2,089 research outputs found
Proceduralization of EU Agencies: theory and practice
No full textThe chapter presents the overall research and focuses on the agencification of the EU executive power, with specific regard to discretion, to delegation and to procedures. Then, the theoretical issues emerging from the analysis of procedures are discussed. Thirdly, proceduralisation of EU Agencies is examined in Practice, with specific regard to its extension and goals
Applications of a micro-structured brittle damage model to laboratory tests on rocks
No full textA multiscale microstructured brittle damage model is used to describe the behavior of confined rock materials. Plane strain and triaxial tests conducted
at the laboratory scale are simulated in terms of boundary value problems. Simulations reveal good predictive qualities of the model to describe the macroscopic features of specimens at failure. The microstructures, oriented in different directions, allow the localization of the macroscopic strain along straight lines, emerging at the macroscale in the form of shear bands. The microstructured material model, characterized by recursive equidistant parallel cohesive-frictional faults, is fully defined by six elastic and inelastic material constants. The model was originally developed in a finite kinematics framework to simulate the dynamic behavior of confined brittle materials (Pandolfi et al. in J
Mech Phys Solids 54:1972–2003, 2006). In linearized form, it has been extended and used for the simulation of in-field excavations (De Bellis et al. in: Eng
Geol 215:10–24, 2016). The performance of the model in predicting the behavior of small scale rock tests in the laboratory, the object of the present study, has
never been investigated. Numerical simulations show that the model is able to capture several important features observed in rocks, in particular the reduction
of the overall stiffness for increasing deterioration of the material, fragile to ductile transition, strain localization, shear band formation, and more general size effect
Foreign precedents in constitutional litigation. The Italian Constitutional Court and Comparative Law: A Tale of Two Courts
No full textReference to foreign precedents by Constitutional Courts varies steadily across countries. Countries can be divided into two broad groups, a divide following closely the common/civil law divide. While in countries such as Australia, Canada, Ireland, Israel and South Africa, the use of foreign law is widespread, in the second group (comprising Austria, Germany, Hungary, Russia, as well Belgium, France and Spain), such use is much more rare. The few studies conducted about the Italian Constitutional Court suggest it falls without any doubt in the second group. But where exactly in the spectrum of possible types of «use» of comparative law?The empirical research conducted in this survey suggests that the «much ado about nothing» approach adopted in the past to frame the use of foreign law by the Italian Constitutional Court must be questioned. On the one hand, the “explicit” reference to foreign law, albeit being still rare, has improved from a “quality” point of view: the most recent judgments referring to foreign law are often based on a broader legal reasoning than in the past and refer to some of the most relevant issues brought in front of the Court. On the other hand, there is a «second tale» - the one of the «hidden» influence of foreign law on the Italian Constitution - which has not been told yet. This survey tries to open this field of research, examining two sets of data from which one can infer such «underlying» influence: the cases in which foreign law is quoted by the parties, as an argument to persuade the Court, and the cases for which a specific Comparative Law Department established within the Court prepared comparative law dossiers
International Reflections on Administrative Procedure: OECD and Council of Europe
No full textSince the 90s, two intergovernmental organizations, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (Oecd) and the Council of Europe, started publishing recommendations concerning national administrative procedures. In the activity of the two organizations, some common principles for national administrative procedure emerge, such as transparency, participation, and the recommendation to adopt decisions within a reasonable amount of time. However, the scope of the activity of the two organizations diverge, as well as their goal and impact. The Oecd’s activity in the field of regulatory policy dates back to the mid 90s, when the first set of Recommendations on Improving the Quality of Government Regulation was published, strictly connected with the objective of fostering countries’ competitiveness. In the following years, the Oecd published an extremely high number of documents, in which a gradual evolution in the organization’s policy can be traced. In the 2012 Recommendation on Regulatory Policy and Governance, the perspective adopted by the Oecd is no longer the one of “ad hoc” reforms, but the one of an overall and comprehensive regulatory policy, in which open government, the active participation of stakeholders and simplification have a key role. Through an extensive use of peer reviews, the Oecd influenced national governments in shaping their regulatory policies, even beyond the number of its Member States. The Council of Europe, on the contrary, appears less successful under this regard. Its Code on good administration of 2007 aims at recognizing existing best practices and at pushing States that do not align to these practices to adopt them. The lack of innovative impact, as well as the lack of tools intended to foster the implementation of the Code, has so far limited the influence of the Council of Europe in shaping national administrative procedures
Reinforcing EU financial bodies’ participation in global networks: addressing legitimacy gaps?
No full textAs global financial standards have a remarkable impact on EU law, strengthening the EU’s role in
global standard setters would increase the legitimacy of the reception of such norms. The European
financial agencies (ESAs) should be the obvious candidate to represent the EU in global networks,
both because of their composition and because of the powers they are entrusted with. Yet, the
limitations to their powers and the very unclear division of competences between agencies and other
bodies in the EU financial architecture risk impairing the activity of the agencies in global networks.
Moreover, the financial agencies’ external activity could affect the institutional balance of powers
within the EU, raising questions of the legitimacy of such external activity. The chapter finds that the
body representing EU views in global networks should be subject to reporting obligations and
transparency requirements, so that proper accountability instruments are in place
The Legitimacy of Banking and Financial Standards: Representation, Due Process and the Risk of Regulatory Capture
No full text
Italy
No full textThe (limited) constitutional provisions concerning the Government are the result of a debate within the Constitutional Assembly, that found its roots and tried to provide answers to the specific role that the executive played from the unification (1861) to World Word II, and in particular during the fascist regime. The extremely cautious approach in shaping the Constitutional attributions of the Government, coupled with the fragmentation and instability of the Italian political system, led to the perception, at the end of the 70s, that Italy was lacking a Government.
Similarly to the general tendency that characterizes the executives in modern democracies, however, also in Italy the growth of the Executive has been outstanding, both from the point of view of the size and the type of powers. By contrast, the instruments of political accountability have not changed remarkably, despite several attempts of reforming them. On the contrary, the discipline of criminal responsibility has been changed, in order to subject criminal responsibility to ordinary justice. Lastly, what appears to have been increasing over time is the use of legal instruments of accountability aimed at measuring the effective implementation of the program of the executive, in order to ensure accountability towards the European institutions
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