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2011

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Full-Text Articles in Law

When Does F*** Not Mean F***?: Fcc V. Fox Television Stations And A Call For Protecting Emotive Speech, W. Wat Hopkins Dec 2011

When Does F*** Not Mean F***?: Fcc V. Fox Television Stations And A Call For Protecting Emotive Speech, W. Wat Hopkins

Federal Communications Law Journal

The Supreme Court of the United States does not always deal cogently with nontraditional language. The most recent example is FCC v. Fox Television Stations, in which the Justices became sidetracked into attempting to define the f-word and then to determine whether, when used as a fleeting expletive rather than repeatedly, the word is indecent for broadcast purposes. The Court would do well to avoid definitions and heed Justice John Marshall Harlan's advice in Cohen v. California to provide protection for the emotive, as well as the cognitive, element of speech


Putting A Price On Dirt: The Need For Better-Defined Limits On Government Fees For Use Of The Public Right-Of- Way Under Section 253 Of The Telecommunications Act Of 1996, Thomas W. Snyder, William Fitzsimmons Dec 2011

Putting A Price On Dirt: The Need For Better-Defined Limits On Government Fees For Use Of The Public Right-Of- Way Under Section 253 Of The Telecommunications Act Of 1996, Thomas W. Snyder, William Fitzsimmons

Federal Communications Law Journal

This Article addresses the enactment and inconsistent application of Section 253 of Telecommunications Act of 1996 ("FTA"). Most courts initially held that Section 253 imposed strong limitations on local governments seeking to charge fees to telecommunications carriers for use of the public rights-of-way ("PROW') by generally limiting the fees to management costs. Unfortunately, recent cases allowed local governments broad latitude in charging PROW fees to generate revenue, even where the fees are used to subsidize other government services. These "revenue-generating" fees are dangerous to the development of competition and the deployment of Internet services, which were the two primary goals …


Antitrust Review Of The At&T/Tmobile Transaction, Allen P. Grunes, Maurice E. Stucke Dec 2011

Antitrust Review Of The At&T/Tmobile Transaction, Allen P. Grunes, Maurice E. Stucke

Federal Communications Law Journal

In August 2011, the United States brought a landmark antitrust lawsuit to prevent the merger of two of the nation's four largest mobile wireless telecommunications services providers, AT&T Inc. and T-Mobile USA, Inc. But why are so many elected officials asking the Obama administration to intercede in the Department of Justice's lawsuit to force a settlement? Why are they approving a merger that would likely lead to higher prices, fewer jobs, less innovation, and higher taxes for their constituents? Does it have anything to do with the money they are receiving from AT&T and T-Mobile? This Article examines the recent …


Spectrum Reallocation And The National Broadband Plan, Jeffrey A. Eisenach Dec 2011

Spectrum Reallocation And The National Broadband Plan, Jeffrey A. Eisenach

Federal Communications Law Journal

Of the several significant changes in United States telecommunications policy proposed by the National Broadband Plan, none are more substantial than its proposals for spectrum policy. In particular, the Plan proposes to reallocate 500 MHz of spectrum from broadcast television, mobile satellite, government and other current uses to "mobile broadband" through the use of innovative "incentive auctions" and other voluntary, market-oriented mechanisms. The Plan's spectrum proposals have the potential to be a major step forward in the decades-long, bipartisan effort to replace "command-and-control" spectrum allocation with a more flexible, dynamic and market-oriented approach. Considerable work remains to be done, however, …


Statewide Cable Franchising: Expand Nationwide Or Cut The Cord?, James G. Parker Dec 2011

Statewide Cable Franchising: Expand Nationwide Or Cut The Cord?, James G. Parker

Federal Communications Law Journal

In the name of increasing competition in the cable television market, Congress passed the Telecommunications Act of 1996. While this eliminated the barriers to entry using federal law, it did not change the nature of municipality-based cable system monopolies. In an effort to expand competition more quickly and efficiently, the phone companies (Verizon and AT&T) successfully supported legislation in at least twenty-five states that permits a single state application to compete statewide. This Note explores the varying approaches taken in the laws passed to date, analyzes the outcomes flowing from those implemented plans, and provides recommendations of the best practices …


Are You Ready For Some Football?: How Antitrust Laws Can Be Used To Break Up Directv's Exclusive Right To Telecast Nfl's Sunday Ticket Package, Ariel Y. Bublick Dec 2011

Are You Ready For Some Football?: How Antitrust Laws Can Be Used To Break Up Directv's Exclusive Right To Telecast Nfl's Sunday Ticket Package, Ariel Y. Bublick

Federal Communications Law Journal

There is almost no question that football has become modem America's pastime. Football has never been more popular, and every Sunday people are clamoring to watch as many games as possible. The Sunday Ticket package allows viewers to watch any National Football League ("NFL") game being played at any given time. However, the NFL has only granted DirecTV the right to air the Sunday Ticket package, denying this excellent service to a majority of television viewers. By limiting the reach of the Sunday Ticket package, the NFL may be in violation of antitrust laws. This Note begins by explaining antitrust …


The "Strong Medicine" Of The Overbreadth Doctrine: When Statutory Exceptions Are No More Than A Placebo, Christopher A. Pierce Dec 2011

The "Strong Medicine" Of The Overbreadth Doctrine: When Statutory Exceptions Are No More Than A Placebo, Christopher A. Pierce

Federal Communications Law Journal

In United States v. Stevens, the United States Supreme Court invalidated a federal statute criminalizing the interstate sale and distribution of depictions of animal cruelty on First Amendment grounds. While Stevens demonstrates the Court's reluctance to create a new category of speech outside of First Amendment protection, Stevens also stands for the proposition that borrowing the exceptions clause from the Court's obscenity standard will not adequately protect a statute from invalidation as overbroad. This Note discusses the use of the obscenity standard's exceptions clause in nonobscenity statutes and the Court's treatment of the exceptions clause in Stevens. This Note concludes …


Corporate And Business Law, Laurence V. Parker Nov 2011

Corporate And Business Law, Laurence V. Parker

University of Richmond Law Review

In the 2011 session, the Virginia General Assembly passed House Bill 2358, Benefit Corporations, to be codified as article 22 (the "Benefit Corporations Article") of the Virginia Stock Corporation Act ("VSCA"). The Benefit Corporations Article is largely based on legislation prepared in other states and allows a Virginia corporation to elect in its articles of incorporation to be treated as a "benefit corporation." These for-profit corporations are required to pursue not only profitability but also a general public benefit and, if one so elects, one or more specific public benefits. In Section II of this article, the author discusses the …


Election Law And Government Ethics, Christopher R. Nolen, Jeff Palmore Nov 2011

Election Law And Government Ethics, Christopher R. Nolen, Jeff Palmore

University of Richmond Law Review

The last two years have produced modest "tweaks" to Virginia'selection laws. Most notably, 2011 ushered in the decennial tradition of reapportionment and redistricting. This article surveys developments in Virginia election law for 2010 and 2011 and focuses on those statutory developments that have significance or general applicability to the implementation of Virginia's election laws. Consequently, not every election-related bill approved bythe General Assembly is discussed.


Local Government Law, Andrew R. Mcroberts Nov 2011

Local Government Law, Andrew R. Mcroberts

University of Richmond Law Review

No abstract provided.


Taxation, Craig D. Bell Nov 2011

Taxation, Craig D. Bell

University of Richmond Law Review

No abstract provided.


Wills, Trusts, And Estates, J. William Gray Jr., Katherine E. Ramsey Nov 2011

Wills, Trusts, And Estates, J. William Gray Jr., Katherine E. Ramsey

University of Richmond Law Review

The 2011 session of the Virginia General Assembly enacted wills, trusts, and estates legislation that: (i) eliminated a potential federal transfer tax trap in inter vivos marital trusts, (ii) interpreted transfer tax formula clauses in light of recent changes in federal law, and (iii) adopted the Uniform Adult Guardianship and Protective Proceedings Jurisdiction Act. Three other legislative enactments and seven opinions of the Supreme Court of Virginia during the twelve months ending June 1, 2011, addressed issues affecting this field. In addition to addressing those developments, this article summarizes a recent federal district court opinion that dealt with a significant …


Bulls, Bears, And Pigs: Revisiting The Legal Minefield Of Virginia Fraudulent Transfer Law, Isaac A. Mcbeth, Landon C. Davis Iii Nov 2011

Bulls, Bears, And Pigs: Revisiting The Legal Minefield Of Virginia Fraudulent Transfer Law, Isaac A. Mcbeth, Landon C. Davis Iii

University of Richmond Law Review

No abstract provided.


Osha Enforcement Of The "As Effective As" Standard For State Plans: Serving Process Or People?, Courtney M. Malveaux Nov 2011

Osha Enforcement Of The "As Effective As" Standard For State Plans: Serving Process Or People?, Courtney M. Malveaux

University of Richmond Law Review

No abstract provided.


Unclaimed Property And Due Process: Justifying 'Revenue-Raising' Modern Escheat, Teagan J. Gregory Nov 2011

Unclaimed Property And Due Process: Justifying 'Revenue-Raising' Modern Escheat, Teagan J. Gregory

Michigan Law Review

States have long claimed the right to take custody of presumably abandoned property and hold it for the benefit of the true owner under the doctrine of escheat. In the face of increasing fiscal challenges, states have worked to increase their collection of unclaimed property via new escheat legislation that appears to bear little or no relation to protecting the interests of owners. Holders of unclaimed property have raised substantive due process challenges in response to these modern escheat statutes. This Note contends that two categories of these disputed laws-those shortening dormancy periods and those allowing states to estimate a …


Trafficking In Europe: An Analysis Of The Effectiveness Of European Law, Saadiya Chaudary Oct 2011

Trafficking In Europe: An Analysis Of The Effectiveness Of European Law, Saadiya Chaudary

Michigan Journal of International Law

This Essay looks at the manifestation of various forms of human trafficking within Europe and analyzes the effectiveness of current European law provisions in combating trafficking and protecting victims. The Essay will accomplish this by examining recent and current cases before the European Court of Human Rights and the comparative gap between European standards and domestic procedures in the United Kingdom. The United Kingdom is a well-known destination state for trafficking victims' and consequently is required to meet obligations under international law toward a significant number of individuals who have been forced into exploitation in the United Kingdom.


Human Rights Legislation In The Arab World: The Case Of Human Trafficking, Mohamed Y. Mattar Oct 2011

Human Rights Legislation In The Arab World: The Case Of Human Trafficking, Mohamed Y. Mattar

Michigan Journal of International Law

In the Arab World, human rights legislation has not always enhanced human rights. In fact, many national laws have been adopted that restrict human rights. Some countries' laws regulating nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) do not allow NGOs to receive funding from foreign entities. Media laws impose various limitations on the press. Jordan is the only Arab nation to enforce a comprehensive law on combating violence against women. Jordan is also the only country that has a law on access to information. Despite these gaps in human rights legislation, many Arab countries have passed comprehensive laws to combat human trafficking since the …


Rethinking Discrimination Law, Sandra F. Sperino Oct 2011

Rethinking Discrimination Law, Sandra F. Sperino

Michigan Law Review

Modern employment discrimination law is defined by an increasingly complex set of frameworks. These frameworks structure the ways that courts, juries, and litigants think about discrimination. This Article challenges whether courts should use the frameworks to conceptualize discrimination. It argues that just as faulty sorting contributes to stereotyping and societal discrimination, courts are using faulty structures to substantively limit discrimination claims. This Article makes three central contributions. First, it demonstrates how discrimination analysis has been reduced to a rote sorting process. It recognizes and makes explicit courts' methodology so that the structure of discrimination analysis and its effects can be …


Deconstructing 'Just And Proper': Arguments In Favor Of Adopting The 'Remedial Purpose' Approach To Section 10(J) Labor Injunctions, William K. Briggs Oct 2011

Deconstructing 'Just And Proper': Arguments In Favor Of Adopting The 'Remedial Purpose' Approach To Section 10(J) Labor Injunctions, William K. Briggs

Michigan Law Review

Congress, through the 1947 addition of section 10(j) to the National Labor Relations Act, authorized district courts to grant preliminary injunctive relief for unfair labor practices if they deem such relief "just and proper." To this day a circuit split persists over the correct interpretation of this "just and proper" standard. Some circuits interpret "just and proper" to require application of the traditional equitable principles approach that normally governs preliminary injunctions. Other circuits interpret "just and proper" to require an analysis of whether injunctive relief is necessary to preserve the National Labor Relations Board's remedial power This Note examines the …


Using Public Disclosure As The Vesting Point For Moral Rights Under The Visual Artists Rights Act, Elizabeth M. Bock Oct 2011

Using Public Disclosure As The Vesting Point For Moral Rights Under The Visual Artists Rights Act, Elizabeth M. Bock

Michigan Law Review

In 2010, the Court of Appeals for the First Circuit confronted the novel question of when moral rights protections vest under the Visual Artists Rights Act. In Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art Foundation, Inc. v. Bichel, the First Circuit determined that the protections of the Visual Artists Rights Act begin when a work is "created" under the Copyright Act. This Note argues that this decision harms moral rights conceptually and is likely to result in unpredictable and inconsistent decisions. This Note proposes instead that these statutory protections should vest when an artist determines that his work is complete and presents …


The Kingpin Act Vs. California's Compassionate Use Act: The Dubious Battle Between State And Federal Drug Laws, Sumeet H. Chugani, Xingjian Zhao Sep 2011

The Kingpin Act Vs. California's Compassionate Use Act: The Dubious Battle Between State And Federal Drug Laws, Sumeet H. Chugani, Xingjian Zhao

University of the District of Columbia Law Review

No abstract provided.


The Politics Of Exclusion In California's Marijuana Reform Movement, Brooke Mascagni Sep 2011

The Politics Of Exclusion In California's Marijuana Reform Movement, Brooke Mascagni

University of the District of Columbia Law Review

No abstract provided.


A Decade After Drug Decriminalization: What Can The United States Learn From The Portuguese Model?, Jordan Blair Woods Sep 2011

A Decade After Drug Decriminalization: What Can The United States Learn From The Portuguese Model?, Jordan Blair Woods

University of the District of Columbia Law Review

No abstract provided.


Rise Of The Pills, Ken Lammers Jr. Sep 2011

Rise Of The Pills, Ken Lammers Jr.

University of the District of Columbia Law Review

No abstract provided.


Again And Again We Suffer: The Poor And The Endurance Of The "War On Drugs", Brian Gilmore Sep 2011

Again And Again We Suffer: The Poor And The Endurance Of The "War On Drugs", Brian Gilmore

University of the District of Columbia Law Review

No abstract provided.


Breaking Free From Insanity: A White-Collar Crime Approach To Drug War Policy, Brian Harrison Sep 2011

Breaking Free From Insanity: A White-Collar Crime Approach To Drug War Policy, Brian Harrison

University of the District of Columbia Law Review

Preventing crime should be a top priority for law enforcement. A victim of crime would readily agree that never having been a victim at all is preferable to suffering at the hands of a criminal. Even if the criminal is later caught and punished, a victim remains a victim. Despite this simple truth, current drug policy does not place a top priority preventing the laundering of drug-tainted money. As a result, the United States remains a victim in the War on Drugs.' As will be discussed, the crime of money laundering can be prevented in many instances by prosecuting banks …


What Would It Look Like If We Cared About Narcotics Trafficking? An Argument To Attack Narcotics Capital Rather Than Labor, Mark Osler Sep 2011

What Would It Look Like If We Cared About Narcotics Trafficking? An Argument To Attack Narcotics Capital Rather Than Labor, Mark Osler

University of the District of Columbia Law Review

Law enforcement actions should be judged by a simple measure: are they solving a problem? After all, we Americans loathe the loss of freedom and the spending of tax dollars, and we should never take away citizens' freedom and money unless there actually is a problem being solved. Illegal narcotics are a problem, but we aren't solving it. Narcotics trafficking and use lead to violence, undermine productivity,' and rip apart the social fabric of families and communities. Despite much attention to these issues, drug use in this country continues at high levels, even among children.2 We have failed, and it …


Collateral Review Of Career Offender Sentences: The Case For Coram Nobis, Douglas J. Bench Jr. Sep 2011

Collateral Review Of Career Offender Sentences: The Case For Coram Nobis, Douglas J. Bench Jr.

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

Occasionally, criminals correctly interpret the law while courts err. Litigation pursuant to the federal Armed Career Criminal Act (ACCA) includes numerous examples. The ACCA imposes harsher sentences upon felons in possession of firearms with prior "violent felony" convictions. Over time, courts defined "violent" so contrary to its common meaning that it eventually came to encompass driving under the influence, unwanted touching, and the failure to report to correctional facilities. However, in a series of recent decisions, the Supreme Court has attempted to clarify the meaning of violent in the context of the ACCA and, in the process, excluded such offenses. …


Fair Lending 2.0: A Borrower-Based Solution To Discrimination In Mortgage Lending, Jared Ruiz Bybee Sep 2011

Fair Lending 2.0: A Borrower-Based Solution To Discrimination In Mortgage Lending, Jared Ruiz Bybee

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

Fair lending laws promise that borrowers with similar credit profiles will receive similar loan products-regardless of their race. Yet, studies reveal that black and Latino borrowers consistently receive loan products that are inferior to those of white borrowers with similar credit characteristics. Despite frequent amendments since their passage during the Civil Rights Era, the Fair Lending Laws that opened doors for minority borrowers are unable to root out the subtle discrimination that persists in today's mortgage lending market. These traditional Fair Lending Laws are built on an outdated framework that focuses exclusively on punishing lenders and righting past wrongs. This …


Employee Free Choice: Amplifying Employee Voice Without Silencing Employers - A Proposal For Reforming The National Labor Relations Act, Amy Livingston Sep 2011

Employee Free Choice: Amplifying Employee Voice Without Silencing Employers - A Proposal For Reforming The National Labor Relations Act, Amy Livingston

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

This Note investigates the effectiveness of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) in balancing unions, employers', and employees' rights during the course of union organizing drives. After reviewing case law and commentary, it concludes that the NLRA's certification regime is ineffective and permits pressures that inhibit employees from expressing their real desires about whether or not to be represented by a union. This Note then examines proposed alternatives for certifying unions, and takes note of Canada's federal and ten provincial certification regimes. Finally, it concludes that the NLRA must be amended to protect worker free choice, and proposes reforms including …