Law

Logically, obsolete or outdated crime laboratory equipment can easily devastate the systematic administration of justice. Long-term avoidance or ignorance of the need of modern forensic equipment can affect the ability of a laboratory to process activities accurately and in a well-timed manner. Therefore, to stay current with criminal justice administration, it is vital that forensic equipment in a laboratory are regularly updated. Not having upgraded forensic equipment and capabilities will certainly place a law enforcement agency behind its notorious adversariesthe criminal elements.

Some of the most important forensic equipment and capabilities that must be present in crime laboratories nowadays are the DNA technologies used in forensic investigations. If used intelligently, DNA technologies for identification can be very effective in crime investigations. Other technologies and capabilities that are indispensable in a laboratory today include Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism Analysis Polymerase Chain Reaction Analysis Short Tandem Repeat Analysis Mitochondrial DNA Analysis and Y-Chromosome Analysis.

Basically, these DNA technologies are capable of analyzing information matches easily at various locations on the genome of a person. Through these technologies, hair, bone, blood, and other body products and tissues can be examined and matched, thus making a persons participation to a crime more accurate. Because of the numerous probes that can be used in DNA analysis, the ensuing matches can be a strong verification on whether or not the suspect is indeed the right or wrong person.

Obviously, one of the greatest flaws of criminal justice administration is the failure to openly accommodate changes in crime laboratories. Unfortunately, an outdated laboratory can lead to delays and inaccuracies in examining evidence, or even result in the outsourcing of expensive companies that analyze evidences. Therefore, it is without doubt that updated forensic equipment and capabilities are very vital in a crime laboratory and essential to the accomplishment of the objectives of the criminal justice administration.

Within the common law system, one of the significant tasks of judges is to create legal precedent by ruling on a certain case. When judges make a ruling on a case, they often refer to previous precedents to help guide the outcome of the ruling itself. It is within the scope of their practice to interpret, synthesize, and connect the relationships between the precedent and the case presented before them.  They are also given the authority to interpret the constitution through their own philosophies. Primarily, there are two schools of constitutional interpretation within the judicial system. These are originalism versus living document. Originalists tend to believe that they should interpret the constitution as it was originally written by the founding fathers. Thus, their rulings are often more conservative than the other. However, those others who follow the idea of the constitution as a living document tend to be more innovative in their interpretation, for it is their belief that the constitution should be developed parallel to social trends. We should respect the interpretations of the judges as long as it is within narrow constraints not overly innovative yet not extremely conservative either.

As time passes and society progresses, the nature of a present day case may be inarguable from laws extending from previous cases. These instances thus become the proper time for a judge to develop a legal precedent and make law. However, it is my contention that judges should not excessively engage in Judicial Activism where they continue to overturn past precedents and make new laws, thereby disturbing the status quo. For example, one recent Supreme Court case, Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, set a precedent that will reshape the face of politics and campaigning in America.  The Supreme Court issued a landmark decision (reversing two previous precedents that dealt with campaign finance reform) that, in effect, enables corporate funding for candidates to go unchecked during elections.  The Justices argued that restrictions on funding were a direct violation of the First Amendment. It is my opinion that this gives huge leverage to corporations over candidates now even foreign corporations will now be able to have a vast role in influencing American politics. Moreover, it will significantly empower special interest groups and their lobbyists. An average American citizen will thus have a diluted effect considering the small contributions they make to their selected candidate. Evidently, when a court becomes an activist and continues making laws, it seems to disturb the current conditions in which the political and social affairs are relatively settled.

One of my major concerns is whether the domain of the judge is the proper venue for producing laws. We have a legislature from the people and for the people. Constituents have the right to participate in the creation of laws, create a petition, discuss it with their peers, and pressure their elected representative to pursue the laws passing. This makes the legislature a better and more integrated lawmaking body.

While lobbying a representative remains to be a usual and acceptable practice, it should not be practiced on judges. There are two different distinctions here the legislature creates laws to serve its constituents while judges make law to serve justice. Therefore, I believe judges should be appointed, and not elected. If a judge were elected, he would create an opportunity for special interests and people with power to contribute to his campaign. In effect, contributors will have leverage over the judges.  This would cloud the judgment of our judges and hinder their ability to serve justice. Aside from that, a judge is appointed by a president. The president normally appoints a judge that will further the justice system and sustain it, while many people might elect a judge for his sheer popularity or shining personality. The president always knows more than the people because he has better sources to explore and identify the quality and performance of the judge. Furthermore, if a judge was elected then he or she would have a greater propensity to rule on what is Politically smart rather than what is Judiciously correct. Judges would be inclined to rule on what would give them more popularity and votes. This will create an interest-driven judicial system that willwoulddoes serve sheer politics.

Globalization and its impact on nation state have led to national debate about political, economical and legal aspects of a nation. The essay is a discussion about the meaning of globalization, its impact on nation state, political debate on globalization, nation state and a conclusion in relation to the question. The definition of globalization has connection with economics because it has had an impact in the mode of distributing economical resources among nation state. The focus of the paper is on the issue of globalization and the debate on the impacts felt by people in a given nation who are doing business with surrounding nations.

Economically, globalisation is defined as removal of trade barriers from national borders to promote the flow of goods, capital, labor and service. The flow of these economic requirements without restrictions has brought changes in the way business is done over the whole world. Globalisation has led to interconnection of global activities such that any activity happening on one side of the world is related to activities on another part of the world. It is a way of promoting social development in areas such as reduction of poverty, creation of jobs and promotion of strong nation relationship.

Globalisation should not be taken as the end it is a process that has led to development of various economic sectors over the whole world. The impact of glolbalization is not felt in one economic activity rather it is felt in culture, politics, academics, military affairs and law. There are other areas of globalisation concern but the major area of interest is impact of globalisation on nation state. The impact of globalisation on nation has its own different logics, historical periods and dynamics.

Globalisation can be differentiated from geographical networks in relation to the extent of social flows throughout the entire globe. There is no limit as to the level at which the intensity of social flows is applied in respect to globalisation. The historical geographical networks of globalisation have no limitations in respect to its application. Political power is an area that has been influenced by globalisation. Every state or country is led by a system of governance that has a centre of power. It is this power that has led to promotion of globalisation. Although the policies of one side of government may be different, there is always a common way through which the effects of globalisation are felt. The modern world has been brought closer through invention of good infrastructures such as telecommunication, good transport system and legal systems. The success of globalisation on nation state can be attributed to good communication networks.

The internet has been instrumental in promotion of globalisation because people in one side of the world are able to pass information, exchange goods, acquire important information about development and carry out transactions that are of great importance. Business in this aspect has led to promotion of good relationship in one nation state to another. The free flow of goods, services and capital across the border has promoted independence of carrying on business transaction.

The legal system has promoted globalisation through implementation of laws that protect the rights of nations that are involved in business. Corporation of states and application of common ways of governance has played a key role in the promotion globalisation. Provision of trade information between common nation states is another area that has led to good flow of goods and services over a wide range of geographically distributed nations. Leadership power is a major challenge that has posed as a challenge to globalisation. Leaders of nation states who are driven by the greed of power have brought a lot of complications in the process of globalisation. To implement the process of globalisation, there is need for corporation between the political powers of the participating nations. The process of globalisation among nations in another context is challenged by external forces from military, culture and legal systems. However, states in these nations have worked extensively to overcome these forces and to be independent in their economic plans. Nations have opted to rule over their own people and territory so as to overcome the challenges of political powers.

The impact of globalisation on nation state has brought a lot of debate which results from failure to acknowledge political power of specific leaders. Many political leaders think that globalisation has brought changes in the way of governance. The leaders argue that globalisation has led to prosperity, democracy and liberty to the entire people over the world. The leaders of the nation state think that this will deprive them their sovereignty and thus they will not be in a position of controlling the whole world. The removal of price control by state has also challenged political structure of different states. They are left with no authority over given territory and it is an impact felt by many nations that consider themselves as superpower.

Globalisation is therefore considered as an enemy to political leadership whereby there is depletion of political authority which is taken as a sign of authority. This heated debate about globalisation and its impact on nation state is very much controversial. It has changed the mode of governance in particular sectors of economy and many leaders fear that in the long run, globalisation will have a far reaching impact on the erosion of the power of leaders in nation state. Some political leaders acknowledge that globalisation is the key to success while others consider it as a way of eroding the authority of nation state. To acknowledge well, the impact of globalisation on nation state there is need to address some key areas such as globalisation in politics, globalization on nation state and impact of globalisation on nation state.

Globalisation and its debate in politics
Globalisation covers a wide range of life aspects such as politics, culture, economics, social life and education. These are the major aspects of life that contribute much to the governance of a particular state. A nation cannot survive without politics, promotion of social cultural development and education of its people. Globalisation on its side has led to promotion and support of these life issues so as to promote a common understanding of leadership and politics. There are other common aspects of globalisation that affect leadership. Politics is very much influential when it comes to issues of acquisition, exercise or distribution of power.

The distribution of power therefore, is very much sensitive because some leaders tend to overcome the whole situation and to overrule decisions made by other leaders. Politics and economy are two things that go hand in hand. This means that politics are related to economics in one way or another therefore economy is shaped by politics. Globalisation and politics shape the way resources are distributed or consumed. The wide view of how globalisation has had impact on nation state and resources can be reflected in the way of distributing resources. Impact of globalisation on national state in relation to politics is associated to lack of qualified political leaders who are driven by one motive of desire and corruption. Developing countries are affected mostly by the issue of globalisation as is connected to politics. Most leaders are very corrupt and are not in the position of coorperating with other leaders who are willing to promote globalisation.

Political globalisation results from increased economic activities in a given nation state. This results to establishment of different national boundaries that have effect in the way of administration and service delivery. State administration and uniform allocation of resources to different economies has been influenced by globalisation. This has been made to be possible because of the free flow of goods, capital, services and information. In addition, the removal of trade barriers across the border has led to good supply of goods and services in different states. However, there are some positive and negative effects of political globalisation as is concerned with flow of goods, capital, services and information. The positive side of political globalisation can only be explained in relation to what has been happening in different nation states. Political globalization has provided different leaders in particular nation state the power to govern and administer several areas of interest that support the economy.
 
Basically, politics is interrelated to economics and this gives birth to an economy that is politically strong. This means that politics gives shape to the economy and economy shapes politics. Economic globalisation deals with the flow of goods labor and capital in the world and this enhances political and economic interdependence within nations hence there has been an increase in economic activities and trade as a tool in the world of politics which expands political globalisation. Most globalists will argue that the world we are in today is not the same as thirty years ago and has no borders in terms of economics. The flow of goods and capital brings about the fandamental changes and effects around the globe. For example, individuals or even companies can simply choose on where to invest because they are not constrained by geographical boundaries. National economies are integrated with other international financial markets other multinational companies. This transformation has really shaped and expanded the global world in respect to application of good governance techniques. Many activities that happen in the modern world today have been influenced by political globalization. This has led to existence of particular international dimensions that are observed by people in a given political background.

According to Giddiness, there are four elements of globalization namely intensification, Deeping impact, extensity and velocity. Extensity which refers to economic, social and political activities that spread across different national activities is a key area that has led to promotion of political globalisation. A nation consists of different social economic activities that are carried out throughout the lives of many individuals. These activities are controlled by a leader who is given a position with political power. The political leader is given the duty of executing certain duties that lead to continuous flow of ideas, information and goods over the entire globe. This is a way of making sure that every individual in a given nation state is in a position of accessing services and resources. The proper flow of goods over a nation leads to promotion of unity and satisfaction among the citizens of a given state. It also means that there is creation of interdependence or what is referred to as intensification. Another element of globalisation is known as intensification which means that a minor or local development can have a global consequence which is very much big. When a nation state talks about political globalisation, it is a way of acknowledging that the process of politics is expanding or stretching.

Political globalisation should apply in any level of political development whether it is local or high profile form of political development. This brings about the third element of globalisation that is deepening or broadening. Politics plays a powerful role in that development of any form in respect to the level of economy has global implications over a wide range of activities. Political globalisation has an impact in the way different political agendas are combined with enormous groups that help very much in decision making. Globalisation has led to stretching of decision making process that runs from local to global level of thinking. Stretching in another aspect can be explained in a situation whereby companies that are willing to invest in other geographical regions are very free to do so without constraints. This is a way of promoting common international financial markets that lead to domination of particular sectors of the economy.

In a political globalization, there are no constraints and thus individuals or companies can establish business in their area of interest. It is a way of diversifying business and spreading risks to different areas that are beneficial. Politics and globalisation therefore, have an impact in the area of investment by individuals and companys. Another impact of politics in globalisation is that it promotes fair-trade among nations that have one motive of providing what one does not have. This means that countries that have enough resources are capable of supplying those without in exchange of money or capital. It is also a way of creating employment opportunities to the unemployed. Jobs are created in different parts of the globe and this is one major impact of globalisation on nation states.

Globalisation and the debate of nation-state
Politics of states are very much common especially in the way different concepts are applied as a way of political analysis and disclosure. In the early centuries, the issue of globalisation and borders was very sensitive but when the Soviet Union collapsed, politics of globalisation in regard to borders became less important. The issue of border has taken different direction and what was seen as impossible during this time of Cold War has been possible due to interaction of culture and economy.
A nation state in simple terms can be explained as a country that is governed by central government that has the right of applying moral and legal jurisdictions. The management of nation state by one government has led to formation of one single motive of territorial control which is a way of promoting globalisation. Another impact of globalisation on nation state is promotion of community sovereignty which helps in the control of massive exploitation of people by leaders.

Globalisation has an impact over a given territory where nation state is given the autonomy to work across borders so as to independently achieve policy goals.  Nation state has played a very important role in the establishment of impact of globalisation in the modern world economy. It is very important for learners to understand the meaning of nation state in respect to academic application. The understanding of nation state in academics therefore results to a massive debate as is suggested in various theses. One thesis that explains the impact of globalisation is hyperglobalists which dictates that globalisation is a real life force that aims at producing social cultural behaviors observed in various parts of the world. Globalisation according to this theory is a matter of lifestyle that is practiced by various individuals thus this is one impact of global interrelationships. Opportunities are created by way of embracing globalisation and the effect is even felt by the most remote societies thus removing the constraints that have been put in place by practices of nation state (Smith, 1995, p.69). Complex globalisation theory assumes that states position is very much important in regard to establishment of political economic systems that have made easy access of borders that were not permeable in the past.

This impact means that nation state is a key actor of global economic promotion. The power of nation state government is diversified to different economic sectors that reconstruct the powers and authority of the leaders. Institutionalist theory argues that globalization has an impact on the private sector that often provide strong networking governmental and non-governmental organisations.  These organisations address matters of political economic development on nation states. Nation states under go certain pressures which may have an impact in the way an organization runs its operations.

However, the pressure of globalisation can obstruct the development of some economic activities that are linked to domestic institutions (Held, McGrew, 2007, p.24). There is enough evidence that the world today is undergoing globalisation process and this is a way of self fulfillment. Therefore, the way nation state sees the impact of globalisation depends on policies that relate to political satisfaction.

Its important to note that after the cold war there have been very positive strategic alliances that promote both economic and cultural interaction something that was not possible then. The term political sovereignty refers to the distinctive boundaries within which an autonomous state has control over all political and economic activities. This means that the nation has power to formulate policies independently and without any interference from other close states.The debate on globalisation as a nation state is very diverse and crucial. This is because of the varying academic theories and concepts contrasting each other. In most occasions, globalisation leads to a global social culture which is a real and subsequently affects our daily lives. This means that the effects of globalization are felt within the small remote societies killing the undermining constrains set by the nation states. In my opinion, this is good because it gives these small societies opportunities and chances to grow and be independent in the world of economy. The government is the primary architect and the main economic actor because it constitutes powers and functions for sound economic policies. It also addresses those areas which are not taken care of by the nongovernmental organizations and local companies.

The impact of globalisation on a nation state
It is true that the world has transformed and become diverse as far as globalisation is concerned. Indeed, this has shaped the world of politics, but this transformation has been orchestrated mainly by economic factors. Actually, globalisation has led to world politics but at the same time governments prioritize all the national interests. In other words, they remain discrete on how they approach international markets. Besides, globalisation has opened the gates to global internet markets where firms and even individuals can bargain, buy and sell online without any hiccups. Incase of banking unlike twenty years ago, money can be wired globally from one account from one end to the other part of the world not necessarily the same bank. Other than helping to speed up transactions, it is also very cost effective that is it cuts the prices down by half.

The increased debate about globalisation and state politics assumes some policies that are commonly observed in the modern world today. The common aspect of nation state is the impact of globalisation and economy. The economy of any given state is influenced by political temperature at any given time. When politics are at their peak at any given time period, the economy is severely affected. Nation state at this particular time should be very keen to address the issue of political unrest so as to safeguard the economy. The free movement of goods or services through the borders of a given state has an impact on the economy. When goods are sneaked into one nation state, the quality of states goods is compromised because some of the goods are substandard.

It is also a way of promoting competition among different production sectors. This impact of globalisation on nation state is very much important for purpose of checking the quality and standard of goods. The state must perform its functions irrespective of global impacts. This leads to the promotion of economy through creation of wealth and establishment of strong bonds with other well maintained global economies. National regulation of state functions has led to promotion of a common understanding and practices that help to promote trade affairs. The removal of trade barriers such as import duties, taxes or custom duty are some of the areas that influences globalisation among nation states. This way of doing business is seen to go a step higher than what many individuals expect. A nation in United States of America can transact business with another state in Africa without incurring a lot of costs.

This is one major impact of globalisation on nation state and it is seen to promote free trade and to provide goods and services that are not found in a given state. International trade that has been made possible due to the impact of globalisation has led to prediction of future trade relationships between territory nations that have bad political relationship. Globalisation has made nation states to sign trade treaties with a sole goal of promoting peace and creating strong bonds between member states. Many nation states have engaged themselves into talks that lead to establishment of strong bonds thus sharing some political authority. Good examples of political groupings among nation states include European Union (EU) and European community (EC) that are economically empowered. The organisations lead to integration of economy and also help to resolve conflicts along the border.

The European Union for instance, is a very important grouping that has the capacity to intervene in international negotiation. Due to globalization, the European Union gives aid to its member state incase of any tragedy or emergency. European Community which involves nation state like Britain is a good example of grouping that has led to promotion of economic affairs. This is an impact of globalisation in the modern world that is full of certain economic and political structures.

Globalisation has an impact on nation state in that the gap between the rich and poor keeps on widening. This is because those who have resources dominate the market and political organisations thus leaving the poor without. The poor have struggled to overcome the challenges posed by the rich but lack of authority and power has made it to be impossible. Both the rich and poor meet in the market and purchase commodities at the same price and at the end of it all the poor are more exploited. This impact of globalisation has led to economic challenges in most developing countries.

Conclusion
Globalization and its impact on nation state have shaped the way different nation state address political, economical and legal issues to promote the growth of economy. The impacts of globalisation on nation state as discussed in the essay are real life situations that every nation undergoes in the modern world. It is very important for leaders to put in place good arrangements that promote unity of strong global political system that addresses the problem of economy challenges.

The debate of politics and globalization has led to enlightenment of people in the way to survive with impacts of globalization. The whole issue on globalisation is about power and politics which has led to poor political organisations. The organisations formed in different nation state must put measures to address the impact of globalisation. One key area that should be addressed immediately is to deal with how to reduce the gap between the rich and poor. Globalization and the debate on nation state contribute to ways in which leaders from different nations can join their efforts to support each other.

The Three Strikes Law mandates an extended period of imprisonment for the law offenders who will commit the criminal offense three times in different occasions. Whether it is a violent crime or a serious crime (it also involves violent crime) like robbery, will be qualified for  strikes . The name was actually incorporated in baseball where the batter is allowed to have to strikes and after the third one he will be out. In New Zealand, the Three Strike Law is also set to be a law. In Scoop.Co, Hon Rodney Hide said that Three Strikes deliberately escalates the punishment for repeat violent offenders. Most offenders wont want to risk a second strike. Repeat offenders will be locked up without parole and for maximum sentences . However, the effectiveness and fairness of this law are being questioned.

People had been arguing if this law is effective and just. A lot of people are jailed for committing non-violent crimes and some of them can be considered as petty. In March 1999, a man in California was sentenced for 25 years of imprisonment just for stealing a bottle of vitamins. (Murphy,2000). Some say that the Three Strikes Law is effective to the repeat offenders because that just means that they are really bound in committing a crime.  I believe that New York should adapt this law because I feel that this would reduce the crime rate. There are a lot of crimes that always take place in New York. If people would know about this law, I am sure that they are not going to commit the same crime again. They are going to think twice in involving to different crimes for they are going to be accountable for the  second strike   Regardless of the crime that the criminals committed, they should pay for it justly. So whether a person commit homicide or just stole something, it is just right to make them learn their lesson. There are still other basis for conviction for each crimes that are committed. It just so happened that on the second strike, you will already have a longer sentence and on the third strike, you can never be put on parole. Just like when you did something good, big or small it is still goodness and same as when you did something bad.

In many cases, the standard for admissions into a prestigious law school program is that the candidate must be one with an intense drive to succeed, a desire for excellence and a drive to achieve the goals that have been set before himher. But I believe that in my background, the circumstances that I grew up in made my drive not only to excel but also a sense of compassion for those, like myself, who though were on the short end of the stick, as it were, made the most of what we had, enhanced that and made us better and stronger individuals. I do not see my background as a handicap to what I aspire for, to be accepted and graduate from your august law program, but to learn and hopefully give back to society, to aid those who were in my predicament a few years back, not only in a social essence but also in a legal manner if granted admission into your program.

Growing up, many factors could have been the reason for me just to give up, because of the hostility and apathy of society. My mother, an immigrant from Mexico, was left alone o raise me in a poverty stricken setting. The fact that we were poor and my Mexican lineage became sources of embarrassment for me as I grew up. In school, that differentiation was constantly reminded me by my dominant classmates, fueling my desire to be accepted by the superior class. But that differentiation was not limited to me alone my mother would often come home in tears, those differences and the barriers that they created being reminded to her at her place of employment. The image of my mother crying stirred my passions to desire that inclusiveness to the dominant society, not as an abdication of who we were just to fit in, but a recognition of who we are, to help others in their quest to overcome, and to help the people at the short end of the stick.

In college at Xavier, the embarrassment that I was different was when I had to work a full-time job while trying to graduate by attending night and weekend classes. But the differences that  I had so much perceived to be embarrassments were to become my building blocks towards successfully achieving my goals. In my job at Convergys, one of the leading companies in the world, the experience in working at such a prestigious company allowed me to contribute in a significant manner in my class, benefiting my classmates, while the new knowledge I learned in school allowed me to contribute in return to help my employer. At Xavier, I learned web site design this allowed me to impart that knowledge to help Convergys in the development of the companys intra-net web pages, thus saving the company a considerable amount of expenses.  As a member of the Global Diversity Council at the company, I was able to contribute my real life experiences in communicating and coordinating with other team members at various locations around the world.

I prided myself as a person who was not afraid to ask, so I was the one who always asked the questions that no one wanted to open in class. Also, the experience of going to school while at the same time working full time proved to be an immeasurable advantage to me, since this gave me a first hand, hands on experience at managing and fulfilling multiple tasks all at the same time, though I had initially thought of this as an disadvantage at the onset. Again, I had seen that deficiencies, or differences, can be turned into advantages in achieving ones goal. Again, this was made evident to me as I began my stint as a Corporate Diversity Specialist at Toyota. Utilizing my understanding as a member of both dominant and the non dominant sectors in society, and my fluent use of Spanish, I resolved productivity issues, and improved the relations between company headquarters in Kentucky and the production base in Mexico. Realizing the problem was underpinned by a dearth of understanding of the two parties, I initiated acting on the issue by collaborating with the team in the creation of a course on cross cultural competence, inclusive of the history of the two cultures, the differences and the similarities of each culture.

As a result of this program, the business methods being used by each greatly improved, leading to increased productivity and more importantly, an enhancement of the respect that each party gives to one another.  To further strengthen the bonds that have been established, I visited the production base in Mexico, where I implemented a diversity scorecard, and crafted a diversity policy and a training program suitable to the Mexican cultural framework. These actions has resulted in the creation of a Latino affinity group, developed by myself, that enhanced the respect and understanding of our Latino employees, which constitute 2 percent of the Kentucky workforce. The initiatives I undertook at the Mexican plant has bore fruit in the improvement of our relations with the other plant in Canada and the Kentucky headquarters.
The passion that I possess for the creation of a culture anchored on inclusivity that respects and appreciated the differences in every person has grown into a living and vigorous part in every activity that I go into. In the many experiences that I have undergone these past years, I have found the power of the diversity that we all share, and the importance of using that power as well as integrating it into my activities. In the past when I felt that the differences were a well spring of embarrassment for me, now I understand that they no longer are such for me. As I aspire to be part of the legal profession, these differences need to be seen in all facets of the American society. This can be achieved in the equal opportunity that American law will afford to all citizens, regardless of the factors that define that person. As a person who loves to answer a challenge, passionate about what I believe and practice, and of course, asking questions, I feel the desire to step into the gaps and become a solution rather than be part of the problem, of discrimination and hate and retaliating such acts against those of my heritage. In my chosen field of Employment Law, I want to bring that desire of creating that inclusiveness, and being equipped with a legal education will allow me to become a more effective advocate of that cause. A legal foundation, coupled with my diverse experiences, my heritage, fluency in Spanish and familiarity with another culture will give me the advantage of being a well-rounded lawyer and advocate of the future needs of the future workforce, be they dominant or not.

Article 230 EC lays down the times that an individual or business can challenge some EC decisions that they do not seemingly agree with. In order to bring an action under Article 230, it is necessary for the individual to have locus standi, i.e. they must have a direct or indirect personal interest in the actual decision. This has been interpreted very strictly by the courts and the subject of this paper is to consider whether or not this is a justifiable approach or whether the courts have been unduly restrictive.

Under Article 230(4), there must be an individual concern in order for the individual to have locus standi. This has been stated as being a thought against a decision addressed to that person or against a decision which, although in the form of a regulation or a decision addressed to another person, is of direct and individual concern to the former. It is this interpretation of individual concern that has been criticised as being too restrictive and it is here that the main analysis will be undertaken. In some cases, it has been argued that the European Court of Justice takes such a restrictive approach to when an individual may have their case heard, that the person had been entirely denied any legal remedy and that this is against the principles of judicial protection.

This proposition will be considered in the light of recent cases from the courts.
The actual theory behind this type of mechanism is clear. Whenever there are any rules that allow an organisation to make decisions, it is also necessary that these decisions can be tested in some clear and fair way. Based on this, it is necessary to have provisions such as those seen in Article 230 allowing individuals to question community decisions and to place controls over the actions of the Commission and the Council and also to a lesser extent the Parliament.

In reality, this burden rests with the European Court of Justice in the court of first instance, because it is seen as the independent body which has been trusted to uphold the rules on community in a fair and reasonable way. Under the treaty, the European Community offers a system whereby there can be judicial review of the decisions that are made. It covers both the administrative and legislative acts of the institutions giving it a potentially very wide remit.

Where an action for annulment is sought, Article 230 becomes central. Article 230(4) allows a non-privileged applicant, i.e. every legal or natural person, to challenge an alleged illegal act by the community. This is necessary due to the fact that community law has a direct effect on individuals as well as on member states and therefore these individuals deserve the right, potentially, to bring an action for annulment where they feel there has been an illegal act. It is possible for individuals to request a review of actions from the Council, the Commission, the European Central Bank and the European Parliament. The difficulty arises due to the fact that proving locus standi for such action is particularly arduous and this has a direct impact on the effectiveness of judicial protection.

In order to consider whether or not these positions are too restrictive, the operation of Article 230(4) will be considered in more detail. Broadly speaking, Article 230(4) allows any natural or legal person to bring proceedings against a decision that has been addressed to them or they have a direct individual concern with the decision. Therefore, in order to be able to bring an action for annulment and to initiate review proceedings against a decision, that decision must have been addressed to the applicant, be addressed to a third party with which the applicant has a direct and individual concern, or be a decision that is in the form of a regulation and this can be directly of concern to the applicant. Interestingly, Article 230 does not deal with the possibility of challenging directives by individual people, but as it is a legal instrument of the community, there is no reason why directors could not be challenged in this way. In fact, case law suggests that the legal instrument in question does not prevent individuals from bringing an action.

In order to show that the individual has a direct or individual concern, it is necessary that the legal decision is more than a mere interest. Both criteria need to be fulfilled, i.e. the decision must be both direct and individual. It could be argued that the direct concern is one that affects the legal situation of the individual applicant and allows little or no discretion in terms of how the measure should be implemented. Therefore, where there are rules brought into place and their implementation is not discretionary, parole is capable of having direct legal effect on an applicant. Based on this fact, it is necessary to consider whether or not the member state has a discretion regarding the way in which it implements the community rule. If the members had discretion, then it will be much harder to prove that the individual could bring an action against the community, as the communitys action did not directly restrict their legal rights.

The matter of individual concern was considered in detail in the case of Plaumann v Commission not only did the case discussed the issue individual concern in detail, but it also lays down the general approach that the courts would take when dealing with matters of judicial review. In this case, Plaumann but they dont individual who imported clementines try to bring an action against the Commission, due to the fact that the Commission had talked to me that it was unable to lower the duty on imports of clementines from 13 to 10. As the decision was actually addressed to the German government and not to Plaumann himself, he had to show that he had individual concern in the decision. The court stated that this meant it had to be a decision that affects them by reason of certain attributes which are peculiar to them or by reason of circumstances in which they are differentiated from all other persons and by virtue of these factors distinguishes them individually.

The court held that Plaumann was affected by the decision due to the fact that he was an importer of clementines, but that this did not wish him from other imported clementines or anyone else that chose to undertake this commercial activity from time to time. Based on this, he is not individually concerned as he was only considered due to his status as being commercially involved with clementines. This exceptionally restrictive test has been applied in subsequent cases and has also been the subject of much criticism from a wide range of sources.

In the case of Toepfer v Commission, the alternative decision was reached as the applicant who was an importer of cereals was held to have individual concern due to the fact that the rules only apply to those who attempted to gain an import licence and were refused such a licence on a specific date due to the Commissions decision. It was held, in this case, that he did have individual concern, as the decision applied to a very limited number of individuals and could not be extended at any point. A similar point was made in the case of Bock v Commission where it was stated that A decision is of individual concern to a person when the factual situation created by the decision differentiates him from all other persons and distinguishes him individually just as in the case of the person addressed. A trader is therefore individually concerned by a decision authorizing a Member State to reject the application for an import license made by the said trader prior to the adoption of the decision if the State makes use of that authorization.

Pulling these cases together, it can be concluded that, where the contested measures can have a general application, an individual could never be seen to be individually concerned, no matter how directly the decision may be seen to affect them. It is likely that this could result in some individuals being very badly affected by a Commission decision of not being able to bring an action, due to the fact that they are not considered to be individually concerned.

The restrictions are seen when it comes to challenges that are made against regulations which appear more like fact decisions. The reading of Article 230(4) suggests that regulations can only be challenged when they are, in fact, decisions and if a regulation were to be the subject matter of a challenge, it would have to be viewed as a series of decisions making up that regulation and the same restrictions in relation to individual concern would apply. In reality, however, the court has taken a different approach. Case law indicates that the courts have taken two approaches by looking at the closed category test and also the abstract terminology test.

The application of the closed category test could be seen in the case of International Fruit Company BV v. Commission, where a group of importers had applied for a licence to their own national authorities. The Commission was notified of the application and was responsible for the rules regulating whether or not these licences would be granted. The regulation would only apply to those who are applying for an import licence. It was held by the court that the regulations were, in fact, a series of individual decisions and therefore potentially caught by the provisions of Article 230.

When it comes to the abstract terminology test, the leading case is that of Calpak. In this case, the applicant produced William pears and they looked to another regulation which had advocated the amount of production aid they would receive, based on one marketing year, where previously the amount of aid had been based on the previous three years. The applicant argued that they were a close group and could be easily defined and therefore should have locus standi to bring an action. The court held The nature of the measure as a regulation is not called in question by the mere fact that it is possible to determine the number or even identity of the producers to be granted the aid which is limited thereby.

It can be seen, therefore, that when determining whether or not an individual has standing to bring an action for annulment the court, on the whole, has taken a very restrictive approach, but they have been slightly more lenient in certain areas such as anti-dumping and competition.

Some cases have attempted to justify the restrictive approach taken. In some cases, it has been found that an applicant would be able to bring an action where it was their only way of ensuring equality. Where not allowing an action for annulment would result in a denial of justice, the court will be more inclined to hold that there is standing. As stated in the case of Les Verts the European Economic Community is a Community based on the rule of law, inasmuch as neither its Member States nor its institutions can avoid a review of the question whether the measures adopted by them are in conformity with the basic constitutional charter, the treaty.

Less restrictive approaches have also been seen in competition law cases, although this could be arguably due to the fact that the applicants are often directly involved in the case and therefore establishing direct and individual concern is much easier, rather than it being a policy decision, to be more relaxed in competition cases.

Pulling this together and looking more closely at the actual wording in Article 230(4), it can be seen that, overall, the ethos behind these restrictions is to prevent individuals bringing actions in which they have merely a passing interest. If these were not interpreted very restrictively, the courts could find themselves inundated with mildly interested applicants and this would not be in the best interests of justice. This is a perfectly logical and sensible but it can be argued that the restrictions have gone too far and are now preventing legitimate claims from being brought.

Despite this strong argument for the restrictions, it has left individuals concerned by community action as case law has resulted in establishing standing being very difficult and justice not being achieved in many cases. Controlling actions against the European Community had been something that has been dealt with in other aspects of European law very successfully and it is hard to see how similar equality cannot be achieved in the area of Article 230(4).

One possible explanation could be that the courts goal is ultimately to operate as a form of appellate courts or community decisions and being restrictive in terms of interpreting Article 230(4) is a way of modifying the way in which the judicial system works within the European Community. It would seem that by being restrictive in relation to Article 230 claims of a forced to follow the process is under Article 234, where individuals can bring an action to question whether its member states have acted in light of the community law.

In conclusion, the way in which Article 230 is being interpreted has resulted in an unduly restrictive approach and has at times resulted in individuals failing to bring a claim for annulment. In these cases, a common interpretation of the situation would have been likely to suggest that they did have individual interest, but the courts decided differently. There may be good reasons for this such as the need to restrict access to the courts and to ensure that the court takes a more appellate type role however, as it stands currently, the restriction are such that they prevent justice in many cases and require applicants to look for different means of questioning illegal actions. Currently, the restrictions placed on the application of Article 230 cannot be fully justified, without an alternative being offered.

It is said that power and influence in the legal jargon goes beyond the judiciary. In the current world, some law firms have a lot of influence due their popularity and dominance in the market. Times online legal editors Frances Gibb and Alex Spence in their article law1oo asked

Who are the driving forces at the big City law firms, the generators of billion-pound revenues  the dealmakers who command most respect And is the in-house solicitor, with power to bring a test case, more powerful than the barristers who win it or the judge who decides it And what of those in the backrooms, the unseen lawyers driving the policy cogs of government

This is an indicator that the people are aware and unhappy of what is going on in our judicial system. If this situation continues to prevail, who will be the poor peoples defender  This has caused a lot of unjust judgments. If the best lawyers are only found onboard the high profile law firms and on that matter very expensive, who is going to represent the less fortunate in the society That is a question only the lawyers themselves can answer out of self consciousness. The problem with our courts is that the judges prosecute on grounds of who is representing you. These top lawyers dine and wine with the judges. How then do we expect them not to receive favors from the judges if they are their friends

Business wise, corporate law firms are very expensive. This has helped increase the vulnerability and manipulation of small businesses by the huge firms who have their cases presented by big law firms in the country.

This has greatly influenced injustice in the society with the poor being represented by appointed court attorneys while the rich being represented by top profile lawyers from big law firms in the cities.

Admission essay to the law undergraduate of the year award
Even before I joined law school, I was very sure that my calling was destined to work as a lawyer and that arguing and presenting law facts is a thing cultivated in me. There has never been doubt about what I have wanted to do with my life. When I am in court room I feel that the working environment is more controlled than any where else. I find the satisfaction I get when after winning a case very much fulfilling. I am well conversant with what is required of a lawyer and I have a clear understanding of the repercussions although to me they are just but an urge to pursue further. By becoming an integral winner of the Mayer brown law summer work experience program, will be a step further in building my profile as a lawyer.

I have strong educational background I am expecting at least a 22 in my results. I have been fully active in school activities relating to law and have won various awards in my time of study. I am also am deeply associated with communal work. I participate in community based activities to help create a better place for the benefit of us all and even hold a burning sphere award for event organizing.

I boast of having great communication, listening and interpersonal skills which I believe incorporated by the passion for law I have and team work provided, we will both be able to offer the public the justice they deserve. With the areas I am not conversant with, I will compensate by learning quickly. I adopt quickly to change and collaborate very well with others towards achieving our goal. I believe by adopting me into your program will be a step further towards promoting my career interests and helping you achieve your business objectives

A corporate law project
This is the most interesting and intriguing project I have ever undertook in my time of study. The many cases relating to business fraud and financial mismanagement I encountered in my research were very helpful to me in understanding corporate law fully. The project was to evaluate and relate two cases studies regarding business ethic dilemmas caused by breach of corporate law in the United States and Australia. That led me to unearth the Enron scandal (2001 United States) and the Skase saga (1989 Australia).

The Enron scandal is the biggest audit failure in the history of United States. An analysis on the failure indicated personal involvement on the financial management of the organization. The Enron scandal led to the generation of the Sarbanes Oxley act on 8th, June 2002. United States senator Mr. Paul Sarbanes and a house representative Michael Oxley managed to pass what would be known as the Sarbanes Oxley bill at the senate banking committee. The act was to overlook financial management and corporate governance in organizations.

Similar to this is the Skase (Quintex) saga. Quintex was retail and broadcasting company that performed well in its early days of business. In 1989, the company scrambled down due to bankruptcy. One of the company directors Mr. Ted Harris highlighted the circumstances of the collapse to the public as personal interference of the chief executive in the running of the business. He stated that Mr. Skase was channeling company revenues to his other private companies including the seven network TV station and a number of hotel resorts and clubs across Australia and Asia. These transfers were unauthorized and involved huge amounts of money. In the early 1980s, Quintex was estimated to be over 1.5 Australian billion dollars and by the time of collapse, the company was in debt of over 700, 000 million Australian dollars.