Law Commons^™

An Illiberal Union, Sonu Bedi

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

This Article breaks new ground by applying the philosophical framework of liberal neutrality (most famously articulated by John Rawls) to the United States Supreme Court’s jurisprudence on marriage. At first blush, the Court’s decision in Obergefell v. Hodges—the culmination of marriage rights—seems to affirm a central principle of liberalism, namely equal access to marriage regardless of sexual orientation. Gays and lesbians can finally take part in an institution that celebrates the union of two committed individuals. But perversely, in its attempt to expand access to marriage, the Court has simultaneously entrenched values that are antithetical to the basic tenants …

Interpretation And Re-Interpretation Of A Clause: Magna Carta And The Widow’S Quarantine, Janet Loengard

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

No abstract provided.

The Impact Of Liberal Ideology On Child Protection Reform, Cassie Statuto Bevan

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

No abstract provided.

How The Liberati Sabotaged Child Welfare, David Stoesz

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

No abstract provided.

Why The American Child Welfare System Is Not Child Centered, Richard J. Gelles

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

No abstract provided.

Diagnosing Liberal Resistance To Needed Child Welfare Reforms, James G. Dwyer

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

No abstract provided.

Re-Evaluating The Criminalization Of In Utero Alcohol Exposure: A Harm-Reduction Approach, Adam J. Duso, John Stogner

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

No abstract provided.

Project Prevention: Concept, Operation, Results And Controversies About Paying Drug Abusers To Obtain Long-Term Birth Control, Bruce A. Thyer

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

This Article describes the origins and current operation of Project Prevention, a privately-funded program that provides a payment of $300 to substance abusers who obtain long-term birth control. This practice is intended as a means to prevent the conception of babies to mothers who are prone to expose their developing child to toxic levels of alcohol or other drugs during pregnancy, likely to be unable to care for their child once born, and at risk for having their child removed from their custody by the state and placed in foster care or an adoptive home. Children born to such mothers …

A Liberal Dilemma: Respecting Autonomy While Also Protecting Inchoate Children From Prenatal Substance Abuse, Andrew J. Weisberg, Frank E. Vandervort

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

No abstract provided.

Thoughts On The Liberal Dilemma In Child Welfare Reform, Elizabeth Bartholet

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

No abstract provided.

Child Protection’S Parental Preference, Daniel Heimpel

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

No abstract provided.

Stanley V. Illinois’S Untold Story, Josh Gupta-Kagan

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

Stanley v. Illinois is one of the Supreme Court’s more curious landmark cases. The holding is well known: the Due Process Clause both prohibits states from removing children from the care of unwed fathers simply because they are not married and requires states to provide all parents with a hearing on their fitness. By recognizing strong due process protections for parents’ rights, Stanley reaffirmed Lochner-era cases that had been in doubt and formed the foundation of modern constitutional family law. But Peter Stanley never raised due process arguments, so it has long been unclear how the Court reached this decision. …

Voided Vows: Annulment As A Full Faith And Credit Solution To The Same-Sex Divorce Conundrum, Katharine J. Westfall

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

No abstract provided.

Constitutional Limits On The Right Of Government Investigations To Interview And Examine Alleged Victims Of Child Abuse Or Neglect, Teri Dobbins Baxter

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

Investigating allegations of child abuse or neglect presents unique challenges, particularly if parents or guardians are the alleged perpetrators. Those accused of harming the children are in a position to prevent the victims from getting access to the help they need to escape their abuser(s). The courts have not clearly defined the federal constitutional boundaries of searches and seizures in this context. The Supreme Court, in particular, has not weighed in on the constitutionality of warrantless searches and seizures in connection with abuse and neglect investigations. This lack of Supreme Court guidance has led to unpredictable and sometimes conflicting opinions …

A Child-Centered Response To The Elkins Family Law Task Force, Amy M. Pellman, Robert N. Jacobs, Dara K. Reiner

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

In Elkins v. Superior Court, 163 P.3d 160 (Cal. 2007), California’s Supreme Court asked the Judicial Council to form a task force to make recommendations to increase “access to justice” in family court, because it was concerned about rules, policies, and procedures that put self-represented litigants at an unfair disadvantage in parentageand dissolution cases.

Neither the task force’s report in 2010 nor the legislation that the report inspired the same year addresses children’s due process rights, even though children ordinarily have no access to justice. This Article shows that due process sometimes requires the trial court to appoint counsel for …

The Defense Of Marriage Act And Uncategorical Federalism, David B. Cruz

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

This Essay addresses federalism objections to section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). Ordinarily, the federal government accepts states’ determinations of what couples are validly married. Section 3 of DOMA, however, fashions a broad exception for same-sex couples, who are definitionally deemed not to be in “marriages.” In addition to equal protection and full faith and credit challenges to DOMA, litigants have made constitutional federalism arguments. In Massachusetts v. United
States Department of Health and Human Services, the federal trial court accepted one such argument, though in a form that might be read to categorically deny the federal …

Color Conscious: The Unconstitutionality Of Adoptive Parents' Expression Of Racial Preferences In The Adoption Process, Colin Schlueter

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

No abstract provided.

Privatizing Family Law In The Name Of Religion, Robin Fretwell Wilson

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

No abstract provided.

Embryo Fundamentalism, June Carbone, Naomi Cahn

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

No abstract provided.

Best Interests And Parental Presumptions: Bringing Same-Sex Custody Agreements Beyond Preclusion By The Federal Defense Of Marriage Act, Alison M. Schmieder

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

No abstract provided.

Family Law Federalism: Divorce And The Constitution, Ann Laquer Estin

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

American divorce law was transformed by the Supreme Court in a series of decisions beginning with Williams v. North Carolina in 1942. These constitutional full faith and credit cases resolved a long-standing federalism problem by redefining the scope of state power over marital status. With these decisions, the Court shifted from an analysis based on the competing interests of different states to an approach that highlighted the individual interests of the parties involved. This change fundamentally altered state power over the family by extending to individuals greater control of their marital status. In the process, the Court cleared a path …

A Child's Right: What Should The State Be Required To Provide To Teenagers Aging Out Of Foster Care, Katherine M. Swift

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

Teenagers aging out of foster care face harms that can be traced to their lack of preparation for adulthood. This Article argues that teenagers in foster care have a substantive due process right to services not only while they are in state custody but also after they age out of care. The lower federal courts have interpreted the Supreme Court's decision in DeShaney v. Winnebago County Department of Social Services to mean that foster children-like prisoners and mentally retarded people held in state custody-have a substantive due process right to personal safety. What the courts have not considered is how …

Form And Substance In Parentage Law, Lynn D. Wardle

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

No abstract provided.

A Child-Centered Approach To Parentage Law, James G. Dwyer

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

No abstract provided.

The Constitutionality Of Best Interests Parentage, David D. Meyer

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

No abstract provided.

Bringing Up Baby: Adoption, Marriage, And The Best Interests Of The Child, Robin Fretwell Wilson, W. Bradford Wilcox

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

No abstract provided.

Parentage At Birth: Birthfathers And Social Fatherhood, Nancy E. Dowd

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

No abstract provided.

To Protect And Defend: Assigning Parental Rights When Parents Are In Poverty, Karen Czapanskiy

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

No abstract provided.

Protecting Children By Preserving Parenthood, Jane C. Murphy

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

No abstract provided.

Domestic Relations, Missouri V. Holland, And The New Federalism, Mark Strasser

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

No abstract provided.