrespetuosas contra la Juez, pretendiendo arrojar dudas sobre su imparcialidad y diligencia, patentemente innecesarias para el correcto ejercicio de la defensa, inadmitiendo el amparo, aunque entrando en las cuestiones de fondo, argumentando que la defensa de las pretensiones procesales patrocinadas por el abogado puede justificar una especial beligerancia en la argumentación, por lo que a la hora de enjuiciar si una corrección disciplinaria impuesta en virtud del art. 553.1 de la Ley Orgánica del Poder Judicial ( RCL 1985, 1578) es acorde con el contenido del derecho fundamental a la libertad de expresión han de tenerse en cuenta las circunstancias concurrentes, pero sin olvidar que el citado derecho fundamental no permite franquear el límite que supone “la descalificación innecesaria”.

Resolución que sigue los pasos de la misma sala Primera, auto núm. 395/2006, de 8 de noviembre. RTC\2006\395 y el AUTO del mismo TC (Sala Primera), sentencia núm.

155/2006, de 22 de mayo. RTC\2006\155.

En el plano reverso, el alto intérprete, y en defensa de la libertad de expresión, y revocando la sanción impuesta al abogado por el orden jurisdiccional, ha dictado las siguientes resoluciones dignas de mención: ▪ La sentencia de 19 de junio de 1995, nº 92/95, dictada en el recurso de amparo 2479/92, otorga el amparo solicitado por un letrado que fue condenado en juicio de faltas instruido por los supuestos delitos de “insultos, amenazas, calumnia, e injurias” por la actitud del letrado que en unas diligencias previas seguidas ante el Juzgado de

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Instrucción de Denia y ante la negativa de la funcionaria a exhibir las actuaciones originales comenzó a gritar y a decir al personal del Juzgado “Que se leyeran la Ley Orgánica y que si no se la sabían se fueran a casa” profiriendo gritos e insultos no dirigidos contra persona concreta.

En este caso se cuestiona también la preferencia por el cauce disciplinario de los antiguos arts. 448 y ss. de la LOPJ, respecto de la vía penal del juicio de faltas, y se anula directamente la sanción al no haberse dado el cauce adecuado a las expresiones del letrado, que increpó y chilló a los funcionarios judiciales por no facilitarle unos autos penales, entendiendo el TC que en todo caso está actuación venía enmarcada en el ámbito de la defensa de los derechos e intereses de su defendido, presente en el acto.

Esta sentencia del TC ha sido profusamente comentada por Salvador Vilata Menadas, (derecho a la defensa en relación a sanción impuesta a un abogado por actuación forense, Revista General del Derecho nº 617, pág. 13.117 y ss.) que estudia el principio de prohibición de exceso, como máxima general del derecho público, y que rige el campo de medidas restrictivas de derechos subjetivos de los ciudadanos, y que comporta, tanto en su aplicación jurisdiccional como administrativa, tres criterios: (I) adecuación al fin, en cuanto a la exigencia de proporcionalidad; (II) protección de bienes jurídicos por lo que se refiere a la necesidad de adecuar el fin de la intervención a la protección concreta de intereses en juicio; y (III) el principio de intervención mínima referido al derecho penal en cuanto a la exigencia de que tan sólo se debe reaccionar punitivamente frente a hechos graves e intolerantes.

▪ La sentencia de 15 de octubre de 1996, nº 157, Dictada en el recurso nº 2563/93, otorga el amparo impetrado por abogado que sufrió una corrección disciplinaria, por vulneración del derecho a la defensa, en actuaciones producidas en causa penal al manifestar frases como “... en un claro fraude de Ley, se ha burlado la normal adjudicación de un asunto a su juez natural para escoger al que interesaba a la parte denunciante…”

El TC, descartando otros motivos de amparo, referente al derecho de igualdad y tutela judicial efectiva, admite la real vulneración del derecho fundamental a la libertad de expresión en el ejercicio de la defensa del letrado, pues el hecho de censurar supuestas irregularidades detectables en el reparto de asuntos entre los Juzgados de instrucción de Barcelona no pueden calificarse de antijurídicas, dado que en esta ocasión, la grave acusación sería por orientar la defensa del patrocinado... hacia la vulneración del derecho al juez natural, y tales referencias – se trataba de las causas en las que el Juez Estevill actuó como instructor – no resultaban innecesarias o gratuitas, al punto de fortalecer la defensa de la letrada, lo que las adecuaba a un fin perfectamente legítimo, y todo ello, una vez más, producido sin insulto o descalificación.

▪ La STC de 5 de mayo de 2000, nº 113, dictada en el recurso 4435/96, tratándose de abogado que había proferido descalificaciones hacia el ministerio fiscal, que dieron lugar a la incoación de diligencias previas y posterior juicio de faltas en el que fue condenado, por una falta leve de injurias del antiguo art.

570.1º del CP de 1973; las expresiones o manifestaciones escritas, en concreto, acusaban abierta y explícitamente al Ministerio Público el aprovecharse de la situación de prisión provisional de los encausados (en prisión preventiva) para la investigación de otros hechos ajenos a la causa, dilatando intencionadamente (sic) la situación de privación de libertad de sus clientes.

El TC atiende aquí a la doctrina del carácter reforzado de la libertad de expresión en el marco del derecho de defensa, con el sólo límite del insulto o la descalificación gratuitas, y que en este supuesto, pese a las graves críticas vertidas, debían reputarse inexistentes, más aún cuando se defendía la tutela de la libertad de un reo y el vehemente deseo de enjuiciamiento y resolución de la causa penal.

La resolución del mismo Tribunal Constitucional (Sala Primera) en Sentencia núm. 232/2005 de 26 de septiembre. RTC 2005\232, otorga el amparo solicitado a un letrado que fue sancionado por hacer

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constar en un recurso de reposición que “se hace constar que el “Juzgado ha decidido sin juicio” y que “ha dictado sentencia sin juicio”; así como las formuladas en su escrito de 14 de junio del 2000, sobre incidente de oposición a la ejecución, en cuya alegación cuarta acusa a la Juzgadora de inventarse en ejecución otra Sentencia y, por último, en el de fecha 15 de junio del 2000, en cuya motivación primera, párrafo 6, hace constar que el Juzgado ha tomado la grave decisión de expropiar a su mandante inaudita parte y que se ha dictado una resolución precipitada con rapidez inusual, inducida por falsedades y manejos de la parte contraria.”

Y ello al concluir que las frases por las que fue sancionado el recurrente se encuentran amparadas por su derecho a la libertad de expresión en el ejercicio del derecho de defensa, ya que se emplearon con el fin de fundamentar la oposición, en términos jurídicos, a las resoluciones judiciales que, a través de los escritos en las que se contenían, formuló el recurrente en el ejercicio de la función de defensa que como Letrado desempeñaba en un proceso, expresiones que, además, no han traspasado el límite del insulto ni de la descalificación y sin que de ellas derive la intención de menospreciar al poder judicial, en cuanto función estatal, que constituyen los límites de esta específica manifestación del derecho a la libertad de expresión, sentencia que corrobora el apoyo del Ministerio Fiscal al recurso, en cuanto a la ponderación de los intereses en juego, y teniendo en cuenta que son expresiones, por otra parte, que no pueden considerarse descalificatorias o insultantes, ni tampoco que resulten gratuitas o inadecuadas para la defensa de los derechos e intereses de su defendida.

Finalmente la Sentencia núm. 145/2007 de 18 de junio, RTC 2007\145, otorga el amparo solicitado al abogado que fue corregido disciplinariamente por el Tribunal Civil que le impuso una sanción por calificaciones vertidas en escrito para personarse en el procedimiento civil expresando sus dudas sobre el reparto de asuntos y solicitando su investigación, al declarar que éstas eran manifestaciones formuladas en el ejercicio de la función de defensa y que no traspasan el límite del insulto ni de la descalificación. Y ello pese a

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poner en tela de juicio el igualitario reparto de los asuntos en el juzgado, al expresar el Tribunal Constitucional que, en este caso, sí cabe apreciar que se ha lesionado o restringido ilegítimamente el derecho constitucional a la libertad de expresión (art.

20.1.a de la Constitución española) en el ejercicio de la defensa pues las expresiones utilizadas en el escrito del letrado no exceden del límite tolerado por el ejercicio del derecho de defensa, siendo expresiones utilizadas en los escritos forenses que en este caso no pueden calificarse como formalmente injuriosas o insultantes para el titular de la potestad jurisdiccional. Según el tribunal, ninguna de las expresiones empleadas excede de los límites antes indicados de la libertad de expresión en el ejercicio del derecho de defensa, ya que el recurrente ponía de manifiesto sus dudas sobre el reparto de asuntos realizado en el Decanato de los Juzgados y a solicitar a la titular del órgano jurisdiccional que realizase algunas averiguaciones sobre el orden de despacho ordinario de los asuntos, lo que en absoluto puede considerarse descalificador o insultante.

manifestaciones, so pena de dotar a los órganos jurisdiccionales de facultades policiales que pugnarían con los principios de proporcionalidad, intervención mínima y fundamentalmente de tutela judicial efectiva, debiendo estar presidida la labor de los tribunales en este aspecto por el respeto debido a quienes se relacionan con la administración de justicia.

4. Las correcciones que los Tribunales pudieran imponer en uso de las facultades de policía de estrados son verdaderas resoluciones jurisdiccionales, y no administrativas, (artículo 553.1 de la LOPJ) y se encontrarían exentas de recurso contencioso-administrativo, por lo que los acuerdos de las salas de gobierno de los Tribunales Superiores de Justica únicamente serían susceptibles de impugnación en amparo ordinario.

Juan Manuel ROZAS BRAVO Despacho Rozas Cáceres, España despacho@despachorozas.com

I IV. Consideraciones finales 1. La libertad de expresión del letrado en el ejercicio dimanante de su función ante los Tribunales de Justicia se encuentra revestida de una especial resistencia e inmunidad que refuerza todas y cada una de sus manifestaciones en defensa de intereses ajenos, asimilándose a supuestos tales como la expresión política de ideas o la libertad de cátedra, dada su íntima unión con el derecho de defensa que dimana de los textos constitucionales.

2. La libertad de expresión del letrado se encuentra indudablemente sustentada y reforzada por su independencia, vinculante para todos los poderes públicos, que deben velar por la garantía del derecho de defensa, ello en los términos establecidos en la Constitución y en las Leyes.

3. Únicamente analizando cada caso concreto y con especial restricción en la aplicación de las normas sancionadoras, se podrá corregir al abogado en ejercicio por el exceso en sus

4 ■ 2013 I Bringing Together the World's Lawyers

Pratique du Droit Legal Practice Ejercicio de la AbogacĂ­a

Intellectual Property (IPR) in China and Macau SAR Trends and Developments I Rui CUNHA & João GONÇALVES DE ASSUNÇÃO continues to increase: almost 90,000 detention cases were registered during 2012 of an estimated value equivalent to genuine products of approximately 1 billion Euros1.

It is an unquestionable fact that industry worldwide is losing huge profits due to mass production of counterfeit products, not to mention the social costs involved. Besides the losses on tax income, governments have to spend money and resources fighting counterfeiters, whose activities are frequently related to other crimes. Ultimately, the victims are the consumers who are becoming increasingly exposed to health and safety hazards.

The industries affected by counterfeiting are also increasing, both by number and product sector, as counterfeiters target not only luxury goods and fashion clothing but also a wider variety of products, such as pharmaceuticals, toys, aircraft components, spare parts and car accessories, washing powder, soaps, perfumes, razor blades, shampoos, deodorants and other personal care products.

I The US and EU reports on counterfeited goods

At the beginning of this year, US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) reported that seized counterfeit goods worth around USD 1.26 billion during the year 2012 increased by USD 150 million since 2011, China being the top source of counterfeit goods, accounting for 72% of goods seized.

In accordance with statistics published on August 5, 2013 by the European Commission, customs seizure of articles suspected of infringing IPR

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In what specifically concerns trade marks filed in China, the number of applications reached 1.6 million in 2012, which represents a huge rise from the 17,000 applications submitted in 1999. This will hopefully tighten the circle around articles infringing IPR, and also contribute to a progressive increase in the number of court cases in the next few years.

The same report also mentions that China is the main source country from which IPR infringing goods were shipped to the EU Hong Kong SAR being also mentioned as the main origin for certain product sectors, such as electronic cigarettes and their liquid fillings.

Alongside with the development of China’s economy during recent years, the comprehensive implementation of the fundamental principle of rule of law and the reform of the judicial system is cautiously being implemented and improved.

In face of the current situation, is the Chinese government taking any action?

Opinions may vary in relation to the drive and effectiveness of the adopted measures.

Nevertheless, the answer to this question must be affirmative if we take into consideration recent administrative actions, judicial reforms and legislative updates, which represent a step forward in the defence of IPR in China.

The Chinese government’s efforts to protect IPR include a strategic guideline that set a goal of making substantial progress in the creation, application, protection and management of IPR by 2020 and one could say that some positive signs of the implemented changes are already surfacing.

Therefore, despite some critics and skepticism, China has been promoting the reform of the judicial system steadily and pragmatically and it is taking measures to enhance the protection of IPR.

It also expected that the steady increase of trade mark and patent registrations in China will boost the social awareness of IPR.

1 800 000

China’s Trademark Applications from 1999 to 2012

1 600 000 1 400 000 1 200 000 1 000 000 800 000 600 000 400 000 200 000 0 1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

Source: China Trade Mark Office2

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I China’s Supreme People’s

Court (SPC) “White Paper on Intellectual Property Rights Protection (2012)”

The last annual report on IPR protection issued by the SPC reveals that Chinese courts are committed to strengthening the protection of IPR. IPR cases increased substantially during 2012: 87,419 civil cases, which represents 45,9% more than in 2011, the increase in the number of criminal cases being the most significant, more than doubling the previous year’s figures.

Regarding Macau, Hong Kong and Taiwan, courts have concluded 1,429 foreign-related IPR civil cases and 613 cases involving parties from the said territories.

The numbers above show that pursuing civil litigation is becoming an important means to protect IPR, and also, that China is committed to strengthening protection in various areas of intellectual property.

However, it should be noted that cases of preliminary injunctions are still significantly low when compared to the number of cases taken to court: 27 preliminary injunctions relating to intellectual property disputes were accepted by the various levels of people’s courts.

Finally, it also should be noted that the people’s court assisted the Ministry of Public Security in combating criminal infringement of rights and counterfeiting, solving 43,000 cases concerning crimes of infringement of IPR and of manufacturing and sale of fake and poor quality goods. More than 60,000 criminal suspects were arrested with a related amount of 11.3 billion Renmimbi.

I The Supreme People’s

Procuratorate (SPP) statistics on IPR-related crimes

Furthermore, the statistics released by the SPP 3 on IPR-related crimes for the first half of 2013 show that the procuratorate issued warrants to arrest 2,176 suspects in 1,428 IP rights-related criminal cases, and have prosecuted 3,805 persons in 2,253 cases.

From 2008 to 2012, 19,786 suspects were

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arrested in 11,723 IP rights-related criminal cases, and 29,481 were prosecuted in 17,062 cases.

The statistics show a yearly growth in IP rightsrelated crimes, with trade mark-related crimes accounting for 80% of the total number of cases.

Considering the above figures, it is clear that the People’s procuratorates are playing a crucial role in combating IP rights-related crimes.

On August 30, 2013, the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (NPC) approved major amendments to the Chinese Trade Mark Law, which will take effect on May 1, 2014.

Such amendments bring several improvements regarding trade mark application, opposition and invalidation procedures. The Chinese Trade Mark Law will also offer additional protection to well-known trade marks, and also, add sounds as objects of protection of a trade mark.

In addition, the amended Trademark Law strengthens the IPR protection by increasing the statutory maximum amount of compensation for infringement of a registered trademark to 3 million Renmimbi (around Euros 366,000), which is six times the current maximum amount of compensation.

As in any other country, companies play an important role in the adequate protection of their IPR. Therefore, all companies, including Chinese companies, need to make sure that their trade marks are adequately protected, notably by adopting suitable technologies to mark genuine products (such as holograms, smart cards, markers and inks).

However, in order to implement effective anticounterfeiting policies, companies must take into consideration that China has a territory with approximately 9.6 million square kilometres and the country has 22 provinces, 5 autonomous regions and 4 direct-controlled municipalities.

I The Macau Special

Administrative Region

In this regard, it should be stressed that when companies register their IP rights or implement their anti-counterfeiting policies in China, they often disregard the fact that the country has 2 SAR’s – Macau and Hong Kong – both with

many differences in what concerns IPR legislation and enforcement authorities.

For instance, in Macau, where Portuguese is an official language along with Chinese, trade marks and patents filed before the Chinese Trade Mark Office or Patent Office are not automatically valid, and specific filings must be made before the competent authorities.

Moreover, the Trade Mark Law currently in force in Macau differs in many aspects from that in effect in Hong Kong and in Mainland China and important amendments are expected to be tabled by the government during next year.

Therefore, it is important to seek local advice in order effectively to protect IPR in this special administrative region, namely regarding the notifications to be made to the Macau Customs Service, which is the law enforcement agency with specific competence to monitor the industrial and commercial activities, control external trade and protect IPR. In conclusion, following the implementation of the Chinese government’s strategy in recent years, trade mark consciousness for Chinese enterprises and for the whole of Chinese society has been enhanced. Nevertheless, a lot of work remains to be done in the field of IPR enforcement in order that notable results are achieved the near future.

Rui CUNHA C & C Lawyers Macau SAR, China ruicunhna@ccadvogados.com João GONÇALVES DE ASSUNÇÃO C & C Lawyers Macau SAR, China joaoassuncao@ccadvog.com 1

Full report available for US and EU at www.cbp.gov and http://ec.europa.eu/

2

Annual Development Report on China’s Trade mark Strategy 2012. www.saic.gov.cn/sbjenglish/sbyw_1/201308/t20130819_13 7363.html

3

The People’s procuratorates in the People’s Republic of China are law supervision organs of the state.

The Supreme People’s Procuratorate (SPP) represents the State in independently implementing the right of prosecution and one of its major tasks is to ensure the unity and correct implementation of state laws.

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Data Breaches From an EU Perspective I Elisabeth P.M.THOLE & Isabelle WARLAM

Prompted by technological developments, an increasing amount of data is processed by businesses everyday. Unfortunately, this situation has also resulted in an increasing amount of data breaches. An example of a high publicity data breach was the Sony hack, which resulted in a fine of UKP 250,000 of the Information Commissioner.

Data breaches can not only result in business interruptions, recovery costs and fines, but also the reputation of the business may be at stake.

Nowadays data protection should be on the agenda of the board of every organisation. The question does not seem to be whether a data breach will occur, but rather when. All the more reasons to pay close attention to the related legal developments.

I Legal framework Within the EU the current legal framework in relation to data breaches is generally to be found in the implementation by the EU Member States of the EU Data Protection Directive of 1995 and the e-Privacy Directive of 2002. The e-Privacy Directive was amended in 2009, introducing a notification duty of data breaches for telecom providers. This notification duty was recently further specified by a Commission’s Regulation, which entered into force in August 2013.

In view of reforming the legal framework for the protection of personal data in the EU, the European Commission launched a proposal in January 2012, to replace the 1995 Data

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Protection Directive by a general Data Protection Regulation. Other than the Data Protection Directive, the proposed Data Protection Regulation contains provisions specifically dealing with data breaches, including a general notification duty. These provisions can also be relevant for data controllers outside the EU, as to a certain extent the Regulation is also to apply to them. However, the definitive text of the Data Protection Regulation is not yet established. More than 3,000 amendments had been tabled initially, which had to be drastically reduced. This resulted in a compromise text being adopted by the European Parliament on

determined by the risks represented by the processing and the nature of the data.The state of the art and the costs of the measures have to be taken into consideration. In some EU Member States, like France, Belgium and the Netherlands, the national supervisory authorities have published specific guidelines on the required level of security of personal data.

When the processing is carried out on behalf of the data controller by a service provider, such provider – the data processor – should provide sufficient guarantees in respect of the technical security measures and organisational

The Proposed EU Data Protection Regulation defines the data security obligation differently, requiring both the controller and the processor to implement the appropriate technical and organisational measures.

October 21, 2013. Due to the recent discussions regarding the US Internet surveillance program ‘PRISM’, Justice Commissioner Viviane Reding wishes to implement the Regulation as soon as possible. It is the ambition to have adopted a text

by May 2014.

Other relevant developments on an EU level are the proposal of the Commission for a Directive concerning a high common level of network and information security (“NIS Directive”), and the adoption by the European Parliament and the Council of a Directive on attacks against information systems.

I Appropriate technical

and organisational security measures

When it comes to data breaches, prevention is a first point for attention. According to the Data Protection Directive, the data controller must implement “appropriate technical and organisational measures” to protect personal data. The appropriate level of protection is

measures, and must ensure compliance with these measures. This must be governed by a data processing agreement in writing, binding the processor to the controller.

The Proposed EU Data Protection Regulation defines the data security obligation differently, requiring both the controller and the processor to implement the appropriate technical and organisational measures.Again, to determine the appropriate measures, the controller and the processor both have to evaluate the risks. Based on the compromise text, the European Data Protection Board will be entrusted with providing further guidance for the required technical and organisational security measures. The original proposal referred to the Commission for further specifications.

I Notification duties Currently, only the e-Privacy Directive imposes a notification duty for data breaches, which has been further specified in the aforementioned

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Commission Regulation. This specific data breach notification duty is limited to telecom providers, obliging them to notify personal data breaches within 24 hours to the competent national supervisory authority and without undue delay to the relevant data subjects, if the breach is likely adversely to affect their personal data or privacy.

Under the proposed Data Protection Regulation, the Authorities will be empowered with rather substantial fines for breaches of the Regulation. Under the compromise text these fines may be up to 5% of the annual worldwide turnover of an enterprise or 100 million Euros, whichever is greater.

The EU Data Protection Regulation introduces an obligation to notify personal data breaches, for all data controllers. According to the compromise text, a data breach should be notified to the supervisory authority without undue delay. In the recitals this is presumed not to be later than 72 hours after the establishment of a breach. Also here the data subjects must be informed about the breach (after the authority has been notified) without undue delay, if it is likely that the breach will adversely affect the data subject’s personal data, privacy, rights or legitimate interests.

I Incident Road Map

In the Netherlands, the legislator decided not to await the Regulation.A bill is currently being debated in the House of Representatives introducing a personal data breach obligation for data controllers, similar to the one in the proposed Regulation.

In addition to the explicit notification duties above, an implicit notification duty may already be considered to follow from the current Data Protection Directive. More specifically the general obligation to process personal data ‘fairly’ and the obligation to provide data subjects with information to guarantee such fair processing in their respect, can be argued to include an obligation for all data controllers to notify data subjects in case of a data breach that could negatively affect them.

I Sanctions Under the Data Protection Directive, it is entirely up to Member States to establish the sanctions to be imposed in case of a breach of data protection legislation. In the Netherlands for example, the Data Protection Authority currently has very limited powers to impose fines. The bill discussed above is to empower the Authority to impose fines of EUR 450,000 in case of breach of the proposed general notification duty.

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& Cyber Crime Insurances

For every organisation it is recommended to take a proactive approach towards data breaches by adopting an incident road map. In addition thereto, organisations may also consider taking out a cyber crime insurance policy. Such policies should not only cover the financial consequences, but should also support companies in their investigation of the cause of the breach. It is questionable whether fines can also be insured.Taking out insurance of course does not release an organisation from its obligation to be compliant with the applicable data protection rules. For this, proper (legal) advice may be needed.

Elisabeth P.M.THOLE Van Doorne N.V. Amsterdam,The Netherlands thole@vandoorne.com Isabelle WARLAM Van Doorne N.V. Amsterdam,The Netherlands warlam@vandoorne.com

I The PDPA comes

into effect in phases

The trend for data collection and analysis is expected to grow exponentially as the processing and analysis of large amounts of personal data becomes possible with increasingly sophisticated technology. Until recently, Singapore had no overall data protection law in force and had only sectorspecific confidentiality obligations contained in various laws (e.g. Banking Act, Securities and Futures Act, Official Secrets Act, etc.). On 2 January 2013 Singapore enacted the “Personal Data Protection Act”1.Various key provisions of the PDPA will only become effective in phases, e.g. the “Do-Not-Call” Registry will come into force on 2 January 2014 and the main data protection rules will come into force on 2 July 2014 2.This gradual coming into force will allow companies to review and adopt internal personal data protection policies and practices and comply with the PDPA.

I Scope of the PDPA / key features

The PDPA governs the collection, use and disclosure of personal data by organisations in a manner that recognises and balances both the right of individuals to protect their personal data and the need of organisations to collect, use or disclose personal data for purposes that a reasonable person would consider appropriate in the circumstances (Sec. 4 PDPA).

The Act does not define exactly what kinds of purposes regarding data collection are included or excluded 3 under the Act. But as the rationale of the Act in general is to enhance the rights of individuals in order to protect consumers’ personal data (including rights of access and correction, and to recognise the needs of organisations to collect, use or disclose personal data for legitimate and reasonable purposes4 ), every legitimate and reasonable commercial and operational purpose should fall

4 ■ 2013 I Bringing Together the World's Lawyers

Singapore’s Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA) - An Overview I Andreas RESPONDEK under this category. The PDPA is intended to curb excessive and unnecessary collection of an individual’s personal data by businesses, and includes requirements such as obtaining the consent of individuals to disclose their personal information.The main features of the PDPA are as follows:

7. To allow individuals to request access to their personal data held by an organisation in order to find out how organisations have used or are using the personal data collected, to correct any inaccurate information collected and to seek redress for suspected breaches of the PDPA;

1. Establishment of a Data Protection Commission (“DPC”; www.pdpc.gov.sg) on 02.01.2013 to administer and enforce the provisions of the PDPA. The Commission has various powers under the PDPA including directing an organisation to: (I) stop collecting, using or disclosing personal data; (II) destroy personal data; (III) comply with any directions from the Commission; and (IV) pay a financial penalty of up to SGD1million.

8. Introduction of a penalty and enforcement regime for breaches of the PDPA; a person who suffers loss as a result of breach of the rules on collection, use and disclosure, as

2. Establishment of a Data Protection Appeal Panel with Appeal Committees as a special appellate department, Sec. 33 PDPA. 3. The PDPA applies to all private sector organisations in Singapore as well as all organisations located outside of Singapore that are engaged in data collection, processing or disclosure of such data within Singapore; therefore, the PDPA would apply also to companies that were not incorporated in Singapore, but which collect data online from a person in Singapore5.

4. Creation of a requirement of at least one designated individual within each organisation to be responsible for compliance with the PDPA (“Personal Data Officer”); 5. The requirement for organisations to implement policies and practices to comply with the PDPA; 6. Introduction of general rules and exclusions relating to the collection, use and/or disclosure of personal data;

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advisory, technical, managerial or other specialist services relating to data protection and to cooperate with foreign data protection authorities and organizations6, but also to conduct investigations upon complaint or of its own motion7 and to give such directions8 to organizations as it thinks is appropriate in the circumstances 9. Additionally, it may issue written advisory guidelines indicating the manner in which the Commission will interpret the provisions of the PDPA10. By now the Commission has published two guidelines,

The PDPA is intended to curb excessive and unnecessary collection of an individual’s personal data by businesses, and includes requirements such as obtaining the consent of individuals to disclose their personal information. well as access to, correction and care of personal data, shall have a right of action in civil proceedings in court; the court may award damages, injunctions or other remedies as it sees fit, and 9. Introduction of a “Do-Not-Call” Registry (“DNC Registry”).

I “Personal Data” under the PDPA

Sec. 2 of the PDPA defines “personal data” (“PD”) that will be protected under the PDPA broadly as data about an individual who can be identified either from the data itself or from other data that an organization is likely to have access to.

I The Personal Data

Protection Commission

The Commission is the central authority supervising, administrating and enforcing the PDPA with a broad range of competencies. It is empowered not only to provide consultancy,

one on the key concepts in the PDPA11 and one on selected topics of the PDPA on 24 Sept. 201312.

I Key obligations of

companies under the PDPA

The cornerstone of the PDPA is the prohibition of the collection, use or disclosure by organisations of personal data without the consent of the relevant individuals, and generally requiring organisations to obtain the explicit consent of individuals. The collection, use or disclosure is in general limited to purposes that would be considered appropriate to a reasonable person in the given circumstances, Sec. 18(a) PDPA. However, an individual would be deemed to have given his consent for the collection, use or disclosure of his personal data if that individual voluntarily provides his personal data to an organisation, and if it is reasonable that the individual would voluntarily provide the data under the circumstances, Sec. 15 PDPA. For an explicit consent, the individual needs to be provided with certain information about the purpose of the data processing (”notification obligation”,

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Sec. 20 PDPA). Data processing for other purposes is not allowed, Sec. 18 PDPA. Consent for collecting, using or disclosing personal data gained by providing false, deceptive or misleading information is invalid, Sec 14(1),(2) PDPA.

5. Provide individuals with access to the personal data stored by the organisation upon request, Sec. 21 PDPA;

Consent can be obtained through electronic means (online) and can be withdrawn at any time. In this case the organization shall inform the individual of the likely consequences of withdrawing his consent, Sec. 16(2) PDPA. The respective consent cannot be taken as a condition for providing a product or service (beyond what would be reasonable for the provision of that product or service).

7. Correct the personal data of individuals upon request, Sec. 22 PDPA; and

On the other hand, there are numerous exceptions of purposes for collection, use and disclosure of PD stated in the Act and especially in the Schedules attached to and referred to by the Act for many reasons, e.g. if the data is publicly available13, if it is necessary for evaluative purposes14 or to recover a debt owed by the individual whose data is affected15.

It is advisable to check the broad catalogue of exceptions in the Second,Third and the Fourth Schedule to the PDPA every time PD are to be collected, used or disclosed, whether consent is necessary or dispensable.

In summary16, the main obligations of the organisations falling under the regulations of the PDPA when it comes into force in January 2014 will be to: 1. Appoint an officer to be responsible for ensuring that the organisation complies with the requirements of the PDPA and make such person’s contact details available to the public; 2. Obtain consent for the collection, use or disclosure of personal data if necessary; 3. Make reasonable efforts to ensure that the personal data collected by or on behalf of the organisation is accurate and complete; 4. Protect the personal data in its possession or under its control by making reasonable security arrangements to prevent unauthorised access, collection, use, disclosure, copying, modification, disposal or similar risks;

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6. Ensure that personal data is retained only for as long as it is needed;

8. Protect all personal data in its custody.

However, the organization may continue to use personal data that have been collected before the data protection provisions of the PDPA come into effect on July 2, 2014 for the purposes for which the personal data were collected, unless the individual has withdrawn consent, Sec. 19 PDPA. If there is a different purpose for the use of the personal data, consent has to be obtained for this new purpose once again.

I Right of Private Action, Sec. 32 PDPA

Individuals who have suffered loss or damage as a result of an organisation’s failure to comply with the abovementioned requirements of the PDPA will be able to seek redress through civil proceedings. In particular, the PDPA provides that in the event that the Commission established under the PDPA has already made a decision regarding the contravention in question, the civil proceedings will only be able to commence after the decision has been finalised, as a result of there being no further right of appeal.

I Right of Administrative Action

those directions or decisions, Sec. 34(1) PDPA. This appeal has priority over the application for reconsideration according to Sec. 31 PDPA, as it is required by Sec. 34(2) PDPA, when the appeal concerns the same matter. Both procedures shall not suspend the effect of the affected decision or direction, except in the case of an appeal against the imposition of a financial penalty or the amount thereof or unless the Commission or the responsible Appeal Committee in any particular case decides otherwise. Further appeal against or with respect to the decisions and directions of the Appeal Committee is to be made to the High Court and, after that, to the Court of Appeal under the conditions of Sec. 35 PDPA.

I Do-Not-Call (“DNC”) Registry

Under this scheme, individuals may register their Singapore18 phone and fax numbers with the DNC signalling that they do not want to be contacted by companies for so called “specified messages” as defined in Sec. 37 PDPA, including marketing or commercial purposes regarding the sale of goods or services of almost any kind19. This registration will not expire and is therefore permanent.

The DNC Registry does not cover messages sent for other purposes, such as service calls or reminder messages sent by organisations to render services bought by the individual.

Messages for pure market survey or research and those that promote charitable or religious causes are also not covered under the DNC provisions, same as telemarketing calls or messages of a commercial nature that target businesses20.

Any party aggrieved by directions or decisions made by the Commission may within 28 days apply to the Commission to reconsider certain directions or decisions17, Sec. 31 PDPA.

The Commission is empowered to furnish one or a several numbers of DNCs for different kinds of specified messages, Sec. 39(1) PDPA. By now the Commission established three separate DNC Registries for voice calls, text messages and fax messages21.

In those cases mentioned before and additionally against the decisions following the reconsideration procedure according to Sec. 34(1)(b) PDPA, it is possible to appeal within 28 days to the Chairman of the Appeal Panel established under Sec. 33(1) PDPA against

To send a “specified message” it is necessary to check the relevant registries first, if the recipient has not given consent separately.

Therefore an organization has to apply for an account for a main account on the DNC Registry website subject to a fee22.

4 ■ 2013 I Reunir a los abogados del mundo

By sending a “specified message”, the organization has to ensure, that it contains contact details within the message to allow the recipient to contact for clarifications. E.g. for voice calls it has to ensure that the calling identity or phone number from which the message is sent out from is not concealed23.

I Obligations for companies Companies operating in Singapore will need to consider the impact of the PDPA on their operations and ensure that, by July 2014, their data collection and handling processes comply with the new rules set out in the PDPA. Even if foreign entities are not incorporated in Singapore, but as long as they collect, use and/or disclose personal data in Singapore, the provisions of the PDPA will apply to them.

Companies that conduct direct marketing activities will have a duty to check the DNC Registry and will need to establish processes to ensure that, by January 2014, they do not market goods or services to a telephone number listed on the Do-Not-Call Registry without obtaining clear and unambiguous consent in writing from the subscriber or user of that telephone number.

designation of a Personal Data Officer), yet the regulation is overall business friendly and in many cases still allows to make use of Singaporean personal data for various purposes, in certain cases even without consent of the individuals affected.

In light of the significant impact that the PDPA has on the operations of all private sector organisations, such organisations should prepare to be compliant with the PDPA provisions and to thoroughly familiarise themselves with the PDPA so that early preparations for the establishment of the necessary compliance measures can be put into place.

Dr. Andreas RESPONDEK Respondek & Fan Singapore, Singapore respondek@rflegal.com

1

The Act is accessible on the homepage of Singapore’s Attorney-General’s Chambers: http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/aol/search/display/view.w3p;page =0;query=CompId%3A32762ba6-f438-412e-b86d5c12bd1d4f8a;rec=0;whole=yes

2

Statement of the Data Protection Commission on their homepage: www.pdpc.gov.sg/personal-data-protection-act

3

See Data Protection Commission advisory guidelines on key concepts in the PDPA, para. 8.1, p. 29: http://www.pdpc.gov.sg/docs/default-source/advisoryguidelines/chapters-3-to-9---important-terms-used-in-thepdpa.pdf?sfvrsn=2

4

Statement of the Data Protection Commission on their homepage, footnote 2 above

5

Even though Singapore’s Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts (MICA) acknowledged there may be difficulty in enforcement. See MICA’s statement at the public consultation on 13 Sept. 2011, Consultation Paper p. 10 f., Sec. 3.22; the paper is available at: http://issuu.com/micasingapore/docs/dp_public_consultati on_paper?e=3934662/2671272

6

Sec. 6 PDPA with a list of further general functions of the Commission

7

Sec. 50(1) PDPA

8

Including the direction to pay a penalty of an amount not exceeding SGD 1,000,000,-, see Sec. 29(2)(d) PDPA

9

Sec. 29 PDPA

I Conclusion As the act contains a number of exclusions to the formal precondition of consent for collection, use and disclosure of PD, it’s already foreseeable that an effective protection of PD cannot be achieved only on the basis of this regulation. As the PDPA was meant to be just a baseline law24, this result is not surprising.

Furthermore the complexity of the regulation may make it hard especially for foreign organisations being dependent on PD collection, use and disclosure on Singaporean territory for their businesses, to foresee the need of consent in every case. Only time will tell, how the PDPA regulations will be applied by the Commission on a day-today basis and how the Appeal Committees and the courts will handle them in specific issues.

At the present state it only can be said that even though organizational preparations within a company’s structure are mandatory (e.g.

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10

Sec. 49 PDPA

11

Containing the interpretation of key terms in the PDPA like “reasonability” indicated by the Commission, see para. 9 of this guideline, p. 30

12

Both guidelines are available under: www.pdpc.gov.sg/resources/advisory-guidelines

13

See Sections 2, 17(1), (2), (3), 21(4) referring to the

Second Schedule para. 1(c), the Third Schedule para. 1(c) and the Fourth Schedule para 1(d) 14

See Sections 2, 17(1), (2), (3), 21(4) referring to the Second Schedule para. 1(f), the Third Schedule para. 1(f) and the Fourth Schedule para 1(f)

15

See Sections 2, 17(1), (2), (3), 21(4) referring to the Second Schedule para. 1(f), the Third Schedule para. 1(g) and the Fourth Schedule para 1(i)

16

Further details can be obtained from the statements of the Commission at: www.pdpc.gov.sg/organisations/overview

17

Those based on Sec. 27(2), 28 and 29(1)(2) PDPA

18

Part IX (Sec. 36 - 48) only applies if the sender or the recipient uses a Singapore telephone numbers, see Sec. 38 PDPA

19

It should be noted that many kinds of messages and purposes to send messages are explictly excluded in Sec. 37(5) PDPA in connection with the Eighth Schedule

20

See further exclusions listed in the Eighth Schedule to the PDPA

21

See the statement by the Commission at: www.pdpc.gov.sg/organisations/do-not-call-registry-yourbusiness/do-not-call-registry-business-rules

22

For further details about the procedure and the fees see also: www.pdpc.gov.sg/organisations/do-not-call-registryyour-business/do-not-call-registry-business-rules

23

See also the statement by the Commission at: www.pdpc.gov.sg/organisations/do-not-call-registry-yourbusiness

24

MICA Statement during the public consultation on Sept.

11, 2011, para. 1.4. p. 1

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macao El embargo internacional de créditos en la UE (1)

2013

Premio Monique RAYNAUDCONTAMINE

I Francisco RAMOS ROMEU

I 1. Introducción En el ámbito de la Unión Europea, con multitud de relaciones comerciales transfronterizas, grupos de empresas que actúan en varios Estados, y una economía moderna en que una empresa puede ser simplemente un haz de relaciones de crédito sin ningún inmovilizado de valor en su balance, el siguiente no es un supuesto infrecuente: después de obtener

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una sentencia en un Estado miembro, el beneficiario insta su ejecución ante los mismos tribunales. Durante la investigación patrimonial, judicial o extrajudicial, resulta que el deudor es titular de 1) cuentas bancarias en entidades financieras con domicilio en otros Estados miembros o con cuentas abiertas en sucursales de otro Estado miembro o 2) créditos contractuales o no frente a terceros con domicilio en otros Estados. Pero ¿puede entonces el juez decretar un embargo de un crédito cuando presenta estos elementos de extranjería? ¿Es posible una ejecución con

estos efectos transfronterizos dentro de la UE? Empecemos por pensar en la alternativa en caso de dar una respuesta negativa, que es quizá la respuesta estándar de la doctrina y la jurisprudencia nacionales. La alternativa a la ejecución transfronteriza es solicitar el reconocimiento y ejecución de la resolución obtenida en el otro Estado, al amparo del Reglamento 44/2001, y seguir su ejecución utilizando los mecanismos procesales internos de dicho Estado. El problema radica en que esta alternativa es a efectos prácticos inviable cuando hablamos de dinero y créditos, lo puede no paliarse adecuadamente con medidas cautelares. En efecto, el reconocimiento al amparo del Reglamento 44/2001 obliga a abrir otro procedimiento en el Estado al que se quiere ir, lo que a efectos prácticos entraña multiplicar los costes para el cumplimiento de la sentencia, si el deudor va moviendo el dinero de Estado en Estado. Aunque sean a cargo del ejecutado, deben ser adelantados por el ejecutante con el riesgo de que no pueda recuperarlos todos o una parte.Y son en todo caso costes sociales que se multiplican, y por lo tanto es deseable reducirlos; Además, el trámite del reconocimiento introduce una demora en el tiempo no desdeñable. El tiempo es especialmente problemático cuando hablamos de realizar derechos de crédito y cuentas bancarias que son fácilmente volátiles; Y por último, pero no menos importante, puede ocurrir que aunque se inste el reconocimiento en otro Estado – del ejecutado o del tercero deudor – esto sea inefectivo porque los derechos de crédito no están en ningún sitio físico y puede que el dinero nunca pase cerca de las manos del juez para aprehenderlo. Es por ello que vale la pena y es necesario estudiar las alternativas que permitirían en su caso evitar el resultado que se anuncia.

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macao I 2. Argumentos a favor del embargo internacional de créditos

Las razones jurídicas que abonan la jurisdicción del juez para dictar una orden de embargo a pesar de que el tercero deudor tenga su domicilio en el extranjero son múltiples. Nos limitamos a los argumentos principales derivados del derecho internacional público, humanitario y comunitario, que son aplicables a todos los Estados miembros de la UE. Con ciertas vacilaciones, son multitud los Estados, tanto de derecho civil como de derecho común, que han permitido este tipo de medidas: Francia2, Alemania3, Países Bajos4, Reino Unido5, los Estados Unidos de Norteamérica6.

En primer lugar, el derecho internacional público parte de que los Estados tienen poder para ejercer su jurisdicción sobre personas, bienes y actos fuera de su territorio, y por tanto poder para dictar medidas de embargo extraterritoriales. Así lo dijo la Corte Permanente de Justicia Internacional [CPJI] dijo en el Caso Lotus (1927).7 El límite que impone el derecho internacional público, que reconoce la CPJI, es que el Estado no puede ejercer ese poder sobre el territorio de otro Estado. Pero ¿qué quiere decir esto? Esto está claro que impide a los agentes públicos o a la policía de un Estado entrar en el territorio del otro Estado para aprender los bienes del deudor y llevarse el dinero. Pero no excluye que un Estado adopte un embargo dentro de su jurisdicción, ni que se ordene la retención de la deuda a un tercero en otro territorio y se le notifique por correo. No se afecta a la soberanía de otro Estado por esto, porque no se hace, y mientras no se haga, ningún acto de fuerza en el territorio del otro Estado miembro. Hay que distinguir entre la fuerza “física” y la fuerza “jurídica”. Lo único que queda claramente excluido es el ejercicio de la fuerza física en otro Estado, que no es muchas veces necesaria (También así Cuniberti 2008: 975 y 990, tras un perfecto análisis entre los distintos modos de intervención estatal). Pero, aunque la fuerza “jurídica” también estuviera excluida, no puede considerarse vulneración de la soberanía cuando el otro Estado ha aceptado las notificaciones de actos judiciales de un Estado en su territorio como ocurre en la UE al amparo del Reglamento 1393/2007, y

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como ocurre en muchos otros países al amparo del Convenio de la Haya de 1965 (Michinel Álvarez 1999: 36, 38 y 43-46).8 Ningún Estado dentro de la UE puede sentirse genuinamente ofendido, especialmente porque el objetivo es compartido, lo que nos lleva al segundo argumento.

En segundo lugar, todos los Estados de la UE han aceptado la importancia del derecho a la tutela judicial efectiva (art. 47 de la Carta de los Derechos Fundamentales de la Unión Europea y art. 6 CEDH).9 Este derecho, impone soluciones que favorezcan la efectividad de la tutela judicial en la ejecución10, sin que pueda irse contra el efecto útil de lo ejecutoriado.11 El TEDH ha dicho que “el Estado tiene la obligación de poner a disposición del acreedor un sistema judicial apto para ayudarle en la ejecución de su crédito”.12 La eficacia de la justicia civil, de común interés para los Estados, debe ser la principal consideración (McLachlan 1996: 50; Hess 2004: 12-13). Aunque la jurisprudencia ha reconocido límites al derecho a la ejecución, debe haber un objetivo legítimo y que se adopten medios que guarden una relación razonable de proporcionalidad, sin que quepa vaciar el derecho a la ejecución de contenido, como dice el TEDH.13 Las medidas ejecutivas que puedan tener efectos extraterritoriales son una forma de dar cumplimiento al derecho a la ejecución y se fundamentan en él.Todos los Estados de la UE quedan obligados, lo que implica que algunos tendrán que acordar la orden de embargo aunque tenga efectos extraterritoriales y otros tendrán la obligación de soportarla para que la justicia europea sea eficaz. Denegarlas sólo es admisible cuando haya motivos solidos que puedan hacer ceder al derecho a la eficacia de la justicia. Se invierte aquí por tanto la perspectiva, y habrá que ver cuáles son esos motivos sólidos.

En tercer lugar, en la UE, la jurisdicción se basa en criterios aceptados por todos los Estados miembros (Reglamento 44/2001) por lo que todos han aceptado que incluso sus nacionales puedan ser condenados por otros Estados y sometidos a su poder coercitivo. Una vez asumida la jurisdicción de los tribunales sobre el deudor para condenarle, resulta ilógico negar que este poder alcance a la ejecución de lo ordenado sobre sus bienes y derechos, aunque se encuentren en el extranjero. Se puede añadir que el efecto útil del Reglamento

44/2001 así lo impone.14 Se dirá que hay que distinguir entre el poder de juzgar y el de hacer ejecutar lo juzgado. Pero esto choca con el carácter expansivo del poder del Estado que deriva de la soberanía15, el contenido habitual del concepto de “jurisdicción” que incluye el poder de juzgar y ejecutar lo juzgado, y que no es la interpretación más favorable a la tutela judicial efectiva. De hecho, el Reglamento 44/2001 no contiene un fuero especial o exclusivo para la ejecución, cuestión sobre la que volveremos en un momento.

Obviamente, pueden existir bienes sobre los que el ejercicio de jurisdicción por el Estado pueda ser problemática, por ejemplo por vulneración de una competencia exclusiva de otro Estado. Deberá ser valorado en el caso concreto, pero para los derechos de crédito no lo veo problemático. En todo caso, esto no debe ser una preocupación paralizante para el Estado que quiera acordar el embargo.Aunque el respeto de la jurisdicción de otros Estados es una consideración a tener en cuenta para acordar el embargo, cuando se demuestre que efectivamente se produciría una injerencia en las prerrogativas que otro Estado se ha reservado, normalmente la ineficacia de la ejecución vendrá de la denegación del reconocimiento de efectos por las autoridades de ese Estado afectado cuando les corresponda la última palabra.16 En cuarto lugar, el derecho comunitario contempla el poder de los Estados para adoptar medidas con efectos extraterritoriales.

El propio Reglamento 44/2001 habla del reconocimiento de “mandamientos de ejecución” (art. 32). Y cuando los tribunales nacionales le han planteado la cuestión, el TJCE ha dicho que pueden ampararse en la normativa comunitaria para su libre circulación, aunque se tratara de medidas provisionales. El caso más claro es el de la STJCE 06.03.1980, Caso nº 120/79, Louise de Cavel v. Jacques de Cavel, pero en otros en que podía plantearse la discusión de su validez, el TJCE la ha orillado dándola por supuesta.

Verdad es que el TJCE no ha sido todo lo favorable con estas medidas que uno hubiera querido, por ejemplo, cuando son de carácter “cautelar”. Pero las limitaciones que ha instaurado para las medidas cautelares no deberían jugar para las medidas ejecutivas porque las consideraciones para proteger la

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macao “provisionalidad” de las medidas cautelares o la competencia del juez natural respecto del fondo no se dan.17 Estamos ante medidas ejecutivas para cumplir con una sentencia, después de seguir un proceso con todas las garantías procesales, y dentro de un proceso ejecución que vuelve a tener todas las garantías.

quepa duda, el Estado de la ejecución podría incluso solicitar la entrega o extradición del tercero deudor al amparo de normativa aplicable en todos los Estados comunitarios.18 El embargo puede ser además fundamento para solicitar la cooperación jurisdiccional de las autoridades judiciales extranjeras para llevar a efecto el embargo.

En definitiva, el poder del juez comunitario para dictar embargos con efectos extraterritoriales tiene un amplio apoyo legal en el derecho judicial comunitario y humanitario, tanto de carácter legislativo como jurisprudencial, desarrollado en los últimos años.

Un segundo argumento es que son inembargables en la medida en que los bienes se encuentren en el extranjero porque la jurisdicción de los tribunales se extiendo sólo al territorio nacional. Esto impide al juez adoptar medidas ejecutivas sobre bienes que se encuentran fuera de su jurisdicción. Ya hemos visto que esto no es así necesariamente, el derecho internacional público no impide a los Estados adoptar medidas con efectos extraterritoriales. Aunque un Estado podría haber limitado unilateralmente su jurisdicción a bienes que se encontraran dentro de su territorio, un repaso indica que no es habitual.

Es más, el derecho comunitario mencionado anteriormente parece más bien apuntar en la dirección contraria: es obligatorio para los Estados dictar eventualmente medidas con efectos extraterritoriales para garantizar el derecho a una ejecución eficaz y dar efectividad a sus poderes jurisdiccionales reconocidos. En fin, existe un ulterior problema si se mantiene esta postura a ultranza porque ¿cuándo están los derechos de crédito en un determinado territorio para su embargo? Es una cuestión que debe dirimirse acudiendo al derecho aplicable al crédito conforme a las normas de conflicto del tribunal asido. Las leyes de los Estados miembros divergen en cuanto al criterio de localización: algunos Estados se remiten al domicilio del acreedor, otros al del deudor, otros al lugar de pago, otros como España no prevén nada expresamente, etc.

(Kennett 2000: 249-250); Hess 2004: 77). Pues bien, esto puede provocar que ningún Estado se acabe considerando competente porque ninguno considere que el crédito se encuentra en su territorio, lo que eso sí que afectaría a la tutela judicial efectiva, denegando cualquier protección jurisdiccional.

I 3. Refutación de algunos argumentos en contra

Por otra parte, los argumentos que se han ofrecido para negar la jurisdicción del juez para dictar esta orden de embargo con efectos extraterritoriales no son tan sólidos como se pretende, y han quedado superados.

Examinamos brevemente tres argumentos, porque en buena parte quedan desactivados también por lo que ya se ha dicho anteriormente.

Un primer argumento en contra es que es imposible llevar a cabo actividades ejecutivas fundamentales de la ejecución, como actos que entrañan el uso de la fuerza, fuera del territorio del tribunal. Dejando de lado la cuestión de si jurídicamente se vulnera en realidad la soberanía de otro Estado, que ya hemos visto que se puede responder negativamente, el argumento es apriorístico. Decae en el caso de que puedan llevarse a cabo los actos materiales necesarios en una ejecución para la satisfacción del crédito. Se entiende que pueda haber más dificultades, que haya efectos propios de una ejecución nacional que no esté claro si se podrán dar. Pero quizá también haya alternativas, u otros efectos que sí podrán darse y que serán suficientes. Por ejemplo, sólo el riesgo de que el Estado de la ejecución imponga una sanción por desobediencia a la autoridad al tercero deudor que está domiciliado fuera pero que algún día quizá viaje o tenga que hacer negocios en el Estado de ejecución, algo no poco habitual en la UE, puede ser suficiente para compeler al cumplimiento del embargo. Y para que no

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En tercer y último lugar, se ha dicho que el Reglamento 44/2001 prevé una competencia exclusiva “en materia de ejecución” del Estado miembro del lugar de ejecución (art. 22.5).19 Pero la jurisprudencia del TJCE hasta la fecha,

en una interpretación razonable, ha dicho que este artículo no reserva la realización de actividades ejecutivas únicamente para los tribunales del lugar donde se encuentren los bienes. Lo único que dice el precepto es que los tribunales del “lugar de ejecución” son los exclusivamente competentes para las cuestiones que se susciten respecto de la ejecución.20 Se impone además una interpretación restrictiva de las competencias exclusivas.21 La doctrina considera que, como mucho, el artículo limita la intervención material (compulsión física) de las autoridades competentes para la ejecución al territorio del Estado en que se hayan (Cuniberti 2008: 987). Pero es que también hay doctrina que ha negado directamente que el Reglamento contenga un fuero exclusivo para la ejecución, que por tanto habría que examinar conforme al derecho nacional (Michinel Álvarez 1999: 56 y 65-66 respecto del antiguo Convenio de Bruselas).

En fin, la aplicación de este fuero plantea serias dificultades respecto de los derechos de crédito por su carácter virtual. ¿Cuál es el “lugar de ejecución de un crédito”? Suele añadirse que es el domicilio del tercero deudor o lugar de cumplimiento voluntario del pago del crédito. O hay una remisión a los criterios de localización del crédito. O más genéricamente se exige un “vínculo real” con el Estado como hace la doctrina alemana (Michinel Álvarez 1999: 33-34). Lo que está claro es una vez más no hay criterio uniforme entre los Estados.22 En estos casos puede ocurrir que un más de un tribunal se considere competente exclusivamente, lo que puede provocar conflictos insolubles y una gran inseguridad jurídica, ya que varios tribunales se negarán a reconocer las actuaciones mutuas de otros Estados, con una seria merma de la efectividad de la tutela judicial.

I 4. A modo de conclusión Para concluir, la aceptación de los efectos extraterritoriales del embargo, se impone como la única forma para combatir la naturaleza virtual del crédito, su volatilidad, y la inexistencia de alternativas mejores. No hay un único fuero que garantice unos plenos efectos frente a todas las partes o un fuero más efectivo, “natural”, o ideal. Si a esto se le añade que, en un breve instante, un crédito puede

4 ■ 2013 I Bringing Together the World's Lawyers

macao volatilizarse de un lugar, para “aparecer” en otro, resulta evidente e derecho procesal no puede quedarse atrás frente a la realidad de unas operaciones transnacionales complejas, que exigen de los tribunales respuestas también ágiles y realistas. Un correcto funcionamiento de la justicia civil resulta fundamental para que las relaciones jurídicas en el mercado interior comunitario se desenvuelvan bien (Hess 2004: 15).

Francisco RAMOS ROMEU Ramos & Arroyo Barcelona, España frr@rya.es

1

El presente trabajo es un resumen de un estudio más extenso sobre la ejecución transfronteriza sobre créditos en la UE que ha recibido el Premio Monique RaynaudContamine 2013 concedido por la Unión Internacional de Abogados. Quiero agradecer los comentarios de los profesores Manuel Jesús Cachón Cadenas y Rafael Arenas García. Cualquier comentario es bienvenido: francisco.ramos@uab.es.

2

Sentencia de la Cour Cassation de 14.02.2008 (Arrêt Exsymol), explicada en detalle Cuniberti (2008: 976-979).

3

Ver Prof. Ulrich Drobnig en McLachlan (1996: 61) y Bosch (1996: 201).

4

Ver Gascón Inchausti (1998: 230-231) que refiere casos de ese país.

5

Bibliografía citada ANDREA BIANCHI, Comment a Jurisdictional Rules in Customary International law (por Harold G. Maier) en Extraterritorial jurisdiction in theory and practice (Ed. Karl M. Meessen), Ed. Kluwer Law International, pp. 73-102 (1996).

BOSCH, Ullrich, Extraterritorial Rules on Banking and Securities, en Extraterritorial jurisdiction in theory and practice (Ed. Karl M. Meessen), Ed. Kluwer Law International, pp. 200-224 (1996).

CUNIBERTI, Gilles, Le principe de territorialité des voies d’exécution, Journal du Droit International nº 4/2008, pp. 963997 (2008).

CUNIBERTI, Gilles, La ejecución de las medidas provisionales y cautelares extranjeras en materia civil y mercantil en Europa, Diario La Ley, Nº 7601, Sección Tribuna, 31 Mar. 2011, Año XXXII (2011).

6

Republic of the Philippines v. Marcos, 862 F.2d 1355 (9th Cir., 1988); cert. Denied 490 US 1035. Citado en McLachlan (1996: 40).Ver también Bosch (1996: 203).

7

Sentencia de la Corte Permanente de Justicia Internacional de 07.09.1927, Recueil des Arrêts – Serie A, nº 10, Publications de la Cour Permanente de Justice Internationale (1927), disponible online en http://www.icj-cij.org/pcij/seriesa.php?p1=9&p2=1 (Caso Lotus). Aunque en los hechos que dieron origen al caso se trataba del ejercicio de jurisdicción penal, las expresiones utilizadas son suficientemente generales para ser aplicables a todo tipo de jurisdicción, y la CIJ no da a entender que se trate de expresiones limitadas a esta jurisdicción.

GASCÓN INCHAUSTI, Fernando, Medidas cautelares de proceso civil extranjero (art. 24 Convenio de Bruselas), Ed. Comares (1998).

JIMENO BULNES, Mar, Un proceso europeo para el siglo XXI, Civitas (2011).

HESS, Burkhart, Study No. JAI/A3/2002/02 on making more efficient the enforcement of judicial decisions within the European Union: transparency of a debtor’s assets, attachment of bank accounts, provisional enforcement and protective measures, disponible online en http://ec.europa.eu/civiljustice/publications/docs/enforcement_j udicial_decisions_180204_en.pdf (2004).

8

KENNETT,Wendy, The Enforcement of Judgments in Europe, Oxford University Press (2000).

Con el Reglamento (CE) nº 1393/2007, del Parlamento Europeo y del Consejo, de 13 de noviembre de 2007, relativo a la notificación y al traslado en los Estados miembros de documentos judiciales y extrajudiciales en materia civil o mercantil, no debería haber ninguna duda sobre la posibilidad de notificar la orden transnacionalmente (también Hess 2004: 84-85).

Hess (2004: 83-84) cita un caso del Tribunal Supremo Alemán que mantiene que la notificación no es un “acto de ejecución”. Lo mismo en Kennett (2000: 269-270) que también cita un caso del Tribunal Supremo Austríaco que adopta también el criterio de la jurisdicción alemana

MCLACHLAN, Campbell, Extraterritorial orders affecting bank deposits, en Extraterritorial jurisdiction in theory and practice (Ed. Karl M. Meessen), Ed. Kluwer Law International, pp. 39-63 (1996).

MICHINEL ÁLVAREZ, Miguel Ángel, Embargo internacional de créditos, Servicio de Publicaciones de la Universidad de Vigo (1999).

Así ha sido para las de medidas cautelares, conocidas tradicionalmente como “Mareva Injunctions”. Caso Mareva Compañia Naviera SA v International Bulkcarriers SA [1975] 2 Lloyd’s Rep 509. En este caso, la cuenta bancaria con el dinero de los demandados cuyo embargo preventivo se pretendía se encontraba en Londres. Con posterioridad, los tribunales ingleses extendieron las órdenes a bienes situados en el extranjero, pero incluyendo una limitación que preveía los efectos extraterritoriales sólo si la orden era reconocida en el otro Estado. Caso Babanaft International Co SA v.

Bassatne [1990] Ch 13.Ver McLachlan (1996: 39-44) y Goldrein y Wilkinson (1991: Capítulo 2). Sin embargo, la House of Lords en Sté Eram Shipping Co. Ltd. And others vs.

Hong Kong and Shangai Banking Co. Ltd. [2003] UKHL 30 no ha seguido el mismo criterio respecto de medidas ejecutivas de embargo, un tratamiento no del todo justificado.Ver al respecto Cuniberti (2008: 979-982).

9

El art. 81.2.e) del Tratado de Funcionamiento de la Comunidad Europea (TFCE) establece que, en el ámbito de la cooperación judicial civil, se adoptarán medidas para garantizar “una tutela judicial efectiva”. Jimeno Bules (2011:5859) menciona la tutela judicial efectiva como objetivo fundamental del derecho procesal europeo.

10

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2013

Ver STEDH 19.03.1997, Asunto Hornsby c. Grecia, Recurso 18357/91, par. 40. Este principio se ha ratificado en sentencias posteriores como la STEDH 28.06.2000, Asunto Dimitrios Georgiadis c. Grecia, Recurso 41209/98, par. 25, la STEDH 20.07.2000, Asunto Antonetto c. Italia, Recurso 15918/89), par. 27.

11

Ver STEDH 28.07.1999, Asunto Inmobiliaria Saffi c. Italia, Recurso 22774/93, relativa a la ejecución de un desahucio decretado por un juez que no se lleva a cabo por la fuerza pública al haber intervenido un cambio legislativo. En el mismo sentido también, ver la STEDH 11.01.2001, Asunto Lunari c. Italia, Recurso 21463/1993, la STEDH 21.03.2002, Asunto Vasilopoulou c. Grecia, Recurso 47541/99, y la STEDH 07.05.2002, Asunto Bourdov c. Rusia, Recurso 59498/00.

12

STEDH 26.04.2007, Asunto Durdan c. Rumanía, Recurso nº 6098/03, par. 65. En el mismo sentido también, STEDH 16.01.2006, Asunto Muzevic c. Croatia, Recurso 39299/02, par. 83.

13

STEDH 2.03.2004, Asunto Popescu c. Rumanía, Recurso nº 48102/99, par. 66; y STEDH 31.03.2005, Asunto Matheus c.

Francia, Recurso n1 62740/00, Par. 56.

14

La doctrina ha notado la aproximación ambivalente del TJCE al principio de efectividad y su efecto sobre las normas procesales.Ver Kennett (2000: 27-28). La última jurisprudencia del TJCE sobre el Reglamento 44/2001 ha sido favorable a su uso en este ámbito: el TJCE la ha utilizado para prohibir las órdenes anti-proceso (anti-suit injunctions): STJCE de 27.04.2004, Caso nº 159/02,Turner v.

Grovit y STJCE 10.02.2009, Caso 185/2007, Allianz SpA, Generali Assicurazioni v.West Tankers Inc.

15

Bianchi (1996: 77-78) dice que la jurisdicción es una cuestión de grado. En el derecho internacional no hay una categorización clara entre distintos tipos de jurisdicción. Es un fenómeno unitario, caracterizado por diversos niveles de ejercicio de poder de la autoridad.

16

Aprovecho para indicar que en el embargo de derechos de crédito ese Estado con la última palabra no será necesariamente el del domicilio del tercero deudor, porque la jurisdicción para conocer de litigios relativos al crédito puede corresponder a otro Estado, por ejemplo por sumisión expresa de las partes.

17

Me refiero al Asunto 125/1979, STJCE 21.05.1980, Bernard Denilauler v. SNC Couchet Frères Denilauler. La doctrina ha criticado de hecho en general esta resolución (Cuniberti 2011: 3).

18

Me refiere al Convenio de Extradición Europeo de 1957 y a la Decisión marco 2002/584/JAI del Consejo de 13 de junio de 2002 relativa a la orden de detención europea y a los procedimientos de entrega entre Estados miembros.

19

Este argumento lo utiliza la STSJ Madrid (Sala Social) de 08.06.2011 (AS 2011\2299) para denegar en una ejecución española el embargo de los bienes de una empresa holandesa que pudiera tener en Holanda. Se apoya en la STS (Civil) de 18.12.2009 (RJ 2010\294), pero a mi juicio erróneamente ya esta sentencia razonablemente lleva a la conclusión contraria o no en todo caso no fundamente esa conclusión.

20

Ver la STJCE 26.03.1992, Asunto 261/90, Mario Reichert, Hans-Heinz Reichert y Ingeborg Kockler C. Dresdner Bank AG, par. 26. La sentencia añade la referencia al informe elaborado por el comité de expertos que redactó el texto del Convenio (DO 1979, C 59, p. 1).

21

STJCE 04.07.1985, Asunto 220/84, AS-Autoteile Service GmbH c. Pierre Mahlé.

22

No cambia mucho el problema si en vez de localizar el crédito, la cuestión deviene la existencia del “vinculo real”.

Se dice por ejemplo, que bastaría con el deudor del deudor tuviera bienes en el Estado, o que hubiera un derecho real de garantía localizado en el Estado de la ejecución. Pero entonces habrá que “localizar” estos bienes, y se vuelve al mismo problema, especialmente si son créditos también.

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macao Asset Preservation Japanese Regulations

2013

Monique RAYNAUDCONTAMINE Award Young Lawyer

I Motoyasu HIROSE A young Japanese man, Mr. X, aged 25, goes on holiday to Macau and ends up winning €10,000,000 (equivalent to approx. JPY 1.3 billion, which is hereinafter referred to as the “prize”). He is reluctant to go home because he does not want to tell his parents and his (soon to be ex!) wife/girlfriend that he has come into so much money. The analysis of the situation will be as follows under the laws of Japan:

I 1. What options/procedures are available to Mr. X, if he wants to protect his newlyacquired assets from his parents and girlfriend/wife

a – During His Lifetime I) Protection from his wife Under the Civil Code (Law No. 89 of 1986) of Japan, while each person of a married couple has individual rights to his/her own marital property, when “it is not obvious whether certain assets exclusively belong to the husband or the wife, such assets will be presumed to be co-owned by the married couple1.”

In the present case, it appears difficult to justify any circumstances that could make the prize obviously belong to either of Mr. X or his wife.

If Mr. X’s expenses for travelling to Macau and/or purchasing the bet derive from the assets co-owned by the couple (unless, for instance, Mr. X spends his own savings which he had prior to marriage on these expenses), it would be reasonable to consider that the prize arising from these costs and/or expenses (so long as there is a causal relationship between these costs and/or expenses and the prize) will also be co-owned by the couple.

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It follows that it is theoretically difficult for Mr. X to protect the prize from his wife. In Japan, a married couple may divorce by mutual consent without the intervention of the court; however, if Mr. X’s wife identifies this prize and the couple fails to reach a consensus as to how to allocate their assets upon divorce, she may proceed to file a suit against Mr. X seeking monetary claims equivalent to half of the prize which Mr. X gained. Such claims are more likely than not accepted by the court (to some extent at least, depending on the length of their marriage), in which case Mr. X may be obliged to allocate nearly half of the prize to his wife upon divorce.

Practically speaking, however, in the event of a suit filed by Mr. X’s wife seeking for allocation of the prize in question, she, as the plaintiff, bears the burden of proof in respect of the existence and the nature of the assets to be allocated by the couple (to put it another way, Mr. X has no obligations to disclose voluntarily his assets in the suit; no such system as “discovery” exists in Japan as it does in the US).

Therefore, it would be even more difficult for Mr. X’s wife to identify it if he retains the prize in a bank account (hopefully one without a branch office in Japan) opened outside Japan (especially in countries where he has no or little connection personally or professionally) or in a bank account opened in the name of a non-Japanese company owned by Mr. X. II)

Protection from his girlfriend

Under the laws of Japan, a “girlfriend” is not granted any right to the property of her boyfriend (at least legally) and thus his girlfriend has, at the outset, no right to his prize.

Therefore, there is no need to discuss its protection from Mr. X’s girlfriend further.

In theory, however, if Mr. X’s “girlfriend” demonstrates by objective evidence (typically, the fact of long-standing cohabitation and any other circumstances) that their relationship has been quasi-marital and that she is accordingly his “defacto wife”, she may be entitled to claim allocation of Mr. X’s assets by analogy to the position of married couple (practically speaking, the acceptance of such claims by the court appears unlikely, given the young age of the couple).

III) Protection from his parents

Under the laws of Japan, given that Mr. X is an adult2, his parents have no custodial right to his property (at least legally) and thus his parents have, at the outset, no right to his prize.

Therefore, there is no need to further discuss Mr. X’s protection from his parents. b – On Death (From Potential Beneficiaries)?

Under the laws of Japan, it is in principle permitted for any person to decide how to allocate his/her personal assets upon death by way of a “will”; while the legal successors except brothers and sisters have rights to their legally secured portion (in principle, half of the legally prescribed portion) to the estate.

Practically speaking, similarly, the legal successors bear the burden of identifying the details and the nature of Mr. X’s estate, meaning that, when Mr. X conceals the location of his property to his family, etc., especially in a bank account opened outside Japan and/or under the name of a non-Japanese company owned by him (in which case, Mr. X’s shares in such company will, in theory, also constitute the estate), there would be practical difficulty for Mr. X’s legal successors to identify the whole picture of Mr. X’s estate.

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macao I 2. What options/procedures are available to Mr. X, if he wants to protect his wealth, including his newly-acquired assets, from potential creditors?

a – Principle - Scope of Non-Exempt Property When Mr. X’s creditors exercise their claims against Mr. X (suppose, for example, if Mr. X makes big loans but fails to repay them when due), if the prize in question rests in Mr. X’s name, under the laws of Japan, all the property in Mr. X’s name (irrespective of its location or nature (whether it is in the form of cash, real estate or shares or otherwise)) constitute Mr. X’s nonexempt property for the benefit of creditors, which follows that his creditors may, after obtaining the title of debt (i.e. final decision of the court), enforce, by way of compulsory process, as necessary, their claims against whichever of the non-exempt property in Mr. X’s name.

Practically speaking, however, under the laws of Japan, Mr. X has no obligation to voluntarily notify or otherwise disclose the location and/or the nature of his non-exempt property to any creditors (except in the event of insolvency procedures requiring the debtor to disclose the remaining assets under penalty of disqualification from the discharge of debts and criminal prosecution); to put it another way, the creditors will bear the burden of identifying his property targeted in the procedures of compulsory enforcement within his non-exempt property, which would consequently pose, in analogy with the aforementioned logic, more practical difficulties and accordingly decrease the chance for the creditors to identify and proceed to compulsory enforcement against it (from procedural points of view, it requires additional court procedures in the jurisdiction where the targeted non-exempt property is located). b – Intervention of Corporate Entities I) What if Mr. X Establishes

a Non-Japanese Company?

II) Piercing the Corporate Veil

Under the laws of Japan, in order to prevent the debtor from evading his/her creditor’s compulsory enforcement by way of transfer of his/her own property to a corporation which he/she substantially owns and controls, the following non-statutory rule (rather, theories established through case precedents) traditionally prevails: When the legal personality is a mere façade or somehow abused, the so-called theory of “piercing the corporate veil” disallows, to the extent necessary for resolving the dispute, separation of or distinction between the corporation and the individual(s) substantially controlling it. This rule is not statutory but has been established by case precedents and theories.

For instance, in the circumstances referred to below, in particular, Company A and Mr. X as well as the debt of these parties can be seen as inseparable and identical, which follows that Mr. X’s creditors may be entitled to enforce their claims against the property in the name of Corporation A as if it were Mr. X’s personal property (although it remains arguable whether and to what extent this theory applies to procedural rules in terms of legal stability).

In this regard, to be qualified as cases of abuse of legal personality, it would be required for his creditors to demonstrate the facts of (i) Mr. X controlling the corporate entity like a “tool” by taking advantage of his predominant position; and (ii) illegal objective underlying the use of legal personality. When there is substantially no distinction between the corporation and its shareholders, some prevailing theories argue that meeting the aforementioned condition (i) would suffice for the theory of “piercing the corporate veil” to be applicable.

III) Action

What if Mr. X establishes Company A outside the territory of Japan and transfers the prize or the property deriving there from to Company A? When Mr. X owns shares in Company A, such

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shares in themselves constitute part of his nonexempt property, which can also be subject to the attachment and enforcement by his creditors if identified.

2013

Paulienne

What if Mr. X intentionally transfers his assets, especially the prize gained in Macau, to a third party with a view to evading the compulsory

execution initiated by his creditors, such creditors could be entitled under the laws of Japan to resort to so-called “action paulienne3” to revoke the legal effects of such transfer and thus demand return of the assets to Mr. X. The conditions for exercising this action are that (i) the debtor disposed of his/her assets after the creditor’s relevant claim had been created; (ii) the debtor is insolvent; and that (iii) the debtor disposed of his/her assets in the knowledge that such disposal would prejudice his/her creditors.

In the present case, even assuming that Japanese law governs Mr. X’s transfer of assets to a third party, the creditors will, by analogy to the cases of attachment of the debtor’s assets in general, bear the burden of proactively identifying the targeted assets and giving proof of the aforementioned conditions. As stated earlier, retaining the prize in a non-Japanese bank account or as equity in a non-Japanese company could similarly serve as passive protection against Mr. X’s potential creditors. c – Recently Discussed Schemes In recent times, it has been widely discussed how to utilize the special purpose company (the “SPC”) as a bankruptcy-remote vehicle.

The scheme being complicated, to put it simply, Mr. X establishes a SPC whose sole business objective is to administer certain real estate, in which Mr. X invests the prize. The real estate is to be entrusted to a trust bank, in which case such trust bank will acquire ownership to the real estate. While Mr. X invests in and thus has stake in the SPC, while acting as beneficiary of the interests accruing there from, the ownership to the real estate, the value of which would be equivalent to Mr. X’s transformed prize, is to be retained by the trust bank. In this way, wealthy individuals as well as corporations in Japan attempt to have material portions of their assets isolated from their non-exempt property and thus remain protected in the event of bankruptcy procedures; however, in order for this scheme to be legally feasible, it is required to meet onerous and complex conditions set forth in the laws and regulations pertaining to the asset liquidation. Moreover, the authorities’ interpretation of the legitimacy of the scheme is vulnerable to frequent changes.

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macao I 3. What options/procedures are available to Mr. X, if he wants to protect himself and his newly-acquired assets, from the taxman?

a – Basic Legal Scheme Involving the Prize in Japan I)

Civil and Criminal Laws

In Japan, gambling such as in casinos as in Macau is illegal and thus subject to penal sanctions4.

However, the relevant provisions of the offence of gambling set forth in the Penal Code (Law No. 45 of 1907) of Japan are inapplicable to the acts committed by Japanese nationals outside the territory of Japan5, which follows that procurement of the prize by way of gambling outside the territory of Japan will not be illegal under the penal or civil laws of Japan.

Therefore, there is no risk of the prize which Mr. X gained in Macau being confiscated by the Japanese authorities on the grounds of illegally procured profits6.

II) Tax

Law

Under the tax laws of Japan, the prize gained by Mr. X in a casino qualifies as “temporary income7” and is subject to the income tax, so long as Mr. X is a resident of Japan. This is because the Japanese income tax will be imposed on any income gained by residents of Japan, irrespective of the geographic source of such income (worldwide taxation). It does not matter whether such income gained outside Japan is brought back to Japan. For this reason, it is worth reviewing whether Mr. X will be qualified as “resident” in Japan.

“Resident” or “Non-resident” The qualification of a person as “resident” of Japan is, as mentioned below, subject to certain objective criteria, which, to put it simply, would be the place in which the taxpayer’s life is based, as more fully explained below. On the assumption that Mr. X came to Macau for a holiday and that he had no fixed domicile in Macau at the time of gaining the prize, it appears generally difficult to contend that Mr. X is to be qualified as “non-resident” of Japan.

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Therefore, Mr. X is under the obligation to pay considerable income tax imposed on the prize as “temporary income” to the Japanese tax authorities pursuant to the applicable laws8.

Calculation Method To put it simply, under the tax laws of Japan, the basis on which the “temporary income”, being the prize in question, is to be taxed as taxable income will be calculated as follows:

c – Prize and Inheritance Tax I)

Principle

Under the Inheritance Tax Act (Law No. 73 of 1950) of Japan, the inheritance tax rate is very high, leading up to 50% of the value of the estate exceeding JPY 300 million. The base for calculating the amount of inheritance tax will be as follows:

(Prize – Bet – Travel Expenses – JPY500,000) x 1/2

(Taxable Value of the Estate) – (JPY 50 million + (Number of Legal Successors) X (JPY 10 million)

In this regard, whether any bets not generating prizes are deductible from the taxable income as costs and/or expenses remains arguable and this has been squarely disputed in a Japanese court recently 9. According to the court decision, the expenses incurred for such lost bets are not in principle deductible, unless Mr. X successfully demonstrates exceptional circumstances such as having been repeatedly and continuously engaged in gambling as his “business” rather than mere entertainment.

To put it simply, assuming that the taxable value of Mr. X’s assets (the calculation method of which is complicated and thus omitted here) upon his death amounts to JPY 1,000 million and that Mr. X leaves his wife and his son when he passes away, the basis for calculation of the inheritance tax would be JPY 1,000 million – (JPY 50 million + 2?JPY 10 million) = JPY 930 million, in which case the amount of tax payable would be JPY 930 million?50% - JPY 47 million = JPY 418 million!

In principle, therefore, on the assumption that the bet and the travel expenses are minute compared to the amount of Mr. X’s prize, nearly half of the gained prize (approx. 5 million euros) will be the taxable income, which follows that approx. 40% thereof (approx. 2 million euros) will be levied and payable as income tax in Japan.

II)

Note that since certain income tax has already been levied and deducted from the prize outside Japan, which qualifies as “non-Japanese income tax”, it may be deducted from the income tax declared and payable in Japan within a certain limit. b – Will the Qualification of Investee Affect Mr. X’s Tax Position?

Under the tax laws of Japan, residents of Japan bear the obligation to pay income tax at the moment of procuring income.Transfer to third parties or transformation of the prize into any other form of property (whether real estate or stocks or otherwise) thereafter will not affect this obligation.

Exceptions

To avoid it legitimately, both Mr. X and his successor(s) must be non-resident(s) of Japan for a period of consecutive five years preceding Mr. X’s death and the inherited assets need to be located outside the territory of Japan10. For example, shares in a non-Japanese company and deposit in a bank account opened outside Japan are typically regarded as assets outside the territory of Japan.

In the present case, if Mr. X retains the prize in a bank account in Hong Kong, for example, or invests in a non-Japanese company which he owns and then he resides permanently outside Japan and his son also continues to be a nonresident of Japan throughout the period of five years preceding his father’s death, inheritance tax will not be imposed on the prize (or the assets deriving there from), at least by the Japanese tax authorities.

Being a “resident”, on the other hand, is a sensitive notion difficult to define. Court precedent dictates that objective criteria shall be used to determine whether or not a person is a resident of Japan. In fact, major shareholders (mostly owners and/or founders)

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continuous and regular basis. Mr. P consequently gained approx. JPY 3,010 million in total. The tax authorities of Japan considered that the purchase price of the slips not generating the gains (for horses losing the race) would not be deductible and accordingly imposed an income tax of approx. JPY 700 million (plus back taxes) on Mr. P (due to his failure to declare and pay the income tax, this case led to criminal court proceedings). Here, the underlying issue before determining the scope of the deductible expenses was whether the gains which Mr. P procured on horse races were to be qualified as “temporary income” or “sundry income”. In principle, the gains on horse races are a typical example of “temporary income” under the administrative circular of the Japanese tax authorities because the act of purchasing the betting slips is by nature one-shot, incidental and entertaining under normal circumstances, and the tax authorities appear to have followed this approach. Mr. P argued to the contrary. If this is qualified as “temporary income”, it generally follows that the purchase price of the betting slips for lost races will not be deductible.

The court, considering the particularities of this case, in that the frequency and the volume of Mr. P’s purchase of the betting slips as well as his elaborate and systematic analysis of the plausible results of the horse races had been exceptional, ruled that his behaviors in these horse races would amount to “investment business” rather than mere entertainment and accordingly that his gains were “sundry income”, not “temporary income”. On that basis, the court affirmed that the purchase price of the betting slips for lost races could be deducted from the gains in calculating the taxable income.

(Judgment of Osaka District Court dated May 23, 2013).

of Japanese listed companies attempt to make the best of this scheme to circumvent donation tax and/or inheritance tax when shares are to be transferred to their descendants. Before the recent amendment to the tax laws of Japan (introducing, as a condition for exemption, the “five years” threshold discussed earlier), there was a famous case precedent of the Supreme Court where the criteria for qualifying the “resident” of Japan was disputed 11.

1

Article 762, Paragraph 2 of the Civil Code

2

Under the laws of Japan, a person at or above the age of 20 is in principle competent (Articles 4 and 5 of the Civil Code).

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Article 424 of the Civil Code

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Articles 185 and 186 of the Penal Code

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Article 3 of the Penal Code

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Article 19, Paragraph 1, Item 3 of the Penal Code

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This is qualified by analogy to the prize gained by way of exceptionally legalised gambling in Japan (i.e. horse racing) (341(2) of the Basic Circular to the Income Tax Act (Law No. 33 of 1965)).

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Separately from the “income tax”, unless Mr. X removes his residential enrolment in Japan immediately after procurement of the prize and substantially bases his life outside the territory of Japan as of the benchmark date, the “residence tax” (“jumin zei” in Japanese, approx. 10% of the taxable income) may also be imposed on Mr. X.

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From 2007 to 2009, Mr. P (Japanese citizen, a company employee), exhaustively and mechanically analyzed the plausible results of certain horse races and accordingly purchased a huge number of betting slips (amounting to approx. JPY 2,870 million in total) over the years on a

Motoyasu HIROSE Urdu & Itoga Tokyo, Japan hirose.motoyasu@uryuitoga.com

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Article 1-3 of the Inheritance Tax Act

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Mr. R, president and major shareholder of Company Y (listed company in Japan), transferred his shares in Company Y to Company T (Dutch company) and acquired equity in Company T. Mr. R donated his equity in Company T to Mr. Q (his son) residing in Hong Kong. At that time (according to then the criteria prescribed in the former tax laws and regulations), donation tax was not imposable when the assignee resides outside the territory of Japan and the donated assets were also located outside Japan (the “five years” threshold requirements did not exist) and accordingly Mr. Q assumed that no donation tax would be imposed on this donation from his father. However, the tax authorities of Japan considered that Mr. Q’s residence was in Japan, not in Hong Kong, and accordingly charged back taxes against Mr. Q on the grounds of failure to declare an income of approx. JPY 160 billion. Mr. Q filed a suit against the Japanese government seeking revocation of this taxation. Mr. Q’s claims were rejected in the first and second instances, which was surprisingly overturned by the Supreme Court and consequently Mr. Q’s claims were admitted. The major issue in court was the criteria for determining Mr. Q’s place of residence. The lower courts ruled that Mr. Q’s residence had been in Japan on such various grounds as the purpose of his movement to Hong Kong, the location of major a portion of his personal resources, furniture and other staff for daily life, the nature of Mr. Q’s residence in Hong Kong, Mr. Q’s professional responsibility in both jurisdictions and Mr. Q’s omission of administrative formalities to change his address to Hong Kong, without regard to the fact that Mr. Q had physically stayed in Hong Kong for more than twice as long a time as in Japan during the taxation period, while the Supreme Court ruled, on the contrary, that the basis on which Mr. Q would be taxed from an objective perspective shall be as his place of residence and thus that Mr. Q had been a resident of Hong Kong (Judgment of Supreme Court dated 18 February, 2011).This judgment shocked the tax authorities of Japan and triggered subsequent amendments to the tax law of Japan, thereafter resulting in stricter conditions for evading imposition of donation and/or inheritance tax laws of Japan.

Congrès de l’UIA - 31 octobre › 4 novembre 2013

macao

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Tribune Libre ❱ Opinion ❱ Tribuna Libre L’affaire du Tramway de Jérusalem Je vous avoue que j’ai été choqué par l’article publié dans le dernier numéro du Juriste International sous la plume du Professeur Éric David qui n’est pas, à ma connaissance, membre de l’UIA. Celui-ci fait le commentaire d’un arrêt rendu le 22 mars 2013 par la Cour d’appel de Versailles portant sur l’affaire intitulée « du tramway de Jérusalem ».

Il s’agit, certes, d’une affaire judiciaire mais avec des àcôtés politiques puisqu’il s’agissait de l’appel lancé par l’Association France Palestine Solidarité (AFPS) et l’OLP contre un jugement du Tribunal de Nanterre.

Les Groupes voulaient faire annuler un contrat de concession conclu par deux sociétés françaises:Alstom et Véolia avec l’État d’Israël.

Il est assez curieux de lire que l’auteur reproche aux parties requérantes de ne pas avoir invoqué les résolutions du Conseil de sécurité qui « exigent inlassablement qu’Israël se retire des territoires palestiniens occupés… ».

Le caractère criminel de l’établissement des colonies de peuplement, caractère criminel qui résulte de textes qui incriminent le « transfert illégal ».

Il ajoute que l’établissement d’une colonie de peuplement par la Puissance occupante en territoire occupé est érigé explicitement en crime de guerre.

Il convient d’observer que l’auteur se base ainsi sur des décisions qui sont avant tout des décisions politiques et non juridictionnelles pour critiquer un arrêt de la Cour de Versailles et que les parties palestiniennes n’ont même pas invoqué ces fondements.

Puis, l’auteur se félicite que l’on ait reconnu la qualité de sujet de droit à l’OLP. Si cet article était un simple commentaire juridique, il n’appellerait évidemment de ma part aucune réserve.

Mais tel n’est pas le cas.

Par exemple, le Professeur regrette que la Cour ne parle pas de « l’occupation » mais du fait que Alstom,Véolia soient des tiers au contrat.

Le Professeur fait ensuite des développements sur la Convention de Genève tout en reconnaissant que ces développements n’ont rien à voir avec l’arrêt rendu par la Cour d’appel de Versailles.

Par contre, lorsque le Professeur David, à la fin de son article, revient sur le fait que la Cour d’appel aurait dû

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rappeler le caractère criminel de l’établissement des colonies de peuplement et sur l’obligation absolue d’Israël d’y mettre fin, il est à mes yeux indiscutable que l’on n’est plus dans le droit, mais dans la politique.

Autant j’accepte toute critique pouvant paraître dans le Juriste International touchant à la justice française, autant lorsque la critique est manifestement fondée en partie sur des raisons politiques, cela me paraît plus difficile à admettre.

Je pense, en tout état de cause, qu’il aurait dû être mentionné que cette critique n’engageait pas l’UIA même si un encart figure dans la page de garde.

Je suis, d’ailleurs, personnellement hésitant sur l’utilité de faire paraître des articles qui n’émanent pas de membres de l’UIA, sauf lorsqu’il s’agit de personnes comme Madame Shirin Ebadi dont la notoriété s’impose évidemment à nous et relève le niveau de notre journal.

Bernard CAHEN Président d’honneur de l’UIA Cayol, Cahen & associés Paris, France bcahen@cca-avocats.com

Réponse du Professeur Eric David Un courrier des lecteurs adressé au Juriste International critique très agressivement mon commentaire de l’arrêt rendu, le 22 mars 2013, par la Cour d’appel de Versailles dans l’aff. du Tramway de Jérusalem. C’est parce que le Juriste international m’a très aimablement prié de réagir à cette critique que j’apporte ici quelques éléments de réponse sinon je m’en serais abstenu tant il est évident que ce lecteur et moi ne parlons pas la même langue.

En substance, l’auteur – B. Cahen – de ce courrier semble regretter (ce n’est pas toujours très clair) ▪ que je me sois référé aux résolutions du Conseil de sécurité qui, depuis 1967, exigent qu’Israël se retire des territoires occupés; ▪ que j’aie évoqué le caractère criminel des colonies israéliennes de peuplement; ▪ que ce commentaire soit, dès lors, plus politique que juridique.

B. Cahen ne conteste cependant pas la réalité des éléments de droit que j’évoque: c’est un point positif, si j’avais fait des erreurs, on n’aurait pas manqué de le relever. En gros, B. Cahen déplore que j’invoque des sources – les résolutions du Conseil de sécurité – de caractère politique et qu’en me fondant sur elles et sur

la criminalité des colonies de peuplement, je ne suis « plus dans le droit, mais dans la politique ».

Certes, les résolutions du Conseil de sécurité sont politiques et en critiquant un arrêt d’appel, je prends moi-même une position politique car je critique la gestion judiciaire de la cité. Est-ce à dire que les résolutions du Conseil de sécurité n’ont pas de portée juridique et que mon commentaire critique n’est pas juridique? On peut évidemment le dire tout comme on peut dire qu’un chat n’est pas un chat, mais nier l’évidence n’est pas faire preuve de bon sens: ▪ Dire que les résolutions du Conseil de sécurité n’ont pas de portée juridique parce qu’elles émanent d’un organe politique revient à dire que la loi n’a pas non plus de portée juridique puisque l’organe législatif qui l’adopte – le parlement – est par essence un organe politique; pour rappel, l’art. 25 de la Charte des NU dispose: « Les Membres de l’Organisation conviennent d’accepter et d’appliquer les décisions du Conseil de sécurité conformément à la présente Charte. » La Charte des NU est un traité mais peut-être que B. Cahen estime que ce n’est pas du droit… C’est, en tout cas, son droit de le penser mais je ne connais pas de juriste digne de ce nom qui dira la même chose ou alors, je le répète, on ne parle pas la même langue.

▪ Dire qu’il n’est pas juridique d’évoquer le caractère criminel des colonies de peuplement établies en territoire occupé par une Puissance occupante alors que j’ai cité cinq articles de conventions internationales l’affirmant (4e Convention de Genève – CG – de 1949, art. 49 et 147; 1er Protocole additionnel aux CG de 1949, art. 85, § 4, a; Statut de la CPI, art. 8, § 2, b, viii; projet CDI de code des crimes contre la paix et la sécurité de l’humanité, art. 20, c, i) revient à dire qu’il n’est pas juridique de citer des textes de droit… Mais pourquoi pas? B. Cahen connaît certainement le titre du tableau de Magritte représentant une pipe…

Last but not least, B. Cahen regrette que le Juriste international publie « des articles qui n’émanent pas de membres de l’UIA ». Il ne m’appartient, évidemment, pas de dire si le Juriste international doit se doter d’un politburo chargé de sélectionner des articles selon l’appartenance de l’auteur à l’institution. Le lecteur jugera.

Eric DAVID Professeur émérite de droit international, Université libre de Bruxelles Bruxelles, Belgique edavid@ulb.ac.be

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Juriste International: politique éditoriale L’objectif du Juriste International est d’offrir un forum de débats et d’informations sur des sujets qui intéressent les juristes en exercice dans le monde entier.

Le Juriste International n’esquivera pas les questions délicates ou controversées. Une publication qui ne viserait que des sujets faciles et sans risques ou qui ne publierait que des articles exprimant des opinions unanimes ou majoritaires ne vaudrait pas la peine d’être lue.

Les opinions exprimées dans le Juriste International ne reflètent que celles de leurs auteurs. La publication dans le Juriste International n’implique ni que l’UIA ni que le Juriste International partagent ou soutiennent ces opinions.

La publication ou la dissémination de matériel publicitaire ou promotionnel par le Juriste International n’indique en aucun cas l’approbation des produits, services, personnes ou organisations par l’UIA ou par le Juriste International.

Juriste International : editorial policy The aim of Juriste International is to offer a forum for discussion and information on issues of interest to practising lawyers throughout the world.

Juriste International will not avoid difficult or controversial issues. A journal which covered only the safe or easy issues, or which only published articles expressing the consensus view or the opinions of the majority, would not be worth reading.

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