Monthly Archives: November 2012

Sagers Speaks on Antitrust Issues Related to the Future of Books

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Chris Sagers, C|M|LAW’s James A. Thomas Distinguished Professor of Law, recently participated on a panel at a conference entitled “In re Books:  A Conference on Law and the Future of Books” (http://www.nyls.edu/centers/harlan_scholar_centers/institute_for_information_law_and_policy/events/upcoming_conferences/in_re_books) held at the Institute for Information Law & Policy at New York Law School.  Professor Sagers, who teaches and writes about antitrust law, spoke about the Justice Department’s pending antitrust suit against the Apple computer corporation and several publishing firms, who are alleged to have fixed the prices for electronic books.  He explained his view that while the suit exposes some apparent ironies in antitrust policy, the ironies are only apparent and not real.

A video webcast of Professor Sagers’ presentation (at 3:04- 3: 18) is available at: (http://www.nyls.edu/centers/harlan_scholar_centers/institute_for_information_law_and_policy/events/upcoming_conferences/in_re_books/webcast)  It has been featured in media coverage (http://paidcontent.org/2012/10/26/do-book-publishers-deserve-special-treatment-anti-trust-experts-say-no/).

Sterio Publishes The Right to Self-determination Under International Law: “Selfistans,” Secession, and the Rule of the Great Powers

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Professor Milena Sterio

C|M|LAW Professor Milena Sterio’s first book, The Right to Self-determination Under International Law: “Selfistans,” Secession, and the Rule of the Great Powers, will be published on Monday, November 5, 2012.  Published by Routledge Press, it proposes a novel theory of self-determination; the Rule of the Great Powers. It argues that traditional legal norms on self-determination have failed to explain and account for recent results of secessionist self-determination struggles. While secessionist groups like the East Timorese, the Kosovar Albanians and the South Sudanese have been successful in their quests for independent statehood, other similarly situated groups have been relegated to an at times violent existence within their mother states. Thus, Chechens still live without significant autonomy within Russia, and the South Ossetians and the Abkhaz have seen their conflicts frozen because of the peculiar geo-political equilibrium of power within the Caucuses region.

The Rule of the Great Powers, which asserts that only those self-determination seeking entities which enjoy the support of the majority of the most powerful states (the Great Powers) will ultimately have their rights to self-determination fulfilled. The Great Powers, potent military, economic and political powerhouses such as the United States, China, Russia, Japan, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, and Italy, often dictate self-determination outcomes through their influence in global affairs. Issues of self-determination in the modern world can no longer be effectively resolved through the application of traditional legal rules; rather, resort must be had to novel theories, such as the Rule of the Great Powers.

For more information, or to order a copy, see http://www.routledge.com/books/details/9780415668187/