Bibliographie sélective OHADA

The Southern African Development Community (SADC) was initially established as a coordination conference in 1980 and was transformed into a treaty organisation in 1992. Challenges of lack of coordination, inefficiency and lack of policy harmonisation led to the amendment of the Treaty in 2001. While the amendment of the Treaty served to address some of the challenges of the organisation, it failed to address the core challenge of the democratic deficit inherent in SADC s governance framework. While the SADC Treaty has as part of its principles and objectives the observance and promotion of democracy and the rule of law, both in its own processes and in its Member States, the design of the SADC institutions does not reflect these normative values. Governance of SADC is characterised by excessive executivism under the overarching powers of the Summit of Heads of State or Government. This democratic deficit is most prominently evidenced by the suspension and eventual disbandment of the SADC Tribunal, the only judicial organ of the organisation. The suspension and disbandment of the Tribunal, in addition to the obvious issue of legality that it raises since it was done in the absence of Treaty amendment, also raises the fundamental question of decision making in SADC in general, as the current treaty framework does not provide for meaningful conversation between and among the key institutions of SADC in matters involving policy formulation and implementation. There is also no institution with a strong oversight role in SADC. There is need for constitutional change in SADC if the organisation is serious in its commitment to achieve its objectives, which it has defined as its Common Agenda. This study proposes a treaty based reform process that is informed by the institutional model of shared governance. One of the several core tenets of this model is that in an organisation, there should be meaningful conversation among the internal stakeholders before a decision is made. For such conversation to be meaningful, there should be the broadest possible exchange of information among the components of an organisation. The proposals made by this study include transforming the Secretariat into an effective institution that formulates SADC laws and policies as well as their implementation frameworks; creation of a SADC parliament that would play a meaningful role on the amendment of the SADC Treaty and in the adoption of the budget; and an independent and accessible judicial body with significant powers of review. Shared governance as conceptualised in this study is not a substitute for, nor does it compete with related concepts like constitutionalism, separation of powers, the rule of law and participatory democracy, but in fact complements them. In addition to these proposals, there is a recommendation for the adoption of a robust access to information regime in which the shared governance institutional model would be anchored. There is also a recommendation for a new regime of law making through community legal instruments that would be directly applicable in Member States as opposed to the largely ineffective protocols.

The basic goal of Accounting is to provide enabling accounting information for reliable decision-making. The quality level of this accounting information comes from the company's governance practices, thereby emphasizing the importance of corporate governance in companies. Recently, following the financial crises resulting in accounting scandals, attention has been moving towards Internal Audit Function as an important factor in the structure of Corporate Governance. This paper therefore examined the extent of the relationship between internal audit function and the quality of accounting information of companies. The study adopted the Survey research design. The research instrument employed was Questionnaire which was administered to internal auditors of the “Big Four”. Linear regression analysis was employed in the analysis of the data collected with the use of Statistical Packages for Social Sciences (SPSS). The results revealed that there is a significant relationship between the internal audit characteristics and the quality of accounting information. It was recommended that in order to provide credibility to the financial statement, there should be a law in place mandating attachment of internal auditors report to the financial statement

IRep - Nottingham Trent University's open access institutional research repository

Tous les éléments et traditions qui expriment le mode de vie et de pensée d'une société particulière et qui révèlent ses accomplissements intellectuels et spirituels constituent le patrimoine culturel. Une attention particulière est portée aujourd'hui aux biens culturels et à leur préservation, et, plus spécialement, à leur définition ainsi qu'à l'évolution de leur protection aux niveaux individuel, collectif, national, régional, international et même universel. Cela révèle l'existence confirmée d'une réelle préoccupation généralisée, voire l'émergence d'un intérêt partagé pour cette thématique. Cette notion d' intérêt général est clairement présente dans la réalité du Droit international moderne, implicitement et explicitement. Tout en confirmant sa présence (normative) dans le cadre du droit international du patrimoine culturel, cette étude a pour objectif de la justifier et d'en évaluer le potentiel juridique, et, surtout, de rendre palpables les enjeux qui résultent de son existence dans la réalité actuelle. Ainsi, l'intérêt général comme fil directeur de cette étude, mène à suivre, depuis ses origines, le développement du droit de la protection du patrimoine culturel. Par la suite, à travers l'analyse du corpus normatif et de la pratique judiciaire internationale, est attestée la consécration de l'intérêt général dans ce domaine et celle-ci est complétée par une projection de la nécessité d'agir pour la protection du patrimoine culturel dans la pratique interne des acteurs impliqués. Enfin, les réactions aux violations du droit international de la protection du patrimoine culturel dévoilent toute la valeur de l'intérêt général pour ce corpus normatif. Cette thèse conclut que l'intérêt général de protection du patrimoine culturel mène à la transformation, d'une part, de la valeur de la souveraineté étatique, sa perméabilité allant dans le sens d'obligations supplémentaires pour le respect de cette catégorie de biens ainsi que d'une responsabilité pour violation ou négligence d'obligations, et, d'autre part, du rôle et de la responsabilité des acteurs non-étatiques vis-à-vis de l'intérêt général.

En partant du récent projet de norme de l’OIT visant à favoriser la formalisation de l’économie informelle, cet article propose d’interroger la démarche institutionnelle à travers une réflexion sur le droit comme critère d’intelligibilité de la catégorie de l’informel. Sur la base d’une enquête réalisée au Togo, cette contribution présente les modalités nombreuses et complexes des manifestations du droit du travail et du droit de l’activité économique dans les deux espaces d’informalité du travail que sont la zone franche d’exportation et le secteur dénommé informel au Togo. Entre surformalisation spécifique et im-pénétration publique ou syndicale dans un cas, et intervention publique et syndicale relativement quotidienne dans l’autre, la manière de vouloir faire de l’économie informelle un objet d’intervention global, en distinguant l’emploi informel des unités économiques, n’est pas sans soulever des questions sur la pertinence de la démarche et le rôle de ce concept souvent critiqué mais, paradoxalement, d’usage permanent.

Bien que ne faisant pas l’unanimité dans les cercles politiques et académiques, un processus d’uniformisation du droit privé européen – légitimé par un héritage juridique commun européen – est en marche depuis plus d’une trentaine d’années déjà. Une des innovations les plus remarquables de l’Avant-projet de Cadre Commun de Référence proposé par les académiciens européens est la formulation d’une clause générale de responsabilité précontractuelle. Faute de volonté politique et de base légale incontestable dans les traités européens, la responsabilité précontractuelle ne fait en effet l’objet d’aucune règlementation générale au niveau européen. Au contraire, la problématique est laissée aux législateurs nationaux. Alors que l’Allemagne a codifié la culpa in contrahendo dans son Code civil, la France prévoit de consacrer des dispositions spécifiques relatives à la responsabilité précontractuelle dans ses projets de réforme du droit des obligations. Pour l’heure toutefois, la responsabilité précontractuelle se résume à une expression jurisprudentielle de la clause générale de responsabilité délictuelle inscrite dans le Code civil français. Le droit anglo-américain admet dans certaines hypothèses précises une responsabilité précontractuelle, sans pour autant en faire une institution à portée générale. Cependant, un bon nombre de résultats que les droits romano-germaniques atteignent par la responsabilité pour culpa in contrahendo sont obtenus par les mécanismes spécifiques du «promissory estoppel», de l’«unjust enrichment» et de la «misrepresentation». Le droit suisse présentant une lacune dans la loi quant à l’institution de la responsabilité précontractuelle, la jurisprudence s’est évertuée à mettre en place un régime hybride de modalités de mise oeuvre de l’obligation de réparer. Par ailleurs, la doctrine s’entre-déchire toujours à propos de la nature de la responsabilité précontractuelle (contractuelle, délictuelle, sui generis). La sécurité et la prévisibilité juridiques nous imposent désormais de codifier dans la loi les principales solutions jurisprudentielles suisses, tout en s’inspirant de certaines solutions des droits positif et prospectif étrangers et européen, dans l’optique d’une uniformisation européenne du droit de la responsabilité précontractuelle. Une clause générale de responsabilité précontractuelle trouverait sa place naturelle dans le Code des obligations au moyen d’un nouvel article 22a. Nous formulons une proposition d’article en quatre alinéas. Le premier alinéa consacre le fondement de l’obligation de réparer le préjudice causé par un manquement présumé fautif au devoir fondamental de bonne foi précontractuelle, et ce même par une personne n’ayant pas vocation à devenir elle-même une partie au contrat. Le deuxième alinéa dresse une liste exemplative de devoirs découlant du standard de la bonne foi dans les affaires. Il mentionne d’abord deux devoirs emblématiques des négociations précontractuelles, à savoir le devoir de négocier conformément à ses intentions véritables et le devoir de ne pas rompre les négociations sans motif justifié. Il soumet ensuite à l’obligation de réparer la violation des devoirs précontractuels expressément prévus par ailleurs par le législateur. Un régime de responsabilité unique est ainsi instauré pour la violation de tous les devoirs précontractuels – implicites ou explicites. Le troisième alinéa codifie une responsabilité purement objective du cocontractant prospectif pour le préjudice causé par son préposé à l’occasion de l’accomplissement de l’activité précontractuelle dont il l’a chargé. Enfin, le quatrième alinéa renvoie aux règles de la responsabilité délictuelle quant à la prescription de l’action en réparation et à l’étendue de la responsabilité. En tant que pendant en matière précontractuelle de l’article 99 al. 3 CO, l’alinéa en question permet d’atténuer les différences entre les responsabilités délictuelle, contractuelle et précontractuelle.

The thesis argues for a 'pedagogical' role for courts in the US and EU in ameliorating the increasingly transnational regulation of pharmaceutical product safety through complementary monitoring of the outputs of regulatory processes. The study is divided into two parts. First, the thesis explores the regulatory institutional design in the US and EU. The parallel development of the FDA and EMA suggests that both markets have achieved consolidated domestic/regional regulatory frameworks, which do however show multiple weak spots. These vulnerabilities are aggravated by a strong push towards transnationalisation of regulatory procedures: domestic systems are now permeated by potentially disruptive exogenous elements (e.g. the ratification of transnationally negotiated protocols and increasing reliance on foreign clinical trials data). The thesis explores issues of effectiveness of safety delivery and legitimacy of rule-making processes to suggest scope for improvement in both areas. The second part considers the potential contribution of the judiciary, particularly national courts in the US and EU, to investigate whether the exercise of complementary judicial governance can enhance the effectiveness and legitimacy of an otherwise essentially closed and self-perpetuating system. A selection of cases grounds the claim that, through liability litigation, courts have the capacity to improve the safety levels delivered by regulation and thereby to contribute to output-based legitimacy of the institutional design. This claim is tested in light of acknowledged strengths and limitations of court processes and with regard to differentiating elements at the national level, particularly regarding access to justice. The concluding argument reassembles the results of the study to recommend the existing tool of domestic litigation as a response to certain vulnerabilities in pharmaceutical regulation. The 'hard look' doctrine described by Sheila Jasanoff grounds the normative claim for a 'pedagogical' role for courts, enhancing regulation beyond the outcome of isolated cases – ad adiuvandum rather than contra.

En mi trabajo trato de demostrar que la Ley del Contrato de Seguro (LCS) favorece al asegurador y no al asegurado. Este desequilibrio estaría motivado porque el asegurador dispone de: conocimientos técnicos y jurídicos; medios económicos y tiempo, ya que, quien sufre las consecuencias del siniestro y necesita ser resarcido es el asegurado. Considero que el conocimiento de la LCS es insuficiente si no se mencionan los artículos: del Código Civil, Código de Comercio, Ley de Condiciones Generales de Contratación, Ley General para la Defensa de Consumidores y Usuarios y la Ley de Propiedad Horizontal relacionados. Se debería tener en cuenta, que la mayoría de las pólizas de seguros son contratos de adhesión y, ayudaría a entender el contrato, si se mencionaran los artículos de las Leyes mencionadas que pudiesen ser de aplicación. No ayudan precisamente los condicionados prolijos, carentes de claridad donde no se reseñan las cláusulas lesivas.

This thesis examines the emergence of transnational regulatory cooperation between public and private actors. It inquires why a private regulator and an international organisation may enter into a cooperation agreement in order to regulate particular issues, and what this tells us about the relationship between ‘expertise,’ ‘authority’ and ‘legitimacy’ in particular domains of global governance. The argument put forward in the thesis is that different types of regulators cooperate because, in an unsettled global space with no hierarchical framework, it is necessary for them to acquire sufficient authority to secure compliance with their regulatory agenda. In order to acquire and maintain such authority, regulators must be perceived as legitimate and their regulation as effective. Cooperation can open venues for participation and deliberation and for the exchange of necessary competences (particularly expertise); and thus ultimately can help regulators establish and strengthen their authority. Another important finding of this research is that cooperation can develop into more long-lasting network structures. These networks are often of a multi-level nature. As such, they traverse local, national, and international spaces. The thesis then develops the idea of ‘networks of constitutionalization’ to describe the observation that bilateral arrangements as examined here generate ordering effects which extend beyond the two parties. Consequently they become the basis for norm creation and adoption for different types of actors located in the networks formed around the issue area. Thus, even in pluralistic structures, eventually a certain kind of constitutionalization can emerge putting into question sharp divisions between ‘pluralist’ and ‘constitutionalist’ interpretations of a developing global (legal) order. This work also encompasses two case studies: the ISO 26000 process, whereby the ‘private’ technical standard setter ISO concluded separate cooperation agreements with the ILO, the OECD and the UN Global Compact; and a case study on ‘Sport and Environment’ that focuses on the long-standing cooperation between the IOC and the UN Environmental Programme.

The Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG) has proved popular, particularly outside Africa. However, only a few States have adopted it in Africa, with only two in the Southern African Development Community (SADC). Taking into account the role that African countries have played in the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) and the creation of the CISG, it has always been pertinent to look at whether SADC Member States should adopt the CISG as an instrument for harmonising the law of international sales in the region. Since it came into force, only two SADC Member States (Lesotho and Zambia) have ratified the convention. There is apparent reluctance from the rest of SADC Member States to ratify the convention despite calls to that effect and the genuine need for legal harmonisation. The article revisits the call for the ratification of the CISG in SADC and considers other realistic alternatives to ratification.

La réflexion sur l'adaptation du droit des contrats au numérique révèle la présence du numérique à travers plusieurs règles. Certaines conditions de validité du contrat, tout comme certaines règles générales relatives à l'exécution des contrats sont concernées par l'adaptation au numérique. Cette adaptation vise aussi certaines règles spéciales du droit des contrats. L'Avant-projet de loi sur les transactions électroniques au Mali envisage d'importantes mesures allant, en particulier, dans le sens de l'adaptation du droit des contrats au numérique, un domaine qui continue d'attirer l'attention. The reflection on the adaptation of contract law to the digital reveals the presence of the digital through several rules. Certain conditions of validity of the contract, and some general rules on contract enforcement are involved in the digital adaptation. This adaptation also concerns some special rules of contract law. The proposed draft law on electronic transactions in Mali is planning major steps up, especially in the sense of adaptation of contract law in the digital domain, an area that continues to attract attention

Depuis plusieurs années, on remarque une ruée sur les terres cultivables en Afrique. Ce déferlement peut s’expliquer par diverses raisons, telles que la recherche de nouvelles rentabilités à la suite de la crise financière actuelle, l’accroissement de l’investissement agricole pour assurer la sécurité alimentaire, l’encouragement de l’agrocarburant, etc. Toutefois, le phénomène n’est pas sans conséquence sur le bien-être des paysans locaux. Ces derniers, généralement réunis autour de sociétés coopératives, peuvent défendre leurs intérêts à travers diverses formes d’actions. À cet effet, le mouvement coopératif peut jouer un rôle important dans la lutte contre le phénomène de l’accaparement des terres en Afrique. For several years, an important rush for farmland is noticeable in Africa. This surge can be explained by various reasons, such as the search for new profits as a result of the current financial crisis, the increasing of investment in agriculture to ensure food security, the promotion of agro-fuel etc. However, the phenomenon is not without consequences for the well-being of local farmers. These latter, usually gathered around cooperative societies, can defend their interests through various forms of action. To this end, the cooperative movement can play an important role in the fight against the phenomenon of land grabbing in Africa.

İnternet, bünyesi gereği pek çok temel hak ve özgürlükle bağlantılıdır. Bu da İnternet'i pek çok açıdan incelemeyi gerektirmektedir. Bu yönüyle de İnternet'e erişim hakkının kendine özgü (sui generis) niteliğe sahip olduğu söylenebilir. Çalışmamızda, İnternet'e erişim yasakları temel hak ve özgürlükler ışığında incelenirken, hakkın kendine özgü yapısı Anayasa'daki düşünceyi ifade, bilim ve sanat, basın, bilgi edinme ve bilgiye ulaşma, haberleşme ve eğitim özgürlükleri açısından konuya ilişkin AİHM, ABD-YM, AYM, Yargıtay kararları da analiz edilerek, İnternet sitelerinin nitelik farkları da gözetilerek, ceza, anayasa, idare hukuku; MK 24 ve 25'teki kişiliğin korunması, 5651 Sayılı Kanun, ihtiyati tedbirler, Ticaret Hukuku boyutlarıyla ve devletin genel kuramı ışığında, istatistiki veriler ve karşılaştırmalı hukuk düzenlemeleriyle bilrikte detaylıca incelenmiştir. Çalışmada ayrıca İnternet üzerinde denetim ve yaptırım yetkisi olan Telekominikasyon İletişim Başkanlığı (TİB), Erişim Sağlayıcıları Birliği (ESB) de karşılaştırmalı hukuktaki örnekleriyle kıyaslamalı olarak incelenmiştir. Anahtar Sözcükler: 5651 Sayılı Kanun, erişim yasakları, erişim yasağı, TİB, ESB. Due to the structure of the internet, is related to many basic rights and freedoms. In many ways the internet requires this review. In this respect, the distinctive right of access to the internet (sui generis), it can be said that the character has. In our study, the prohibition of access to the internet is examined in the light of fundamental rights and freedoms, while the peculiar expression of the right in the Constitution, structure, science and art, press, information, and access to information, in terms of freedom of communication and education on the issue, the court in U.S.-YM, the Constitutional Court, the decisions of the Supreme Court by analyzing the quality of the internet site considering the differences, criminal, constitutional, and administrative law; MK 24 and 25 on protection of personality, Law No. 5651, the precautionary measures, in the light of general theory of law and state commercial, statistical data have been studied in detail and Comparative Law in conjunction with the Regulations. The study also who has the authority to control and sanction over the Internet, the telecommunication communication presidency (TIB), Access providers Association (ESB) was investigated also in comparison with the examples in Comparative Law. Keywords : Law No. 5651, access bans, ban access, TIB, ESB

At the heart of this thesis is the notion of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), an innovative concept deep-rooted in the globalisation phenomenon. The notion of CSR entails the much-debated duty of businesses, not only to comply with international and local standards in terms of, inter alia, labour rights and working conditions, human rights and environmental protection, but also to be at the forefront of voluntary and uplifting actions geared toward addressing societal issues and concerns. For corporations, it is about moving from the traditional approach of business as an activity with the sole purpose of realising profit towards acknowledging the need to integrate societal and environmental issues and concerns into their business purposes. The thesis examines selected multinational corporations’ (MNC) approaches to CSR as contained in their codes of conduct, in an effort to reach a comprehensive understanding of the purpose, interest and practices of businesses engaging in CSR activities. Particular attention is given to the analysis of labour orientated measures implemented by selected MNCs as they undertake to voluntarily act as proponents of the theory of the necessity of socially responsible businesses. The aim is to comparatively assess the legal dimension and the relevance, in different countries, of these MNC CSR commitments. The first part of the thesis is theoretical and has the purpose to present a comprehensive analysis of CSR against the current legal framework, at a global scale and within the context of selected countries. The thesis will explore the notion of CSR in order to present its definition and characteristics, briefly retrace its history, differentiate it from related and/or similar concepts, and finally assess the extent of its introduction and adaptation into various national and international institutional frameworks. Even though initially addressing the issue of CSR in the current legal framework as a whole, the scope of the thesis will ultimately be reduced to focus only on labour-related aspects of CSR. The aim of the thesis is to assess MNC’s CSR commitments, and subsequently highlight the interaction between CSR, labour and employment legal frameworks (at national and international level) and the effective implementation of labour rights and working conditions as observed in the context of different countries. More importantly, the thesis will also include a comparative analysis of CSR principles included in selected MNC codes of conduct, in order to assess the extent of their compliance with national labour legislation, international labour standards, as well as the standards and principles set by national and international CSR instruments and institutions. The purpose of such an exercise is to thoroughly assess the impact of a national context - in terms of national legal, economic, social and industrial framework - on the legal dimension, and the relevance of MNCs CSR commitments. A crucial argument developed in the thesis refers to the fact that MNC codes of conduct may have the potential to impact on labour rights and working conditions of a MNC across the different countries into which the MNC operates. Finally, considering the fact that as a topic CSR is a potentially controversial subject, it is necessary to point out, from the onset, that the thesis engages with the subject from a critical perspective. The approach therefore entails critically analysing and discussing MNC commitments and practices as observed in different countries, so as to be able to ascertain and comprehend the impact of a national context on the content, the relevance and the legal dimension of MNC codes of conducts