Digital Commons Network^™

Human Trafficking Private Right Of Action: Civil Rights For Trafficked Persons In The United States, Kathleen Kim, Kusia Hreshchyshyn

UC Law SF Journal on Gender and Justice

Human Trafficking Private Right of Action: Civil Rights for Trafficked Persons in the United States addresses a 2003 addition to the Trafficking Victims Protection Act allowing for a private right of action for persons trafficked to the United States. The article discusses civil litigation as a strategy for trafficked persons to obtain a remedy that specifically addresses the injury that they sustained: enslavement. The discussion situates this remedy within the broader purposes of anti-trafficking legislation.

Founder's Remarks Commemorating The 15th Anniversary, Deborah Kochan

UC Law SF Journal on Gender and Justice

No abstract provided.

Aligning Or Maligning - Getting Inside A New Idea, Getting Behind No Child Left Behind And Getting Outside Of It All, Stephen A. Rosenbaum

UC Law SF Journal on Gender and Justice

The pending reauthorization of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) alters the landscape of special education for parents and advocates of children with special needs. The proposed modifications are based on an effort to reduce the bureaucracy associated with the current procedural safeguards and to incorporate the concept of accountability embodied in the No Child Left Behind Act. Many advocates are waiting with apprehension for the final version of the bill due to the philosophical changes that it will bring to special education federal law. This article gives an overview of the pending legislation and urges advocates to adapt …

When Congress Gives You Lemons: Alternatives To Legal Services Corporation Funding In The Quest To Provide Access To Justice, David Pai

UC Law Journal of Race and Economic Justice

Since 1996, Congress has imposed substantial restrictions on lawyers funded by the Legal Services Corporation (LSC). These restrictions include banning LSC-funded attorneys from filing class action lawsuits, prohibiting them from claiming any statutory right to attorneys' fees, and barring them from bringing any challenges to an agency's rule-making authority. Congress has also slashed the LSC budget by a third. However, alternative funding strategies do exist for states and public interest firms seeking to fill gaps gouged by the LSC restrictions. By focusing on these piecemeal changes in fundraising, legal aid attorneys inevitably empower themselves to move away from the inefficiencies …

Facts And Fantasies About Uc Berkeley Admissions: A Critical Evaluation Of Regent John Moores' Reports, Asian Law Caucus

UC Law Journal of Race and Economic Justice

UC Regent John Moores recently authored a confidential draft report that purports to analyze admissions at the University of California's flagship Berkeley campus. The Moores Report is largely focused on SAT scores, particularly the admission of some applicants with SAT scores below 1000. Unfortunately, the Moores Report contributed to widespread misconceptions about comprehensive review at Berkeley, particularly regarding the admission of a small number of students with relatively low SAT scores. In reality, the data show that students admitted with relatively low SAT scores can be highly qualified for admission to Berkeley and that Berkeley admits virtually all in-state applicants …

The Criminalization Of Survival Attempts: Locking Up Female Runaways And Other Status Offenders, Alecia Humphrey

UC Law SF Journal on Gender and Justice

To control and help runaway children, courts have classified them as "status offenders" without getting to the real source of their runaway behavior, such as physical or sexual abuse at home. Instead, confining runaway children to the judicial system through the use of status offenses has further entrenched these runaways' behavior without helping them develop more effective copings skills; children often run away again, commit substantive crimes, once again become victims, or else are institutionalized or incarcerated on down the road. Indeed, girls are especially prone to this cycle, since their numbers are disproportionately higher than those of boys in …

The European Free Trade Association Court And Positive Action, Thomas Trelogan, Steve Mazurana, Paul Hodapp

UC Law SF International Law Review

"Affirmative Action" in the United States, "Positive Action" in Europe. Although Europeans and Americans have both enacted laws to prevent discrimination based on gender, the differences have been in more than just name. In this introduction to "positive action" law, the authors provide an overview of the European Court of Justice, the European Free Trade Association Court, and how disputes over positive action are resolved in Europe. The authors then conclude with a discussion of a representative positive action case.

Can't We Enlarge The Blanket And The Bed - A Comparative Analysis Of Positive/Affirmative Action In The European Court Of Justice And The United States Supreme Court, Thomas Trelogan, Steve Mazurana, Paul Hodapp

UC Law SF International Law Review

In a time when race-based affirmative action is the focal discrimination issue in the United States, the subject of gender equality runs the risk of stagnation. The authors return the attention to sex-based affirmative action by examining the arguments for and against European positive action plans, and several of the resulting European Court of Justice cases. The authors conclude with a comparison to similar gender-based discrimination laws in the United States, and a discussion of the similarities and differences of the two systems.

In Search Of Gideon's Promise: Lessons From England And The Need For Federal Help, Norman Lefstein

UC Law Journal

A significant national problem is the enduring widespread crisis in providing adequate legal representation for indigent defendants in state criminal prosecutions. Insufficient funding and lack of oversight undermines the quality of public defense delivery systems while constantly risking the conviction of innocent persons. Thus, the Constitution's promise of counsel, first recognized in 1963 by the U.S. Supreme Court in Gideon v. Wainwright, remains unfulfilled. This Article, which draws upon an in-depth study of English criminal legal aid, focuses on sources of funding, selection of counsel by the client, and programs to monitor the quality of representation. Comparing the current American …

Federal Regulation Of Embryonic Stem Cells: Can Government Do It - An Examination Of Potential Regulation Through The Eyes Of California's Recent Legislation, Francesca Crisera

UC Law Constitutional Quarterly

The debate surrounding stem cell research, particularly embryonic stem cell research, is one involving much acrimony, both at the research and practical stages. Such research holds the potential for abuse if not responsibly undertaken. This does not mean, however, that embryonic stem cell research should be prohibited subject to the whims of opponents in Congress. Rather, California has taken the proper step by endorsing embryonic stem cell research, while maintaining guidelines to oversee it.

Procreative Argument For Proscribing Same-Sex Marriage, Douglas W. Kmiec

UC Law Constitutional Quarterly

No abstract provided.

The Use Of Rules And Standards To Define A Transsexual's Sex For The Pupose Of Marriage: An Argument For A Hybrid Approach, Briana Lynn Morgan

UC Law Journal

The treatment of transsexuals under marital law has been conflicting. Though legislatures in many jurisdictions have limited marriage to one man and one woman, "man" and "woman" have not been adequately defined. Courts have employed a variety of tests in determining which gender to assign transsexuals, ranging from a hard-line rule of what sex the transsexual was born with, to multi-factored tests based on scientific definitions of gender. This conflict among the courts reflects a broader "rules vs. standards" debate in the law, the former providing clarity in the resolution of disputes, and the latter allowing for flexibility by the …

Cross Burning Revisited: What The Supreme Court Should Have Done In Virginia V. Black And Why It Didn’T, W. Wat Hopkins

UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal

The Supreme Court of the United States, in R.A. V. v. St. Paul, created a complicated framework of law that, despite years of case law to the contrary, would allow a court to hold a law banning cross burning to be constitutional, even if the law was not content-neutral. The ruling caused considerable problems in cases involving cross burning that reached lower appellate courts. In Virginia v. Black, the Court had the opportunity to resolve the problem, but refused to do so. Instead, the Court restructured the law related to intimidating and threatening speech, creating even more ambiguity. Under the …

Child Laborers: The World's Potential Future Labor Resources Exploited And Depleted, Rupneet Sidhu

UC Law SF Journal on Gender and Justice

At this very moment, child laborers are working in unsuitable and hazardous conditions in both developed and developing nations. The adults, who are the main medium for giving voice to the concerns of the child laborers at the international and national levels, have failed. However, there are some promising international instruments whose full and sincere implementation can aid nations to eliminate at least the worst forms of child labor. Concurrently improving and enforcing national laws will help as well. Moreover, the non-governmental organizations should be recognized for being instrumental in keeping the child labor issues as a priority of the …

The Voice Of The Unheard: An Evaluation Of And Proposed Solution To The Special Educational Needs Of Hearing Children Of Deaf Parents, Julie Ruschin

UC Law SF Journal on Gender and Justice

Spoken language acquisition depends on aural exposure to the language. A child must hear a language spoken. But more than this, the child must have the language directed at her in conversational context. Because spoken language acquisition requires something that may be beyond the capabilities of the State, and because language acquisition is an educational issue, the responsibility for providing a program to ensure that hearing children of deaf parents master spoken English rests on the State. The State should create programs to ensure that these children are properly exposed to spoken English during the brief period in life in …

Introduction And Congratulations, Mary Kay Kane

UC Law SF Journal on Gender and Justice

No abstract provided.

A New Image In The Looking Glass: Faculty Mentoring, Invitational Rhetoric, And The Second-Class Status Of Women In The U.S. Academia, Carlo A. Pedrioli

UC Law SF Journal on Gender and Justice

Despite earning more than 40% of doctorates awarded in the United States, women hold one third of the tenure-track teaching positions in higher education. Moreover, the women who enter U.S. academia still earn less than their male counterparts. This article maintains that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 offers an inadequate solution for encouraging the presence and equal standing of women in U.S. academia. This article presents the slow progress of equality in academia achieved by Title VII and the limitations of traditional rhetoric. It then offers models of faculty mentoring and introduces the concept of invitational …

Stoning Single Nigerian Mothers For Adultery: Applying Feminist Theory To An Analysis Of Gender Discrimination In International Law, Sarah Crutcher

UC Law SF Journal on Gender and Justice

In 2003, an Islamic Sharia court in northern Nigeria sentenced Amina Lawal to death by stoning for having sex outside of marriage. After the man Lawal named as the father of her baby was acquitted for lack of evidence, the international community pressured Nigeria to oppose the ruling by adhering to its own constitutional provisions, and international law prohibiting torture and gender discrimination. This article explores the fundamental conflicts between international human rights law and Islamic law as implemented by Sharia courts. The author cites the UN Charter, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, jus cogens and customary international law, …

Consent Engendered: A Feminist Critique Of Consensual Fourth Amendment Searches, Dana Raigrodski

UC Law SF Journal on Gender and Justice

This essay examines the inherent power imbalances that characterize police-individual encounters and questions the notion of consensual searches. Albeit feminist challenges to the notion of consent in other areas of the law, there has not been a feminist scrutiny of consent and agency as employed within search and seizure law. Therefore, this essay builds on feminist critique of rape laws and domestic violence to challenge the Court's dichotomized view of coercion and consent in its search and seizure cases and to offer a feminist concept of agency under conditions of subordination.

The Child Status Protection Act: Does Immigration Math Solve The Family Unity Equation, Shane Dizon

UC Law SF Journal on Gender and Justice

This note focuses on the Child Status Protection Act, passed by Congress in 2002 to allow individuals who turn 21 while their permanent residence paperwork is pending to preserve their eligibility as children. The note addresses the various reactions of the enforcing government authorities, practitioners, and courts since the Act's passage. In addition, the author explores the Act's place among other recent legislation and government agency policies purporting to advance the theme of family unity in immigration. Ultimately, the author suggests that the statutory stop-the-clock approach embodied by the Act seems not only inconsistent with its predecessors, which have expanded …

Lighting The Lantern: Visions Of A Virtual All-Women's Law School, Nancy E. Shurtz

UC Law SF Journal on Gender and Justice

"Lighting the Lantern: Visions of a Virtual All-Women's Law School" is a fictional narrative of a hypothetical all women's law school. It is written in non-traditional form in the hope that it will prompt the reader to view the law, academic institutions and societal constructs in ways more consistent with an evolving society that should embrace all differences, whether those differences are gender or racially based.

The mission of the All Women's Law School is threefold: "First, to teach specific lawyering skills and disseminate knowledge in a context designed to help students function effectively in the existing culture while working …

"[N]Ot A Story To Pass On": Constructing Mothers Who Kill, Susan Ayres

UC Law SF Journal on Gender and Justice

Society is horrified and shocked when mothers kill their children. While this reaction may be justified, the reasons behind infanticide are never fully explored. Motherhood has very specific definitions in our society which makes it difficult to understand the motivations behind infanticide. Social institutions, such as the legal system and the media, are responsible for constructing motherhood in such a way that we view mothers who kill their children as simply insane and deficient. This article asserts another possible viewpoint regarding infanticide. Instead of specularizing women, the author urges people to view mothers who kill their children within the context …

The Admissibility Of Tape Recordings In Criminal Trials Involving Domestic Disputes: California's Proposition 8 And Title Iii Of The Federal Omnibus Crime Control And Safe Streets Act, Lee Ashely Smith

UC Law SF Journal on Gender and Justice

Domestic cases of eavesdropping and wiretapping pose a special problem for laws that were initially meant to govern police misconduct and espionage. California voters passed Proposition 8 but its passage led to many additional questions including whether the law truly champions victims' rights and whether it protects innocent defendants. Federal law, by comparison, sets a minimum standard of one-party consent for the admissibility of wiretap or eavesdropping evidence in criminal trials. This standard has been shown to permit parental wiretaps without allowing purely clandestine recording of another's activities, including spouses and domestic partners. In short, privacy rights are protected to …

A Hometown Dilemma: Addressing Th E Sexual Harassment Of Undocumented Women In Meatpacking Plants In Iowa And Nebraska, Amanda Clark

UC Law SF Journal on Gender and Justice

Sexual harassment of undocumented women workers continues to be a systemic problem within the meatpacking industry. In Iowa and Nebraska, the state legislature, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, labor unions, and local advocacy organizations are working to address the problem of sexual harassment within the meatpacking industry. This note addresses the ongoing issues facing women in the meatpacking industry in Iowa and Nebraska, in particular the unique concerns facing undocumented and immigrant women workers. It also looks to the Supreme Court holding in Hoffman Plastic Compounds, Inc. v. NLRB to determine the applicability of that case to Title VII sexual …

Federalism And The Federal Criminal Law, Craig M. Bradley

UC Law Journal

The Supreme Court's decisions in United States v. Lopez and United States v. Morrison have raised serious questions about the scope of Congress's commerce clause jurisdiction in creating federal crimes. This Article analyzes those cases as well as Jones v. United States, and other Supreme Court cases interpreting federal criminal laws, in order to assess the current scope of federal commerce clause jurisdiction.

It concludes that while it is not the intent of the Supreme Court to cut serious inroads into federal jurisdiction, the impact of Lopez and Morrison is greater than the lower federal courts have recognized. In particular, …

Pride And Prejudice And Proof: Quotidian Factfinding And Rules Of Evidence, Rosanna Cavallaro

UC Law Journal

This Article considers the novel Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen, as a work of literature that invites the reader and legal scholar to reflect on the modes of proof we use in our quotidian factfinding, and how they vary from those available to adjudicatory factflnders under existing rules of evidence. In particular, the novel allows those interested in intersections between law and literature to explore the preferencing of live testimony as against hearsay; the use of character or propensity evidence; and the balance between truthseeking and confidentiality that underlies rules of privilege. Sometimes augmenting traditional legal and social science …