Law Commons^™

This We’Ll Defend: Expanding Ucmj Article 2 Subject Matter Jurisdiction As A Response To Nonconsensual Distribution Of Illicit Photographs, Nicholas Karp

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

In March 2017, it was revealed that current and former armed service members shared thousands of nude photos of their female counterparts over social media. Although some of these photos were taken with the women’s consent, almost none of them were distributed with the women’s consent.

Victims have little legal recourse. Military law is silent on the matter of non-consensual distribution. Federal civilian law speaks only to interstate stalking, domestic violence, and harassment, while only thirty-four states have revenge porn laws that sufficiently criminalize nonconsensual distribution of illicit photographs. Further complicating matters, the perpetrator’s military status as active duty, reservist, …

An Implied Warranty Of Freedom From Sexual Harassment: The Solution For Harassed Tenants Where The Fair Housing Act Has Failed, Theresa Keeley

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

Although sexual harassment in the workplace is recognized as a problem, sexual harassment in housing has largely been ignored. When confronting sexual harassment in housing, courts have borrowed standards for sexual harassment in the workplace. Criticism of this practice exists; however this Article examines the real source of the problem: bringing sexual harassment claims under the Fair Housing Act. Specifically, this Article shows how and why the Fair Housing Act fails to address the problem of sexual harassment in housing. To remedy this failure, this Article proposes an "implied warranty of freedom from sexual harassment" that both restores the tenant's …

Disability, Equal Protection, And The Supreme Court: Standing At The Crossroads Of Progressive And Retrogressive Logic In Constitutional Classification, Anita Silvers, Michael Ashley Stein

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

This Article compares current disability jurisprudence with the development of sex equality jurisprudence in the area of discrimination. It demonstrates that current disability law resembles the abandoned, sexist framework for determining sex equality and argues that disability equality cases should receive similar analysis as the more progressive, current sex equality standard. As such, the Article attempts to synthesize case law (14th Amendment Equal Protection jurisprudence) and statutory law (Title VII and the ADA) into a comprehensive overview of the state of current disability law viewed within the context of discrimination law in general.

The Attachment Gap: Employment Discrimination Law, Women's Cultural Caregiving, And The Limits Of Economic And Liberal Legal Theory, Laura T. Kessler

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

Title VII has prohibited employment discrimination on the basis of pregnancy since 1978, when Congress passed the Pregnancy Discrimination Act ("PDA"), but it does not require employers to recognize women's caregiving obligations beyond the immediate, physical events of pregnancy and childbirth. The Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 ("FMLA ") also does little more than provide job security to some relatively privileged women in the case of childbirth. Neither of these statutes, which constitute the bulk of the United States' maternity and parental leave policies, provides for the most common employment leave needs of caregivers, who by all measures …

Pay Equity For Coaches And Athletic Administrators: An Element Of Title Ix?, Barbara Osborne, Marilyn V. Yarbrough

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

In this Article, Professors Osborne and Yarbrough address the issue of gender discrimination in the compensation of coaches and athletic administrators. They discuss the application of the Equal Pay Act of 1963 and Title VII to pay inequity claims and conclude that both have proven to be inadequate as a means of addressing the problem. Professors Osborne and Yarbrough then present Title IX as a way of countering the problem of gender discrimination in the compensation of coaches. They also discuss the prospects for gender equality in compensation by considering several cases addressing the issue. Finally, they offer recommendations both …

An "Olympics" Approach: A More Equitable Approach To Athletics Than Title Ix Offers, Marcia Federbush

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

A speech from Marcia Federbush, the writer of the first comprehensive Title IX complaint against a major university - the University of Michigan.

Equally Bad Is Not Good: Allowing Title Ix "Compliance" By The Elimination Of Men's Collegiate Sports, Donald E. Shelton

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

Athletic participation is an important part of the educational process, instilling important lessons about discipline and teamwork. Title IX was intended to address the historic lack of opportunities for women and girls to participate in school athletics. Unfortunately, the current administrative interpretation of Title IX permits the elimination of male athletic opportunities as a means of complying with the statute's equality standard. This result undermines the purpose of Title IX and the role of athletics in the educational process for all students.

Gender And Intercollegiate Athletics: Data And Myths, Julia Lamber

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

This Article explores what nondiscrimination means in the context of intercollegiate athletics. After reviewing the Department of Education's controversial Title IX Policy Interpretation, it critically examines the analytical framework used in Title IX athletic cases and concludes that commonly made analogies to litigation under Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act are inapt. A major part of the Article is an empirical study, looking first at gender equity plans written by institutions of higher education for the National Collegiate Athletic Association and then at data collected from more than 325 institutions pursuant to the Equity in Athletics Disclosure Act. …

The Struggle For Sex Equality In Sport And The Theory Behind Title Ix, Deborah Brake

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

Title IX's three-part test for measuring discrimination in the provision of athletic opportunities to male and female students has generated heated controversy in recent years. In this Article, Professor Brake discusses the theoretical underpinnings behind the three-part test and offers a comprehensive justification of this theory as applied to the context of sport. She begins with an analysis of the test's relationship to other areas of sex discrimination law, concluding that, unlike most contexts, Title IX rejects formal equality as its guiding theory, adopting instead an approach that focuses on the institutional structures that subordinate girls and women in sport. …

The Mixed Messages Of Title Ix, Sherman J. Clark

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

Introduction to a University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform Symposium entitled Competing in the 21st Century: Title IX, Gender Equity, and Athletics.

The Proposed Model Surrogate Parenthood Act: A Legislative Response To The Challenges Of Reproductive Technology, Murray L. Manus

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

In this Article, Manus proposes a Model Surrogate Parenthood Act. He examines the medical and scientific history of surrogacy and reviews the jurisprudence in the area, specifically the constitutional relationship between procreation rights and surrogacy. The author asserts that surrogate motherhood cannot be, and indeed, should not be, eradicated through legislation criminalizing it. The proposed Model Act, presented here in its entirety, attempts to reduce the problems inherent in the concept of surrogate parenthood by putting the process under strict court supervision and by zealously protecting the rights of the surrogate mother and the child to be conceived.

A Case For Pregnancy-Based Unemployment Insurance, Mark R. Brown

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

Professor Brown argues that unemployment insurance laws should be amended to provide coverage to otherwise eligible, pregnant claimants. Under current law, women who quit because of pregnancy are either disqualified from receiving unemployment benefits altogether or qualify only after childbirth. Those who are fired, meanwhile, often either cannot prove the motivation for their discharge or discover that they are disqualified because of their unavailability for work. Professor Brown uses a case study to illustrate the problems posed by pregnancy and unemployment insurance. He proposes model legislation that extends coverage to all pregnant claimants who temporarily separate from their employment.

Hard-Core Pornography: A Proposal For A Per Se Rule, Bruce A. Taylor

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

Part I of this Article discusses the history and pervasiveness of the pornography problem. Part II explains the current legal test for obscenity, as evolved from Miller v. California, with an emphasis on terms commonly used in the definition of obscenity. Part III examines the problems in applying Miller that suggest that the application of a per se hard-core pornography rule may be appropriate. Finally, Part IV presents a proposal for a per se hard-core pornography rule, similar to child pornography laws existing in many jurisdictions and upheld by the Supreme Court in New York v. Ferber. This Article concludes …

Rape Shield Laws--Is It Time For Reinforcement?, Catherine L. Kello

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

This Note takes a critical look at civil suits arising from allegations of rape, particularly from the perspective of how these actions run counter to the spirit of rape reform and rape shield legislation. The analysis begins with a brief history of the Rape Shield Law and its intended purposes. Part II then utilizes two cases to outline the current dilemma posed by civil suits that are filed during a pending criminal sexual conduct prosecution. After presenting these cases, Part III considers whether a legislative remedy is required and determines that it is. Part IV then proposes a Model Statute. …

Comparable Worth -- The Theory, Its Legal Foundation, And The Feasibility Of Implementation, Carin Ann Clauss

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

County of Washington v. Gunther was decided by the Supreme Court over five years ago. In that case, the Court, resolving a conflict among the circuits, ruled that sex-based wage discrimination claims could proceed under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 without regard to the limiting "equal work" standard of the Equal Pay Act. Following this decision, it was generally assumed that the courts would become the major forum for redressing sex-based wage discrimination. The anticipated litigation explosion never took place. Few wage discrimination suits have been filed, and even fewer have been successful. What progress has …

Thoughts On Comparable Worth Litigation And Organizational Strategies, Nancy Gertner

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

To watch the evolution of Title VIP is to watch the gradual constricting of a law that many had heralded as a tool of social change for women. Its passage represented a statement that the so-called free market had not worked for women. Women were denied access to higher paying and high-status positions. Even when a job was integrated, women's work was undervalued and their wages frequently depressed. With the passage of Title VII came the hope that the law would do what the market could not-break the cycle of discrimination.

Sex discrimination, in contrast with other forms of discrimination, …

Women's Pension Reform: Congress Inches Toward Equity, Anne Moss

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

In the workplace and in the home, women suffer economic injustices. The inequities of our private and governmental pension systems compound their financial problems, leading to inadequate retirement income for many older women. For example, only ten percent of women age sixty-five and over received private pensions or annuities in 1982, as compared to twenty-nine percent of men age sixty-five and over. Women receiving pensions likewise get much less than men, averaging $1,520 in 1982. The average for men in 1982 was $2,980.

Gradually, policymakers are recognizing the shortcomings of pension systems. In the past few years, federal legislation has …

A Proposed Analysis For Gender-Based Practices And State Public Accommodations Laws, Alan J. Hoff

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

This Note argues that the proper test of gender-preferential practices in public accommodations proceeds from the principle of "equal treatment:'' separate standards are tolerable only where reasonable and applied evenhandedly. Part I sets out a typical public accommodations statute and criticizes the principle tests used to evaluate this type of legislation. Part II applies traditional methods of statutory construction which trigger an equal treatment analysis. Extrapolating from this analysis, Part III advocates a two-part test for examining gender-based practices in public accommodations.

An Empirical Analysis Of The Equal Credit Opportunity Act, James A. Burns Jr.

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

This article will first examine the legislative history of the ECOA to discover (1) the impetus for its enactment; (2) the views of proponents and opponents of the legislation concerning the presence of credit discrimination, its proper cure, and the proposed provisions of the bills introduced to deal with the problem; and (3) the congressional intent as to the use of various credit-granting factors described by the Act. Regulation B will then be similarly examined to find out how the broad mandates of the ECOA have been made concrete for the use of creditors. Finally, the article will focus on …

The Michigan Abortion Refusal Act, G. Michael White

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

Since the United States Supreme Court handed down the landmark decisions of Roe v. Wade andDoe v. Bolton, which placed constitutional limitations, on state regulation of abortions, efforts have been made on the federal and state levels to blunt the effect of those cases. One prevalent reaction has been the enactment of state "conscience clause" legislation, such as the Michigan Abortion Refusal Act, which seeks to extend to all hospitals the right to refuse admission of abortion patients. This legislative note will consider whether the Michigan conscience clause is legally necessary to ensure the right it seeks to …

Legislative Note: Micigan's Criminal Sexual Assault Law, Kenneth A. Cobb, Nancy R. Schauer

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

Under increasing pressure from women's rights groups and other reform organizations, the Michigan legislature has re-evaluated its centenarian rape statute, found it inadequate for the realities of the mid-twentieth century, and enacted a new sexual assault act. While people may refer to the act as "the new rape law," it should be noted at the outset that the statute is intended to prohibit a variety of sexual acts which involve criminal assault. Michigan's new criminal sexual assault law was formulated to distinguish among degrees of violence as motivated by hostility rather than passion; rape, like other crimes, is more heinous …

California Family Law Act, Meredith A. Nelson

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

California's Family Law Act has been heralded as the first major change in the State's divorce provisions in one hundred years. The Act is an attempt to remedy two major criticisms of current divorce practice both in California and throughout the United States. First, those advocating reform believe that laws controlling the granting of divorces are in conflict with modem concepts of marriage and divorce. Many divorce laws impose punitive sanctions in an attempt to deter those who would otherwise seek a divorce. Second, notwithstanding their intent, divorce laws have not, in fact, reduced the frequency of divorce. The inability …