Disconnection clauses: an inevitable symptom of regionalism?

‘Disconnection clauses’ are legal provisions inserted into multilateral conventions to ensure that certain parties to the convention are not required to apply the rules of the convention because other relevant rules have already been agreed to among themselves. A disconnection clause can also be described more generally as a ‘conflict clause’ because it signals to all parties that parallel and potentially conflicting treaty obligations exist. This paper presents a discussion of the disconnection clause which argues that while these clauses make it possible for a limited group of parties to enhance the objectives of a treaty by taking measures that correspond to their special circumstance, this practice also creates a possibility that the inter se agreement will undermine the original treaty regime. The actual impact of a particular disconnection clause depends on how the clause is crafted, along with the changing nature of the regime that it refers to. The potential for a disconnection clause to undermine the object and purpose of the original treaty can therefore be removed during its design. Nevertheless, without full disclosure when negotiating the convention, any clause that seeks to replace treaty provisions with an alternative regime that would be applicable only between certain parties may, at worst, be creating different standards for different parties and, at best, be opaque and incoherent. This paper first describes the various types of disconnection clause, focusing on their purpose and development. It then assesses the main legal and political controversies surrounding these clauses before assessing whether these clauses could potentially create more legal problems than they are intended to solve or whether they are simply a practical response to deepening regionalism

Measurement of the non-prompt D-meson fraction as a function of multiplicity in proton-proton collisions at s \sqrt{s} = 13 TeV

The fractions of non-prompt (i.e. originating from beauty-hadron decays) D0 and D+ mesons with respect to the inclusive yield are measured as a function of the charged-particle multiplicity in proton-proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of √s = 13 TeV with the ALICE detector at the LHC. The results are reported in intervals of transverse momentum (pT) and integrated in the range 1 < pT < 24 GeV/c. The fraction of non-prompt D0 and D+ mesons is found to increase slightly as a function of pT in all the measured multiplicity intervals, while no significant dependence on the charged- particle multiplicity is observed. In order to investigate the production and hadronisation mechanisms of charm and beauty quarks, the results are compared to PYTHIA 8 as well as EPOS 3 and EPOS 4 Monte Carlo simulations, and to calculations based on the colour glass condensate including three-pomeron fusion

Inclusive and multiplicity dependent production of electrons from heavy-flavour hadron decays in pp and p-Pb collisions

Measurements of the production of electrons from heavy-flavour hadron decays in pp collisions at root s = 13 TeV at midrapidity with the ALICE detector are presented down to a transverse momentum (p(T)) of 0.2 GeV/c and up to p(T) = 35 GeV/c, which is the largest momentum range probed for inclusive electron measurements in ALICE. In p-Pb collisions, the production cross section and the nuclear modification factor of electrons from heavy-flavour hadron decays are measured in the p(T) range 0.5 < p(T) < 26 GeV/c at root s(NN) = 8.16 TeV. The nuclear modification factor is found to be consistent with unity within the statistical and systematic uncertainties. In both collision systems, first measurements of the yields of electrons from heavy-flavour hadron decays in different multiplicity intervals normalised to the multiplicity-integrated yield (self-normalised yield) at midrapidity are reported as a function of the self-normalised charged-particle multiplicity estimated at midrapidity. The self-normalised yields in pp and p-Pb collisions grow faster than linear with the self-normalised multiplicity. A strong p(T) dependence is observed in pp collisions, where the yield of high-p(T) electrons increases faster as a function of multiplicity than the one of low-p(T) electrons. The measurement in p-Pb collisions shows no p(T) dependence within uncertainties. The self-normalised yields in pp and p-Pb collisions are compared with measurements of other heavy-flavour, light-flavour, and strange particles, and with Monte Carlo simulations

Characterizing the initial conditions of heavy-ion collisions at the LHC with mean transverse momentum and anisotropic flow correlations

Correlations between mean transverse momentum and anisotropic flow coefficients or are measured as a function of centrality in Pb–Pb and Xe–Xe collisions at sqrt(sNN) = 5.02 TeV and 5.44 TeV, respectively, with ALICE. In addition, the recently proposed higher-order correlation between [pt], v2, and v3 is measured for the first time, which shows an anticorrelation for the presented centrality ranges. These measurements are compared with hydrodynamic calculations using IP-Glasma and TRENTO initial-state shapes, the former based on the Color Glass Condensate effective theory with gluon saturation, and the latter a parameterized model with nucleons as the relevant degrees of freedom. The data are better described by the IP-Glasma rather than the TRENTO based calculations. In particular, Trajectum and JETSCAPE predictions, both based on the TRENTO initial state model but with different parameter settings, fail to describe the measurements. As the correlations between [pt] and vn are mainly driven by the correlations of the size and the shape of the system in the initial state, these new studies pave a novel way to characterize the initial state and help pin down the uncertainty of the extracted properties of the quark–gluon plasma recreated in relativistic heavy-ion collisions

Hypertriton Production in p-Pb Collisions at √sNN = 5.02 TeV

The study of nuclei and antinuclei production has proven to be a powerful tool to investigate the formation mechanism of loosely bound states in high-energy hadronic collisions. The first measurement of the production of ${\rm ^{3}_{\Lambda}\rm H}$ in p-Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\rm{NN}}}$ = 5.02 TeV is presented in this Letter. Its production yield measured in the rapidity interval -1 < y < 0 for the 40% highest multiplicity p-Pb collisions is ${\rm d} N /{\rm d} y =[\mathrm{6.3 \pm 1.8 (stat.) \pm 1.2 (syst.) ] \times 10^{-7}}$. The measurement is compared with the expectations of statistical hadronisation and coalescence models, which describe the nucleosynthesis in hadronic collisions. These two models predict very different yields of the hypertriton in small collision systems such as p-Pb and therefore the measurement of ${\rm d} N /{\rm d} y$ is crucial to distinguish between them. The precision of this measurement leads to the exclusion with a significance larger than 6$\sigma$ of some configurations of the statistical hadronisation, thus constraining the production mechanism of loosely bound states

General balance functions of identified charged hadron pairs of (pi,K,p) in Pb-Pb collisions at 2.76 TeV

First measurements of balance functions (BFs) of all combinations of identified charged hadron ( π , K, p) pairs in Pb–Pb collisions at √sNN = 2.76 TeV recorded by the ALICE detector are presented. The BF measurements are carried out as two-dimensional differential correlators versus the relative rapidity (delta-y) and azimuthal angle (delta-φ) of hadron pairs, and studied as a function of collision centrality. The delta-φ dependence of BFs is expected to be sensitive to the light quark diffusivity in the quark–gluon plasma. While the BF azimuthal widths of all pairs substantially decrease from peripheral to central collisions, the longitudinal widths exhibit mixed behaviors: BFs of π π and cross-species pairs narrow significantly in more central collisions, whereas those of KK and pp are found to be independent of collision centrality. This dichotomy is qualitatively consistent with the presence of strong radial flow effects and the existence of two stages of quark production in relativistic heavy-ion collisions. Finally, the first measurements of the collision centrality evolution of BF integrals are presented, with the observation that charge balancing fractions are nearly independent of collision centrality in Pb–Pb collisions. Overall, the results presented provide new and challenging constraints for theoretical models of hadron production and transport in relativistic heavy-ion collisions

K∗(892)0 and φ(1020) production in p-Pb collisions at √s NN = 8.16 TeV

The production of K*(892)(0) and phi(1020) resonances has been measured in p-Pb collisions at root s(NN) = 8.16 TeV using the ALICE detector. Resonances are reconstructed via their hadronic decay channels in the rapidity interval -0.5 8 GeV/c), the R-pPb values of all hadrons are consistent with unity within uncertainties. The R-pPb of K*(892)(0) and phi(1020) at root s(NN) = 8.16 and 5.02 TeV show no significant energy dependence

Ten Years in the European Union Selected Remarks Related To the Harmonisation of Slovak Competition Law with EU Competition Law

The aim of this paper is to provide an overview of the application of competition law in the Slovak Republic since it became a member of the European Union 10 years ago. Special emphasis is placed on selected problems and questions which arose in the application of European competition rules and the need for an adjustment of Slovak competition legislation to EU requirements. The paper presents the relevant amendments in the Slovak Competition Act and analyses in detail their background. Slovak competition law has undergone many changes in the past 10 years, not always without problems. The aim of this paper is to identify the most important of those difficulties and explain why they have occurred. The correct application of national and EU competition rules by Slovak courts has proven to be one of the biggest challenge here, ultimately even causing the European Commission to intervene as amicus curiae. The actions taken by the European Commission in relation to competition matters within the Slovak Republic, and its resulting recommendations, will also be considered. The paper will outline how Slovak competition law has been step-by-step increasing its harmonisation with EU competition law over the last 10 years. Indeed, it is now possible to claim that Slovak competition legislation is fully harmonised with the rules of the European Union. The paper will thus mainly focus on those elements of Slovak law which can give a clear picture of the state of convergence of both legal systems. Nevertheless, the end of the road has not yet been reached. Further harmonisation of selected current topics within Slovak competition law will need to be assessed also. It will also be necessary to analyse which direction should Slovak competition law take in the future with regard to current EU trends. These issues include the need to find a balance between the protection of business secrets and the right of procedural parties to due process, especially in connection with the protection of leniency documents.Cette contribution vise à fournir un aperçu de l'application de la loi sur la concurrence de la République slovaque au cours des 10 dernières années - depuis l'époque d’adhésion de la Slovaquie à l'UE. L’accent particulier est mis sur certains problèmes et questions qui se posent dans l'application des règles de concurrence de l'UE et sur la nécessité d'une adaptation du droit slovaque de la concurrence aux exigences de l'UE. Cet article présentera les changements pertinents dans la Loi slovaque sur la concurrence aussi qu’un analyse détaillé de l'arrière-plan de ces changements. Au cours des 10 dernières années, la loi slovaque de la concurrence a subi de nombreux changements – pas toujours sans problèmes. Le présent article tentera d'identifier les problèmes principaux et donner au lecteur une explication quant à la raison pour laquelle ils ont eu lieu. Dans ce sens-là, l'un des plus grands problèmes est la bonne application des règles nationales et communautaires de concurrence par les juridictions slovaques au moment de décider sur des affaires relatives à la concurrence. Cela a même abouti à la nécessité pour la Commission européenne d'intervenir comme un amicus curiae. Cet article vise également à fournir une analyse des actions de la Commission européenne en ce qui concerne les questions de concurrence en Slovaquie et les recommandations qui en découlent. Le présent article tente de présenter la manière dont le droit slovaque de la concurrence a suivi, étape par étape, un chemin vers l'harmonisation avec le droit communautaire de la concurrence au cours des 10 dernières années. Aujourd'hui, nous pouvons déjà affirmer que la réglementation juridique slovaque de droit de la concurrence est entièrement harmonisée avec la réglementation juridique de l'UE. Par conséquent, nous concentrerons notre attention sur les points dans la loi slovaque qui peuvent donner une image claire de la convergence de ces deux règlements juridiques. Néanmoins, nous ne sommes pas encore à la fin de la route. L'harmonisation supplémentaire de certains sujets actuels dans le droit slovaque de la concurrence devra être évaluée et il sera nécessaire d'analyser la direction vers l'avenir, en particulier ce qui sera le meilleur pour le droit de la concurrence slovaque en ce qui concerne les tendances actuelles dans le droit de la concurrence de l'UE. Parmi ces questions, il y a une nécessité d'un équilibre entre la protection des secrets d'affaires et le droit des participants à la procédure de concurrence pour un procès équitable, en particulier dans le cadre de la protection des documents de clémence