Vol. 12 No. 2 (2022)

Published December 22, 2022

##issue.tableOfContents##

Articles

  • The Transfer of Contract on the Basis of Statutory Provisions: Novation or Succession?
    7-27
    Views:
    234

    In 2016, the Act CLXXVII of 2013 on the Transitional and Authorizing Provisions related to the Entry into Force of Act No. V of 2013 on the Civil Code (’Ptké.’) was amended, with questions of interpretation arising regarding the transfer of contract on the basis of statutory provisions. Therefore, after a short period of rest, the transfer of contract, the novation, and their relationship again became the focus of the attention of both legal scholars and practitioners. After a short introduction of the legal provisions on the transfer of contract, the amendment of 2016 and its reasons are reviewed. Then, both the controversies that emerged in the judicial practice and the answers given by the Hungarian Constitutional Court and the Curia are examined thoroughly.

  • The Beneficium Novorum in the Light of the Hungarian Procedural Reform Movements of the 19th and 20th Centuries
    28-44
    Views:
    143

    The study examines the historical development of the beneficium novorum in the 19th and 20th century. This legal institution means the right of the parties to make such submissions that had not been made in first instance proceedings. Act I of 1911 (the first Hungarian code of civil procedure) made it possible without any boundaries based on the appellatio of Roman law. Act 1930 of XXXIV, however, restricted the freedom of submission in time with the enforcement of the principle of contingent cumulation. The study has a practical approach since it examines the question through archive sources and high court decisions. It argues that the application of the principle of contingent cumulation in the appeal proceedings was a successful legislative move which led to their shortening.

  • The Constitutional Obstacles before the Promulgation of the Rome Statute
    45-59
    Views:
    371

    July 17, 1998, can be considered as one of the most important milestones of the international judicial structure: it is the day when the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court was adopted by 120 states out of 148. Article 86 of Statute explicitly states that „States Parties shall […] cooperate fully with the Court in its investigation and prosecution of crimes within the jurisdiction of the Court.” As in the case of every international treaty, the principle of pacta sunt servanda enshrined in Article 26 of the 1969 Vienna Convention on the Law of the Treaties states applies, which explicitly states that “every treaty in force is binding upon the parties to it and must be performed by them in good faith.” As has been pointed out by the Permanent Court of International Justice, contracting states must make all the necessary internal measures which are required to fulfil its international obligations rising from a binding treaty. One could ask, why is this quite obvious argument important in the case of Hungary? Well, Hungary has ratified the Statute but still has not implemented it in its internal legislation. This can be considered as a serious constitutional omission, since if the Court would require the cooperation of Hungary – e.g. in the case of an arrest warrant – and it would not be able to fulfil it because of the lack of the internal legal norms, it would be considered as international legal responsibility of Hungary. In this article, I try to explore the reasons behind this omission and outline the possible solutions.

  • Legal aspects of NFTs
    60-77
    Views:
    207

    The focus of the study is on NFTs. Accordingly, the study presents, on the one hand, the process and reason for the emergence of NFTs as a new crypto art category. Subsequently, within the framework of the study, the operation of NFT marketplaces and the different sales methods of NFTs are examined. Finally, in the light of the applicable national copyright law, an apparent conflict between the copyright holder and the owner of a given NFT will be resolved following the trading of the NFT on the secondary market.

Legal Practice

  • Messages of German and Italian Identity Parades
    78-89
    Views:
    97

    All criminal justice systems in rule-of-law states attempt to prevent justizmord cases. Unfortunately, this intention is not always successful. This statement is illustrated by both Hungarian and foreign examples.  Both Hungarian and international scientific research reveals that the identity parade (line-up) method plays a key role in the miscarriage of justice cases. So it is important (basic)/vital interest to prepare preventing methods in this field, or to reveal/disclose the causes of final serious mistakes. For this purpose, the author examines the identity practical method and legal (police) rules in Germany and Italy. At the end of the study, the author formulates the potential legal and criminalistic/forensic development possibilities, the lessons and his conclusions for the powerful/efficient and fair criminal procedure rules and for better law enforcement practice. 

  • Comparison of Enforcement Systems for the Violation of Fundamental Rights of Detainees Stemming from the Condition of Detention in Penitentiaries and the Right to a Fair and Public Hearing within a Reasonable Time
    90-110
    Views:
    150

    The violation of fundamental rights of detainees stemming from the conditions of detention in penitentiaries and the right to a fair and public hearing within a reasonable time raise complex concerns, because in such cases the applicants have to submit a procedure under the Hungarian Prison Act or a lawsuit concerning the violation of certain rights relating to personality under the Hungarian Code of Civil Procedure or the Civil Code. The legal protection is uncertain, because the rules relating to prison conditions meet with rules of civil procedure and civil code rules. Court decisions do not help to find the way out of this incoherency. The questions mentioned in the present article raise serious dogmatic debates, casting doubt on the efficiency of the remedies.

Law & Politics

  • Challenges of Sustainable Employment
    111-128
    Views:
    215

    When the Green Deal says we need to rethink policies for clean energy (see economy, industry, production and consumption, large-scale infrastructure, transport, food and agriculture, construction, tax policy, social benefits) what does this really mean for employment? What would it mean for the world of work if employment were to focus on sustainability, climate protection and the common interests of society? What changes would a shift to a greener economy bring about in the labour market? How would it affect already vulnerable groups of workers? One possible answer to these questions already exists: green work, which is the subject of this study.

  • The Financial Intermediation System in the Service of Environmental Protection or Green Financial Solutions
    129-140
    Views:
    267

    In the present study, we have presented the activities and measures of the financial sector that support environmental protection and take into account climate change. To this end, existing international organizations have adopted documents to promote the use of climate-neutral green financial solutions by consumers, and new international organizations have been set up specifically for this purpose. The most successful of such organizations is NGFS, which currently has more than a hundred members. We have seen that the Hungarian National Bank has also taken a number of measures, announcing a program to green the financial sector.

  • The Types of Government-Organized Non-Governmental Organizations: The GONGO Phenomenon
    141-158
    Views:
    255

    My study describes the conceptual dividing lines and differences between one of the most important actors in civil society, the non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and government-organized non-governmental organizations (GONGOs). Furthermore, it classifies the different types of GONGOs (professional, diffuse, “democratizing”, “lobby”). Following the classification, it becomes clear that to various degrees, the different types of GONGOs are excellent tools in the hands of governments to reshape the structure of the civil society which articulates critical views of the government.

  • The British Isles and the Arctic: Episodes from the Past and Present
    159-170
    Views:
    139

    The article explores certain past and present aspects of Britain’s engagement with the Arctic. More specifically, it looks at English and Scottish connections with the area of Spitsbergen (present-day Svalbard, Norway), focusing on exploration and whaling, as well as competition with European powers. Certain legal issues that subsequently arose over the course of time regarding the area are also looked at. Additionally, it examines modern tensions surrounding Svalbard, between the European Union and Norway in the aftermath of Brexit, specifically due to the allocation of fishing quotas. This illustrates the impact that Brexit has had in various different areas. The study also deals with the United Kingdom’s present engagement with the Artic, including Scotland’s attempt at formulating an independent Arctic policy.

Reviews & Reports

  • Book Review: Sipka Péter: Employer’s Liability in Theory and Practice
    171-178
    Views:
    98

    Péter Sipka’s book was published in 2021 by HVG-ORAC under the title “Employer’s Liability in Theory and Practice”. On the one hand the author analyses the system of liability in depth, on the other hand the author widely describes the court decisions. Thanks to the monograph the reader can get to know the legal institution of employer’s liability for damage to employee’s health in its complexity. In addition to the examination of labor law, the connections between occupational safety and social security are also described.