IVR Newsletter

June 1997 - March 1998

No. 22 ISSN 0256 - 937X

Editor: Carla Faralli, University of Bologna, Italy. Associate Editors: Francesco Belvisi, University of Modena, Italy; Pierluigi Chiassoni, University of Genoa, Italy. IVR Web Master: Giovanni Ziccardi, CIRFID, University of Bologna, Italy. This issue was compiled with the help of Annalisa Verza and Giorgio Volpe.

IVR Newsletter is published twice a year in June and December to be distributed in July and January respectively. Material to be published should be sent to the Editor by 1st June for the first issue and by 1st December for the second. While every effort is made by the Editors to see that no inaccurate or misleading data appear in their contributions, they wish to make it clear that the form and content of all the other contributions are the sole responsibility of the authors.

Addresses: CIRFID "H. Kelsen", Via Zamboni 27-29, I-40126 Bologna, Italy, tel: +39/(0)51-277211, fax: +39/(0)51-260782. E-mail: IVRmail@cirfid.unibo.it, URL: http://www_ivr.cirfid.unibo.it/ivr/

CONTENTS

Section One: IVR News. A Report on the 18th IVR World Congress (Buenos-Aires-La Plata, August 10-15, 1997), p.1. Section Two: IVR Announcements: 19th IVR World Congress (New York, USA, June 25-30, 1999), p. 6. 20th IVR World Congress (Amsterdam, The Netherlands, June 20-24, 2001), p. 9. Proceedings of 17th IVR World Congress (Bologna, June 16-21, 1995), p. 10. Section Three: IVR Chronological Summaries and Reminders. IVR Latest Events, p. 10. IVR Future Events, p. 10. Reminders, p. 10. Section Four: IVR Records. Report by the Secretary General, p. 10. Report by the Treasurer, January 1997 - December 1997, p. 11. Report by the Webmaster, p.11. Section Five: National Sections News, Announcements and Records. Amintaphil, p. 12. Austria, p. 12, Belgium, p. 13. Brazil, p. 13. Chile, p. 13. Colombia, p. 13. Denmark, p. 13. France - Association Fran�aise de Philosophie du Droit, p. 14. Germany, p. 14. Italy, p. 14. Japan, p. 14. Sweden, p. 15. Switzerland, p. 15.

This issue contains the program of the 19th IVR World Congress (New York, June 25-30, 1999).

PLEASE, NOTICE: first deadline for the registration fees, June 1, 1998

Section ONE: IVR NEWs

A REPORT On the 18th World Congress (buenos aires - la plata, august 10-15, 1997)

1. The Congress

The 18th Congress on Law and Social Philosophy was held in Argentina between August 10th and August 15th, 1997. Two were the host cities: La Plata, a beautiful university city which is also the capital of the province of Buenos Aires, and Buenos Aires, the country’s capital city, built on the bank of the River Plate and home to three million people.

As usual in IVR events, there was a friendly atmosphere characterised by a genial disposition and the willingness to engage in a loyal and fruitful debate. The participants’ sense of humour helped to overcome some unexpected difficulties, like the general strike that prevented many of them from attending the La Plata sessions on Thursday 14th.

Some pleasant surprises resulted from the organisation of the congress. For example, the CD-ROM edition of the papers submitted to the congress, which meant an advantage for travelling philosophers when it came to having their luggage weighed at the airport. Similarly, the publication of Spes, a congress journal written, edited and printed by a group of young people from Buenos Aires, mostly students, with great sense of humour, wit and enthusiasm.

The highlight of the congress remains a matter of controversy. Some contend that, in academic meetings, the most fruitful moments occur at social events, where specialists converse like friends, and exchange opinions and impressions free from the formality of organised debate. And they had plenty of opportunities to confirm their contention, especially on Wednesday 13th, when the attendants gathered for one of the famous Argentine barbecues, to meet old friends and make new ones.

Naturally, those exchanges cannot be reported since no records exist. It is possible, though, to describe the sessions proper. There were three kinds, in accordance with the outline designed during the 17th Congress held in Bologna: plenary, parallel and committee sessions. During the plenary sessions the audience was addressed by Aulis Aarnio, Yasumoto Morigiwa, Paolo Comanducci, David Mackinson, Stanley Paulson, Andrew Jones, Ernesto Garz—n ValdŽs, Agust’n Squella Narducci, Nils Jansen, Burton Leiser, K. Agrawal, Itharu Shimazu, Julio C. Cueto Rœa and Gregorio Robles Morch—n, and during the parallel sessions by Rex Martin, Mart’n Farrell, AndrŽs Ollero, Rolando Tamayo Salmor‡n, Alfredo Ves Lozada, Tomasz Gizbert-Studnicki, Aleksander Peczenik, Eduardo Rabossi, Ricardo Caracciolo, Elspeth Attwooll, Wojciech Sadurski, Ignacio Ara Pinilla, Pablo L—pez Ruf, Roberto J. Vernengo, Jan Broekman, Manuel Atienza, Germ‡n J. Bidart Campos, Oscar Sarlo, Olsen Ghirardi, Rodolfo V‡zquez, Tecla Mazzarese, Daniel Mendonca, Pablo Navarro, Ignacio Massini, Rodolfo Vigo, Enrico Pattaro, Juan Carlos Smith, Wesley Craigg, Ariel Alvarez Gardiol, Abel Ar’stegui, Antonio A. Martino, Ricardo A. Guibourg and Cristina Redondo. During the committee sessions a number of valuable papers were discussed, which enhanced the representative quality of a meeting that had already brought together all the viewpoints and fields of interest.

It is my purpose to describe in general terms the topics that were discussed. To do so I have taken into consideration the summaries provided by the authors or, when these were not available, the accounts published in Spes. In some cases I have had access to the papers in extenso, but since I have not been able to get all the papers some relevant ideas may have been left out. In spite of this, as well as of the danger underlying my own inevitable subjectivity, I hope my account will be representative enough; I apologise in advance to the unwanted victims of the above-mentioned shortcomings.

Legal and social philosophy provides a wide field for reflection, where the different questions and the arguments used to answer them criss-cross and partially overlap so that it is impossible to point to clearly distinct topic areas. Nevertheless, for the sole purpose of making it easier to understand the contents, I shall try to classify the papers into four general types: papers focussing on the description of norm systems and their elements, papers advocating values or putting forth rights, papers dealing with the role of the State and public policies, and papers investigating the implementation of norms.

2. Descriptive Papers

The debate on the concept of law and how to support it relates in part to the traditional controversy between natural law and positivism.

Stanley Paulson suggests that Kelsen’s thinking evolved from being constructive up to the Hauptprobleme, and classical until 1960, to sceptical in the General Theory of Norms; he also points to the conflict between positivism and neokantism in this author’s approach.

Gregorio Robles Morch—n criticises in detail several aspects of H.L.A. Hart’s theory, especially regarding the approach based on the open texture of language, the internal and external points of view, the distinction between formalism and scepticism with respect to rules as well as between primary and secondary rules and the nature, structure and function of the rule of recognition.

Carlos I. Massini Correas analyses modern legal philosophy, in particular its notion of nature, the postmodern criticism of this concept, and the requirements a present-day natural law theory should satisfy to meet this criticism.

In Roman A. Tokarczyk’s opinion, positivism subordinates laws and lawyers to politics and politicians, or even leads to the juridical nihilism adopted by Marxism. He believes natural law theory and positivism can be brought closer to each other within a systemic conception of the rule of law. H. Daniel Dei and Julio Raœl MŽndez also defend the theoretical function of justice as a value and of natural law. Agust’n Squella Narducci supports positivism and classifies moral attitudes into seven categories: indifferent, neutral, relativistic, sceptical, fallible, absolutist and fanatic. Mart’n Farrell, in turn, tries to down-tone the controversy by admitting that law is a result of enactment, and accepting, at the same time, the fact that abiding by the law depends on an ethical norm, which imposes upon us a moral assessment of the norm, whereas Torben Spaak highlights a conflict between legal positivism and the normative power of law and Manuel Atienza, in his critical analysis of Cristina Redondo’s thesis concerning the justification of juridical decisions, which assigns priority to the logical aspect over the moral one, states that it is necessary to have a wider concept of argumentation, encompassing both the formal or logical aspects and the material and dialectic ones.

Agust’n Ferraro believes that Kelsen«s Grundnorm (a concept specifically supported in Dante Cracogna«s paper) has an ethical basis. According to his thesis, Abel Javier Ar’stegui contends that law is a definite specific co-programme and not a norm order, nor a juxtaposition of norms, behaviour and values, or of their combinations.

While Alfred S. Neely examines realism and pragmatism in Thurman W. Arnold, Omar Astorga deals with Hobbes' influence on Kant’s legal and political ideas, JosŽ Cerato suggests an ethological approach to law as a ritual form of violence, and Ernesto GrŸn states, from a systemic standpoint, that in the postmodern world law is a system far from equilibrium: excess disturbance and fluctuation push it into a Òcreative chaosÓ that will result in a new type of law. Carla Faralli, in turn, points out that when the idea of the judge as a law creator was admitted, juridical security (law certainty) was seen to be a myth or, at least, an unreliable factor. For this reason, the Òright to certaintyÓ or the Òright to securityÓ are now demanded.

In more general terms, Sandra Tugnoli Pattaro considers that nowadays epistemology does not deal so much with justifying scientific statements (a structural, logic and syntactical viewpoint), as with the preference criteria applied in the assessment of competing theories (historical, dynamic approach). This change makes it possible to compare the ways in which justification is explained by the empirical sciences on the one hand, and by ethics and law on the other.

Another descriptive trend examines the concepts of norm and principle, and sometimes compares them. While David Makinson proposes a logic of norms that makes it easier to represent conditional norms, Andrew Jones distinguishes, within institutionalised power, between strength, competence and permission, concepts he believes should be revised.

Friederich Lachmayer discusses the form and symbolic status acquisition of norms, whereas Manuel Manson emphasises the non-syntactic meaning of normative expressions. Paolo Comanducci states that a distinction between norms and principles does not lead to greater juridical security, because it does not contribute to the ex ante determination of norms. Tecla Mazzarese, in turn, contends that jurists stick to the literal meaning and the literal interpretation of notions, which have raised such a controversy among linguists, because they allow them to suggest the existence of juridical security despite the degree of discretion with which decisions are made. However, these expressions are ambiguous, and this fact is also analysed.

On the basis of an analysis of decisions made by the Constitutional Court in Spain, AndrŽs Ollero states that sentences consider principles rather than norms, for which purpose they take into account several conditions that are not part of the norm system. Jan-R. Sieckmann believes that it is possible to discuss the objectivity of norms in terms of different bases according to each norm type. Personal norms are justified on the basis of the moral autonomy of the person establishing them; social norms, on the basis of the complete consensus they enjoy among their addressees or of the strong rational acceptance they may arouse; legal norms, on the basis of either the validity of the competence norms or, in their absence, the objective validity of the social norms.

Kiel Hege StŸck suggests weighing rules and principles within the general interpretative framework, but Jorge L. Rodr’guez and Germ‡n Sucar offer a different viewpoint: the legal system has been lately claimed to be made up of norms and principles and norms can be defeated; depending on the sense attributed to ÒdefeatÓ, this thesis is either trivial or mistaken.

Upon debating the concept of action and the reasons for taking action, Aulis Aarnio examines the notion of collective action and states that it is possible to apply von Wright’s Theory of Action to groups or corporative bodies, but that this requires consensus among the members of the group. Hugo Abel Herrera studies the relation between human action and legal norm and Kauko Wikstršm the way to direct human behaviour by means of legal norms. Cristina Redondo emphasises that the principle of unity in pragmatic thinking does not ensure that there will be a single correct answer with respect to duties. In her opinion, to request a correct justification of the decisions, admitting that there is only one and that it does not depend on a norm theory, is to demand something that is epistemologically impossible. In addition, it assumes a metaethical attitude committed to a single system of justifying norms and an essence-based conception of duty as a reason for action. Eduardo Barbarosch, in his turn, deals with the reasons for action in connection with the norm-based conceptions of justice.

At the congress there was also a debate on what we may call critical legal studies. Luiz F. Coelho discusses the matter thoroughly, including definitions, clarifications and a detailed list of principles, whereas Luc’a M. Asseff deals with the historical development of this field in Argentina, and Oscar Guardiola-Rivera considers that law should be criticised from the standpoint of realism in order to explain the Ònew lawÓ. Carlos M. C‡rcova states that social complexity is emphasised by several systemic and autopoietic viewpoints, and that the relation between law and complexity opens interesting possibilities for the non paradigmatic analysis of legal problems. Alfredo E. Ves Losada, in turn, affirms that the opposition between liberalism and Marxism is not finished with the fall of the Berlin Wall: the lack of viable solutions to the usual problems is misrepresented under the void name of postmodernism, and the expression Òalternative lawÓ shows that such an opposition goes on.

3. Papers on Values

There was an interesting debate of the bases for a feasible ethical discourse. Ernesto Garz—n ValdŽs tries to solve the problem by defending the opposite view: he admits that when a moral correctness criterion is sought, reasonableness is of little use, because it already assumes a moral conception. However, he contends, it is possible to reject the lack of reasonableness, whatever the underlying moral conception may be. Nils Jansen believes that there is a public morality that is valid (and therefore compulsory) when individuals soften their own moral conditions to conform to certain well-grounded principles. Along a similar line, Rex Martin, inspired by Rawls, states that we are going through a stage of the construction of principles called modus vivendi, in which primary assets are distributed; at varying speed according to the different principle areas, we are evolving towards a constitutional consensus, an agreement intended to meet a common requirement for political activity.

Ariel çlvarez Gardiol believes that the most important value is not Justice but Peace, since it is an expression of tolerance accepted as a genuine manifestation of a positive moral principle. Tolerance, he states, should not be mistaken for indifference or scepticism. In Juan Carlos Smith’s opinion justice (as Natural Law) is historically conditioned, because of both the content assigned to it by different groups and the varying representative character of such groups as time goes by and situations change: jurisprudence is in charge of matching the accepted principles and the needs of each case.

Aleksander Peczenik, in turn, looks for support in the coherence of our system of ideas. Statements expressing values or norms - he suggests - may be well-grounded rather than mere wishful thinking. The key lies in weighing and comparing values and principles, considered themselves as prima facie rules, taking all of them into account for a particular case, and setting up chains and webs of arguments. Anyone adheres to a system of beliefs (preferred and accepted ideas). When I want to justify a preference, I resort to my system of beliefs. Moral and legal norms can be defeated as well as philosophical ideas: coherentism - claims Peczenik - is a general theory of defeasibility.

While Juhani Pietarinen provides an inertial explanation of individual tendencies, other participants prefer to focus their attention on the analysis of classical opinions. Thus, Byron Kaldis examines the concepts of law and justice in Aristotle and Kant, and Margarita Ester Belandria R. analyses the Kantian practical subject. Eugene E. Dais, in turn, criticises Habermas: he affirms that this author is wrong when he characterises Kant’s theory of the tension between law and morals (factuality and validity) as a defence of the transcendental element in natural law; in fact - Professor Dais adds - Kant points out that, deprived of their coercive legality, universal principles might not be rationally accepted.

A substantial part of the debate was devoted to the discussion of either rights in general or certain rights in particular. Thus, Annalisa Verza argues that relevant liberal theories contend impartiality is solid enough a basis to derive from it the notion of right as independent from any conception of good. The author affirms that such theories (Rawls, Nagel) actually fail to break away from a conception of the good, nor are they useful as impartial guidelines for solving the problems that result from cultural diversity in a liberal state.

Germ‡n J. Bidart Campos defends the lawful social and democratic state, as defined by the 20th century tendency to include social matters in the Constitution, and believes that a principle of irreversibility holds whenever a system of rights is extended, whether the origin of such rights was an internal or an international source. Ignacio Ara Pinilla finds it usual that the constitutional interpretation of the right to equality excludes from this concept the idea of material equality, derived from distribution of goods; but he feels necessary to introduce some harmony between the formal structure of rights based on inequality and the social function of correcting previous inequalities. Burton E. Leiser, from a natural-law standpoint, stresses that sovereignty should not be considered as an absolute guarantee to shelter terrorists, torturers or other enemies of mankind. Yash Ghai points out that globalisation sets various challenges to the conception of rights and considers it necessary to preserve the preceding economic and social rights, to create a system of rights and obligations for private powers, prevent cultural hegemony, and ensure human rights for every one, perhaps by means of the notion of Òglobal citizenÓ.

While Torbjšrn Andersson and Mauro Zamboni analyse rights within the framework of Scandinavian realism, JosŽ Rubio-Carracedo examines human rights in Rawls’s theory and Bjarne Melkevik reflects upon Habermas’s concept of Òcosmopolitical rightÓ, Francesco Viola thinks that rights appear as a list of incalculable values, but have an internal order that permits their application in real life. He believes that the ethics of human rights strengthens the new type of ethical argumentation. Lukas H. Meyer contends that we are under certain obligations towards future generations which do not correspond to their rights with respect to us, for which reason it is not always appropriate to use a rights-oriented approach in connection with people to be born. Gerardo Ancarola emphasises the freedom of the press, Peter Blume the right to privacy as a condition for justice and Susumu Morimura compares religious freedom with the separation of religion from the State, while Juan Alberto Madile suggests using the cost of living as a background for the analysis of rights and liberties, and Beatriz Castro Toledo examines the abolition of torture in the philosophy of Illustration.

Several papers dealt with specific subjects within the general topic of justice. Pedro F. Hooft criticises genetic manipulation and clonation; Angela Aparisi Miralles and Javier Bl‡zquez Ruiz discuss the human genome project; Amanda I. S‡nchez Silva reflects upon asexual and artificial human reproduction and JosŽ M. Tau upon the right to a way of dying. Eva-Mar’a Svensson points out that society has been divided into two sections, public and private, connected with men and women respectively. The public section is subjected to legal regulation, whereas the private one has been excluded from the scope of the law. The explicit application of gender - she contends - brings to light dichotomies and hierarchies, and makes it possible to do away with them.

Elspeth Attwooll tries to clarify ideas regarding multicultural societies. She discusses the concept of people or ethnic group as a community to which we attribute some protection or some right: these are large groups the members of which are conditioned by their history and cultural tradition; yet, we cannot always distinguish between their general characteristics and those of a particular group, nor between the existence of such characteristics and the value we attribute to them. Yasumoto Morigiwa, in turn, reflects upon the extent of the multicultural problem, that is, what limits should be set to the protection of cultural diversity. While Agust’n PŽrez Carrillo deals with the social conflict and that of native peoples in the Lacandona Forest, and Leon Sheleff discusses the relation between Common Law and the customary law of tribal communities, Isabel Cristina Jaramillo raises questions connected with Professor Morigiwa’s: can a native culture sentence be revised by a Court blind to the ethnic factor? If people who are different are entitled to self-determination, can the State reduce this self-determination because a certain group is not different enough? In short, there seems to be no definite point of equilibrium between unity and diversity. In a similar way, Guy Lafrance points out that the logic of cultural identity conflicts with human rights.

Finally, Jill Cottrell discusses environmental justice in Hong Kong, and Patrick J. Hurley deals with the conflict between the lawyer’s professional ethics and his duty to help his client.

4. Papers About the State and Public Policies

At present the role of the State and even its structures are a matter of constant debate; these topics were also dealt with at the Congress. The current development of the constitutional problem is discussed at different levels: the constitutional system, the community and the European-like alternative or the rise of a supranational identity (Anna Georgiadou, Denis J. Edwards). Regionalisation is analysed in terms of the growth of ethnic cultures (Gustavo T. Soler); and the German case is used to support the claim that there are norms and experiences previous to the constitution (Schaffer). Antonio Martino, in turn, points out that the representative quality of democracy may be improved if the cardinal vote (which implies choosing only the first preferred alternative) is replaced by the ordinal or approval vote, which takes into account each voter’s order of preference and has been made feasible by the new technological developments. Daniel Humberto Valsecchi analyses the role of the State and Mortimer Sellers relates democratic organisation to group size.

In connection with constitutional jurisdiction, J. De Sousa e Brito states that the limitation of the majority principle must not contradict the democratic principle, whereas Susanna Pozzolo points out that the current approach to the interpretation of the Constitution, considered independently from the interpretation of other norms and allegedly more dependent on values, tends to weaken the separation between the executive, legislative and judicial powers as well as the legal certainty or security, since it places the judges’ moral rules above the law. Eduardo Barcesat, in turn, puts forth a truly tragic topic, based on the recent history of various countries: the survival of the National Constitution when its application is interrupted de facto.

Several papers focused on specific aspects of political action: civil disobedience (Mar’a J. Falc—n y Tella), the conflict between liberal tradition and Islamic Law (Thomas E. Gaskill), the justice of the World New Order as seen from Latin America (JosŽ N. Barrera), political agreements, particularly with respect to Venezuela (Ronald Chac’n and Ana J. Bozo de Carmona), social conflict in Colombia (Miguel Angel Herrera Zgaib) or the Òtruth and reconciliationÓ process in South Africa (Bert van Roermund). Kevin T. Jackson deals with the extremely serious problem of child labour and exploitation, while Jan Broekman affirms that the car industry has changed the semantics of labour in Western societies. Work - he states - acquires two meanings: one which results in re-engineering and is not essence-based, and another one which is used in political and legal discourse and is based on essences. Eugene Heath, in turn, analyses the concept of liberal neutrality in Michael Oakeshott’s ideas and Carlos Miguel Herrera Kelsen’s liberalism; and, in more general terms, JosŽ Mar’a Galati is in favour of a society based on freedom and consensus rather than on violence, while Eerik Lagerspetz tries to discuss truth in politics by claiming, together with William James, that it is rational to believe on account of pragmatic motives.

5. Papers Concerning Legal Instruments

All the debates on social and legal philosophy, as well as those connected with juridical practice, are made up of arguments and counter-arguments, for which reason a considerable number of papers were devoted to argumentation as their object. In this context, while Rauno Halttunen affirms that decisions are as justified as scientific discoveries, Garret Barden and David Goldberg examine the justification of juridical ÒdiscoveryÓ, and Eduardo L. Tinant maintains a justification of legal decisions on the basis of common good, Marijan Parcnikl sees legal decision-making as a responsible intellectual behaviour and Louis E. Wolcher criticises Dworkin’s thesis, which states that there are correct answers to difficult cases. In Wolcher’s opinion, this contention is based on accepting that a word used by lawyers in the same way must acquire a meaning derived by that use, which makes no sense according to Wittgenstein’s definition. The above-mentioned thesis - he adds - is but a grammar rule Dworkin established in order to organise his own philosophical thinking. In fact, most of the papers relating to this subject deal with the main protagonist of legal activity, that is, with the judge. David Wood believes that legal decisions are influenced by values. The judge is expected to apply community values, not his own; but, which are the community values? It is difficult to decide this within a pluralist context. If there is no consistency among the values themselves, how can the judge be consistent in his decisions? This matter - suggests Wood - requires a deeper conception, one that will identify the values underlying basic political and juridical institutions. Julio C. Cueto Rœa examines the influence of values on the selection of interpretation methods and goes on to reflect upon justice, its modes, and its actual application to real cases. Pablo L—pez Ruf, when discussing the way in which a judge handles hard cases, prefers to criticise Hart’s model, based on discretion, as well as Dworkin’s, based on the difference between Òarguments of principleÓ, used in adjudication, and Òarguments of policyÓ, suitable for legislation: he points out that, in some cases the judge must resort to Òarguments of policyÓ in order to recognise rights. Olsen Ghirardi describes legal reasoning as a Òpractical-prudent syllogismÓ: the conclusion flows naturally out of the premises, from which it is necessarily derived, and this flow has to be controlled by means of logic; but in the determination of the major and minor premises, there is a stage of Òweak reasoningÓ, since the premises deal with matters subject to opinion. A similar viewpoint can be found in Rodolfo Luis Vigo’s paper, where he states that law reaches its peak in the legal decision, a syllogism involving logical and axiological demands. The author presents a synoptic chart of the reasons or arguments that make a court decision legally valid. Alfredo Fern‡ndez Vicente advocates a systemic view of the legal case; Dimitrios Karamagiolis proposes a normative concept of rationality for Criminal Law; Hannu Tolonen analyses Otto Brusiin’s thesis on the bases of jurisdiction determination; Nilza Gonz‡lez de GutiŽrrez emphasises the postmodern legal interpretation in Boaventura de Sousa Santos; Miguel A. Ciuro Caldani examines justification with respect to the three trialistic dimensions; Ghita Holmstršm-Hintikka compares the legal process with an Òargumentative football matchÓ in search of truth, and Renato Rabbi-Baldi Cabanillas studies equity in the decisions of the Argentine Supreme Court.

The debate on proving the facts was particularly interesting. Friedrich Toepel affirms that the language used in evidence rules conforms to the correspondence theory, which belongs within epistemological realism. If a different theory were adopted (a pragmatic or a coherence theory), verdicts would undergo a strange meaning alteration. More meticulous, Daniel Mendonca prefers to deal with a specific evidence instrument. On the basis of a paper by Edna Ullmann-Margalit, ÒOn PresumptionÓ (1983), he analyses the formal structure and the functions of presumption. He then discusses two strategies, named presumption ÒblockingÓ and ÒdestructionÓ, aimed at preventing the application of this tool in a specific case.

Other papers were concerned with jurisdictional activity and other way of solving conflicts. Vincent Luizzi discusses the informality of the process in people’s courts, and Mar’a R. Fern‡ndez Lemoine deals with the extension of alternative methods in both the national and the international fields. K. Agrawal, in turn, describes the advantages of the alternative methods for solving conflicts, as used in India, and Li Long proposes a reflection on the relation between ethics and judicial justice.

Finally, various papers presented at the Congress were devoted to the acquisition of new technology, the problems arising from it, and the correspondence between information technology requirements and the semiotic expression of law or the theoretical structure of legal science (R. Guibourg, on the latter). Thus, Enrico Pattaro analyses the status of legislative techniques in Italy and describes different national and community metarules (legistics), as well as the advances made in the reorganisation of the law system (legimatics). Peter Ebenhoch points out that there is a level correspondence between legal computer science and the theory of law; and Hansjurgen Garstka discusses, in particular, the individual’s right to a name, from the new standpoint proposed by the advances in information technology. In their turn, M. Halim Bepari and M. Habibur Rahman Habib point out the correspondence between the computer and the human body.

6. Conclusion

It is easy to see that the ideas discussed at the 18th Congress are extremely varied. This is not new for social and legal philosophy meetings, which normally bring together a great variety of opinions. It is worth to point out, in this respect, that the main differences do not emerge from opposing ideas on a given topic, but from different and almost incommensurable identifications of the reflection segments that may be considered relevant problems. Opposition gives rise to debate, by means of which it is possible to draw useful conclusions or, at least, to clarify the ideas of the participants. On the contrary, having separate fields of interest sometimes results in a certain degree of non-communication: various reflections are juxtaposed and even overlap without being in actual contact, separated by subtle methodological membranes that foster mutual indifference between the segments of a discourse that fails to become common to all.

To bring discourse segments together so that opinions may be better debated, to assign somewhat wider methodological spaces in order to compare opposing ideas more effectively, is probably a challenge worth undertaking, and world congresses are excellent tools to advance in this direction. The 18th Congress held in La Plata and Buenos Aires has provided us one such opportunity; the 19th Congress to be held in New York will give us a new chance. So be it.

Ricardo Guibourg

University of Buenos Aires

Av. Figueroa Alcorta 2263

Buenos Aires - Argentina

 Two more things should be added to this report on the 18th IVR World Congress:

1 - The winner of the 1997 IVR Young Scholar Prize was Nils Jansen, who got the award for the paper "The Validity of Public Morality", published by ARSP.

2 - The paper by prof. Carlos Miguel Herrera, "Schmitt, Kelsen y el Liberalismo" was reproduced in the Congress CD-Rom with some unfortunate mistakes. Those who wish to receive the correct version can write to:

herrera@u-cergy.fr

Section TWO: IVR Announcements
 

19th IVR WORLD CONGRESS (NEW YORK, USA, JUNE 25-30, 1999)

The World Congress will take place at Pace University and at the Pace University's World Trade Institute in the World Trade Center in New York City.

The university's main campus is situated at the foot of the Brooklyn Bridge, across from City Hall, a few blocks north of Wall Street and east of the World Trade Center. Just to the north are New York's principal municipal, state, and federal courts. Participants can reach the Broadway theater district by public transportation or taxi within approximately ten minutes. Greenwich Village is within walking distance or a short taxi ride. New York's great museums and libraries and the United Nations buildings are easily accessible by public transportation. No major attraction is more than twenty minutes from Pace University. New York harbor, with ferries to the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, and Staten Island is within walking distance.

The Pace University School of Law is located in White Plains, New York, about 25 miles north of the main campus.

Access to all Congress facilities is readily available to handicapped persons.

Multilingual guides will accompany all tours and will be available at the IVR-99 hospitality center to assist all participants.

The Congress organizers will arrange for tours of New York's major attractions for all participants.

All Congress events will be fully accessible to handicapped persons.

IVR-99 Program

Each morning during the World Congress, working groups consisting of small numbers of presenters will meet. These groups will be organized according to topics or the specific interests of the presenters. Some working groups may be set up to accommodate individuals who prefer to participate in sessions conducted in German, French, or Spanish.

In the afternoon, there will be several parallel sessions, and the day will conclude with a plenary session.

Evenings will be devoted to various forms of social events and entertainment.

Under the Congress theme, The Transformation of Legal Systems and Economies in an Age of Regional and Global Interdependence, the Congress organizers have identified the following subtopics as areas to which participants might want to address papers for working groups. Participants should feel free to suggest other topics suitable for working groups to the Program Committee, which will endeavor to accommodate them.

I. Plenary Session and Working Group Topics

Minority Rights: Cultural Identity and National Boundaries.

The Rights of Women in International Perspective.

Fundamental Legal Concepts for a Global Society: Sovereignty, Property, Personal and National Security, Laws of War and Peace.

Legal Reasoning, Moral and Legal Norms in Multicultural Perspective.

New Regional and International Alliances and the Dissolution of Empires: Social, Legal, Political, and Economic Import.

II. Parallel Session and Working Group Topics

The Ethical, Legal, and Social Impact of Scientific Discovery and Technological Advances.

Human Rights: Social and Economic Rights and Group Cultural Rights.

The Communications Revolution and Computer Ethics.

Pragmatism, Legal Realism, and Jurisprudence.

Human Migration and Travel, Asylum, and National Boundaries.

The Environment and Natural Resources: Preservation and Access to the World of Nature.

Business and Industry: Ethics and the Law.

Juridical Models of Constitutions and Democratic Systems.

Customary and Religious Law.

Multinational and Non-Governmental Organizations: New Legal, Economic, and Political Issues.

Nationalism and New Regional Organizations.

Social Justice and Redistribution on a Global Scale.

Advances in Medical Sciences and Biomedical Engineering: Changing Ethical Perspectives.

International Intervention and National Sovereignty.

Young Scholar's Prize Paper.

III. Additional Working Group Topics

Logic and the Law.

Rational Choice Theory in Law and Politics.

Democracy and International Organizations.

Sociological Jurisprudence.

Law and Economics.

Critical Legal Studies.

Law and Literature.

Feminist Legal Theory.

Knowledge and Values in Law.

Legal Systems and the Science of Law.

The Nature of Law.

There will be several Special Sessions featuring outstanding speakers on various topics related to the Congress theme.

Call for Working Group Papers

On your registration form, please indicate what the title of your paper will be, and the group in which you believe it would be most appropriate to include it. If you believe that another group or topic should be added, please let us know.

Please submit your paper with a cover page consisting of an abstract of no more than 250 words outlining the thesis and the principal points made in the paper.

We will place abstracts on the Internet as they arrive, and we will make papers available to participants who request them. In that way, commenting papers may be written before the Congress convenes.

Because one of the principal purposes of our meetings is to facilitate discussion, participants who are scheduled to present their papers at plenary or parallel sessions will have no more than forty minutes in which to do so. Those who will be presenting their papers in working groups should plan to summarize their papers in five or ten minutes, in order to devote as much time as possible to discussion. We will endeavor to make papers available in advance, so that participants may read them prior to the World Congress.

Send your paper in hard copy and on a diskette (in Word Perfect or Microsoft Word format) to:

Professor Carol Gould, Program Committee Chair

Stevens Institute of Technology

Castle Point

Hoboken, NJ 07030

USA

Indicate on the diskette which word processing format you have used. Also, please place your name and address on both the paper and the diskette.

Submit your abstract as early as possible so that the Program Committee can enter it on the Internet and find the appropriate spot for your paper on the program.

Deadlines:

Preliminary Abstracts should be submitted as soon as possible, but no later than March 1, 1999.

Final drafts of papers, complete with abstracts, must be submitted no later than May 1, 1999, so that advance copies may be made available to other participants. Papers received after that date may be accepted, but assignment to working groups on the same topics cannot be guaranteed, and advance distribution to facilitate discussion will be impossible. Papers will be available at the World Congress site.

Registration Fees

Registration fees must be paid in U.S. dollars. The fee schedule is as follows:

Prior to June 1, 1998: $295.00.

Between June 1, 1998, and December 31, 1998: $350.00.

On or after January 1, 1999: $395.00.

Accompanying Persons (Access to all excursions and social events): $175.00.

Fees may be remitted by bank draft, wire transfer, or credit card. Instructions for sending your registration fees will be found on the registration form.

Registration will include access to all Congress sessions, transportation to special events, a card providing free access to any subway (Metro) or bus in the New York City transit system, refreshments, special receptions, luncheons and dinners, admission to book and computer exhibits, free registration for workshops on the use of computers in legal research and writing, and other events.

IVR-99 Housing

Several housing options are available. Exact prices for some will not be known until June, 1998. Because New York is experiencing a great influx of tourists, hotel prices have increased and it is becoming more difficult to reserve space. Nevertheless, we have been able to win commitments from a number of fine facilities. Some of these hotels will accept reservations now at the prices quoted below. Others will not commit themselves to specific prices until approximately June, 1998. The special rates quoted below are for IVR-99 participants and accompanying persons only. Hotel space in New York City has become very scarce because of intense demand by businesses and tourists. You are urged to make your reservations early.

1) New York Marriott, World Trade Center, $175.00 per night (single or double). Less than five minutes walking distance to the principal Congress site, within the same complex as the World Trade Institute, at which some sessions will be held. Luxurious accommodations. A large shopping mall is within the World Trade Center. Excellent dining both in the hotel and in nearby locations. Complimentary continental breakfast and refreshments, swimming pool, state-of-the-art health club, spectacular views of New York City and New York harbor. Every room is furnished with a king-size bed, phones, data ports, mini bar, television, and other amenities. 350 rooms will be available to Congress participants. This price is definite, but reservations must be made as soon as possible! Please contact us directly if you want to reserve space at this hotel.

2) Southgate Tower Suite Hotel, 500 West 37th Street. This hotel offers one- and two-bedroom suites, all with fully equipped kitchens, in-room movies, cable TV, complimentary coffee and tea, dataports for fax and computer modems, a fitness center, and other amenities. $185.00 per night for studio suites, $215.00 per night for one bedroom suites. All rates are for single or double occupancy. A short ride to the Congress site by bus or subway. 25 rooms available to Congress participants.

3) The Roger Williams, 131 Madison Avenue (31st Street). Newly remodeled hotel, very modern dŽcor, complimentary breakfast, free coffee and tea available 24 hours, complimentary evening dessert buffet, TV/VCR, CD player in every room, video and CD library, dataport connections, free parking. $185 per night single or double (tentative price). A short ride by bus or subway to Congress site. 25 rooms available to Congress participants.

4) The Mansfield, 12 West 44th Street (just off 5th Avenue). Newly remodeled hotel, traditional dŽcor, complimentary breakfast, free coffee and tea available 24 hours, complimentary evening dessert buffet, TV/VCR, CD player in every room, video and CD library, dataport connections, free parking. $175 per night single or double, king-size bed; $205 for two beds; $225 for a suite suitable for three or more persons (tentative prices). Central location, near theater district, New York Public Library. Ten minutes by subway, twenty by bus to Congress site. 25 rooms available to Congress participants.

5) Pace University Dormitories. 160 beds are available at $350.00 per week, or $55.00 per night. Dormitory rooms are typical student housing facilities. They are clean and air conditioned. There are no private bath facilities, but each room is wired to the university's mainframe, with access to the Internet. If you bring your laptop computer, you may plug it in and have direct access to Internet and e-mail. You will be assigned a password upon registration that will give you full access to the university's computer facilities.

6) Stevens Institute of Technology Dormitories. 77 rooms available at $350.00 per week. Private bath, air conditioning, modem access. Across the Hudson River from New York City, approximately 30 minutes to commute.

Priority Reservations:

Twenty-five percent of the Pace University dormitory beds will be reserved for students and persons from countries where hard currency is not readily available. Consequently, the number available for others is quite limited.

Deposit: Because dormitory facilities are strictly limited, we cannot reserve rooms without a deposit for the full amount. One hundred dollars of the deposit for a week's stay is non-refundable.

Consult the IVR-99 Web Site for other housing options that may become available.

IVR WEB SITE

Complete up-to-date information on IVR-99 is instantly available at the IVR-99 Web Site. This may be accessed at the following address:

http://www/law.pace.edu/ivr

Financial Aid for Women

Through the generosity of the Women's Research and Education Fund, IVR-99 is able to offer financial assistance to women, especially those near the beginning of their careers, who are interested in participating in the World Congress.

For further information and application forms, please communicate with the Chairman of the Organizing Committee:

Professor Burton M. Leiser

IVR-99 at Pace University

105 Dow Hall

Briarcliff Manor, New York 10510

Leiser@pace.edu or bleiser77@aol.com

Registration Form IVR-99

Last Name: ____________________________________________________________________________________________________

First Name: ____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Degree (Prof., Dr., Mr., Mrs., Ms):____________________________________Sex (F/M):____________________________

Institutional Affiliation: _________________________________________________________________________________

Mailing Address (Include Post Code): ______________________________________________________________________

Country: _____________________________________________________________________________________________

Telephone: ______________________________ Fax: _______________________E-mail:____________________________

Names of Accompanying Persons: ____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Topic/title for a possible paper to be submitted____________________________________________________________________________________________

Title of Working Group_________________________________________________________________________________

Preferred Housing______________________________________________________________________________________

For Pace University dormitory, a deposit of $300.00 should be sent with this form

Form may be sent by e-mail to:

Form may be sent by post to:

Professor Burton M. Leiser

IVR-99

105 Dow Hall

Pace University

Pleasantville, New York 10570-2799

USA

Credit card (Visa, Master Card, American Express, [OTHER ?].) number:

___________________________________________________________________________Expiration Date: _ _ _ _ _ _

Amount to be charged to my credit card: $____________________________________________________________________

Signature______________________________________________________________________________________________

Bank Drafts: Cashier's checks or bank checks in U.S. dollars drawn on a U.S. bank will be accepted.

Wire Transfers: You may transfer funds in U.S. dollars via telex to Pace University, IVR-99, Chase Manhattan Bank, ABA # 021000021, 214 Broadway, New York, NY 10038, USA. Account no. 024-2-400208.

20th IVR WORLD CONGRESS (AMSTERDAM, THE NETHERLANDS, JUNE 20-24, 2001)

The 20th IVR World Congress is to be held in Amsterdam in 2001, and its topic is ÒPluralism and LawÓ. Some subthemes. (1) Justice: Human rights, Universal and local justice, Collective and minority rights, Globalizing the welfare state and pluralism; (2) The State: State, nation and world, Federalism, Relationship between international law and national law; (3) Global problems: Migration (political, economic), Development law and plurality of cultures; (4) Legal reasoning: Universal and particular aspects of legal reasoning, Legal reasoning and plurality of values, Legal expert systems.

Some organizing details. Congress Venue. Amsterdam, Free University, Tuesday 20 - Saturday 24 June, 2001. Daily programme. Estimated number of participants: 600. Speakers. 12 speakers for plenary sessions; 12 speakers for semi-plenary sessions. Workshops. Number: 432 (3 papers p/hour; 12 parallel-sessions; 3 hours a day; 4 days). Schedule: 9-11: plenary sessions (2 speakers); 11.30-12.30: workshops; 13.30-14.30: semi-plenary sessions (3 speakers); 14.30-16.30: workshops; 17.00-18.00: plenary session (1 speaker); Congress Dinner: Saturday; Excursions: Sunday. Organisation Committee: Arend Soeteman (President of the Committee), Ton Hol (President of the Dutch section), Roel de Lange, Cees Maris, Theo Rosier. Address: A. Soeteman, Faculteit der Rechtsgeleerdheid, Vrije Universiteit, De Boelelaan 1105, 1081 HV Amsterdam, The Netherlands, tel: +31-20-4446252, fax: +31-20-4446210, E-Mail: A.Soeteman@Rechten.VU.NL .

Proceedings of 17th IVR WORLD CONGRESS (Bologna, june 16-21, 1995)

All four ARSP-Beihefte (special issues) with the Proceedings of the IVR World Congress in Bologna are available by Franz Steiner Verlag, Stuttgard:

No. 67 - "Rights", ed. by Rex Martin & Gerhard Sprenger;

No. 68 - "Law, Justice and Culture", ed. by AndrŽ-Jean Arnaud & Peter Koller;

No. 69 - "Sources of Law and Legislation", ed. by Elspeth Attwooll & Paolo Comanducci;

No. 70 - "Legal Systems and Legal Science", ed. by Marijan Pavcnik & Gianfrancesco Zanetti.

As for the three Rechtstheorie Beihefte:

No. 17 - ÒRule of Law - Political and Legal Systems in TransitionÓ, eds. Werner Krawietz, Enrico Pattaro, Alice Ehr-Soon Tay, introduction by Ota Weinbeger;

No. 18 - ÒChanging Structures in Modern Legal Systems and the Legal State IdeologyÓ, eds. Eugenio Bulygin, Burton M. Leiser, Mark Van Hoecke, introduction by Aulis Aarnio;

No. 19 - ÒConsequences of Modernity in Contemporary Legal TheoryÓ, eds. Eugene E. Dais, Roberta Kevelson, Jan M. Van DunnŽ, introduction by Dieter Wyduckel;

No. 17 is available, and no. 18 and 19 are going to be available in a very short time, by Duncker & Humblot, Berlin.

The three volumes of the European Journal of Law, Philosophy and Computer Science are available by Clueb, via Marsala 31, Bologna, Italy:

volume 1 (eds. Alberto Artosi, Manuel Atienza, Hajime Yoshino, introduction by Neil MacCormick) ÒPractical Reason. History of Deontics. Computer LawÓ;

volume 2 (eds. Alberto Artosi, Manuel Atienza, Hajime Yoshino, introduction by Neil MacCormick) ÒLegal Computer ScienceÓ; volume 3 (eds. Ralf Dreier, Carla Faralli, Wladik S. Nersessiants, introduction by Roberto Vernengo) ÒLaw and Politics Between Nature and HistoryÓ.

section THREE: IVR Chronological summaries and reminders

IVR LATEST events

• Buenos Aires, Argentina, August 9, 1997: IVR EC Meeting.

• Buenos Aires, Argentina, August 11, 1997: Meeting of the Presidents of IVR National Sections.

• Buenos Aires, Argentina, August 12, 1997: IVR Nomination Committee Meeting.

• La Plata/Buenos Aires, Argentina, August 10-15, 1997: 18th IVR World Congress.

IVR future events

• Glasgow, U.K., June, 27-28, 1998: IVR EC Meeting

• New York, USA, June 25-30, 1999: 19th IVR World Congress.

• New York, USA, June 1999: IVR EC Meeting.

• New York, USA, June 1999: IVR Nomination Committee Meeting.

• New York, USA, June 1999: Meeting of the Presidents of IVR National Sections.

• New York, USA, June 1999: IVR General Assembly.

• Amsterdam, The Netherlands, June 20-24, 2001: 20th IVR World Congress.

reminders

• The IVR Web site has been operating since June 1996 at the URL address http://www.cirfid.unibo.it/ivr/ . We invite all the National Sections to use the IVR Web site and to contact our Web Master Giovanni Ziccardi, for any information at the following e-mail address: ziccardi@cirfid.unibo.it .

• The National Sections which have not regularly paid their dues are urged to pay as soon as possible to IVR Account no. 020 2500119, Deutsche Bank SpA, Via Marconi 13, I-40122 Bologna, Italy, Deutitmmpad ABI 3104 CAB 2400.

section FOUR: IVR RECORDS

report by the IVR SECRETARY GENERAL

In the last two years, the IVR General Secretariat, after carrying out the fundamental bureaucratic task of transferring paperwork from the previous German office to the Italian one, tried to cooperate as well as it could with the Organizing Committee of the 18th IVR World Congress. We tried to guarantee a suitable diffusion of information and communication among all IVR members and all over the world. Besides, the IVR General Secretariat has established with most IVR National Sections, by letter or E-mail, a mutual co-operation with the aim of creating an updated general IVR mailing list containing the names and addresses of the Presidencies, Officers, and members. There was a satisfactory correspondence, but only 23 of the 44 National Sections have replied giving complete or almost complete information. At the moment, the IVR mailing list counts 1,413 records, but we hope they will increase by the year 1999. Finally, the IVR General Secretariat takes care of sending IVR Newsletter, in order to circulate all informations concerning IVR National Sections among the IVR members.

Giusella Finocchiaro (report delivered at the 18th World Congress)

report by the treasurer (january 1997 - december 1997)

Financial Statement 1997 (1.12.1997 - 31.12.1997) by Annalisa Verza

*plus telex expenses; ¡less the postage expenses

REPORT BY THE WEBMASTER

As IVR Webmaster, I am pleased to announce that in April 1998 the IVR Web site will be completely updated at the Web address www.cirfid.unibo.it/ivr/. As notified to all national sections, access and all relative accounts as well as the e-mail addresses of national sections which used the site at its inception have been removed from the new IVR Web page for security reasons. However, the Web pages and relative accounts of the national sections which have kept the Webmaster updated as to changes in their sections or those which sent express requests have been maintained. The national sections of Austria, Belgium, Spain, Switzerland, Germany, Finland, Sweden and Japan are already using, or are about to use the resources supplied by the IVR Web site. I am also pleased to announce that the site has been linked to the IVR 99 Web page recently launched. To visit this page, key into the location http://www.law.pace.edu and click on "World Congress on Philosophy of Law" in the lefthand column. Taking into account the numerous hints and requests I have received, the new IVR Web site will be as simple and efficient as possible. All links to empty pages have been eliminated (including those to individual national sections which have failed to notify their intention to service their accounts).

Giovanni Ziccardi, the Web Master.

section FIVE: NATIONAL SECTIONS NEWS, anNOUNCEMENTS ANd reCOrDs

We print below the news, announcements and records we received from the National Sections by March 31, 1998. The National Sections of IVR are urged to send regular information which should be divided into the three categories "News", "Announcements" and "Records" in line with the format of the IVR Web page.

AMINTAPHIL

Announcements: The 1998 Amintaphil Conference will be devoted to Civility, Civic Culture, Fragmentation, and Stability, and will take place on September 24-27, 1998 in MontrŽal, QuŽbec.

Records. President: Larry Alexander, Warren Distinguished Professor of Law, University of San Diego, School of Law, 5998 Alcal‡ Park, San Diego, California 92110-2492. Vice-President: Patricia G. Smith. Honorary President: Abe Edel. At-large: Heidi Malm and Bill Nelson. Past President: Diana Tietjens Meyers.

AUSTRIA

Announcements. Law and Ideology [Recht und Weltanschauung] - Conference and General Meeting of the Austrian Section of the IVR, April, 15th/16th, 1998, Residenz/Toskanatrakt, ChurfŸrststr. 1, 5020 Salzburg

Conference Program

Wednesday, April, 15th

2.00 p.m.: Inauguration by the president of the Austrian section of the IVR, Prof. DDr. Michael W. Fischer (Salzburg)

Section 1: Utopia and Community

2.30 p.m.: Prof. Dr. Jindrich Filipec (Prague): Contradictions and costs of realising human concepts; 3.00 p.m.: Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Schild (Bielefeld): State constitution as artificial life: on imparting politics and arts;3.30 p.m.: coffee break; 4.00 p.m.: Prof. Dr. Manfred Buhr (Berlin): Rationality and utopia; 4.10 p.m.: Prof. Dr. Johann Hagen (Salzburg): The loss of the capability of living as a member of society; 4.20 p.m.: ass. Prof. DDr. Michaela Strasser (Salzburg): The utopia of community in the internet; 4.30 p.m.: discussion

Evening Program

8.00 p.m.: reading by Barbara Frischmuth und Alois Brandstetter from their work, theatre Metropolis (organised by Residenzverlag Salzburg)

Thursday, April, 16th

Section 2: Democracy between Reality and Virtuality

9.00 a.m.: Prof. Dr. Helmut Schreiner (Salzburg): Identitarian versus representative democracy; 9.30 a.m.: ass. Prof. Dr. Reinhold Knoll (Vienna): The infringement of loyalty towards the constitutional state; 10.00 a.m.: coffee break; 10.20 a.m.: ass. Dr. Ulrike Aichhorn (Salzburg): Feminist perspectives in politics and democracy; 10.30 a.m.: Prof. Dr. Klaus Chr. Firlei (Salzburg): Unemployment and democracy; 10.40 a.m.: ass. Prof. Dr. Michael Geistlinger (Salzburg): The concept of democracy in Eastern Europe; 10.50 a.m.: ass. Dr. MMag. GŸnther Kreuzbauer (Salzburg): Virtuality from the perspective of the history of technology; 11.00 a.m.: discussion; 12.30 p.m.: Buffet, General Meeting

Section 3: Degenerate Ideals

2.30 p.m.: Prof. Dr. Ota Weinberger (Graz): Ideals and ideologies; 3.00 p.m.: Prof. Dr. Helmut Reinalter (Innsbruck): Enlightenment and totalitarism; 3.30 p.m.: coffee break; 4.00 p.m.: ass. Prof. Dr. Anton Grabner-Haider (Graz): Religious totalitarism; 4.10 p.m.: Prof. Dr. Peter Kampits (Vienna): Saying good bye to utopia; 4.20 p.m.: MR ass. Prof. Dr. Friedrich Lachmayer (Vienna): Law as social sorcery; 4.30 p.m.: Prof. Dr. Kurt Weinke (Graz): Degenerate ideals from the perspective of anthropology; 4.40 p.m.: discussion.

16th Seminar in Semiotics of Law

Organized by Prof. Friedrich Lachmayer

Summer Semester 1998, April 24 -25, 1998 (all lectures in German)

University of Vienna, Juridicum,1010 Vienna, Austria, Schottenbastei 10-16,

Seminar Room 31

Friday, April 24, 9.00 - 13.00

9.00 Helga Kerschbaum: Symbols

10.00 Gertraud Seiser: Man Dominating Man

11.00 Matthias Gšschke: Power and Law

12.00 Winfried Bauernfeind: Harm Reduction through the Law

Friday, April 24, 14.00 - 18.00

14.00 Michael Bujatti: Double Niche Theory of Reality Construction

16.00 Karl Purzner: Law and Psychiatry

16.00 Heinz Pusitz: Social Drama in Victor Turner

17.00 Aurelia Jurtschitsch: Direction and Attitude

Saturday, April 25, 9.00 - 13.00

9.00 Anton FŸrlinger: Animals and Men

10.00 Michael Lugger: Consciousness of Law in Islam

11.00 Manfred Lang: Personalization in Politics

12.00 Oskar Pfeiffer: Modal Auxiliary Verbs in the Language of Law

Saturday, April 25, 14.30 - 20.00

(Place: Institute for Socio-Semiotic Studies,

A-1040 Vienna, Walterg. 5/1/12)

14.30 Magdolna Orosz (Budapest): Language Crisis in Modern Literature: The Philosophical-semiotic Background

15.30 Rolf-Dieter Hepp (Berlin): Pierre Boudieu - a Sociosemiotician?

16.30 Rita Sabine Kergel (Berlin): The Gender Axis. On the Relationship between Man and Woman in Lacan and Bourdieu

17.30 Plenary discussion with Jeff Bernard (Chair), Magdolna Orosz, Rolf-Dieter Hepp, Rita Sabine Kergel, and Oskar Pfeiffer on the topic: What is Sociosemiotics?

18.30 Two book presentations: Magdolna Orosz: IntertextualitŠt in der Textanalyse. Jeff Bernard, Josef Wallmannsberger, Gloria Withalm (eds.): _Welt der Zeichen, Welt der Dinge - World of Signs, World of Things_

19.15 Buffet

BELGIUM

News. On December 5, 1997, the conference L'accŽlŽration du temps juridique took place at the Law faculty of the FacultŽs Universitaires Saint-Louis, Bruxelles.

On January 30 and 31, 1998, the conference Time and Law. Is it the nature of law to last? was held at the Katholieke Universiteit, Bruxelles.

BRAZIL

News. The 13th International Colloquium of the International Association for the Semiotics of Law on Official Law, Counter Culture and Semiotics of Law was organized in 1997 August 18-21 at Faculdade de Direito of Universidade de Sˆo Paulo in Sˆo Paulo Brazil by Associa�‹o Brasileira de Filosofia Juridica e Social - IVR Brazilian Section, together with Instituto Brasileiro de Filosofia, Departamento de Filosofia e Teoria Geral do Direito da Faculdade de Direito da Universidade de S‹o Paulo, Instituto de Filosofia e Teoria Geral do Diremo (S‹o Paulo, Brazil), International Association for the Semiotics of Law (Utrecht, The Netherlands), Centro Latinoamericano de Investigaciones Juridicas y Sociales da Facultad de Derecho da Universidad de Carabobo (Valencia, Venezuela). The papers will be published in English and French by the International Association for the Semiotics of Law, and in Portuguese by BRASIUS and the other Brazilian institutions.

CHILE

News. Recent publications: Revista de Ciencias Sociales N¼ 41, Facultad de Derecho y Ciencias Sociales de la Universidad de Valparaiso, "Positivismo juridico y doctrinas del derecho natural", edited by Agustin Squella, president of the Chile IVR National Section. It contains works by Hugo Tagle, Roberto J. Vernengo, Marcelo Montero I., Carlos Mar’a Carcova, Miguel Angel Ciuro C., JosŽ Delgado Pinto, Nelson Reyes S., Rolando Tamayo y Salmor‡n, Fernando Quintana B., Fernando Atria L., Antonio Enrique PŽrez-Lu–o, Alejandro Guzm‡n B., Alberto Calsamiglia, Rodolfo Figueroa G., Antonio Bascu–‡n R., Luis Fernando Coelho, Alfonso G—mez-Lobo, Nelson Saldanha, Carlos I. Massini C., Manuel Manson T., Dante Cracogna, Antonio Pedrals, Agust’n Squella, Claudio Oliva E., Marcelo Ferreira, Jorge Pe–a V., Luis Alberto Warat.

COLOMBIA

News. In preparation to the 18¡ IVR Congress which took place in La Plata-Buenos Aires, the Asociacion Colombiana de Filosofia del Derecho y Filosofia Social, together with the Universidades Externado de Colombia y Andes, organized a conference on June 12, 1997, on the topic Filosofia del Derecho y Teoria Juridica en Colombia - Estado del Arte. There were two main sessions, the first on the History of Legal Philosophy in Colombia, with lectures by professors Oscar Mej’a, Hern‡n Ort’z, Numas Gil and Luis Villar Borda, and the second with lectures by professors Mauricio Garc’a, Sandra Morelli, Daniel Bonilla and Guillermo Hoyos, both followed by debate.

DENMARK

Records. At the general meeting of the Danish section of the IVR on June 19, 1997, the following executive committee was elected:

J¿rgen Dalberg-Larsen (President), Henrik Zahle (Vice President), Jens Ewald (Cashier), Finn Collin (Secretary), Mogens Blegvad, Jes Bjarup and Ditlev Tamm. At the time of the general meeting, the membership list of the society comprised 34 names.

Treasurer: Jens Ewald, Senior Lecturer, Juridisk Institut, Universitetsparken, bygning 340, Aarhus Universitet, DK - 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark. Member of the Executive Committee: Ditlev Tamm, Professor, Retsvidenskabeligt Institut, K¿benhavns Universitet, Studiestraede 6, DK — 1455 K¿benhavn K, Denmark.

FRANCE - Association Fran‚aise de philosophie du droit

News. On April 25-26, 1997, Paris hosted the conference, Le droit, l'argent et le syst�me de l'argent, with the participation of Jean Carbonnier, Marianne Paillard de Chenay , Alain Ghozi, Laurence Tarride, Fran�ois Terre, Remy Libchaber, Andre Damien, Dominique Terre, Pierre Caye, Gerard Worms, Ivar Ekeland, Bernard Fraigneau, Pierre Bauchet, Didier Truchet, Thierry Revet, Pierre Demeulenaere, Bruno Oppetit.

The last conference of the association was held on February 1998, and was devoted to the theme of the immatŽriel.

Records. PrŽsident : Fran�ois TerrŽ. 10, square de l'Alboni 75016 Paris. France tel 01 45 20 93 68 fax 01 45 25 83 23; Vice-PrŽsident : RenŽ S�ve 18, place A.ChŽrioux 75015 Paris. France tel 01 48 28 74 85; SecrŽtaire gŽnŽral: Marie-Arme Frison-Roche 25, avenue Rapp 75007 Paris. France tel 01.45.56.07.09; TrŽsorier: Philippe Reigne 31 rue Balard 75015 Paris france tel 01 45 57 34 48; TrŽsorier adjoint : David Sankowicz 40, rue de Bretagne 75004 Paris. Frange tel 01 48 87 55 66

GERMANY

News. The last conference of the German section took place on Sept. 26-28, 1996 at Jena, organized by Prof. Gršschner and Prof. Morlok. The general theme was "Legal Philosophy and Legal Doctrine in Times of Change". The plenary sessions began with a lecture of the President of the Federal Constitutional Court, Prof. Jutta Limbach, on Legal and Constitutional Politics within Social Change. Other plenary lectures were delivered by Prof. Thilo Ramm (Between Constitutional Positivism and Kadi-Jurisdiction), Prof. Gerhard Haney (Enlightenment and Juridical Transition of Ages - Jena's Contribution to the Humanization of the Law), and Prof. Gerd Roellecke (Stabilisation of Law in Times of Radical Change). In parallel sessions, the speakers were Dr. Joachim Lege (What is and to what End does a Lawyer Study Legal Philosophy?), Prof. GŸnter Frankenberg (Notes on the ‘Drittwirkung’ in Constitutional Law), Prof. Dirk Fabricius (Change in Legal Doctrine as Disnomination of Social Risk Allocations), Dr. Diethelm Klesczewski (Effects of Radical Change and Crises of a Civil Society on the Penal Law), Prof. Karl Albrecht Schachtschneider (The Republic of the Nations of Europe), Dr. Stefan Kadelbach (Utopia in the Heart of Darkness? The International Law and its Utopia in Times of Radical Change), Dr. Angelika Krebs (The Ecological Change and its Legal Reprocessing), and Prof. Dietrich Murswiek (The Use of Public Environmental Goods: Scarcity, Liberty, Distributional Justice).

Recent Publications: M. Krugmann, Evidenzfunktionen, Berlin 1996; R. May, Heidegger's Hidden Sources. East-Asian Influences on his Work, Routledge 1996.

Announcements. The next conference of the German section will take place on October 2-3, 1998, at Frankfurt. The subject will be "Responsibility in Law and Morality". Information is available from Prof. Ulfrid Neumann, Johann-Wolfgang-Goethe-UniversitŠt, Senckenberganlage 31-33, D-60054 Frankfurt/Main.

Records. Current Officials. President: Robert Alexy, Juristisches Seminar der Christian-Albrechts-UniversitŠt, Olshausenstra§e 40-60, D-24118 Kiel, tel: 0431-880 3543, fax: 0431-880 4329. Vice-President and Treasurer: Jan-R. Sieckmann. Juristisches Seminar der Christian-Albrechts-UniversitŠt, Olshausenstra§e 40-60, D-24118 Kiel, tel: 0431-880 3550, fax: 0431-880 4329.

ITALY

News. The XXI National Congress of the Italian IVR National Section will be devoted to Conceptions of the Law and Human Rights - Comparisons East-West, and will take place on October 6-9, 1998 in Salerno or nearby.

JAPAN

News. The annual conference of the Japan Association of Philosophy of Law (JALP) took place 7-8 November 1997, at Aichi University, near Nagoya, on the topic "Philosophy of Law in the Twentieth Century." The two-day conference began with a keynote speech by the organizer of the discussion, Tsuchiya Kei-ichiro. The conference was conducted in a special format this year. There were five sections each of which discussed an important aspect or strand of thought in the philosophy of law of this century. The producer of each section chose not only the speakers and the topics to be discussed, but also the mode of presentation. The topics of the sections and the producer for each were:

1 Philosophy of law and the independence of the institutional domain: Professor Tsuchiya Kei-ichiro

2 Linguistic theory and the philosophy of law: Professor Kamemoto Hiroshi (Waseda)

3 Back to the bases of law --- the domain of life within the context of philosophy of law: Professor Nishino Mototsugu (Aichi)

4 Lebenspolitik: Professor Kawamoto Takashi (Tohoku)

5 Marxism after Marxism as political alternative: Professor Imai Hiromichi (Hokkaido)

6 Twentieth century jurisprudence and the affirmative state: Professor Matsuura Yoshiharu (Osaka)

7 The universality and relativity of human rights: Professor Inoue Tatsuo (Tokyo)

The proceedings will be published in a special volume of the Annals of the Japan Association of Legal Philosophy for 1997.

Announcements.

The annual conference of the Japan Association of Legal Philosophy (JALP) will take place 13-14 November 1998, at Waseda University, in Tokyo, to discuss post-war philosophy of law in Japan. The provisional title of the conference is "The intellectual resource called post-war philosophy: what to inherit and develop." The organizer of the discussion is Professor Matsuura Yoshiharu (Osaka), to be assisted by Professor Sasakura Hideo (Waseda). The conference will commemorate the 50th anniversary of JALP. There will be four sections each of which will discuss an important political or legal aspect that was or should have been argued in the context of the philosophy of law in post-war Japan. The proposal, having been discussed and approved by the executive committee, is now being fleshed out. The participants will get together in July for a dry run. The provisional topics of the sections and the producer(s) for each are:

1 Legal order, legal system, and methodologies of legal studies: Professor Aoi Hideo (Tohoku)

2 Law, morality, and ideology: Professor Sakurai Tetsu (Kobe)

3 Modernization, democracy, and autonomous person: Professor Sumiyoshi Masami (Aoyama Gakuin) and Professor Nakayama Ryuichi (Kinki)

4 Ways to discuss orders, regimes, and revolutions: Professor Shimazu Itaru (Chiba)

The keynote speech will be given by Professor Sasakura. There will also be commemorative lectures given by Professor Ohashi Tomonosuke (Hosei), Professor Sato Setsuko (Kanto Gakuin), and Tanaka Shigeaki (Kyoto). No papers will be read outside the main theme this year. The proceedings will be published in a special volume of the Annals of the Japan Association of Legal Philosophy for 1998.

The 5th Kobe Lecture. IVR Japan will co-sponsor with JALP the 5th Kobe Lecture in December of this year. The invited lecturer for the 5th Kobe Lecture is Professor Will Kymlicka. Professor Kymlicka will be speaking on "The Future of the Nation State." The lecture will consist of two parts. The first lecture will be given in Tokyo at the University of Tokyo on Dec. 11th, entitled "Multiculturalism: Diversity in the Accommodation of Diversity." The second, "Nationalism, Postnationalism and Cosmopolitanism," will be given in Kyoto at Doshisha University on the 17th. There will be a seminar before or after each of the lectures for in-depth discussion. Professor Kymlicka will also visit Hokkaido for a seminar on the rights of ethnic minorities. For further details and application for participation please contact the general secretary, Professor Ishiyama Fumihiko, at: ishiyama@ic.daito.ac.jp.

Records. The executive committee of the Japan section has been partially reorganized and has a new secretary and treasurer. The following is the list of the present members.

President: Morigiwa Yasutomo, professor at Nagoya University, Nagoya. Email: morigiwa@nomolog.nagoya-u.ac.jp

General secretary: Ishiyama Fumihiko, associate professor at Daito Bunka University, Tokyo. Correspondence to the Japan Section should be sent to Professor Ishiyama at: ishiyama@ic.daito.ac.jp

Mail address:

Professor Ishiyama Fumihiko

Faculty of Law

Daito Bunka University

1-9-1 Takashima-daira, Itabashi-ku

Tokyo 175

JAPAN

Tel: +81-3-3935-1113-#4032

Fax: +81-3-5399-7379 attn: Prof. Ishiyama

Treasurer: Sumiyoshi Masami, associate professor at Aoyama Gakuin University, Tokyo. Email: masami@als.aoyama.ac.jp

Satoh Setsuko, professor at Kanto Gakuin University, Tokyo; member of Executive Committee of IVR, ex officio member of the executive committee of IVR Japan

Email: ssatos@wa2.so-net.ne.jp

Katsuragi Takao, professor at Seikei University, Tokyo

Tsunoda Takeshi, professor at Osaka Prefectural University, Osaka

Ishimae Yoshihiko, associate professor at Meiji University, Tokyo

Sakurai Tetsu, associate professor at Kobe University, Kobe

SWEDEN

News. In the tradition since 1969 of every second year recurrent symposia with the Nordic IVR sections (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden) a symposium was held in Uppsala, Sweden, June 7-9, 1997, on the topic Does Europe need uniform principles of statutory interpretation? Program: Joakim Nergelius, Lund: European principles of statutory interpretation in a constitutional and legal-theoretical context - a challenge for legal philosophy. Peter Hšilund, Copenhagen: Minimum rights and judicial power. Aleksander Peczenik, Lund: Does Europe need legal dogmatics? Kaarlo Tuori, Helsinki: EC law in national courts: a collision between legal cultures? Mauro Zamboni, Bologna and Uppsala: The Scandinavian legal realism and the concept of rights. Theory and Practice.

Records. Current Officials. President: �ke FrŠndberg, Faculty of Law, Uppsala University, Box 512 S-75120 Uppsala, Sweden. Secretary and Treasurer: Torben Spaak, Faculty of Law, Uppsala University, Box 512, S-75120 Sweden, fax: +46 18 471 76 66.

SWITZERLAND

News: The Swiss section of the IVR held its meeting on October 17, 1997, with three lectures about postmodern linguistics, semiotics and the linguistic turn in philosophy in connection with meaning for the law. Prof. Dr. Ivar Werlen, University of Berne, was scheduled to have a speech about postmodern language philosophy, Dr. Markus Nussbaumer, University of Zurich, also a linguistic scholar, spoke about forensic-linguistic and Thomas Mastronardi, attorney-at-law in Ittigen-Berne, spoke about the implications of the different language interpretation theories for lawyers and judges in their every day tasks. The summary of the congress is that the law has to cooperate with the philosophy of language and has to discuss the implications of various theories in linguistics, semantics and the philosophy of language for the law. So the congress opened an exchange between language, philosophy, linguistics, and law. The next congress will be about communitarianism and its meaning for the law. The congress will be probably held in autumn 1998.

Records. Current Officials. President: Prof. Dr. Kurt Seelmann, Juristische FakultŠt der UniversitŠt Basel, Maiengasse 51, 4056 Basel, Switzerland, tel. 061-2672537, telefax 061-2672547. General Secretary: Dr. Nicoletta Bersier Ladavac, 8, Quai Gustave-Ador, CH-1207, Gen�ve, Switzerland, tel. ++41 (22) 7868060, fax ++41 (22) 7868063.