Nondebtor Releases in Chapter 11 Reorganizations: A Limited Power

This note concerns the ability of bankrupt companies to file Chapter 11 reorganization plans that contain provisions releasing the liabilities of parties other than the companies themselves. One such mechanism, used in conjunction with the 2010 BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, is a trust releasing a financially-troubled company from liability to certain types of tort claimants. The author argues that although bankruptcy courts do have the power to approve such plans, such power should be carefully limited when companies seek to grant releases to insiders and insurance companies

Germ cell tumors in patients with disorders of sex development: Risk factors, initial developmental stages and targets for early diagnosis

This thesis describes the origin, identification and correct diagnosis of the earliest stages of malignant germ cell tumors, i.e. intra tubular germ cell neoplasia unclassified (ITGNU) and gonadoblastoma, in patients with disorders of sex development. Special attention is given to the possible pathogenetic mechanisms underlying the development of these lesions, in order to identify high-risk patients. Ultimately, this study aims to contribute to the actual process of re-thinking the clinical management of patients with disorders of sex development, in accordance with the intense aspirations of these patients to evolve towards a safe, evidence-based, but more conservative approach regarding gonadectomy and other surgical procedures in the future wherever possible. Chapter 1 situates the ITGNU and gonadoblastoma lesions within the group of malignant germ cell tumors. It offers an overview of our actual knowledge on normal gonadal and sexual development and describes the recent hypotheses on how this process can be disturbed by environmental influences. The different phenotypes in the various disorders of sex development are described from a developmental point of view, with emphasis on the biology and functioning of the malformed gonad. In chapter 2, the normal gonadal development is studied in female embryos: the sequential expression of protein markers for germ cells, detectable by immunohistochemisty, in relation to the ultrastructure and cellular organization within the developing ovary is described. Together with a similar study on male gonadal development (Honecker et al, J Pathol 2004, 203 (3): 849-57), this study forms the basis for further research on the process of maturation delay of germ cells, as described in the following chapters. Chapter 3 examines if and to what extent maturatio

Franchising: A literature review on management and control issues.

Franchising; Literature review; Management control;

Universal Jurisdiction and the Enforcement of Human Rights

This paper will first examine the question of national sovereignty and the protections of states against international intervention. After arguing for the use of act-based over systemic criteria, I will move to the next step in the discussion and ask what sort of act-based criteria are best to use. What sort of acts should we identify as those that compromise the sovereignty of states in which they are committed? Or, to put it differently, what universal rights are to be protected coercively (by military intervention or something similar)? Third, by examining some current policies, I will show that there are existing legal norms to which we can turn in realizing the concept of universal jurisdiction as I will describe it; it is not necessary to reinvent the wheel, and a legal framework is already in place on which to build