Digital Commons Network^™

The Mighty Work Of Making Nations Happy: A Response To James Davison Hunter, Patrick Mckinley Brennan

Patrick McKinley Brennan

This article is an invited response to James Davison Hunter’s much-discussed book To Change the World: The Irony, Tragedy, and Possibility of Christianity in the Late Modern World (Oxford University Press, 2010). Hunter, a sociologist at UVA and a believing Protestant, claims that law’s capacity to contribute to social change is “mostly illusory” and that Christians, therefore, should practice “faithful presence” in the public square rather than seek to influence law directly. My response is that it is, in fact, law’s stunning ability to alter and limit available choices that makes it an object of deservedly fierce contest. The wild …

The Viability Of Citizens’ Suits Under The Clean Water Act After Gwaltney Of Smithfield V. Chesapeake Bay Foundation, Bevery Mcqueary Smith

Beverly McQueary Smith

No abstract provided.

The Declaration Of Independence As Canon Fodder, Mark A. Graber

Mark Graber

No abstract provided.

Section 1983, Martin A. Schwartz, Leon Lazer, George Pratt, Leon Friedman

Leon D. Lazer

No abstract provided.

Qualified Immunity Developments: Not Much Hope Left For Plaintiffs, Karen Blum, Erwin Chemerinsky, Martin A. Schwartz

Martin A. Schwartz

No abstract provided.

Book Review Of Arnold H. Leibowitz, An Historical-Legal Analysis Of The Impeachments Of Presidents Andrew Johnson, Richard Nixon, And William Clinton: Why The Process Went Wrong, Jeffrey B. Morris

Jeffrey B. Morris

No abstract provided.

Accounting For Federalism In State Courts - Exclusion Of Evidence Obtained Lawfully By Federal Agents, Robert M. Bloom, Hillary J. Massey

Robert Bloom

After the terrorist attacks on September 11th, Congress greatly enhanced federal law enforcement powers through enactment of the U.S.A. Patriot Act. The Supreme Court also has provided more leeway to federal officers in the past few decades, for example by limiting the scope of the exclusionary rule. At the same time, many states have interpreted their constitutions to provide greater individual protections to their citizens than provided by the federal constitution. This phenomenon has sometimes created a wide disparity between the investigatory techniques available to federal versus state law enforcement officers. As a result, state courts sometimes must decide whether …

United States V. Leon And Its Ramifications, Robert M. Bloom

Robert Bloom

No abstract provided.

Jailhouse Informants, Robert M. Bloom

Robert Bloom

No abstract provided.

“A More Majestic Conception:” The Importance Of Judicial Integrity In Preserving The Exclusionary Rule, Robert M. Bloom, David H. Fentin

Robert Bloom

In Mapp v. Ohio (1961), the Warren Court held that the so-called exclusionary rule was applicable to the states. Subsequent Supreme Courts have shown their disenchantment with the rule by seeking to curb its applicability. Most recently, the Court has characterized the exclusionary rule as a “massive remedy” to be applied only as a “last resort.” The Courts’ analytical framework for the last thirty-five years for cutting back the exclusionary rule was a balancing test which weighed the costs of suppressing reliable evidence with the benefits of deterring future police violations. This balancing has been used most recently in two …

The Constitutional Infirmity Of Warrantless Nsa Surveillance: The Abuse Of Presidential Power And The Injury To The Fourth Amendment, Robert M. Bloom, William J. Dunn

Robert Bloom

In recent months, there have been many revelations about the tactics used by the Bush Administration to prosecute their war on terrorism. These stories involve the exploitation of technologies that allow the government, with the cooperation of phone companies and financial institutions, to access phone and financial records. This paper focuses on the revelation and widespread criticism of the Bush Administration’s operation of a warrantless electronic surveillance program to monitor international phone calls and emails that originate or terminate with a United States party. The powerful and secret National Security Agency heads the program and leverages its significant intelligence collection …

The Supreme Court And Its Purported Preference For Search Warrants, Robert M. Bloom

Robert Bloom

No abstract provided.

The Hidden Structure Of Takings Law, Jeremy R. Paul

Jeremy R. Paul

No abstract provided.

Court To Decide If Voters Can Ban Affirmative Action, Alan E. Garfield

Alan E Garfield

No abstract provided.

20 Años, Jose Luis Sardon

Jose Luis Sardon

Perú pujante de nuestros días es inimaginable sin Constitución de 1993, que salvó reforma estructural de la economía de 1991.

Grains Of Sand Or Butterfly Effect: Standing, The Legitimacy Of Precedent, And Reflections On Hollingsworth And Windsor, Maxwell L. Stearns

Maxwell L. Stearns

One test of whether a scholarly work has achieved canonical status is to ask respected scholars in the field which works, setting aside their own, are essential reads. William Fletcher’s article, The Structure of Standing, now in its twenty-fifth year, would almost certainly emerge at the top of any such lists among standing scholars. And yet, while many at this conference have built upon Fletcher’s insights, there remains notable disagreement concerning standing doctrine’s normative foundations. The central dispute concerns whether standing doctrine should be celebrated as furthering a “private-rights,” or instead, condemned as thwarting a “public-rights,” adjudicatory model. In a …

Private-Rights Litigation And The Normative Foundations Of Durable Constitutional Precedent, Maxwell L. Stearns

Maxwell L. Stearns

This chapter advances a simple thesis that runs counter to much public-law scholarship. Holding all else constant, the more difficult, or costly, constitutional rulings are to obtain, the more durable the resulting precedent; conversely, the easier, or cheaper, such rulings are to obtain, the less durable the resulting precedent. Most public-law scholarship implicitly rests on the opposite premise that the relative ease or difficulty of obtaining constitutional rulings should correlate positively, not negatively, with the relative importance or unimportance of the asserted right. Within a public-rights adjudicatory model, important constitutional rights justify relaxing traditional constraints on constitutional decisionmaking, including ripeness, …

Reconciling Positivism And Realism: Kelsen And Habermas On Democracy And Human Rights, David Ingram

David Ingram

It is well known that Hans Kelsen and Jürgen Habermas invoke realist arguments drawn from social science in defending an international, democratic human rights regime against Carl Schmitt’s attack on the rule of law. However, despite embracing the realist spirit of Kelsen’s legal positivism, Habermas criticizes Kelsen for neglecting to connect the rule of law with a concept of procedural justice (Part I). I argue, to the contrary (Part II), that Kelsen does connect these terms, albeit in a manner that may be best described as functional, rather than conceptual. Indeed, whereas Habermas tends to emphasize a conceptual connection between …

Does Political Islam Conflict With Secular Democracy? Philosophical Reflections On Religion And Politics, David Ingram

David Ingram

Abstract: This paper rebuts the thesis that political Islam conflicts with secular democracy. More precisely, it examines three sorts of claims that ostensibly support this thesis: (a) The Muslim religion is incompatible with secular democracy; (b) No Muslim country has instituted secular democracy; and (c) No movement seeking to advance its agenda as aggressively as political Islam does can do so with the degree of moderation required of a political party that is committed to secular democracy. Theologians, philosophers, and political scientists have debated (a) through (c) within the jurisdiction of their respective fields. I propose to combine these debates …

Order Of Delegate Arrival At Philadelphia Tabled Against Support/Opposition To Constitution, Peter J. Aschenbrenner, David Kimball

Peter J. Aschenbrenner

Fifty-five delegates were appointed by twelve states to attend the federal convention in May, 1787. Arrival of the delegates is matched with support/opposition for the Constitution.

Delegate Arrivals At Philadelphia Compared To Voting Records At The Ratification Conventions By State, Peter J. Aschenbrenner, David Kimball

Peter J. Aschenbrenner

Fifty-five delegates were appointed by twelve states to attend the federal convention in May, 1787. Eleven states ratified the Constitution between December 7, 1787 and July 26, 1788. When delegate arrival dates are compared with the order in which their respective state ratification conventions completed their business, a significant number of delegates supporting the constitution are missing in action.

Table Annexed To Article: Delegate Arrivals In Philadelphia Compared To Voting Records, Peter J. Aschenbrenner, David Kimball

Peter J. Aschenbrenner

Fifty-five delegates were appointed by twelve states to attend the federal convention in May, 1787. Eleven states ratified the Constitution between December 7, 1787 and July 26, 1788. When delegate arrival dates are compared with the order in which their respective state ratification conventions completed their business, a significant number of delegates supporting the constitution are missing in action.

Religious Anti-Vilification Laws: Gatekeeping Freedom Of Religion And Freedom Of Speech In Australia, Neil J. Foster

Neil J Foster

Freedom of religion and freedom of speech, two fundamental human rights, intersect and may clash when the law prohibits “vilification” of others on the basis of their religion, especially if the word is defined broadly enough to include mere offence or annoyance. The paper addresses the current state of religious “anti-vilification” laws in Australia, and recent important appellate decisions on freedom of speech, to discuss whether current laws adequately provide an appropriate balance in this important area of public life.

Table Annexed To Article: A Detailed Breakdown Of Note-Takers Surveyed From Farrand’S Records Vols. 1 And 2 (1937), Peter J. Aschenbrenner

Peter J. Aschenbrenner

Eleven of the fifty-five delegates that attended the Federal Convention took notes during the proceedings. These notes, along with Jackson’s official journal and available committee drafts, are assembled in Farrand’s Records of the Federal Convention of 1787 at volumes 1 and 2. OCL provides a page-by-page breakdown of the text [of their notes] which appears in the Farrandian presentation.

Constitutional Review In New Democracies, Sujit Choudhry, K. Glenn Bass

Sujit Choudhry

Mujeres Invisibles, Progresos Incompletos: Reflexiones Sobre El Control Difuso De Constitucionalidad De Normas De Filiación, Beatriz Ramirez

Beatriz Ramirez

El Aborto Y Los Derechos Fundamentales., Beatriz Ramirez, Juan Carlos Diaz

Beatriz Ramirez

El Derecho, como sistema de regulación de conductas, establece cuáles están permitidas, prohibidas u ordenadas. En el caso del aborto, un enfoque conservador se orienta a su prohibición absoluta, lo que equivale a que el sistema legal indica que todos los embarazos deben culminar en nacimientos, proscribiéndose cualquier intervención en ese transcurso. No obstante lo anterior, existe otra tendencia en materia de aborto: aquella orientada a su permisión en determinados supuestos que son más bien excepcionales. En ese contexto, algunos ordenamientos jurídicos otorgan tratamientos diferentes al aborto que se produce en circunstancias en los que las mujeres no han podido …

Equilibrium, Adam Lamparello

Adam Lamparello

No abstract provided.

The Supreme Court, Cafa, And Parens Patriae Actions: Will It Be Principles Or Biases?, Donald G. Gifford, William L. Reynolds

William L. Reynolds

The Supreme Court will hear a case during its 2013-2014 term that will test the principles of both its conservative and liberal wings. In Mississippi ex rel. Hood v. AU Optronics Corp., Justices from each wing of the Court will be forced to choose between the modes of statutory interpretation they usually have favored in the past and their previously displayed pro-business or anti-business predispositions. The issue is whether the defendant-manufacturers can remove an action brought by a state attorney general suing as parens patriae to federal court. Beginning with their actions against tobacco manufacturers in the mid-1990s, state …

The Rule Of Law And The Law Of Precedents, Daniel A. Farber

Daniel A Farber

No abstract provided.