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Jurisdiction And The Enforcement Of Foreign Judgments, Tanya Monestier

Law Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Abusive Constitutionalism, David Landau

Scholarly Publications

This paper identifies an increasingly important phenomenon: the use of mechanisms of constitutional change to erode the democratic order. A rash of recent incidents in a diverse group of countries such as Hungary, Egypt, and Venezuela has shown that the tools of constitutional amendment and replacement can be used by would-be autocrats to undermine democracy with relative ease. Since military coups and other blatant ruptures in the constitutional order have fallen out of favor, actors instead rework the constitutional order with subtle changes in order to make themselves difficult to dislodge and to disable or pack courts and other accountability …

Every Picture Tells A Story: The 2010 Round Of Congressional Redistricting In New England, Robert G. Boatright, James R. Gomes, Diana Evans, John Baughman, Nicholas M. Giner, Dante J. Scala, Amelia Najjar, Nicholas Rossi

Mosakowski Institute for Public Enterprise

The United States Constitution requires that

the number of representatives in Congress be

reapportioned among the states based on a decennial

census, and the U.S. Supreme Court ruled half a

century ago that congressional districts within each

state must be, as nearly as practicable, equal in

population. However, the actual drawing of district

lines for our national lower house and the methods

employed for doing so are largely left to the individual

states. Redistricting thus presents a fertile field for

the comparative examination of state politics and

political institutions.

The Inclusiveness Of The New Originalism, James E. Fleming

Faculty Scholarship

In tracing the arc of originalism from the old originalism to the new, I observe a shift from an exclusionary outlook to an inclusionary outlook, reflected in new originalists’ proclamations that “we are all originalists now.” As my title suggests, I am going to bring out the inclusiveness of the new originalism and ponder its implications. The new originalists have emphasized two developments: (1) the movement from a focus on “intention of the framers” to “original public meaning” and (2) the articulation of and emphasis on the distinction between interpretation and construction. My main points are two. First, the inclusiveness …

'Dred Scott V. Sandford' Analysis, Sarah E. Roessler

Student Publications

The Scott v. Sandford decision will forever be known as a dark moment in America's history. The Supreme Court chose to rule on a controversial issue, and they made the wrong decision. Scott v. Sandford is an example of what can happen when the Court chooses to side with personal opinion instead of what is right.

Meaning And Belief In Constitutional Interpretation, Andrei Marmor

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

The distinction between a concept and its different conceptions plays a prominent role in debates about constitutional interpretation. Proponents of a dynamic reading of the Constitution-espousing interpretation of constitutional concepts according to their contemporary understandings typically rely on the idea that the Constitution entrenches only the general concepts it deploys, without authoritatively favoring any particular conception of them-specifically, without favoring the particular conception of the relevant concept that the framers of the Constitution may have had in mind. Originalists argue, to the contrary, that fidelity to the Constitution requires an understanding of its provisions according to the particular conception of …

The New Constitution Of The United States: Do We Need One And How Would We Get One?, Jack M. Beermann

Faculty Scholarship

Government in the United States has some serious problems. At the federal level, is the problem of gridlock. The United States Congress seems unable or unwilling to do anything about anything (although it must have done something to run up more than $16 trillion in debts). Forget about addressing problems such as global warming, income inequality, failing schools, economic stimulus or you name it. How bad is it, really? Has the United States become ungovernable, and is the Constitution to blame? In my view, it’s a mixed bag. Some aspects of the United States government work very well, others are …

Autochthonous Constitutional Design In Post-Colonial Singapore: Intimations Of Confucianism And The Leviathan In Entrenching Dominant Government, Eugene K. B. Tan

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

Does Singapore's approach to institutional design vis-avis political representation prioritize strong and effective government, or is the goal one that is geared towards a representative government as a means of enhancing political governance? his paper examines the series of amendments to Singapore's Constitution and related legislation, between 1984 and 1990, and in 2010, which relate to political representation in Singapore's electoral system and unicameral legislature. At one level, the changes are part of the endeavor to retain Parliament's standing as the focal point of Singapore's Westminstermodeled system of government. The constitutional changes reflect the political elites' abiding belief that institutional …

October 31, 2013: Hypocrisy Over Turkey, Bruce Ledewitz

Hallowed Secularism

Blog post, “Hypocrisy over Turkey“ discusses politics, theology and the law in relation to religion and public life in the democratic United States of America.

October 26, 2013: In God We Trust In The Public Schools, Bruce Ledewitz

Hallowed Secularism

Blog post, “In God We Trust in the Public Schools“ discusses politics, theology and the law in relation to religion and public life in the democratic United States of America.

October 18, 2013: One Cheer For John Boehner, Bruce Ledewitz

Hallowed Secularism

Blog post, “One Cheer for John Boehner“ discusses politics, theology and the law in relation to religion and public life in the democratic United States of America.

The Moonscape Of Tax Equality: Windsor And Beyond, Anthony C. Infanti

NULR Online

No abstract provided.

October 5, 2013: Break From Blogging, Bruce Ledewitz

Hallowed Secularism

Blog post, “Break from Blogging“ discusses politics, theology and the law in relation to religion and public life in the democratic United States of America.

Summary Of North Lake Tahoe Fire V. Washoe County Commissioners, 129 Nev. Adv. Op. 409, Erica Nannini

Nevada Supreme Court Summaries

The court determined two issues: (1) whether County Commissioners’ actions withholding property tax distributions to offset the cost of refunds was proper under Nevada’s current statutory scheme; and (2) whether judicial interference in this matter is precluded by the political question doctrine.

October 2, 2013: The Sharing Economy, Bruce Ledewitz

Hallowed Secularism

Blog post, “The Sharing Economy“ discusses politics, theology and the law in relation to religion and public life in the democratic United States of America.

Doma's Ghost And Copyright Reversionary Interests, Brad A. Greenberg

NULR Online

No abstract provided.

Secondary Speech And The Protective Approach To Interpretive Dualities In The Roberts Court, Nat Stern

Scholarly Publications

No abstract provided.

Public Debt In The United States And Germany: A Constitutional Perspective, Stephen Utz

Faculty Articles and Papers

No abstract provided.

Let Ivf Take Its Course: Reconceiving Procreative Liberty For The Twenty-First Century, Christine E. White

Student Articles and Papers

No abstract provided.

New York Times V. U.S.: Implications And Relevance In The 21st Century, Maria E. Lombardi

Student Publications

In 1971, the New York Times released the first installment in a series later referred to as the Pentagon Papers that would eventually have significant political, social, and historical impacts that are felt even in the 21st Century. Following the first release, President Nixon’s administration sought an injunction against the publication of the remaining contents of the classified study, ultimately becoming an extensive legal process that culminated in the Supreme Court. In a per curiam opinion, the Court ruled that in accordance with Organization for a Better Austin v. Keefe and Near v. Minnesota that the federal government did not …

Constitutional Conundrums In Arbitration: Book Review Of Arbitration And The Constitution, S. I. Strong

Faculty Publications

The combination of arbitration and constitutional law is the topic of Professor Peter Rutledge's new book, and the focus of this review essay, which will consider, among other things, whether these two subjects are compatible.

Discrimination In Baby Making: The Unconstitutional Treatment Of Prospective Parents Through Surrogacy, Andrea B. Carroll

Journal Articles

The article focuses on limited use of reproductive technologies in defense of discriminating against unmarried intended parents. It emphasizes to eliminate unconstitutional treatment of prospective parents involved in the surrogacy process. It informs that State laws related to surrogacy create discrimination which is based on marital status. It suggests that surrogacy should be included as a permissible reproductive avenue for right to married and unmarried intended parents in the U.S.

The Liberty Of The Church: Source, Scope And Scandal, Patrick Mckinley Brennan

Working Paper Series

This article was presented at a conference, and is part of a symposium, on "The Freedom of the Church in the Modern Era." The article argues that the liberty of the Church, libertas Ecclesiae, is not a mere metaphor, pace the views of some other contributions to the conference and symposium and of the mentality mostly prevailing over the last five hundred years. The argument is that the Church and her directly God-given rights are ontologically irreducible in a way that the rights of, say, the state of California or even of the United States are not. Based on a …

Review Of Prigg V. Pennsylvania: Slavery, The Supreme Court, And The Ambivalent Constitution, Susan David Demaine

Articles by Maurer Faculty

In 1842, the Supreme Court issued a landmark decision in Prigg v. Pennsylvania, resolving a dispute about fugitive slave rendition that had raged between the states for decades. H. Robert Baker’s analysis of the decision and the events that led up to it is the first book-length work to investigate Prigg and its place in American history. Baker traces the development of fugitive slave laws and recounts the heart-wrenching story that lies behind Prigg to shed light on the Supreme Court’s decision and the gradual clarification of American federalism.

"We The People," Constitutional Accountability, And Outsourcing Government, Kimberly L. Wehle

All Faculty Scholarship

The ubiquitous outsourcing of federal functions to private contractors, although benign in the main, raises the most fundamental of constitutional questions: What institutions and actors comprise the "federal government" itself? From Abu Ghraib to Blackwater, a string of scandals has heightened public awareness that highly sensitive federal powers and responsibilities are routinely entrusted to government contractors. At the same time, the American populace seems vaguely aware that, when it comes to ensuring accountability for errors and abuses of power, contractors occupy a special space. The fact is that myriad structural and procedural means for holding traditionally government actors accountable do …

Can Pensions Be Restructured In (Detroit’S) Municipal Bankruptcy?, David A. Skeel Jr.

All Faculty Scholarship

This paper, which was written as a White Paper for the Federalist Society, describes and assesses the question whether public employee pensions can be restructured in bankruptcy, with a particular focus on Detroit. Part I gives a brief overview both of the treatment of pensions under state law, and of the Michigan law governing the Detroit pensions. Part II explains the legal argument for restructuring an underfunded pension in bankruptcy. Part III considers the major federal constitutional objections to restructuring, Part IV discusses arguments based on the Michigan Constitution, and Part V assesses several Chapter 9 arguments against restructuring. None …

Youth Matters: Miller V. Alabama And The Future Of Juvenile Sentencing, John F. Stinneford

UF Law Faculty Publications

In the Supreme Court's latest Eighth Amendment decision, Miller v. Alabama, the Court held that statutes authorizing mandatory sentences of life in prison with no possibility of parole are unconstitutional as applied to offenders who were under eighteen when they committed their crimes. This short essay examines several themes presented in Miller, including the constitutional significance of youth and science, the legitimacy of mandatory life sentences and juvenile transfer statutes, and the conflict between “evolving standards of decency” and the Supreme Court’s “independent judgment.”

This essay also introduces important articles by Richard Frase, Carol Steiker and Jordan Steiker, …

September 27, 2013: What Is The Meaning Of The Fall/Original Sin?, Bruce Ledewitz

Hallowed Secularism

Blog post, “What Is the Meaning of the Fall/Original Sin?“ discusses politics, theology and the law in relation to religion and public life in the democratic United States of America.

September 22, 2013: The Believer Who Wills Not To Believe, Bruce Ledewitz

Hallowed Secularism

Blog post, “The Believer Who Wills Not To Believe“ discusses politics, theology and the law in relation to religion and public life in the democratic United States of America.

September 18, 2013: The Historical Record Suggests That Jesus Was Unique, Bruce Ledewitz

Hallowed Secularism

Blog post, “The Historical Record Suggests That Jesus Was Unique“ discusses politics, theology and the law in relation to religion and public life in the democratic United States of America.