Dissemination of Consumer Law and Policy in South Africa

This article considers to what extent some important areas of South African consumer law have been influenced by the laws of international bodies, other countries or regional bodies or, in turn, influenced other laws in Southern Africa and beyond. It focuses on rules on product safety, product liability, remedies for defective quality of goods, some basic rules on unfair commercial practices and various aspects of consumer law relating to the use of mobile phones by South African consumers. The main piece of legislation considered is the Consumer Protection Act 68 of 2008 (“CPA”), which came into force in 2011. The article considers whether aspects of this legislation were influenced by the EC Product Safety Directive, EC Product Liability Directive, EC Consumer Sales Directive, EC Unfair Commercial Practices Directive and EC Directive on Misleading and Comparative Marketing. It shows how the relevant provisions of the CPA influenced the laws of some African countries. The article also considers various issues faced by consumers in the mobile phone sector, including defective handsets, defective services, the high cost of mobile calls and data, the lapsing of “unused” data after short periods, data “disappearing” faster than expected, unfair contract terms, unsolicited marketing and the complexity of mobile phone contracts, which leads consumers to overestimate or underestimate their future usage, therefore paying too much because they are on an ill-suited plan. Conclusion of agreements via mobile phones, marketing of additional services like ringtones and apps and unsolicited marketing via mobile phones are also considered. Some complaints regarding the use of mobile phones should be better provided for in legislation, and enforcement of consumer rights in this sector could be improved.     

Reform of the law of product liability in Australia

The paper discusses the Australian debate in recent years about reform of the law of product liability. A recommendation of the Australian Law Reform Commission to establish a regime based on causation without the need to establish that a product was defective has been rejected and an Act recently enacted in the federal parliament is based on the EC Directive on product liability. The development risk defence is available but there is no ceiling upon total liability. There are some substantive differences between the Australian Act and the Directive. For example, where a manufacturer establishes a defence of reliance on a federal mandatory standard, the federal government will be liable to the injured plaintiff. It was originally proposed to include a number of more radical departures from the approach of the Directive. These related to the burden of proof, the period of extinguishment of liability, and extra-territorial operation of the legislation. Following strong opposition, the government decided to proceed with the legislation without these proposals, which are to be the subject of further inquiry by a parliamentary committee.

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Reform des Produkthaftungsrechts in Australien

Zusammenfassung Der Beitrag diskutiert die australische Diskussion der letzten Jahre zur Reform des Produkthaftungsrechts. Eine Empfehlung der australischen Law Reform Commission von 1989 schlug zunÄchst eine Kausalhaftung vor, bei der der Nachweis eines Produktfehlers nicht geführt werden mu\te. Dieser Vorschlag ist jedoch auf starken Widerstand gesto\en und letztlich abgelehnt worden. Eine kürzliche Gesetzgebungsinitiative der australischen Bundesregierung geht auf die EG-Produkthaftungsrichtlinie 85/374 zurück. Die Initiative wird die Haftung für Entwicklungsrisiken ausschlie\en, aber keine Haftungshöchstgrenzen einführen.Es bestehen aber auch Unterschiede zwischen der europÄischen Richtlinie und den australischen VorschlÄgen. Kann sich z. B. der Hersteller damit exkulpieren, da\ der Fehler auf eine Norm des Bundesrechts zurückgeht, so mu\ die Bundesregierung selbst haften. Ursprünglich sollten die australischen VorschlÄge noch stÄrker von der EG-Richtlinie abweichen, z. B. hinsichtlich der Beweislast, der Ausschlu\frist der Haftung für Tod und Körperverletzung oder hinsichtlich der extraterritorialen Gültigkeit der Gesetzgebung. Auf starken Druck der Opposition verzichtete die Regierung jedoch auf diese VorschlÄge, die aber künftiger Beratungsgegenstand des parlamentarischen Ausschusses sein werden.

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This article draws in part, with the permission of the publisher, on an earlier article by the writer; see Harland, 1991.     

Policy and practice in Germany

Abstract: In Germany, EU directives have been the primary source of consumer protection legislation in banking and financial services, especially legislation on consumer credit and investment services. Otherwise, there is little significant statute law, either at federal or provincial (Länder) level, apart from a recent Consumer Bankruptcy Law. Most consumer problems have to be solved within the framework of the very general Civil Code or the law on unfair contract terms. This means that there is strong emphasis on the role of the courts in interpreting the law in specific cases. In recent years consumer organizations have played an important part in bringing class action cases in the courts – notably on issues concerned with value dating, bank charges and the early termination of mortgage and insurance contracts. There is virtually no tradition of securing consumer protection through codes of conduct. Banking ombudsman schemes have been set up in recent years, but are subject to some criticisms by consumer organizations.     

Plant closing ethics root in American law

The harsh consequences of the American plant closing epidemic in recent years on workers, their families, and their communities, has raised widespread ethical and moral concerns. In the early 1970s, a diverse group of academics, social activists, public policy analysts, and special interest organizations developed a number of legislative proposals designed to restrict closings by law. The proposals encountered many formidable obstacles in an increasingly hostile free-market environment. The business community was itself moved to assume some of the burdens precipitated by closures either unilaterally or through collective bargaining. At the same time, powerful business interests tenaciously fought the enactment of mandatory closing restrictions into law. Nevertheless, through a prolonged and tortuous odyssey, the requirements of advanced notice and worker severence pay have now begun to root in law. Their success stands as evidence of a continuing American public policy receptivity to ethics-driven concerns. Dr. Peter E. Millspaugh is an Associate Professor of Business Legal Studies at the School of Business Administration, George Mason University, located in Northern Virginia outside of Washington, D.C. His articles and book reviews have appeared in: Academy of Management Executive, New England Law Review, Saint Louis University Law Journal, University of Toledo Law Review, Pacific Law Review, The Uniform Commercial Code Law Journal, Business Law Review, The Labor Law Journal, The Corporation Law Review, Business and Society, The Detroit College of Law Review, The Real Estate Law Journal, The Journal of Corporation Law, Business Horizons, The University of Baltimore Law Review, The Journal of Labor Research, University of Detroit Journal of Urban Law, Loyola International and Comparative Law Journal, Seton Hall Legislative Journal, Arizona Journal of International and Comparative Law, Business and Society Review, The Government Accountants Journal, Public Contract Law Journal, The University of Georgia Journal of International and Comparative Law and numerous Proceedings of national and regional conferences of the American Business Law Association.     

Keywords in 2008

＂It was the best of times,it was the sorst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief,it was the epoch of incredulity,it was the season of light,it was the season of Darkness,it was the spring of hope,it was the winter of despair.     

Consumer insurance

This report sets out the legal requirements which the European Consumer Law Group believes ought to be incorporated into consumer insurance contracts.The opening sections deal primarily with the law and practice governing pre-contractual negotiations. Subject areas covered include: (I) the need for accurate information about the cost of insurance and the extent of cover; (II) the use of consumer protection devices such as the cooling-off period and/or the offre préalable; (III) whether there should be a right to insurance per se; (IV) the unfairness of the law governing declarations of risk and non-disclosure.The next section of the paper analyses the terms of the insurance contract by commenting upon: (V) the wording form and language of contracts; (VI) the law governing warranties and Obliegenheiten; (VII) the legal effect of false replies to questionnaires and basis of the contract clauses; (VIII) whether the terms of insurance contracts should be subject to general consumer legislation.The penultimate section of the paper is concerned with (IX) the duration and (X) the termination of insurance contracts. The paper concludes by addressing itself to (XI) a number of miscellaneous matters and by (XII) stressing the need for effective redress procedures in the insurance field. The recommendations contained therein are then annexed in summary form.

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Verbraucher und Versicherung

Zusammenfassung Die European Consumer Law Group, eine Vereinigung von Rechtslehrern und Rechtspraktikern des Verbraucherrechts in Europa, macht in ihrem hier veröffentlichten Bericht eine Reihe von Vorschlägen über die grundlegenden Anforderungen, die aus der Sicht des Verbrauchers an die Gestaltung von Versicherungsverträgen zu richten sind. Dabei wird bewußt versucht, unter Absehen von den außerordentlichen regulatorischen Unterschieden innerhalb der Mitgliedstaaten der EG und der anderen europäischen Staaten ein auf Verbraucher zugeschnittenes Versicherungsvertragsmodell zu entwickeln. Zuerst geht es dabei um die Phase der Vertragsverhandlungen. Der Verbraucher benötigt exakte Informationen über die Kosten der Versicherung und den Deckungsumfang (I). Vorgesehen ist die Verankerung von verbraucherschützenden Regeln Über ein Widerrufsrecht und/oder die Verpflichtung des Versicherungsunternehmens zur Abgabe eines bindenden Angebots (Grundsatz der offre préalable) mit vorläufigem Deckungsschutz (II). Erörtert wird weiterhin die Frage eines Kontrahierungszwanges des Versicherungsunternehmens, wie sie im Schwedischen Verbraucherversicherungsgesetz vorgesehen ist (III). Die Angabepflichten des Versicherungsnehmers bezüglich des versicherten Risikos sind klar zu gestalten und hinsichtlich der Rechtsfolgen bei Verstoß vor unnötigen Härten freizuhalten (IV).Der nächste Teil des Papieres geht auf die Versicherungsbedingungen im einzelnen ein. Dazu gehören Sprache und Gestaltung des Vertrages (V), Regeln über Obliegenheiten und sogenannte warranties (Zusicherungen des Versicherungsnehmers bezüglich des versicherten Risikos) (VI), Rechtsfolgen bei Verstoß gegen Vertragsbestimmungen (VII) und Notwendigkeit der Anwendung allgemeiner verbraucherschützender Regeln, etwa über allgemeine Geschäftsbedingungen, auch auf Versicherungsverträge (VIII).Danach wendet sich das Papier der Dauer (IX) und der Beendigung (X) von Versicherungsverträgen zu. Zum Schluß werden eine Reihe sonstiger Fragen des Versicherungsvertrages behandelt (XI), um schließlich die Notwendigkeit effektiver Beschwerde- und Rechtsdurchsetzungsmechanismen (XII) hervorzuheben. Ein Annex faßt die konkreten rechtspolitischen Empfehlungen zusammen.

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The European Consumer Law Group (E.C.L.G) is a group of lawyers and law scholars in the EEC, concerned with legal aspects of consumer protection. Correspondence regarding this paper should be directed to: Mr. Alex Schuster, Lecturer in Law, Trinity College, Dublin 2, Ireland.     

公司经理权的界定及其在我国的法律完善

公司经理权作为一种特殊的民商事权利在我国先行法律中并没得到很好体现。本文从考察各国有关经理权的法律规定入手,对公司经理权的内容、行使方式及其限制进行了深入细致的探讨。并对我国公司经理制度的完善提出了一些自己的建议和思考。认为对经理权的立法应从民法和商法两个层面分别作出规定,并将我国公司法上的经理职权改成经理权,并适当扩充其权利内容。     

论入世对中国社会保险立法的影响——兼论我国社保法之进一步完善

社保法出台前我国社会保险立法存在着层次低,碎片化;内容旧,不适时;重城镇,轻农村的特点。入世对我国社保法出台的影响主要体现在3方面:国际贸易形势变化推动立法;其他相关领域法律制度的变化影响社会保险立法;WTO规则影响我国社会保险行政管理体制方面立法。以养老保险为例,入世对我国社保法具体险种的影响主要体现在:促使国家立法扩大了养老保险范围;有利于推动建立多层次的养老保险体系;一定程度上推动了养老保险关系跨区域转移。社保法出台后,仍有需完善之处:法制化有待进一步深入;公平性有待进一步提高;民族性有待进一步发掘和确立。     

Why is there a Separation between Distance Selling in EU Law and the Tourism Industry?

Twelve years have passed since the partial exclusion of most tourist services from the Distance Selling Directive (art. 3 para. 2). The application of a particular right of withdrawal to contracts negotiated away from business premises for the provision of these services was considered inappropriate. Out of this consumer protection will be rather weaker than in other distance contracts. Additional information cannot be required from the service provider and rash decisions resulting from an informational disadvantage, i.e., a lack of personal contact, cannot be rectified by terminating the contract. These difficulties can only be partially resolved by referring to other regulations, such as national norms implementing the E-Commerce Directive (arts. 5 to 11) or the new Timeshare Directive (arts. 4 and 5), among others. Recently, the proposal for a Directive on consumer rights of 8 October 2008 maintains the same approach (art. 20 para. 3, art. 3 para 3) and the Draft Common Frame of Reference also coincides to some extent with the exclusion of some tourist services from distance selling protection. The aim of this paper is to review this exclusion by means of examining the dynamics of tourism services.     

Fixed-term contracts in EC countries

Since the beginning of the 1980s, an increase in the number of fixed-term employment contracts has been apparent in a number of free-market-oriented economies. This has been accompanied by amendments to the pertinent legislation. From the early to mid-1980s, a number of EC countries initiated legislation with the object of facilitating the conclusion of fixed-term contracts. How is this development to be assessed from an economic point of view?     

Product liability and product safety-complementary approaches to consumer safety. Some observations of the situation in the EEA

Abstract

In this paper the author asserts that product liability and product safety are complementary instruments to achieve a safer environment for consumers. Whereas legislation on product liability has a remedying function, legislation on product safety has a preventive one. The present situation in the EEA countries as regards the implementation of the Council Directives on Product Liability and Product Safety is summarized as well as the basic content of the Directives. It seems that almost all EEA countries have implemented the Liability Directive. The EFTA countries probably have-in comparison with the EU countries-to some extent a more positive implementation approach. It is too premature to foresee how the EEA countries will implement the Product Safety Directive of June 29, 1994. However, for many years most West European countries have had rules regulating product safety. The product safety policy in the EEA countries has been enhanced by co-operation within the OECD, the EU and the EFTA. Market control co-ordination will be an important part of the EEA efforts in the future to increase safety for consumers.     

消防应急救援范围研究

消防应急救援不同于其他应急救援,它是《消防法》赋予公安机关消防机构的一项法定职责,但是,对于这一法定职责的范围,从《消防法》的规定中还难以得出一个清晰的答案。为此,有必要运用法律解释的方法,并结合公安机关消防机构的职能,对消防应急救援的范围进行深入探讨,以求得出一个既符合法学理论,又符合公安机关消防机构应急救援实践的答案,这个范围就是以抢救人员生命为主作为标准,并以此提出消防应急救援范围立法完善的建议。     

The combination of contracts in Shariah: A possible mechanism for product development in Islamic banking and finance

The combination of contracts is a potential mechanism of product development in Islamic finance. However, this concept encounters legal issues due to ahadith that prohibit two contracts in one deal. The article argues for the validity of combining two or more contracts to structure Shariah‐compliant products. It discusses many aspects of combination of contracts, including terminologies and purposes of the con‐tracts, the degree of uncertainty and ambiguity, and the nature of the bargain in the contracts combined. If the contracts combined pass the tests established by legal prin‐ciples, there will be no legal objection to combine such contracts into one deal. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

The regulation of water services in the EU

The European Commission’s proposal for a Directive on the award of concession contracts has sparked vigorous public debate and intense opposition. This Directive is controversial because of the nature of the policy it proposes and because the sectors involved are highly sensitive. This Forum examines the weaknesses of the Commission’s proposal and presents an overview of the current issues in water regulation and the provision of water services. The authors analyse the regulation of natural monopolies, water efficiency and upstream competition in the water industry.     

Fundamental Rights and the European Regulation of iConsumer Contracts

This paper addresses the question of how fundamental rights affect European legislation and adjudication on contracts regarding digital information services (iConsumer contracts). Fundamental rights may be seen as representing political choices for the protection of certain values in society, but at the same time, they are enacted rules of the legal system, which may be invoked to enforce the protection of the interests they represent. It is submitted that because of this double-faced nature, they can bring to the fore policy issues in contract legislation and case law. Fundamental rights can thus play a role in evaluating the policy choices that are being made in the review of the acquis communautaire in the field of consumer law. For iConsumer contracts, that means that the rights of consumers, authors, and suppliers of copyright-protected content affect the choice of rule-solutions on the European legislative level. Furthermore, these rights have an impact on the case law of the European Court of Justice in the field of e-commerce. Fundamental rights help define the various rule-solutions the Court can choose from and thus demarcate the law-making capacity of the judiciary.

Wanted: a Bigger Stick. On Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts with Online Service Providers

The Unfair Contract Terms Directive offers consumers protection from pre-formulated imbalanced contract terms. While the standard terms and conditions of online service providers have previously been accused of harming clients of such online services, a comprehensive analysis of the potential unfair character of such terms and conditions in line with the interpretation of the Directive supplied by the CJEU has not yet been provided. This paper aims to fill in this gap in the academic literature. It identifies several types of contractual terms used by international online service providers in their consumer contracts, which are unlikely to pass the Directive’s unfairness test.     

Business-to-Consumer Harassment,Unfair Commercial Practices Directive and the UK—A Distorted Picture of Uniform Harmonization?

The Unfair Commercial Practices Directive 2005 (UCPD) attempts to achieve a full harmonization of the rules against unfair business-to-consumer (B2C) practices. However, this paper argues that the UCPD cannot resolve disparities in national laws because of a lack of clarity of concepts and the existence of uncertain substantive and enforcement provisions. This is demonstrated by the Ferguson v British Gas case which extended the loosely formulated UK Protection from Harassment Act 1997 (PHA) to B2C harassment cases covered by the UCPD. Ferguson highlights contradictions in the approaches of the two systems which suggest loopholes in the UCPD’s full harmonization goal. As well as proposing the amendment of the PHA, the paper suggests that complete harmonization requires that issues of clarity of concepts, definitions, liability, ancillary tort claims, and enforcement rights which create room for creative interpretations and lack of uniformity should be addressed. A one-stop legislation approach to transposition can also improve harmonization.     

The law-making power of enterprises and the Protection of Consumers in Spanish contract law

The paper informs about the development which has taken place in the Spanish law of general contract conditions. The first part is concerned with an analysis of the factual law-making power of enterprises in modern market economies and its regulation by legislation, court practice, and doctrine. The second part gives a critical account of the new approach towards general contract conditions taken by the newly adopted General Act for the Protection of Consumers and Users of 1984. The author points to the insufficiencies of this Act, most notably the lack of effective procedures to control abuses in general contract conditions. The author refers to the draft of a new act concerning general contract conditions which has been inspired by the most advanced statutes in this area and by the proposals developed by the Council of Europe and by the European Economic Community. The enactment of this proposal would — according to the author — fill the lacunae in the existing legislation.

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Die Gesetzgebungsbefugnis von Unternehmen und der Schutz der Verbraucher im Spanischen Recht

Zusammenfassung Der Beitrag informiert über die Entwicklung des spanischen Rechts der Allgemeinen Geschäftsbedingungen. Der erste Teil beschäftigt sich mit einer Analyse der faktischen Gesetzgebungsbefugnis von Großunternehmen in modernen Marktwirtschaften durch das Instrumentarium der Allgemeinen Geschäftsbedingungen und mit den bisherigen Kontrollversuchen in Gesetzgebung, Rechtsprechung und Lehre.Der zweite Teil enthält eine kritische Analyse des durch das spanische Verbraucherschutzgesetz von 1984 versuchten neuen Regelungszugriffs. Der Autor hebt die Mängel dieses Gesetzgebungswerkes in bezug auf Allgemeine Geschäftsbedingungen hervor, die im Fehlen effizienter Verfahren zur Beseitigung mißbräuchlicher Vertragsklauseln begründet sind. Er verweist auf einen Gesetzgebungsvorschlag des spanischen Justizministeriums über ein besonderes Gesetz zur Regelung des Rechts der Allgemeinen Geschäftsbedingungen, das nicht nur Verbrauchern, sondern auch (kleinen) Kaufleuten zugute käme. Seine verfassungsrechtlichen Vorschriften sehen nach dem Vorbild neuerer Gesetzgebungsakte und der Vorschläge des Europarates und der EWG die Einführung einer Verbandsklage vor, was nach Meinung des Autors die durch das Gesetz von 1984 gelassene Schutzlücke schließen würde.

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Manuel-Angel López Sánchez is an Assistant Lecturer in Commercial Law at the University of Zaragoza, Faculty of Law, E-50009 Zaragoza, Spain.     

The New German Sales Law: Changing Patterns in the Regulation of Product Quality

Directive 99/44/EC has led to a fundamental revision of the German Civil Code, the BGB. The Act on the Modernisation of the Law of Obligations, which is now in force, pursues a threefold objective: modernisation, Europeanisation, and integration. Modernisation means making German civil law fit for competition with the best civil systems. Europeanisation means transforming three directives on default, consumer sales, and e-commerce into German civil law. Integration means absorbing consumer legislation into the Civil Code.This paper focuses on sales law. The author argues that it enshrines a new concept of contract law. Its basic elements are made clear when examined on the basis of a historical analysis of the factors that have determined the development of the product quality regulation in the last century: contract law, technical standardisation, and competition law. All three are no longer in the hands of the Member States alone. Europeanisation is at the heart of the matter. Europeanisation has led to major changes in technical standardisation, in competition law, and now in contract law. This newly emerging concept might be termed "competitive contract law," as it develops under the influence of both EC contract and EC competition law. The German legislator has gone a long way in changing the regulatory patterns in sales law. Whether it will be politically and legally accepted remains to be seen.     

国际企业社会责任与我国劳动者权利保护

本文认为,中国在成为“世界工厂”的同时,劳工问题也日益突出,并被国际社会所关注。目前我国企业在社会责任方面存在的问题,集中表现在侵害劳动者合法权益现象严重,如签订劳动合同的比率很低,劳动者的经济利益得不到保障,劳动条件恶劣、劳动安全问题严重,不支付加班工资,劳动者的生存权受到侵害等。文章提出,为维护劳动者权益,第一,要在全国范围内推行以签订劳动合同为基础的劳动用工登记制度。第二,各级政府和部门要加大执法力度,严厉查处拒不执行最低工资规定的用人单位。第三,劳动保障部门要加强对劳动定额标准的管理,建立和完善日常监察制度。第四,加快社会保障制度建设,抓紧解决进城务工人员参保问题。第五,要加快制订《劳动合同法》、《社会保险法》、《劳动争议处理法》、《就业促进法等法律》,修改完善《劳动法》。