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This thesis examines the use of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) for local government planning and development disputes in New South Wales. Set within broader theoretical concerns around key concepts, this research comprehensively documents, for the first time, how the ADR process of mediation was introduced to NSW councils and then used by their staff and independent ADR practitioners for disputes over development applications and the formation of local planning policies. The thesis also provides a systematic overview of the use of mediation and conciliation for development appeals brought before the Land and Environment Court of NSW (LEC). In the 1980s there was considerable interest in ADR in Australia. Mediation was in use for community, family and business disputes and by the early 1990s was being suggested for environmental, planning and development matters. Its use was encouraged by government agencies keen to see a reduction in the costs of often delayed council decisions on development applications. There was also a desire by councils to find a way to reduce the community disharmony that often occurred over large or contentious applications, or when changes to planning policies were proposed. Mediation held great promise in these early years but as this research shows, its take-up has been modest and its use variable. A detailed analysis of the encouragement to use ADR for planning and development disputes before councils and the LEC, together with an examination of policy and survey evidence, uncovers a significant gap between the promotional rhetoric and actual practice. From extensive in-depth interviews with council staff and ADR practitioners and through personal knowledge, it can be seen that the initial enthusiasm for ADR has not continued, with council staff now more commonly seeking to directly negotiate solutions to development disputes. The thesis concludes by considering the likely future for ADR in local government planning and development disputes.

第壹章　緒論 　　　　解釋本文之研究動機、研究目的為何，並說明本文之研究範圍及所使用之研究方法。 　　第貳章　國家與勞資關係 　　　　勞資爭議制度為勞資關係制度的一環，故本文以研究國家與勞資關係為起始。本章之內容即在研究國家在勞資關係中的角色，及勞資關係內的兩大原則一勞資自治原則與國家中立原則。 　　第參章　國家與勞資事議 　　　　本章內容在說明勞資事議的意義、分類、起因、本賀與解決之道，並說明國家介人勞資事議的目的、合法性、方式及其得失。 　　第肆章　德國勞資事議處理制度中之國家角色 　　　　德國的勞資關係向以和諧著稱，其勞資關係制度則以勞資自治為主要的制度特色，勞資爭議處理制度亦然，國家在勞資事議制度中所扮演的只是輔助性的角色。該國制度有何值得我國學習之處？此為本章研究之重點。 　　第伍章　我國勞資事議處理制度中之國家角色 　　　　我國的勞資事議處理制度賦予國家相當大的裁量權，得以強制爭議雙方進人法定的事議處理程序，而制度運作的結果卻使國家的立場遭受很大的質疑，對於勞資事議之解決也未能收到弘效，顯示我國勞資事議處理制度中的國家角色有加以修正之必要。 　　第陸章　中德法制之比較 　　　　以兩國政治、經濟、社會及勞資關係制度之比較為前提，進一步分析兩國勞資事議處理制度中的國家角色，以解釋兩國國情對制度設計及制度運作的影響。 　　第柒章　結論與建議 　　　　在研究兩國制度的背景及優缺點之後，為國家在勞資爭議處理制度中尋找一個合法且妥當的定位。

International environmental law is one of the most dynamic fields of public international law, and has rapidly acquired great breadth and sophistication. Yet the rate of global environmental decline has also increased and is accelerating. Halting and reversing this process is a challenge of effective governance, requiring institutions that can ensure that the now impressive body of environmental norms is faithfully implemented. This thesis explores whether and to what extent international courts and tribunals can play a useful role in international environmental regimes. Consideration is given to the threefold function of adjudication in resolving environmental disputes, in promoting compliance with environmental standards, and in developing environmental rules. The thesis is divided into three Parts. The first Part examines the spectrum of adjudicative bodies that have been involved in the resolution of environmental disputes, situates these within the evolution of institutions for compliance control, and offers a reassessment of their relevance in contemporary environmental governance. The second Part critically assesses the contribution that arbitral awards and judicial decisions have made to the development of norms and principles of environmental law, examining case law relating to transboundary pollution, shared freshwater resources and marine environmental protection. In the third Part of the thesis consideration is given to three looming challenges for international environmental litigation: accommodating greater levels of public participation in adjudicative processes, resolving practical problems stemming from the interaction among multiple jurisdictions, and ensuring that specialised courts and tribunals do not apply environmental norms in a parochial manner that privileges the policy objectives of issue-specific regimes.

This dissertation evaluates the applicability and effectiveness of the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) as a settlement mechanism for addressing the South China Sea (SCS) dispute, the most complex and challenging ocean-related regional conflict in East Asia. This dissertation answers these broad questions: Does UNCLOS create a constitution for the ocean? Is UNCLOS successful in preventing or managing conflicts pertaining to marine resources? Hoes does the SCS dispute settlement bridge the gap of International Relations (IR) and International Law (IL)? Since 1980s, the regime concept came to be used as one vehicle to cross the disciplinary divide between IL and IR. This dissertation seeks to foster dialogue between political scientists and international lawyers by viewing UNCLOS as an international regime and exploring its internal coherence and its external relationship with other international regimes and institutions in this region. I argue that there can be little doubt about the centrality of UNCLOS in the legal framework for ocean management, albeit it may be perceived to have certain shortcomings. The most pervasive threats to the SCS stability and obstacles to solve the dispute are caused by the lack of political will to implement the dispute settlement mechanism of UNCLOS. This paper proposes a pragmatic settlement regime of five dimensions to solve the SCS dispute and accelerate ocean governance in this region.

Labors who are the weak group in modern capital society offer services for rewards. In order to establish a base of equal opportunity, labors often rise up and organize their own unions which exercise following the nation¡¦s laws. In light of the cooperative game-theory approach, the labors negotiate and coordinate with their employers to improve the operational environment and treatment. Under the situation of un-cooperative game-theory, however, the labors leverage conflicts and disputes between themselves and their employers by means of disagreement. This will usually cause the labor front to further conduct strike to naturalize the employers¡¦ economic operations; force them to join the negotiation in order to change operational environment and treatment based on the labors¡¦ intents. From 1999 through 2006, the Taiwan Airport Service Kaohsiung Company Labor¡¦s Union (TSKU) called up and three conferences of general assemblies. Labors voted to conduct strikes to express their discontent against the unlawful decision made by the employer authority in terms of unilaterally publishing the ¡§Payment Improvement Initiatives.¡¨ The purpose of this presentation is to study and review the case of TSKU regarding the approaches and strategies maneuvered by the TSKU leadership during the eight year period of time.

Medlingsinstitutets roll och funktion Syftet med uppsatsen är att undersöka vad medlingsinstitutet har för roll i arbetstvister. Vad är medlingsinstitutets befogenheter i tvister och vad har institutet för medel att lösa den uppkomna tvisten. Utifrån institutets befogenheter blir syftet att ta reda på vad arbetsgivare/organisationer har för skyldigheter i en uppkommen tvist gentemot medlingsinstitutet. Syftet med uppsatsen är också att undersöka vad medlingsinstitutet gör för att uppnå en mer jämställd lönebildning mellan könen.  För att få en internationell utblick i uppsatsen blir syftet att titta närmare på grannlandet Norge. Finns något liknande institut där och vad skiljer i så fall instituten åt. Resultatet av min undersökning blev att institutet har en rad befogenheter både under en tvist, men även innan en tvist brutit ut. Skyldigheterna för arbetsgivaren/organisationen är inte lika många, men hänger ihop med institutets befogenheter. Att institutet jobbar för en mer jämställd löneutveckling blev ett mer överraskande resultat för mig. Med mitt resultat anser jag att institutet inte gör så mycket mer än tar reda på gällande fakta som skett under året och publicerar detta på sin hemsida. Med min internationella utblick blev resultatet att det även finns ett institut i Norge som i det stora hela har samma befogenheter som Medlingsinstitutet i Sverige, dock med några små skillnader gällande ny medling, medlemsomröstningar och koppling. / Role and function of the Mediation Institute The purpose of this paper is to examine the role of the Mediation Institute in labor disputes. What is the Mediation Institutes’s powers in disputes and what tools does the Institute use to resolve the dispute. Based on the authority of the Institute the aim is to find out what obligations employers / organizations have in a dispute arising in relation to the Mediation Institute. The purpose of this paper is further to examine what the Mediation Institute does to achieve more equal wages between genders. To acquire an international perspective the essay will aim to investigate whether the neighboring country of Norway have a similar type of institution, and in that case what the differences between these instititutions are. The investigation’s result was that the Mediation Institute has a number of powers both during a dispute, as well as before the erruption of a dispute. The obligations of the employer / organization are not as many, but are linked to the Institute's powers. The fact that the Mediation Institute is working for more equal wage was more of a surprising result for me. Based on my results, I believe that the institution does not do much more than finding out the facts that occurred during the year and publish it on the Institute’s website. Regarding my international outlook the result was that there is also an institute in Norway, which generally has the same powers as the Swedish Mediation Institute,  however with some small differences in new mediation, member polls and interconnection.

The softwood lumber trade dispute between Canada and the United States has centered on the debate over the existence of a stumpage subsidy in Canada and recently on dumping by the Canadian softwood lumber producers in the U.S. markets. This thesis contains three essays that investigate the subsidy and dumping issues in this dispute. The results of these analyses indicate the economic performance of Ontario’s stumpage system. The first essay investigates the market performance of Ontario’s stumpage system by examining the long-run equilibrium and Granger-causality relationships between the stumpage prices and the market prices of various end products (lumber, pulp and wood composites) from June 1995 to February 2005 using Johansen’s multivariate co-integration approach and the Granger-causality test. Test results indicate that in terms of SPF (spruce, pine, fir) for lumber and pulp, Ontario’s stumpage system can establish stumpage prices that have the potential to reflect the market values of timber. However, there is a need to modify the system for the other products. In the second essay, an Enhanced Parity Bounds Model (EPBM) is developed and used to examine the discrepancy between the stumpage price of SPF timber for producing lumber and its market value from June 1995 to January 2007. The results show that in the short run, the stumpage prices were below or above the market values. However, in the long run, the underpayment and overpayment will even each other out. The results, therefore, imply that Ontario’s stumpage system has the ability to capture the full economic rents in the long run and thus does not confer a subsidy to Ontario’s softwood lumber producers. The third paper examines the issue of whether Ontario’s softwood lumber industry had dumped softwood lumber into a major US market from April 1996 to September 2006 using the EPBM. This is a critical issue for Ontario’s stumpage system because dumping could lead to lower stumpage prices under the current stumpage system. This analysis indicates that the industry gained considerably more profit from the U.S market than from the home market and did not dump lumber in the US market during this period.

This paper discusses the role played by Dispute Resolution Mechanisms in the European Union and the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), and the way in which they potentially contribute to the constitutionalization of such Regional Trade Agreements. The European Court of Justice has played a major role in the constitutionalization of the European Union due to the preliminary reference procedure, as well as the principles of direct effect and supremacy. The lack of availability to NAFTA Dispute Resolution Mechanisms of the principles which are so influential with the European Court of Justice mean that NAFTA’s Dispute Resolution Mechanisms are unable to drive constitutionalization in a manner similar to the ECJ. Chapter 11 of NAFTA however has the potential to act as a agent of constitutionalization within the scope of international investment law, but not of NAFTA itself.

This paper discusses the role played by Dispute Resolution Mechanisms in the European Union and the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), and the way in which they potentially contribute to the constitutionalization of such Regional Trade Agreements. The European Court of Justice has played a major role in the constitutionalization of the European Union due to the preliminary reference procedure, as well as the principles of direct effect and supremacy. The lack of availability to NAFTA Dispute Resolution Mechanisms of the principles which are so influential with the European Court of Justice mean that NAFTA’s Dispute Resolution Mechanisms are unable to drive constitutionalization in a manner similar to the ECJ. Chapter 11 of NAFTA however has the potential to act as a agent of constitutionalization within the scope of international investment law, but not of NAFTA itself.