Meaning

I realized today that I am building a fantastic body through heavy weight lifting and and conditioning, and all without whey powders or any of that stuff. All I eat is nuts and fish, and wholesome foods.

If there is something that is quite enjoyable about Japan it has to be the wacky fashion.

Very cool


http://blip.tv/file/1662914


This really blow the mind.

Tokyo Decadence

Today I am working on my paper: provisional title "Non-competition Clauses in Canada and the US, difficulties in private ordering".
What strikes me about a lot the material in this area of employment law is how similar it is to IP. For example, the idea that you can restrict the movement of key employees, and also that you can prevent them from joining your competitor seems to me to be very much akin to having a patent, trademark, or copyright.
You have invested money into that asset or product and feel that it should not be usurp by a competitor.
They way I see it there could be a trade-off in US employment law, whereby Employers are allowed to freely fire their Employees, and Employees are in turn are freely allowed to compete against their Employer as soon as they quit.
Of course if you increase protections for Employees you should also get increased protections for Employers, in a kind of quid pro quo. So in Canada Employers can't simply terminate you for any reason whatsoever, then tell you to pack up your shit and get out. If they do that they are liable for notice pay, and if the termination was without cause then they must pay you additional amounts. In Japan or Europe it goes even further.

In California and a handful of other states non-compete agreements are void as against public policy. You can learn, and open your own business and compete there. So Silicon Valley really benefits from this. Where I see the US as having the worst of all possible worlds is when then employer is free to fire you, but you can't compete.

Of course much of this is only problematic for highly skilled employees. But, as the Harvard Business school study indicates this can effect a significant number of employees who are inventors, especially in more neiche industries. People who have more general skills are much more flexible in terms of who they can compete with and therefore are much less effected by non-competition clauses.

The blue pencil rule is also interesting. Here Canada and a bunch of US states are very tough on Employers and their drafting. If they don't draft correctly then the Employees are totally free.

The use of the Fiduciary concept in Canada is totally out of control. Not only do Fiduciaries in Canada continue to have obligations post employment, they are also expanding. The most recent Supreme Court case which I can't find at the moment.

On a personal note: I think I really need to go on some sort of cardio kick or I will never lose the gut :)

met a very interesting woman today

I met this very interesting woman today. She was from the US but here is the really crazy thing. When I was chatting with her, her accent modulated from American, to Scottish, Irish, Australian, English, or something along those lines. This is the only person I have ever met in my entire life who talks like that. Moreover, interestingly she has done extensive academic reading.

I ran into her because she was giving away a bunch of English study books, that I could use for my private lessons. I was amazed at the quantity and the quality of the stuff she gave me.

The other night I went to Leila's birthday party and got to meet a heap of interns from the US embassy along with two guys and a girl who also worked there. It was a very fun evening. We ate in Akasaka at this place that was like a giant cave.

The food was simple but delicious. The conversation was typically random, just odd trivia and that sort of stuff, nothing highly intellectual. Although as can be imagined the interns were some smart members of the US academic community. This one Jewish guy reminded me a lot of Dan.

After dinner we went to a Singing Room. Two of the Japanese girls and the white guy were wore American Eagle apparel sounded really fantastic.

This is a good article on new stuff in the copyright legislation being pushed at the WTO.

http://www.zeropaid.com/news/89920/actas-latest-text-a-quick-read-through/

a great day

Went to the gym, worked out. I also worked out on my employment law paper, got some great articles. Looks like the paper is really shaping up to be a informative look at employee liability for stealing trade secrets. I have no nailed down the thesis, but I can see how the other elements in employment law play out.

On the one hand it appears that there is substantial similarity between the two legal systems, the USA and Canada when it comes to employees running off with trade secrets. On the other hand because employees are not in an at-will relationship in Canada, they are constrained in being able to simply quit and start their own company the next day. It also seems that fiduciary responsibility is higher in Canada.

Found this great article on the economics of crime. I was inspired to think about this by the work of Posner as explained to me in Criminal Law class in Law School.

http://www.costsofcrime.org/

The EU is really cool.

trademark confusion

It is really hard to determine if a trademark is confusing.

The Canadian Legislation says:

When mark or name confusing

6. (1) For the purposes of this Act, a trade-mark or trade-name is confusing with another trade-mark or trade-name if the use of the first mentioned trade-mark or trade-name would cause confusion with the last mentioned trade-mark or trade-name in the manner and circumstances described in this section.

Idem

(2) The use of a trade-mark causes confusion with another trade-mark if the use of both trade-marks in the same area would be likely to lead to the inference that the wares or services associated with those trade-marks are manufactured, sold, leased, hired or performed by the same person, whether or not the wares or services are of the same general class.

Idem

(3) The use of a trade-mark causes confusion with a trade-name if the use of both the trade-mark and trade-name in the same area would be likely to lead to the inference that the wares or services associated with the trade-mark and those associated with the business carried on under the trade-name are manufactured, sold, leased, hired or performed by the same person, whether or not the wares or services are of the same general class.

Idem

(4) The use of a trade-name causes confusion with a trade-mark if the use of both the trade-name and trade-mark in the same area would be likely to lead to the inference that the wares or services associated with the business carried on under the trade-name and those associated with the trade-mark are manufactured, sold, leased, hired or performed by the same person, whether or not the wares or services are of the same general class.

What to be considered

(5) In determining whether trade-marks or trade-names are confusing, the court or the Registrar, as the case may be, shall have regard to all the surrounding circumstances including

(a) the inherent distinctiveness of the trade-marks or trade-names and the extent to which they have become known;

(b) the length of time the trade-marks or trade-names have been in use;

(c) the nature of the wares, services or business;

(d) the nature of the trade; and

(e) the degree of resemblance between the trade-marks or trade-names in appearance or sound or in the ideas suggested by them. [R.S., c.T-10, s.6.]

TRIPS adopted the Paris Convention on this issue:

(1) The countries of the Union undertake, ex officio if their legislation so permits, or at the request of an interested party, to refuse or to cancel the registration, and to prohibit the use, of a trademark which constitutes a reproduction, an imitation, or a translation, liable to create confusion, of a mark considered by the competent authority of the country of registration or use to be well known in that country as being already the mark of a person entitled to the benefits of this Convention and used for identical or similar goods. These provisions shall also apply when the essential part of the mark constitutes a reproduction of any such well-known mark or an imitation liable to create confusion therewith.

(2) A period of at least five years from the date of registration shall be allowed for requesting the cancellation of such a mark. The countries of the Union may provide for a period within which the prohibition of use must be requested.

(3) No time limit shall be fixed for requesting the cancellation or the prohibition of the use of marks registered or used in bad faith.

This allows well known companies to get rid of copycats and usurpers in third world countries.

A crazy set of questions

A friend of mine who will remain nameless got these questions for an interview: Only in Japan. OMG

Interview Questions

1) Have you ever had a boyfriend/girlfriend? Do you have one now?
How long have you known each other?
Where and how did you meet?
What helps to keep you two together?


2) Do you think living together without getting married is OK?
Why do you think it is OK or not OK?

3) What do you think is the biggest obstacle for young people to get married today?
Why?
4) Is same sex marriage acceptable?
Why?

5) When you start to date with someone, do you think about marriage?

6) Do you want your partner to be masculine or feminine?

7) What do you think of one-night stands? Is it OK? Why?



Thank you for your cooperation.


This is wrong on so many levels. But hilarious.

Interesting article on US troop presence in Japan

http://www.nationalinterest.org/Article.aspx?id=23592

A very interesting evening

Tonight after working out at the gym I went over to visit this Hawaiian guys house and watched some MMA. It was lots of fun. He had a huge projector on his wall. We also got to make our own pizza with homemade dough. His wife and kids were great, very friendly and smart.

It turns out that his parents are 7th day Adventists. It was interesting to actually hang out with some other English speakers. Since the people from the States left at the end of April there has not really been a very exciting social scene.

I went over to hang out with that NZ girl and her friends out the suburbs and that was cool, but these were guys and we talked about great things like weight lifting and MMA.

The Scottish guy Steve was also interesting. He lived in Japan for about 8 years. He has worked as a bouncer, and apparently writes science fiction for some British publication, Warhammer 4000 or something like that. Under the name Steve Parker.

His favorite Philp K Dick book was the one about the clock moving backwards, I'm still in the process of reading it on my iphone, I should finish it with that statement.

It is cool since they live nearby, and I often see them at the gym.

I also met this guy who works in a Bank, and made the rather off color remark that bankers should be shot. No one laughed, but I guess that is coming with the territory.

Another interesting character at the gym is an ex-marine. He was actually in Beirut when all that crazy stuff was going down in 1985. He is also huge lifting massive weight. The Steve guy is actually my height or a bit smaller, but he is really massive, huge muscles, totally ripped. He is a vegetarian who lives and breaths to work out.

I am inspired by how creative they are and what they are doing with their lives. It should serve as a guide to try to accomplish as much as I can while I am here on the face of this earth.

World Cup

Watching the world cup match between Germany and Argentina. It's really exciting. I'm not sure who I want to win.

I am currently researching employment law problems. One of the difficulties I run into when comparing US and foreign law is how radically different they are in certain areas. For example, I want to examine the treatment of employment manuals, as an exception to employment at will. In what situations will courts hold that the manual has overcome the at will relationship and produced one that can only be terminated on a for cause basis?

By contrast in Canada there are clear statutory requirements that apply regardless of the existence of an employment manual. There is no termination at will to begin with, so an employment manual is not needed to modify that relationship.

I spoke a bit prematurely.

Kornerup et al v. Raytheon Canada Ltd.,
	2007 BCSC 584

Seems like a perfect, case and dare I say I am shocked that it is somewhat similar to what would be decided in the US.