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Publication Abuse of Power and Self-Entrenchment as a State Response to the COVID-19 Outbreak: The Role of Parliaments, Courts and the People(SSRN, 2021-06-08) Kouroutakis, Antonios; https://ror.org/02jjdwm75The World Health Organization, on March 11th, declared the novel coronavirus outbreak a pandemic and while the pandemic is still spreading, and some counties are affected more than others, governments have had to respond, given that SARS-CoV2(Covid-19) poses a serious public health threat. In their responses, governments have adopted emergency measures balancing public health with a plethora of rights such as freedom of movement, right to assembly and freedom to religion. In liberal constitutional theory, the norm is that during emergencies power is concentrated in the hands of the executive. Interestingly due to the nature of the pandemic, in some countries, such as in Hungary, parliamentary sessions were suspended, in others such as in Greece and the UK they were either under function or gone virtually via online platforms respectively. This limited function of the legislative body has grave implications on the quality of modern democracy as parliamentary scrutiny is restricted, ministerial accountability is distorted and most importantly the voice of the opposition does not have an appropriate forum to be heard. On the top of that, a well established stance of deference prevails in the judiciary weakening judicial review as an extra mechanism of protection to monitor the political process. Such constitutional circumstances may give rise to abuse of executive power and application of policies for self-serving purposes and self-entrenchment. For instance, the government may allocate funding in a way to favor its reelection. The aim of this paper it to examine legitimate and illegitimate executive self-entrenchment in times of emergency and identify the role of different institutions, to monitor and scrutinize executive emergency actions.Publication Access to evidence: the "discloruse scheme" of the damages directive(IE University, 2022-07-15) Marcos, Francisco; https://ror.org/02jjdwm75Like with other harms for which compensation may be sought, evidence of harmful antitrust wrongs is essential for the success of damages' claims. In the context of most antitrust infringements, the information asymmetry between the parties and the difficulties faced by claimants to access probative evidence in support of their actions is severe. In the European Union, the tools available to the parties for discovery and access to evidence in adversarial processes for antitrust damages claims are governed by national law, but the rules in force in Member States should respect the principle of effectiveness. To help filling the information vacuum of the parties, the Damages Directive introduced a novel 'disclosure scheme', designed to ease the access to evidence necessary by both parties to prove their claims or counterclaims. This chapter examines how Member States have implemented the Directive in this regard and the common problems seemingly faced by them. It also looks at the early experience of the use and functioning of the ‘disclosure scheme’. In addition, alternative tools for obtaining evidence that might be used in connection with antitrust damages proceedings are also analyzed, particularly access to the files of Competition Authorities for follow-on claims.Publication Alcance y límites de la responsabilidad solidaria por los daños causados por el cártel de fabricantes de automóviles(IE University, 2022-09-20) Marcos, Francisco; https://ror.org/02jjdwm75En las infracciones de las prohibiciones antitrust con pluralidad de partícipes la identificación del daño y su secuencia de producción causal serán determinantes en la determinación del perímetro de responsabilidad solidaria entre los co-infractores por los daños causados. Aunque una eventual decisión previa de la infracción por la autoridad de competencia proporciona un presupuesto fáctico y jurídico que el juez civil no puede ignorar, la caracterización de la conducta infractora como una “infracción única y continuada” no se traducirá necesariamente en que la responsabilidad solidaria de quienes participaron en ella. Corresponde al juez civil comprobar si la infracción produjo daño e indagar sobre el nexo de causalidad entre las conductas infractoras y los eventuales perjuicios. La responsabilidad solidaria de los co-infractores sirve a los objetivos de tutelar el derecho de los perjudicados a obtener una compensación y de disuadir la participación en las conductas prohibidas, pero su fundamentación requiere la concurrencia causal de la conducta de una pluralidad de sujetos; de modo que la solidaridad no opera cuando puedan identificarse daños e itinerarios de producción causal distintos a partir de conductas que puedan diferenciarse. En cambio, las posibles variaciones en la intensidad de la conducta infractora de cada co-partícipe en la infracción -y, por ende, de su contribución al daño- no excluyen su responsabilidad solidaria frente a los perjudicados, aunque sea determinante del ulterior reparto en las eventuales acciones de repetición entre los co-inftractores.Publication An introduction to comparative law and its rise in an interconnected world(IE University, 2022-04-07) Alvear Garijo, Cristóbal; https://ror.org/02jjdwm75The globalisation of the legal profession and the interrelationship of the legal world are among the significant factors behind the rise of comparative law nowadays, although multiple academic discussions remain open about it (Part I). As an academic discipline that analyses legal diversity worldwide to promote legal knowledge, legal advancement and legal harmonisation, comparative law should not be confused with other areas of law such as private international law (Part II). Thus, the object of comparative law is the study of legal phenomena in various legal environments, bearing in mind that national legal systems are unique according to their historical, political and social circumstances but at the same time shaped by shared legal traditions and thus classifiable among legal families (Part III). Although several methodologies have traditionally been observed, including the mainstream functional method, nowadays a combined methodology of different analyses and approaches is preferred to perform comprehensively comparative law (Part IV). Consequently, a holistic definition for comparative law as an academic discipline and as a legal horizon for the new generation of legal professionals is ultimately suggested in this working paper (Part V).Publication An unfinished task? Matching the Platform Work Directive with the EU and international "social acquis"(2023) Aloisi, Antonio; Rainone, Silvia; Countouris, Nicola; European Union’s Erasmus+; https://ror.org/02jjdwm75Besides straining international, regional and national employment status classification models, digital labour platforms are pioneering new strategies and approaches in terms of algorithmic management, digital surveillance, remote work and cross-border outsourcing, which are increasingly being adopted in more conventional sectors of the economy. Developments in the platform economy are thus crucial in providing a stress test for the resilience of existing labour standards, as well as providing useful input in terms of the reforms needed to ensure their suitability, the collective interest representation and mobilization aspects comprehended by rapidly changing labour markets. This paper seeks to explore the key emerging regulatory dimensions of platform work. It contextualizes the challenges associated with platform work as an expression of the consolidated features that, in the past decades, have been transforming the labour market: non-standardization and the deregulation of employment relationships. Following that, it considers the definition of the personal scope of application as a key challenge faced by essentially all attempts to regulate platform work. It does so primarily by exploring the functions and operations of a legal device known as “presumption of employment”, currently being considered by the proposed EU directive on platform work as a key tool to address the complex employment status classification questions that have surrounded the “gig economy” since its emergence. The paper then provides a conceptual cartography of the various EU regulatory instruments (both existing ones and those currently in the legislative pipeline) that will, jointly, define the legal mosaic of labour rights applicable to the heterogeneous phenomenon of platform work in the years to come.Publication Análisis sistemático de la aplicación pública del derecho de la competencia por las autoridades nacionales en España 2003-2022(IE Law School, 2023-07-07) Marcos, Francisco; https://ror.org/02jjdwm75Este trabajo analiza sistemáticamente las resoluciones dictadas en los últimos veinte años por la autoridad española de la competencia en aplicación de las prohibiciones de conductas anti-competitivas contenidas en la Ley de Defensa de la Competencia (LDC) y el Tratado de Funcionamiento de la UE (TFUE).Se han identificado todas las decisiones de aplicación pública de las prohibiciones en ese período. Las resoluciones se han clasificado a partir de la identificación de la forma de inicio de la investigación (denuncia, ex oficio, clemencia), los preceptos infringidos (tanto del TFUE como de la LDC) y el tipo de conducta anticompetitiva investigadas, la decisión final adoptada y, en su caso, los remedios impuestos (incluyendo también la existencia o no de ponentes o de votos particulares).En el periodo objeto de análisis la autoridad española de competencia adoptó 943 resoluciones sobre infracciones de las prohibiciones de conductas multilaterales, unilaterales y prácticas desleales de relevancia antitrust. Casi un tercio del total de las decisiones impusieron multas por importe que supera los 3.300 millones de euros.El examen sistemático de las decisiones de la autoridad española de competencia muestra la interpretación y el alcance que las autoridades de competencia españolas han dado a los tipos de las prohibiciones que disciplinan la conducta de los operadores en el mercado. Como es sabido, en el período analizado se ha modificado en varias ocasiones tanto la legislación sustantiva en materia de defensa de la competencia como las instituciones encargadas de su aplicación y los procedimientos seguidos. La praxis decisoria de la autoridad de competencia construye un relevante cuerpo doctrinal y permite evaluar el rendimiento y la productividad de las autoridades de competencia, y la fuerza disuasoria de las prohibiciones. Adicionalmente, el análisis exhaustivo de todas las resoluciones dictadas a lo largo de veinte años se pueden identificar algunos patrones y cambios en la actuación de la autoridad española de competencia en sus expedientes de investigación y sanciones.Publication Analyzing the Impact of Events Through Surveys: Formalizing Biases and Introducing the Dual Randomized Survey Design(SSRN, 2024-02-13) Bertoli, Andrew; Jakli, Laura; Pascoe, Henry; https://ror.org/02jjdwm75Social scientists and public opinion analysts often use survey data to test how important events impact respondent beliefs, attitudes, and preferences. This paper offers a formal analysis of the pre-event/post-event survey approach, including designs that seek to reduce bias using quota sampling, rolling cross-sections, and panels. Our analysis distinguishes between various sources of bias and clarifies the comparative strengths and weaknesses of each approach. We then propose a modified panel design that can reduce bias in cases where asking respondents to complete the same survey twice could impact their responses in Wave 2. This issue is acute when fielding conventional pre-event/post-event panels due to the short time horizon between Waves 1 and 2. Our analysis elucidates important insights that can improve social scientists’ ability to study the causal impact of important events through surveys.Publication Antitrust damages' claims in Spain(IE University, 2020-10-15) Marcos, Francisco; https://ror.org/02jjdwm75Tras describir brevemente el marco institucional y legal de las reclamaciones de daños y perjuicios por infracciones del Derecho de la competencia en España, este trabajo analiza la experiencia de nuestros tribunales en la decisión de estas acciones y muestra el aumento de las demandas follow-on en casos de cárteles en los últimos cinco años. Adicionalmente, las reclamaciones por daños y perjuicios por infracciones de la competencia declaradas o conocidas con posterioridad al 27 de mayo de 2017 se regirán por las disposiciones legales nacionales que trasponen la Directiva 2014/104/UE. Aunque en el pasado ha habido algunos pronunciamientos sobre daños por abuso de posición dominante y restricciones verticales (tanto follow-on como stand-alone), ahora las acciones follow-on en caso de cárteles son las más numerosas. En ellas, los demandantes privados “pisan los talones” a las autoridades de competencia. El descubrimiento por parte de las autoridades de competencia de algunos carteles en varias industrias ha allanado el camino para las demandas por daños de sus víctimas. Después de que el Tribunal Supremo dictara dos sentencias pioneras sobre la indemnización de los daños y perjuicios causados por el cártel del azúcar, se han planteado sucesivas reclamaciones de daños por los afectados por el cártel de los sobres de papel, el cártel de los seguros inmobiliarios decenales y, sobre todo, el cártel de los fabricantes de camiones. After briefly describing the institutional and l egal framework for antitrust damages claims in Spain, this article surveys the courts’ experience in deciding these actions and shows the rise in cartel follow-on claims in the last five years. Damages claims for antitrust infringements declared or known after the 27 May 2017 will be governed by national legal provisions implementing Directive 2014/104/UE. Although there had been in the past some antitrust damages cases for abuse of dominance and vertical restraints (both follow-on and stand-alone), nowadays follow-on cartel actions are the most numerous. Therein, private plaintiffs tread on the heels of competition authorities. Competition authorities’ unearthing of major cartels in several industries has paved the way for damages suits by their victims. After the Supreme Court decided the leading case of damages’ claims in the sugar cartel, follow-on on damages claims have germinated from the paper envelopes cartel, the decennial real estate insurance cartel and, most notably, the truck manufacturers’ cartel.Publication Assessing the Impact of International Sanctions on Russian Oil Exports(SSRN, 2023-02-23) Mironov, Maxim; Babina, Tania; Hilgenstock, Benjamin; Itskhoki, Oleg; Ribakova, Elina; https://ror.org/02jjdwm75We use a unique high-frequency Russian customs dataset to evaluate the impact of international sanctions on Russia – focusing on Russian crude oil and oil products exports, as they are the key sources of export earnings and government revenues. We study the effects of two focal sanctions measures – the EU embargo and G7 price cap on Russian seaborne crude oil, which both took effect on December 5, 2022. We find that Russia was able to redirect crude oil exports from Europe to alternative markets such as India, China, and Turkey but that export earnings were curbed substantially by the sizable discounts that Russian exporters had to accept in market segments where the impeding EU embargo lowered demand, e.g., exports from Baltic Sea ports – a dynamic that only became more pronounced after the embargo and price cap’s taking effect. However, we do not find crude oil discounts as large as those reflected in Urals prices towards the end of 2022. In particular, prices in market segments that are unaffected by lower European demand, e.g., exports from Russia’s Pacific Ocean ports, have not dropped in a meaningful way and shipments do not appear to comply with the price cap. What the EU embargo and G7 price cap have, thus, triggered is a fundamental fragmentation of the market for Russian crude oil. Based on our analysis, we conclude that a central focus of policy going forward should be the enforcement of existing sanctions on Russian oil – along with the lowering of the oil price cap. As far as oil products are concerned, we show that it is significantly less feasible to redirect exports away from the European market. This suggests that the EU embargo on oil products, which took effect on February 5, 2023, will prove to be a powerful additional tool to further curb Russian export and fiscal revenues.Publication Bargaining under Threats: The Effect of Joint Custody Laws on Intimate Partner Violence(2021-09) Fernández Kranz, Daniel; Nollenberger, Natalia ; Roff, Jennifer; https://ror.org/02jjdwm75We study the effect of a policy change that exogenously shifted bargaining power from mothers to fathers on intimate partner violence. We exploit a quasi-natural experiment based on a series of reforms in Spain that shifted the custody decision from being unilaterally determined by the mother to a joint decision, barring evidence of violence. We find that the policy led to a large and significant decrease in intimate partner violence, with the largest effects among couples in which the mother was more likely to seek sole custody before the policy change.Publication Bargaining under Threats: The Effect of Joint Custody Laws on Intimate Partner Violence(IZA, 2020-10) Nollenberger, Natalia; Fernández Kranz, Daniel; Roff, Jennifer; https://ror.org/02jjdwm75We study the effect of a policy change that exogenously shifted bargaining power from mothers to fathers on intimate partner violence. We exploit a quasi-natural experiment based on a series of reforms in Spain that shifted the custody decision from being unilaterally determined by the mother to a joint decision, barring evidence of violence. We find that the policy increased the incidence of joint custody in Spain from less than 11% of all divorces to 40% in just five years. Comparing the evolution of intimate partner violence in treated and control regions and using couples without children as an additional comparison group, we find that the policy led to a large and significant decrease in intimate partner violence, with the largest effects among couples in which the mother was more likely to seek sole custody before the policy change. Consistent with this finding, the policy also led to a significant reduction in female partner homicides in treated regions. Finally, we also find evidence of more police reports by victims of intimate partner violence with a significantly higher proportion of these reports ending in dismissals or non-guilty decisions by the specialized courts. We interpret this finding as evidence of strategic behavior by mothers who want to retain sole custody of their children.Publication Blockchain: the birth of decentralized governance(Pompeu Fabra University, Economics and business working paper series, 2018-04-10) Garicano, Luis; Arruñada, Benito; https://ror.org/02jjdwm75By allowing networks to split, decentralized blockchain platforms protect members against hold up, but hinder coordination, given that adaptation decisions are ultimately decentralized. The current solutions to improve coordination, based on “premining” cryptocoins, taxing members and incentivizing developers, are insufficient. For blockchain to fulfill its promise and outcompete centralized firms, it needs to develop new forms of “soft” decentralized governance (anarchic, aristocratic, democratic, and autocratic) that allow networks to avoid bad equilibria.Publication Brexit and the Professional Services Sector – What Future for UK Professionals in Europe?(2020-02-24) Jacobsson, Johanna; https://ror.org/02jjdwm75Professional services form an important part of the UK economy. Their role is even bigger if their contribution to other key sectors, such as financial services, is taken into consideration. This working paper focuses on the provision of professional services between the EU and the UK under the pending Withdrawal Agreement as well as under the new economic relationship that the two parties are starting to formulate. The EU-UK Withdrawal Agreement provides a transition period until 31 December 2020 during which the UK continues to apply the entire body of EU law. The non-binding Political Declaration on the future EU-UK relationship recognises the need to agree on market access and non-discriminatory treatment for service providers and appropriate arrangements on professional qualifications. However, the level of the commitments depends on the UK’s willingness to adhere to the so-called level playing field, referring to the standards required by the EU in the areas of social and economic policy. As the UK is still doing its soul-searching in this regard, it is too early to say what the future framework for the services sector will look like. This uncertainty highlights the need for UK’s professional service firms to consider the need to restructure their EU operations during the transition period.Publication Can't leave you now! Intimate partner violence under forced coexitence and economic uncertainty(IE University, 2020-11-18) Arenas Arroyo, Esther; Fernández Kranz, Daniel; Nollenberger, Natalia; https://ror.org/02jjdwm75With the COVID-19 outbreak imposing stay at home and social distancing policies, warnings about the impact of lockdown and its economic consequences on domestic violence has surged. This paper disentangles the effect of forced coexistence and economic stress on intimate partner violence. Using an online survey data set, we find a 23% increase of intimate partner violence during the lockdown. Our results indicate that the impact of economic consequences is twice as large as the impact of lockdown. We also find a large increase of domestic violence when the relative position of the man worsens, especially in contexts where that position was already being threatened. We view our results as consistent with the male backlash and emotional cue effects.Publication Carbon Emissions, Mutual Fund Trading, and the Liquidity of Corporate Bonds(2021-07-08) Zhang, Weiming (Elaine); Cao, Jie; Li, Yi; Zhan, Xintong; Zhou, Linyu (Lucy); https://ror.org/02jjdwm75This paper investigates the effect of climate risks on corporate bond mutual funds’ trading activities and explores its mechanism. We find that investor flows negatively respond to mutual funds’ carbon exposure, leveraging the Paris Agreement as a shock. Such carbon-induced redemptions prompt mutual funds to sell bonds issued by high-carbon companies, especially the bonds held by funds with higher outflow-to-carbon sensitivity. We rule out the alternative hypothesis that a fundamental shift in funds’ investment preferences drives the reduction in high-carbon holdings. Moreover, we note a deterioration in the liquidity of high-carbon bonds, particularly those heavily owned by mutual funds.Publication Cognitive Ability, Union Membership, and Voter Turnout(2019) Stegmueller, Daniel; Becher, Michael; https://ror.org/02jjdwm75Labor unions are said to in uence elections and public policy by increasing their members’ electoral turnout. But existing research likely overestimates the turnout effect of union membership by ignoring sorting in the labor market. In the presence of a union wage premium, both membership and turnout are shaped by the same (unobserved) factors, such as cognitive ability. To disentangle the union effect from positive selection, we use unique data from the U.S. National Longitudinal Survey of Youth. It allows us to specify a latent factor potential outcome model with matching on both observable and unobservable individual characteristics. We find that about one-third of the observed union turnout effect is due to selection, more than what previous studies suggest.Publication College Achievement and Attainment Gaps: Evidence from West Point Cadets(National bureau of economic research, 2020-05) Cestau, Dario; Epple, Dennis; Romano, Richard; Sieg, Holger; Wojtaszek, Carl; https://ror.org/02jjdwm75Assessing the effectiveness of education by race and gender is as difficult as it is important. We investigate this question utilizing data for eleven cohorts at West Point, a distinguished military academy and highly ranked liberal arts college. Employing matching using entry scores on three comprehensive measures, we obtain exceptional matches of score distributions for black and matched white students. We find black students have lower graduating achievement scores than matched white students, but comparable rates of graduation, retention in the Army after graduation, and early promotion. Hispanic-white comparisons reveal no differences. Female-male comparisons reveal women have lower attainment and retention rates.Publication Commitments and the Marital Match: The Effect of Alimony Reform on Assortative Matching(IZA, 2021-11) Fernández Kranz, Daniel; Roff, Jennifer; https://ror.org/02jjdwm75This paper examines the effects of reforms that reduced alimony on matching in the marriage market. Recent literature indicates that divorce law changes which reduce commitment or income-sharing upon separation will lead to an increase in assortative matching, as women forgo specialization which may not be compensated upon divorce. Using state-level data on alimony reform that reduced the entitlements of eligible spouses and American Community Survey data on marriage and the characteristics of newlyweds, we find that alimony reform increased measures of spousal covariance in education. Our results indicate that correlation coefficients on spousal degree attainment consistently rise with alimony reform, and regression-based measures of assortative matching increase similarly. Moreover, we find the largest effects among those groups who might be more sensitive to the reform. Regression-based measures of assortative matching increase by over 10% among couples in which at least one partner had previously been married and by 9% among those couples who marry in states with less generous property division and child support which are often treated as substitutes for alimony in divorce settlementsPublication Comparative Experimental Evidence on Compliance with Social Distancing During the Covid-19 Pandemic(SSRN, 2020-07-04) Becher, Michael; Stegmueller, Daniel; Brouard, Sylvain; Kerrouche, Eric; https://ror.org/02jjdwm75Social distancing is a central public health measure in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, but individuals’ compliance cannot be taken for granted. We use a survey experiment to examine the prevalence of non-compliance with social distancing in nine countries and test pre-registered hypotheses about individual-level characteristics associated with less social distancing. Leveraging a list experiment to control for social desirability bias, we find large cross-national variation in adherence to social distancing guidelines. Compliance varies systematically with COVID-19 fatalities and the strictness of lockdown measures. We also find substantial heterogeneity in the role of individual-level predictors. While there is an ideological gap in social distancing in the US and New Zealand, this is not the case in European countries. Taken together, our results suggest caution when trying to model pandemic health policies on other countries’ experiences. Behavioral interventions targeted towards specific demographics that work in one context might fail in another.Publication Competition and Market Concentration in the Municipal Bond Market(SSRN, 2019-07-11) Cestau, Dario; https://ror.org/02jjdwm75Lack of competition among the underwriters of municipal bonds increases the borrowing costs of local municipalities. I find that the proportion of municipal bonds sold in competitive sales in the state has an economically significant effect on several measures of competitiveness. Competitive sales increase the number of active underwriters in the state and substantially decrease the concentration in the market for underwriting services for municipal bonds. I also find that state restrictions on the negotiated sale of municipal bonds can materially decrease market concentration. Market concentration has increased considerably over time, but only negotiated deals have contributed to greater concentration.