Cross-Border Evidence Gathering in Transnational Criminal Investigation: Is the Microsoft Ireland Case the \u27Next Frontier\u27?

A recent and prominent American appeals court case has revived a controversial international law question: can a state compel a person on its territory to obtain and produce material which the person owns or controls, but which is stored on the territory of a foreign state? The case involved, United States v. Microsoft, features electronic data stored offshore which was sought in the context of a criminal prosecution. It highlights the current legal complexity surrounding the cross-border gathering of electronic evidence, which has produced friction and divergent state practice. The author here contends that the problems involved are best understood—and potentially resolved—via examination through the lens of the public international law of jurisdiction, and specifically the prohibition of extraterritorial enforcement jurisdiction. Analysis of state practice reveals that unsanctioned cross-border evidence gathering is viewed by states as an intrusion on territorial sovereignty, engaging the prohibition, and that this view properly extends to the kind of state activity dealt with in the Microsoft case

Wrongful Extradition: Reforming the Committal Phase of Canada\u27s Extradition Law

There has recently been an upswing in interest around extradition in Canada, particularly in light of the high-profile and troubling case of Hassan Diab, who was extradited to France on the basis of what turned out to be an ill-founded case. Diab’s case highlights some of the problems with Canada’s Extradition Act and proceedings thereunder. This paper argues that: the “committal stage” of extradition proceedings, involving a judicial hearing into the basis of the requesting state’s case, is unfair and may not be compliant with the Charter; and that the manner in which the Crown conducts these proceedings contributes to this unfairness. It also argues that regardless of the Act’s constitutionality, in light of Diab and other disturbing cases the time is ripe for law reform, to ensure that extradition proceedings are carried out in a way that is consistent with Canadian public policy. Some suggestions for reform are made, as well as a proposal for a serious Parliamentary effort

UTILIZING A VIDEO-BASED INTERVENTION TO IMPROVE MEDICINE ADHERENCE AND RETENTION OF HIV CARE IN A HIV CLINIC.

Memphis, Tennessee has higher rates of black men who have sex with men living with human immunodeficiency (BMSMLWH) compared to state and national levels. ART has been shown to be effective in keeping people living with HIV virally suppressed and unable to transmit HIV through sex. However, BMSMLWH are disproportionately affected by HIV than other races in Memphis, Tennesee. The proposed program relies on evidence-based data that demonstrates the effectiveness of video-based intervention in improving medication adherence and HIV retention of care. Taking Care of Me is a video-based intervention that promotes HIV treatment initiation, ART adherence, and retention in HIV care

Admissibility of Hearsay Gathered Under MLAT: A Tempest in Canada

One of the most pervasive and longstanding problems in the practice of mutual legal assistance in criminal matters between states has been ‘form of evidence’–specifically, can the requested state provide evidence in such form as will be useful and admissible under the criminal evidence laws of the requesting state?It tends to be common law states that have difficulties with admissibility of MLAT-sourced evidence, and these often develop ‘work-arounds’ in their laws which attempt to relax admissibility standards. Canada is one such state, but a series of recent prosecutions has revealed judicial resistance to the tools employed. This note examines these cases and suggests some lessons they contain for broader practice

Book Review: Gary Botting, Extradition between Canada and the United States (Ardsley: Transnational Publishers, 2005)

Both domestic and international laws regarding the extradition of fugitive criminal offenders are in a state of flux throughout the world. The current legal landscape reflects tension between the interest of state authorities in promoting “security,” on the one hand, and increasing recognition that human rights obligations are at play, on the other. Gary Botting’s book, Extradition Between Canada and the United States, successfully addresses this tension by way of a detailed examination of what is probably the most integrated extradition partnership outside the European Union

Book Review: Amal Clooney & Philippa Webb, The Right to a Fair Trial in International Law (OUP, 2020)

Good lawyering, then, is required to maintain the fairness of trials, but good lawyering requires effective tools that can assist counsel in helping the contours of fairness be made apparent and cognizable before domestic courts. Translating international human rights law for the purposes of domestic application, in particular, is by no means an easy task, but this new text – The Right to a Fair Trial in International Law – provides lawyers with a formidable resource

Human Rights and International Mutual Legal Assistance: Resolving the Tension

If indeed, as has been said, it is fashionable nowadays to discuss the problems that arise from the application of general human rights to extradition , then it is also true that human rights concerns are increasingly being raised with regard to other forms of international criminal co-operation as well. As compliance with international human rights norms has become the subject of greater scrutiny by both States and international adjudicative bodies, concerns have been raised regarding their application to the various processes by which States aid each other in combating transnational crime. Prosecuting authorities are presented with problems of how the standards for the protection of the individual to which their national system subscribes can be given effect in a situation where the norms, views and obligations of another sovereign State are directly engaged. A disparity in human rights protection between two jurisdictions may leave States in the difficult position of being unable or unwilling to co-operate in an international criminal investigation, and possibly in violation of an obligation to do so

Food crisis, administrative response and public action : some general implications from the Kalahandi Issue

Kalahandi district in Western Orissa has received extensive media attention in recent years in connection with reports of starvation deaths, child sales and Government neglect. This thesis attempts to identify the roots of hunger in Kalahandi and strategies implemented by people in the district to cope with this problem. It also analyses the performance of Government interventions implemented between 1985 and 1991 designed to promote food security, locating this analysis in a longer historical context.The study uses data collected over a seven month fieldwork period during 1992. Details of Government programmes were obtained through semi-structured interviews with Government officers and elected representatives at national and regional level. Published and unpublished Government data is used to construct time-series for variations in cropping patterns and production for a wide range of crop types over the period 1960 to 1988. Public responses to hunger and public opinion of state interventions are examined through semistructured individual and group interviews in five villages in different parts of the district.This thesis argues that the persistence of hunger in Kalahandi cannot be directly attributed to the failure of the Government to direct adequate finance and resources to relief and development programmes. It suggests that Government officers have at their disposal a wide range of well-formulated provisions to protect the vulnerable. However a range of factors limit the effectiveness of state interventions when guidelines come to be implemented in practice. In a wider context this study highlights the important role which NonGovernmental Organisations (N.G.O.'s), the media and the law courts may play in promoting food security; and the need to strengthen cooperation between the public, the administration and other key actors, including politicians and N.G.O.'s, in designing and administering measures to combat hunger