The case study examines the construction of the Imperial Pacific casino in Saipan, a US commonwealth in the Western Pacific, by Chinese firms employing Chinese workers. The focus is on the serious labor abuses that transpired and the legal and other consequences faced by the companies as a result. The case sheds light on the structure and operations of these Chinese construction projects, including the layers of subcontracting and how efforts to maximize speed and minimize costs resulted in numerous violations of local laws. The case also examines what actions the abused Chinese workers on such projects may take to enforce their rights and address their mistreatment. The case study therefore provides a useful tool to consider the issues involved in hiring and supervising contractors, such as cost, contract provisions, subcontracting, monitoring, and liability. The case also provides a platform to explore what legal, advocacy, and other tools workers and their advocates can use when legal violations and labor abuses occur. Additionally, this case study provides a uniquely detailed account of the events that transpired in Saipan because the author served as a lawyer representing the abused workers in a lawsuit alleging that they were subjected to forced labor.

In this chapter, COBRA teams up with another hunting team to sting a predator in West London. It turns out to be a controversial sting as the predator seeks to avenge himself by taking police action against COBRA.

This chapter talks of the challenges faced by police in dealing with hunters and, more generally, describes the fragility of their relationship to citizen activists.

This chapter introduces the hunting community as one rife with inter-team and interpersonal conflicts that are fought out online in deeply unpleasant ways. It also shows how COBRA are keen to differentiate themselves from other teams by professionalising what they do.

Over the years, the economic relationship between China and African states has continued to grow and this is evident in the volume of Chinese investments in Africa. In the wake of these investments, China and African states have signed bilateral investment treaties (BITs), which aim to promote the development of host states and protect foreign investments from one contracting state in the territory of the other contracting state, thereby stimulating foreign investments by reducing political risk. BITs are unique in character in that they provide substantive protections to foreign investors and a basis for claims by an individual or company against a host state on grounds that such substantive protections have been breached by the host state. To avoid the need to turn to the national courts in the host state for a judicial remedy, BITs usually contain an arbitration clause submitting disputes to a neutral arbitration tribunal. This case study demonstrates one such instance where, in a first-of-its-kind case, a Chinese investor sued Nigeria, an African host state, for breach of its treaty obligations under the China-Nigeria BIT 2001, and throws light on how BITs can be used in the protection of Chinese outbound investments, including in Africa.

In 2014, a Chinese-financed company, Société Minière de Boké (SMB), obtained three mining concessions to exploit bauxite reserves in Boké, Guinea. Since then, SMB has had a tumultuous history working in Boké, with local residents complaining of excessive dust, depleted and polluted freshwater sources, a reduction in farming capacity due to pollution and lack of fresh water, and adverse health impacts.

SMB’s operations in Guinea raise important questions about the Chinese leadership’s commitment to green and sustainable development in China’s overseas projects.

This case study focuses on how local and international civil society organizations and public interest lawyers use legal instruments to ensure Chinese investors and the Guinean government comply with the laws of Guinea (as the host country of Chinese investments), of China (the home country), and international laws. Specifically, this case study shows how civil society organizations have been able to combat SMB’s plan to use coal as an energy source by recourse to a number of legal strategies. More broadly, it demonstrates how non-state actors can use the law to hold Chinese investors accountable for environmental harms inflicted on host states, particularly those in the Global South.

This case study provides a comprehensive analysis of the intricate political risks faced by TikTok, the Chinese social media giant, within the complex US political landscape. Beginning with an exploration of the security concerns articulated by the US government, the discussion centers on TikTok’s data collection practices and their perceived impact on US national security. The narrative unfolds by elucidating the multifaceted strategies employed by TikTok and its parent company, ByteDance, to address these challenges, including litigation, endeavors toward Americanization, and technological adaptations. It also examines the evolution in the US government’s stance as well as TikTok’s adaptive strategies aimed at sustaining and expanding its presence in the US market. The study depicts the responses of the Chinese government to US policies, unraveling the broader implications of these developments on the global political-economic landscape, exploring the dynamics involved in US-China relations, and providing a deeper understanding of the complexities inherent in such interactions. Finally, this case study invites readers to engage in contemplation on the broader themes of political risks faced by multinational corporations, the challenges inherent in navigating global legal frontiers, and the intricate nature of US-China relations.

This chapter introduces Jay and Saz from COBRA. The authors spends time interviewing them in their home where they tell him how they became involved with hunting.

In this chapter, COBRA members enter into a confrontation with police, who accuse them of being trophee hunters and vigilantes. This happens in the aftermath of a sting on a man who was later given a long prison sentence.

This chapter explains how ubiguitous child sexual abuse really is, and outlines its consequences. It is intended to provide a context for the story, over four years, of one of the most successful hunting teams in Britain. As such, it is rich in numerical data.

This chapter tells some of the background stories of COBRA’s hunters and decoys, given us insight into why they do what they do.

Beginnnig with the description of a sting of a young man, this chapter draws the reader’s attention to the ethical challenges of being an observant participant in stings (as the author is).

This chapter tells of a sting that resulted in a predator killing himself. It explores how COBRA deal with the aftermath of the suicide.

A summary chapter that also suggests that the world of hunting may be a microcosm to what we see played out daily on a larger scale: the othering of those who are different from us (and what this othering allows us to do in terms of the suffering we cause).

This is a short chapter to tell of my daughter's abuse at the hand of her ballet teacher.