Conflict of interest: law enforcement and conflictology

The subject. The article is devoted to conflictology as one of the most relevant, almost significant, debatable problems in law theory, legal sciences, political science, philosophy, psychology and economics. The author analyzes specific examples of conflicts of interest in various corruption spheres and manifestations, for example, in the sphere of participation of economic actors in the procurement announced by state and municipal authorities.The purpose of the article is to identify the nature of conflicts of interest as the basis of corruption.The methodology. The author uses comparisons of common and private, cause and effect, patterns and randomness, content and form, essence and phenomenon, the transition of quantity into quality, as well as the methods of sociology and psychology.The main results, scope of application. The article analyzes the relationship between corruption and nepotism. The article discusses legal and moral ways to prevent conflict, the role of ethical standards in conflict prevention, regulatory framework for preventing and settling them, the ratio of conflict of interest and employee qualifications, balance of material and personal interest, Commissions to prevent conflicts of interest, guaranteeing the role of writing notice of a conflict of interest, Features of the notification procedure, moral means of preventing and resolve conflicts of interest. Exclusively legal methods are insufficient to prevent and eliminate conflicts of interest and corruption-related risks. A combination of legal and moral measures is necessary, and most importantly, the exclusion of kinship and other forms of nepotism in the formation of government bodies and the appointment of officials, the hiring of state and municipal employees. It is necessary to exclude formalism from the institution of competitive selection of civil servants.Conclusions. The elimination of the contradictions between some federal anti-corruption laws has much less effect on the state of corruption in the state than the flourishing nepotism. The exercise of official functions takes place in the form of law enforcement: if there is no application of the law – there is no corruption. The main emphasis should be directed to the process of forming the apparatus of state and municipal authorities, employees of state and municipal institutions, primarily in the educational sphere, on which the upbringing of new generations of employees depends, the steady observance of high professional and moral requirements imposed on state and municipal employees and teachers in schools and universities.

Developing an Effective Strategy for the Enforcement of the Constitutional Mandate of the Senate Committee on Ethics, Code of Conduct and Public Petitions

The Senate Committee on Ethics, Code of Conduct and Public Petitions (ECCPP) is one of the committees of the Senate of Nigeria’s National Assembly. The Committee was one of the earliest Special committees established under Order XIII of the Senate Standing Orders 2015, as amended (SSO 2015). It is one of the committees through which the Senate conducts legislative investigations in fulfilment of its constitutional and statutory role under section 88 of the 1999 Constitution, as altered. The major challenge of the ECCPP Committee in the exercise of its investigation power is the refusal by some chief executives of government agencies and corporate organisations to honour its invitation. This study finds that among the reasons for this are the absence of ethical prescriptions in the SSO 2015 to guide the conduct of honourable members against unethical conduct that undermine their integrity, and absence of prescribed fine for failure to honour the Committee’s summons. To strengthen the enforcement capacity of the Committee, the study recommends, among others, that members of the Committee eschew unethical tendencies that undermine their integrity and conduct the business of the Committee in a manner that avoids conflicts of interest or its appearances.

Most Attractive Scenic Sites of the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast: Characterization and Sensitivity to Natural and Human Factors

Beach management is a complex process that demands a multidisciplinary approach, as beaches display a large variety of functions, e.g., protection, recreation and associated biodiversity conservation. Frequently, conflicts of interest arise, since management approaches are usually focused on recreation, preferring short-term benefits over sustainable development strategies; meanwhile, coastal areas have to adapt and face a changing environment under the effects of long-term climate change. Based on a “Sea, Sun and Sand (3S)” market, coastal tourism has become a major economic sector that depends completely on the coastal ecosystem quality, whilst strongly contributing to its deterioration by putting at risk its sustainability. Among beach users’ preferences, five parameters stand out: safety, facilities, water quality, litter and scenery (the “Big Five”), and the latter is the focus of this paper. Bulgaria has impressive scenic diversity and uniqueness, presenting real challenges and opportunities as an emerging tourist destination in terms of sustainable development. However, most developing countries tend to ignore mistakes made previously by developed ones. In this paper, scenic beauty at 16 coastal sites was field-tested by using a well-known methodology, i.e., the Coastal Scenic Evaluation System (CSES), which enables the calculation of an Evaluation Index “D” based on 26 physical and human parameters, utilizing fuzzy logic matrices. An assessment was made of these high-quality sites located in Burgas (8), Varna (3) and Dobrich (4) provinces. Their sensitivity to natural processes (in a climate change context) and human pressure (considering tourist trends and population increases at the municipality scale) were quantified via the Coastal Scenic Sensitivity Indexes (CSSIs) method. The CSES and CSSI methods allowed us to conduct site classification within different scenic categories, reflecting their attractiveness (Classes I–V; CSES) and level of sensitivity (Groups I–III; CSSI). Their relationship made it possible to identify management priorities: the main scenic impacts and sensitivity issues were analyzed in detail and characterized, and judicious measures were proposed for the scenic preservation and enhancement of the investigated sites. Seven sites were classified as extremely attractive (Class I; CSES), but with slight management efforts; several Class II sites could be upgraded as top scenic sites, e.g., by cleaning and monitoring beach litter. This paper also reveals that investigated sectors were more sensitive to environmental impacts than human pressure; for example, eight were categorized as being very sensitive to natural processes (Group III; CSSI).

How Do Institutional Conflicts of Interest Between Pharmaceutical Companies and the Healthcare Sector Become Corrupt? A Case Study of Scholarship Donations Between Department of Clinical Anesthesiology, Mie University, and Ono Pharmaceutical in Japan

Institutional conflicts of interest (ICOIs) with pharmaceutical companies can bias internal operation of healthcare organizations. Naturally, a scholarship donation—which is a donation scheme unique to Japan, provided to healthcare organizations and their subunits to encourage educational and academic activities related to the development of new drugs—fall into the ICOI category. While anecdotal evidence exists that scholarship donations have been used as bribes by pharmaceutical companies, there has been little case study research that would illuminate the workings of this “gray area” mechanism. From this perspective, we offer an in-depth analysis of a recent scandal involving the Department of Clinical Anesthesiology, Mie University and Ono Pharmaceutical, where a scholarship donation was used by a pharmaceutical company to increase the prescription of one of its key drugs at a hospital department. Available evidence also suggests that a professor based within the department originally requested a scholarship donation from the company, which became an initial trigger of the scandal. We argue that by scrutinizing scholarship donations we can gain insight into problems specific to ICOIs between the pharmaceutical companies and the healthcare sector in Japan. In addition, scholarship donations can be understood as a form of “gifts” which have been found to underpin certain forms of pharmaceutical companies' promotional activities in Japan but also in other countries. We conclude by highlighting potential institutional remedies, which may alleviate ICOIs and corrupt behavior affecting the healthcare sector.

Insider Transactions and Performance

This study investigates the relevance of stock buy/sell transactions by insiders in Portuguese companies' performance. To achieve this aim, the sample covers the period from 2013 to 2017. The data from buy/sell transactions by insiders were collected in the internal transaction reports delivered by the companies to the Portuguese Securities Market Commission for the same time interval. The results, using panel data methodology, suggest a negative relationship between the long/short positions and the companies' performance, although the volume traded is not significant. Therefore, the increased control of Portuguese companies by their managers signals the existence of conflicts of interest of the managers, whether due to financial reasons or to strengthen their continuity in the position. As far as the authors are aware, this is the first time that a study has been carried out using insider transactions for Portuguese companies and their influence on corporate performance.

The Impartiality and Independence of Arbitrators in International Commercial Arbitration

Since arbitrator’s impartiality and independence constitutes the bedrock of international arbitration, more and more recent arbitral awards have been annulled or vacated on the grounds of lack of arbitrator’s impartiality. This work investigates whether a common international public policy core exists with regard to the concepts of impartiality and independence of arbitrators in international commercial arbitration. The book addresses the different constellations of arbitrator bias as considered by the courts of various jurisdictions, especially France, England, Switzerland, Greece and Germany. By introducing the ‘justifiable doubts’ to an arbitrator’s impartiality criterion and analyzing the above-mentioned national case law, the book categorizes instances that constitute lack of impartiality with reference to and interpretation of the IBA Guidelines on Conflicts of Interest in International Arbitration 2014. The work examines and systematizes how arbitrator impartiality can be contested at different stages of procedure: upon constitution of the arbitral tribunal, during arbitration proceedings, as well as after the rendering of the award at annulment, recognition or enforcement stage, while providing answers to the following questions: what must an arbitrator disclose; should an arbitrator investigate a possible fact or circumstance that may affect her impartiality, and to what extent; what is the relevance of the fact affecting arbitrator impartiality being obvious, well-known or easily accessible by the parties; under which preconditions could a party waive its right to contest lack of impartiality-implicitly or expressly. This study focuses specifically on the institution of waiver and analyses how it prevents a party from contesting arbitrator impartiality at the next procedural stage, should it fail to follow the specific procedures and preconditions - an issue that is unexamined in the literature to date.

Effectiveness of internal audit in local governments: The moderating role of internal and external auditors’ relations

Research on the internal audit function is relevant for improving the quality of governance in organizations. The internal auditor is an important element of government management in the context of realizing good governance by providing quality and effective audit results. The aim of this study is to examine the factors influencing (determinants) the effectiveness of the internal audit function in Indonesian local government organizations. The research samples were 137 respondents. This study used primary data in the form of a questionnaire. The hypothesis testing technique used Partial Least Squares-Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM) analysis. The results of statistical tests showed that independence, competence, and management support could increase the effectiveness of the internal audit function. However, this cooperative relationship does not moderate the influence of competence and management support on the effectiveness of internal audit. The practical implication of this study is that in order to increase the effectiveness of internal audit, internal auditors must uphold an attitude of independence, objectivity and freedom from conflicts of interest in carrying out their professional responsibilities. The practical value of this study also shows that to increase the effectiveness of public sector internal audit, internal and external auditors must increase cooperation to improve the effectiveness of internal audit, especially in discussion activities between internal and external auditors, communication between internal and external auditors, and activities to share working papers between internal and external auditors.

How Do Stakeholder Pressures Affect Corporate Social Responsibility Adoption? Evidence from Chinese Manufacturing Enterprises in Ethiopia

In today’s globalized world, one of the great challenges for enterprises is integrating CSR adoption into their operations. The study aims to investigate how stakeholder pressure influences the adoption of corporate social responsibility (CSR) practices by Chinese medium and large-scale manufacturing enterprises in Ethiopia. This study used a mixed-methods research approach that includes primary and secondary data sources. The employed research data were analyzed using stakeholder theory, structural equation modeling, and multivariate regression analysis to identify the causal relationship between the stakeholder pressures and CSR adoption. The finding shows that overseas Chinese medium and large-scale enterprises at least have CSR awareness to meet compliance requirements. Comparatively, employees, community, and customers are the most influential and significant factors determining the enterprises’ stakeholder pressure on the CSR engagement. The finding indicates that Chinese enterprises are unrecognized for their CSR contribution due to a lack of public relation in displaying what they display the firms are doing. There is no strong link between Chinese manufacturing enterprises and the regulatory stakeholders to implement inclusive CSR awareness and eliminate conflicts of interest on legal frameworks. The study proposed some recommendations to solve the gaps regarding indifference to CSR adoption, the community’s lack of concern for CSR, and lack of proactive involvement. Government laws are required to legally control unbalanced practices and distorted views, as well as to guide fixing conflicts of interest. These finding are important for enterprises, policymakers, government officials, and local and foreign investors to identify, understand, and use the driving factors of stakeholder pressures on CSR practices.

Gender diversity in the boardroom

Purpose This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies. Design/methodology/approach This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context. Findings Firms can improve corporate performance by increasing the number of female representation in the boardroom. Potential exists for smaller firms to maximize their impact by holding more frequent board meetings to help enhance the monitoring process and safeguard against conflicts of interest arising. Originality/value The briefing saves busy executives, strategists and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.