Law Commons^™

How States Can Affect Federal Deepwater Port Lng Licensing Decisions: A Case Study Involving The Deepwater Port Act And The Coastal Zone Management Act, Linda Krop

Golden Gate University Environmental Law Journal

This Article explores the general role of coastal states in permitting offshore LNG terminals, and the specific role that California played in the licensing process for the proposed Cabrillo Port LNG project. There are many facets of state authority, including the approvals required for the portions of LNG projects located within a coastal state’s jurisdiction (primarily within the first three miles offshore), the application of state laws to proposals to construct offshore LNG facilities under the DWPA, the authority of the governor of the adjacent coastal state to approve or “disapprove” deepwater port projects, and the right of a coastal …

The Cape Wind Offshore Wind Energy Project: A Case Study Of The Difficult Transition To Renewable Energy, Kenneth Kimmell, Dawn Stolfi Stalenhoef

Golden Gate University Environmental Law Journal

This article presents the story of one renewable energy alternative that is available wherever the wind blows strong and steady. If that alone is not sufficient enticement to read further, the authors also promise to present one of the most engaging permitting sagas ever known to this field. Indeed, the Cape Wind Energy project was held captive by the permitting process for nearly a decade – in stark contrast to numerous offshore oil projects – due to the imposition of disproportionally rigorous regulatory scrutiny and the dogged political pressure applied by a few wealthy homeowners with ocean views in the …

Riding The Wave: Confronting Jurisdictional And Regulatory Barriers To Ocean Energy Development, Danielle Murray, Christopher Carr, Jennifer Jeffers, Alejandra Núñez-Luna

Golden Gate University Environmental Law Journal

This Article provides a brief history of wave energy development, examines the status of hydrokinetic projects undertaken at a state and local level, and navigates the overlapping, and often competing, jurisdictional mandates confronting U.S. project developers. It also explores lessons learned from the European Union’s (EU) recent regulatory experience and provides recommendations for short- and long-term steps forward in the United States. Part II discusses early wave energy projects, research and policy developments, and highlights recent advances in technical testing and economic feasibility of wave energy projects. Part III analyzes the status of hydrokinetic energy development at the state and …

Siting Offshore Hydrokinetic Energy Projects: A Comparative Look At Wave Energy Regulation In The Pacific Northwest, Rachael Salcido

Golden Gate University Environmental Law Journal

This Article considers the approaches that Oregon, California, and Washington have taken to address the need for additional renewable energy while also undertaking a shift to comprehensive ocean management. Discussion of offshore federalism, a component of the opportunities and challenges of this nascent industry, is highlighted at various points. The Memoranda of Understanding that these coastal states have entered into with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission have been central to facilitating hydrokinetic energy development. While each state has taken a slightly different approach to folding wave energy into its alternative energy and marine management agendas, the progress made is encouraging …

The Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Trust And The Gulf Coast Claims Facility: The “Superfund” Myth And The Law Of Unintended Consequences, Alfred R. Light

Golden Gate University Environmental Law Journal

Two months after the April 2010 Deepwater Horizon explosion, BP and the Obama White House announced the creation of the $20 billion Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Trust (“the Trust”) to pay individuals and businesses suffering losses arising from the disaster. Although BP initially paid certain claimants, Kenneth R. Feinberg, a Washington lawyer who previously administered the 9/11 Compensation Fund, opened the Gulf Coast Claims Facility (“the Facility” or GCCF) in August to “independently” resolve disaster claims against BP. As publicly advertised, the Facility and the $20 billion Trust, to which it has access to pay claims, are designed to address …

Restructure And Reform: Post-Bp Deepwater Horizon Proposals To Improve Oversight Of Offshore Oil And Gas Activities, Leila Monroe

Golden Gate University Environmental Law Journal

This Article chronicles the multiple reviews that were conducted into the BP oil spill, in an attempt to understand the flaws in government management and oversight that allowed this disaster to occur. It endeavors to distill the key recommendations produced by numerous reviewers related to improving DOI’s management and oversight of offshore oil and gas exploration and development activities. Although they are also critically important topics, each with identified opportunities for improvement, it is not within the scope of this Article to provide an in-depth discussion of industry culture and practice, technological failures, oil spill response, or spill restoration.

Part …

A Regulatory Wake-Up Call: Lessons From Bp’S Deepwater Horizon Disaster, Rebecca M. Bratspies

Golden Gate University Environmental Law Journal

In learning from the BP disaster, there are two levels at which to understand what happened, and two kinds of lessons to draw: straightforward and complex. The straightforward lesson focuses on BP as a distinct entity, emphasizing the company’s culpability for its poor decisions. The complex lesson does not deny BP’s culpability but seeks to situate BP’s private actions within a broader regulatory context in order to identify systemic failures that contributed to the disaster.

This Article delves into both sets of lessons, concentrating more on the “complex” explanation, which involves recognizing gaps in the statutory scheme and conflicts in …

Pricing Pelicans And Petrol: In Introduction To The Issue, Paul Stanton Kibel, Angela Haren Kelley

Golden Gate University Environmental Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Masthead - Vol. 5 #1

Golden Gate University Environmental Law Journal

No abstract provided.

An Issue Of Invocability Of Provisions Of The Wto Covered Agreements Before Domestic Courts, Ramesh Karky

Annual Survey of International & Comparative Law

This paper examines and covers relevant provisions of the Uruguay Round Agreements and laws of Nepal, provides arguments favoring and opposing invocability and non-invocability, analyzes the constitutionality and validity of Nepal’s accession to the WTO, the direct applicability of the Uruguay Round Agreements in Nepal’s internal law, and the invocability of the provisions of the Uruguay Round Agreements before the courts of Nepal, and finally draws conclusion on the issue.

Probing The Scope Of Self Defense In International Law, Eustace Chikere Azubuike

Annual Survey of International & Comparative Law

The concept of self defense is one field of international law that has generated, and continues to generate, much controversy. The controversy is not as to the legality of self defense, but rather springs from a proper identification of the circumstances under which it applies. Thus, the International Court of Justice and other tribunals have received criticisms from states and academics for a perceived misapplication of the principle of self defense. The interpretation of the concept, like other important concepts in international law, has not been free from political considerations. Does this situation imply that the boundaries of self defense …

Humanitarian Intervention In A Post-Iraq, Post-Darfur World: Is There Now A Duty To Prevent Genocide Even Without Security Council Approval?, Sarah Mazzochi

Annual Survey of International & Comparative Law

Is there now a right to unilateral humanitarian intervention in a post-Iraq, post-Darfur world? This Article seeks to answer that question.

Part I will address the background and historical evolution of unilateral humanitarian intervention as well as give examples of state action or inaction in cases of genocide. Part I will also give the legal framework for the U.N. Genocide Convention. Part II will discuss the law of humanitarian intervention as it is commonly accepted today. Part III will point to the future and argue that the law of humanitarian intervention should be, going forward, a jus cogens norm. Part …

Home State, Cross-Border Custody, And Habitual Residence Jurisdiction: Time For A Temporal Standard In International Family Law, Todd Heine

Annual Survey of International & Comparative Law

This article addresses three jurisdictional standards that arise in every cross-border child custody dispute between European Union Member States and the United States: home state, cross-border, and habitual residence jurisdiction. These jurisdictional standards face uncertainty in many cases.

First, this article provides a history of family law jurisdiction in the United States and thoroughly reviews home state jurisdiction in United States domestic law. While domestic family lawyers know this standard, the standard’s rigidity and fragmented application among the states baffle many foreign family lawyers.

Second, this article offers an overview of the remarkable emergence of family law in European Union …

A Critique Of Argentine E-Commerce Law And Recommendations For Improvement, Stephen E. Blythe

Annual Survey of International & Comparative Law

Argentina has been experiencing rapid growth in internet accessibility and E-commerce, but its E-commerce laws need to be updated. The nation enacted a Digital Signature Law (“DSL”) in 2001. Digital signatures and documents are valid in Argentina if they meet stringent security requirements and can be used to comply with legal requirements for: a handwritten signature; a paper document; an original paper document; and retention of a paper document. A digital certificate must be issued by a licensed certification authority (“CA”) and must accurately identify the subscriber. The CA will issue a private key to the subscriber with the certificate, …

Keynote Address To The 20th Annual Fulbright Symposium – International Law In A Time Of Change, Michael Alsuel Ntumy

Annual Survey of International & Comparative Law

The theme of this symposium is International Law in a Time of Change. Considering the events that have engulfed international law in recent times, it is hard to imagine a more important or timely topic than this one. Whether one focuses on the rules, principles and concepts, or the institutions of international law, there is no escape from the fact that these things all bear the indelible imprint of change. This fitting theme has undoubtedly been influenced, I believe, by the "Change" campaign of President Barrack Obama, the “new Prince of Change.” For this reason, I am inclined to …

Foreward, Jon Sylvester

Annual Survey of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

Editorial, Christian N. Okeke

Annual Survey of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

Masthead

Annual Survey of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

The Cost Of The Bright Red Strawberry: The Dangerous Failure Of Pesticide Regulations To Account For Child Farmworkers, Luthien L. Niland

Golden Gate University Environmental Law Journal

Agriculture is the most dangerous industry for child workers, yet the laws that regulate the work of children in the fields are among the least protective of worker health and safety. This Article examines the failure of U.S. laws and international obligations to protect children from the devastating effects of pesticide exposure. Part II of this Article will explain the presence of children in fields and their heightened vulnerability to pesticides compared to adult farmworkers. In addition, it will discuss the deficiencies in current pesticide laws that result in inadequate protection for child farmworkers. Part III will examine the United …

The Not-So-Green Renewable Energy: Preventing Waste Disposal Of Solar Photovoltaic (Pv) Panels, Genevieve Coyle

Golden Gate University Environmental Law Journal

This Comment provides a background on solar power and PV technology, identifies the toxic components of PV products, and explains how disposal of PV waste poses a threat to the environment. Part II also illustrates how poor management of electronic waste (e-waste) in the U.S. has resulted in environmental pollution - a preventable consequence that can be avoided for the PV industry.

Part III advocates a recycling and life-cycle-management approach to regulation because it provides a more sustainable future for the solar industry. Part IV discusses federal and state hazardous waste regulations and demonstrates how these laws are ineffective to …

Future Force Sustainability: Department Of Defense And Energy Efficiency In A Changing Climate, Laura Horton

Golden Gate University Environmental Law Journal

Part I of this discussion will begin with background information on the United States military’s contribution to GHG emissions and climate change. It will also look at some examples of exemptions the military has received from federal environmental laws, particularly during times of conflict. Next, it will focus on energy efficiency standards and exemptions, some of which the military has stated it will comply with voluntarily. Part II of this discussion will then survey some of the ways the military has begun to meet energy efficiency standards, including renewable fuel programs and solar installations. That Part will look at these …

A Call For Consistency: Open Seawater Intakes, Desalination, And The California Water Code, Angela Haren Kelley

Golden Gate University Environmental Law Journal

This Comment argues that the federal and state standards for reducing marine life mortality from power-plant intakes should be applied to a statewide policy for new desalination projects in California. Under this framework, open seawater intakes should not be permitted for new desalination plants. Part II of this Comment provides an overview of the history and technology of desalination as well as environmental impacts of open seawater intakes and alternative intake technologies. Part III surveys existing state and federal laws addressing open seawater intakes and suggests a framework for applying these laws to desalination projects. Part IV argues that new …

Isn’T That Special?: The Epa’S Special-Case Determination For The Los Angeles River Extends Clean Water Act Protections Cast In Doubt By The Army Corps And The United States Supreme Court, Douglas Carstens, Michelle Black, Staley Prom

Golden Gate University Environmental Law Journal

In an effort to examine the implications EPA’s ability to extend Clean Water Act protection through the use of its special-case determination authority, this Article provides a case study of the Los Angeles River and the regulatory interplay between the Army Corps and the EPA. To begin, Part I sets forth the factual background of the LA River, describing its fickle and often volatile physical nature. It then describes the legal framework underlying the case by providing an overview of the Clean Water Act, its shared administration by the EPA and Army Corps, and the basis for the EPA’s special-case …

Addressing The Significance Of Greenhouse Gas Emissions Under Ceqa: California’S Search For Regulatory Certainty In An Uncertain World, Alexander G. Crockett

Golden Gate University Environmental Law Journal

This Article explores the efforts of California’s air agencies in addressing how to determine the significance of a project’s greenhouse gas emissions under CEQA, focusing on the recent guidance adopted by three of California’s largest regional air-quality agencies – the South Coast Air Quality Management District, the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District, and the Bay Area Air Quality Management District. It also addresses work done by the California Air Pollution Control Officers Association and the California Air Resources Board (ARB), which laid the foundations for these agencies’ actions. In Section II, the Article provides a brief review of …

In This Edition, Kalla Hirschbein, John W. Harrington

Golden Gate University Environmental Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Masthead, Vol 4 #2

Golden Gate University Environmental Law Journal

No abstract provided.

United States V. Ruiz-Gaxiola: Setting The Standard For Medicating Defendants Involuntarily In The Ninth Circuit, Michelle R. Cruz

Golden Gate University Law Review

In United States v. Ruiz-Gaxiola, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit held that the government could not medicate a defendant involuntarily for the sole purpose of rendering the defendant competent to stand trial. The court relied on the Sell test in making its determination. In Sell v. United States, the United States Supreme Court established a four-pronged test for determining whether a court should grant a request to medicate a defendant involuntarily. A court may not grant such a request unless the government shows that (1) an important government interest is at stake in …

Gebhart V. Gaughan: Clarifying The Homestead Exemption As To Post-Petition Appreciation, Natalie R. Barker

Golden Gate University Law Review

This case summary begins by discussing the facts and procedural history of the two consolidated appeals in Gebhart. Next, it outlines and reviews the analysis of the Ninth Circuit. Lastly, it concludes by briefly discussing the implications of the Ninth Circuit’s decision in Gebhart.

Newdow V. Rio Linda Union School Disctrict: Religious Coercion In Public Schools Unconstitutional Despite Voluntary Nature Of Partially Patriotic Activity, Daniel D. Blom

Golden Gate University Law Review

This Note examines Newdow v. Rio Linda Union School District and explains why California Education Code Section 52720 and the School District’s policy of reciting the Pledge violate the Establishment Clause. Part I discusses the background facts and procedural history of the case and the three tests that were developed by the United States Supreme Court to analyze Establishment Clause challenges. Part II examines the Ninth Circuit’s application of the three Establishment Clause tests to the facts of this case. Finally, Part III explains why the Coercion Test is the determinative test in the context of government action in public …

Benay V. Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc.: New Standard Needed For Determining Actual Use, Brian Casido

Golden Gate University Law Review

This Note examines Benay v. Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., and the substantial-similarity standard under a California breach of an implied-in-fact contract claim and a federal copyright infringement claim. The standard used in Benay will hinder the free flow of ideas by deterring producers from accepting an author’s screenplay for fear of breaching an implied-in-fact contract. Part I of this Note summarizes the history and development of the protection of rights to creative works. Part II provides the facts and procedural history of Benay v. Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc. Part III analyzes and criticizes the Ninth Circuit’s holding in Benay …