Law Commons^™

The Right Balance: Qualified Immunity And Section 1983, Jana Minich

Channels: Where Disciplines Meet

This paper explores qualified immunity jurisprudence in the context of Section 1983 lawsuits against police officers. Following an overview of the history behind this jurisprudence, this research looks into the current problems with the application of qualified immunity: lack of guidance for lower courts, a need for constitutional rights articulation, and a divergence from notice-based standard for particularity. This study suggests guiding the trajectory of case law toward solutions with foundations already present in precedent rather than overhauling the system of qualified immunity.

Lessons For Legalizing Love: A Case Study Of The Naz Foundation's Campaign To Decriminalize Homosexuality In India, Preston G. Johnson

Capstone Collection

In 1860, British colonizers codified Section 377 into the Indian Penal Code. 377 is an anti-sodomy law based on Victorian/Judeo-Christian values which criminalizes homosexuality through judicial interpretation and the manipulation of ambiguous language. On August 15^th, 2017, India celebrated 70 years of independence from British control, yet 377 still exerts oppressive control over the safety and freedom of Indian LGBTQI communities. Defining queerness as perversion has caused LGBTQI individuals to become victims of false accusations, blackmail, harassment, housing and workplace discrimination, familial rejection, forced “conversion therapy”, assault, rape, torture, and even murder because of this power imbalance and …

The New York Court Of Appeals' Expansion Of The Definition Of The Term “Parent” Leaves Future Questions Unanswered, Ilana Sharan

Journal of Law and Policy

On August 30, 2016, the New York Court of Appeals in Brooke S.B. v. Elizabeth A.C.C., expanded the definition of the term “parent,” overruling the twenty-five-year-old bright line rule that limited standing to seek custody or visitation to traditional parents. In 1991, the New York Court of Appeals decided Alison D. v. Virginia M. where they defined “parent” to include only people who have a biological or adoptive relationship with the child, reasoning that the typical family consisted of a husband and wife. In many cases subsequent to Alison D., the court attempted to alleviate the harsh application this rule …

No “Gift” Giving Here: The Inadequate Gifted Education Programs In New York State And The Need For Gifted Education Reform, Jamie M. Kautz

Journal of Law and Policy

Gifted Education is a topic that is often not at the forefront of educational issues throughout federal and state discussions and legislative actions. However, while there are a large number of students in classrooms across the country who are “gifted,” the number of individual states with comprehensive gifted programs within their public school districts is small. As a result, gifted programming is limited and gifted students are not guaranteed any sort of academic assistance beyond that of a standard classroom curriculum for their designated grade levels. More importantly, in the majority of states, including New York, the legal protections offered …

Cutting Off The Umbilical Cord–Reflections On The Possibility To Sever The Parental Bond, Tali Marcus

Journal of Law and Policy

Parenthood is a status comprising exclusivity relating to the rights and responsibilities concerning the child. The rights and obligations imbued in the parental status are evident first and foremost during the child’s minority. Nonetheless, the status has legal meaning and implications that extend beyond the child’s minority and carry on throughout adulthood. By defining parenthood and assigning parental status, the law establishes legal as well as social responsibility towards the child and a bond for life. This article questions the eternal aspect of parenthood and aspires to initiate discussion pertaining to the social and legal conventions that pose parenthood as …

“Making Bail”: Limiting The Use Of Bail Schedules And Defining The Elusive Meaning Of “Excessive Bail”, James A. Allen

Journal of Law and Policy

Every day in the United States, thousands of people are waiting in jail postarrest prior to any trial or conviction. Once arrested, these individuals frequently face harsh conditions while they are held for their first appearance to be assigned bail. Thousands of individuals wait more than forty-eight hours to first appear in front of a judicial officer who determines their bail conditions. Innocent people––people who have committed no offense except that of being underprivileged––are pressured into accepting plea bargains because they cannot pay bail. Thousands remain in jail unwilling to accept plea bargains or admit guilt but are detained nevertheless …

Copyright Infringement In Sound Recording: How Courts And Legislatures Can Get In Vogue In A Post-Ciccone World, Kristen B. Kennedy

Journal of Law and Policy

Music sampling is a legally complex and ambiguous area, with staggeringly high costs attached for copyright infringers. The legality of sampling frequently depends upon what jurisdiction the inquiry into the sampling takes place in, and has been guided by inconsistently applied doctrines of fair use, de minimis, and copyright infringement. The Ninth Circuit’s decision in VMG Salsoul v. Ciccone has dramatically highlighted these inconsistencies. This note suggests a four-part solution to resolve the tensions in copyrightable sound recordings magnified by the recent circuit split created by VMG Salsoul v. Ciccone. It incorporates elements of de minimis and fair use, a …

Trial Practice And Procedure, Brandon L. Peak, Tedra L. Cannella, Robert H. Snyder, David T. Rohwedder, Joseph M. Colwell, Christopher B. Mcdaniel, Rory A. Weeks, Ramsey B. Prather

Mercer Law Review

This Article addresses several significant opinions and legislation of interest to the Georgia civil trial practitioner issued during the June 1, 2016 to May 31, 2017 survey period.

Counter-Rejoinder: Justice Vs. Justiciability?: Normative Neutrality And Technical Precision, The Role Of The Lawyer In Supranational Social Rights Litigation, Tara J. Melish

Tara Melish

An important debate is currently underway in the inter-American human rights system involving the proper approach litigators, adjudicators, and advocates should take to supranational litigation of economic, social and cultural rights. Centered on questions of jurisdiction and the proper characterization and limits of justiciability, its resolution has tremendous implications for the tools available to on-the-ground advocates, their real-world effectiveness and sustainability in adjudicatory and advocacy contexts alike, and the rationalization of the system's developing jurisprudence over the long-term.

This article book-ends a trilogy of pieces appearing in the NYU Journal of International Law and Politics by two sets of authors, …

Consumer Class Actions: Who Are The Real Winners?, Edward F. Sherman

Maine Law Review

The class action is one of the most controversial procedural devices in the American legal system. In the years since an expanded class action rule was adopted in 1966, class actions have grown in scope and number, and suits by consumers have accounted for an increasing share of class actions suits. By allowing individuals to sue not only for themselves, but also on behalf of others similarly situated, the class action “empowers plaintiffs to bring cases that otherwise either would not be possible or would only be possible in a very different form.” Business critics see this as enabling “lawyers …

Will Bell V. Town Of Wells Be Eroded With Time?, Sidney St. F. Thaxter

Maine Law Review

In 1989, the Maine Law Court issued a landmark decision regarding the ownership of the land between the mean high-water mark and the mean low-water mark (the intertidal zone) in a case entitled Bell v. Town of Wells.1 This decision was controlled, in part, by the 1986 decision in the same case. Bell I was decided following an appeal by the plaintiff-landowners from the lower court decision dismissing Counts I and II of their Complaint as “barred by sovereign immunity.” The lower court found that “the State has an interest in Moody Beach and in that sense it has title,” …

Court-Connected Alternative Dispute Resolution In Maine, Howard H. Dana Jr.

Maine Law Review

With these words of prophecy the Commission to Study the Future of Maine's Courts launched its discussion of alternative dispute resolution (ADR). Although conceding that “the adversary process ... has served the people of the state well” and acknowledging that “the state must continue to provide a forum for forceful advocacy that produces a definite and binding judicial decision” the Commission asked the Maine judicial and legislative branches to embrace ADR. For the last dozen years, the Author has been the Supreme Judicial Court's (SJC's) liaison to its ADR Planning and Implementation Committee and Chair of the Court's Advisory Committee …

Eat Your Vitamins And Say Your Prayers: Bollea V. Gawker, Revenge Litigation Funding, And The Fate Of The Fourth Estate, Nicole K. Chipi

University of Miami Law Review

In August 2016, Gawker.com shut down after 14 years of—more often than not—controversial online publishing. The website was one of several Gawker Media properties crushed under the weight of a $140 million jury verdict awarded to Terry Bollea (better known as former professional wrestler Hulk Hogan), in a lawsuit financed by eccentric Silicon Valley billionaire Peter Thiel. Thiel’s clandestine legal campaign was part of a vendetta against Gawker Media, a venture he confirms was singularly focused on bankrupting the company through litigation. His success sent shudders through the media world, demonstrating that determined actors with deep pockets could sue the …

Piling On? An Empirical Study Of Parallel Derivative Suits, Stephen J. Choi, Jessica Erickson, Adam C. Pritchard

Articles

Using a sample of all companies named as defendants in securities class actions between July 1, 2005 and December 31, 2008, we study parallel suits relying on state corporate law arising out of the same allegations as the securities class actions. We test several ways that parallel suits may add value to a securities class action. Most parallel suits target cases involving obvious indicia of wrongdoing. Moreover, we find that although a modest percentage of parallel suits are filed first, over 80 percent are filed after a securities class action (termed “follow-on” parallel suits). We find that parallel suits and, …

A Halachic Perspective On The Parent-Child Privilege, Erica Smith-Klocek

The Catholic Lawyer

No abstract provided.

Can Nonstatutory Federal Climate Litigation Drive Federal Climate Policy?, David L. Markell

Scholarly Publications

No abstract provided.

Why Civil And Criminal Procedure Are So Different: A Forgotten History, Ion Meyn

Fordham Law Review

Much has been written about the origins of civil procedure. Yet little is known about the origins of criminal procedure, even though it governs how millions of cases in federal and state courts are litigated each year. This Article’s examination of criminal procedure’s origin story questions the prevailing notion that civil and criminal procedure require different treatment. The Article’s starting point is the first draft of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure—confidential in 1941 and since forgotten. The draft reveals that reformers of criminal procedure turned to the new rules of civil procedure for guidance. The contents of this draft …

Deference To The Plaintiff In Forum Non Conveniens Cases, Brett Workman

Fordham Law Review

This Note analyzes several cases in an effort to understand why, based on each case’s unique circumstances, the plaintiff’s choice of forum received a particular level of deference. This Note then produces a synthesized list of factors that alter the level of deference a plaintiff’s choice of forum receives under forum non conveniens analysis. An understanding of these factors provides increased predictability as to when a plaintiff’s choice of forum might receive heightened deference under this common law doctrine.

The Actavis Inference: Theory And Practice, Aaron S. Edlin, C. Scott Hemphill, Herbert J. Hovenkamp, Carl Shapiro

Aaron Edlin

In FTC v. Actavis, Inc., the Supreme Court considered "reverse payment" settlements of patent infringement litigation. In such a settlement, a patentee pays the alleged infringer to settle, and the alleged infringer agrees not to enter the market for a period of time. The Court held that a reverse payment settlement violates antitrust law if the patentee is paying to avoid competition. The core insight of Actavis is the Actavis Inference: a large and otherwise unexplained payment, combined with delayed entry, supports a reasonable inference of harm to consumers from lessened competition.This paper is an effort to assist courts and …

Activating Actavis, Aaron Edlin, C. Scott Hemphill, Herbert J. Hovenkamp, Carl Shapiro

Aaron Edlin

In Federal Trade Commission v. Actavis, Inc., the Supreme Court provided fundamental guidance about how courts should handle antitrust challenges to reverse payment patent settlements. The Court came down strongly in favor of an antitrust solution to the problem, concluding that “an antitrust action is likely to prove more feasible administratively than the Eleventh Circuit believed.” At the same time, Justice Breyer’s majority opinion acknowledged that the Court did not answer every relevant question. The opinion closed by “leav[ing] to the lower courts the structuring of the present rule-of-reason antitrust litigation.”This article is an effort to help courts and counsel …

Actavis And Error Costs: A Reply To Critics, Aaron S. Edlin, C. Scott Hemphill, Herbert J. Hovenkamp, Carl Shapiro

Aaron Edlin

The Supreme Court’s opinion in Federal Trade Commission v. Actavis, Inc. provided fundamental guidance about how courts should handle antitrust challenges to reverse payment patent settlements. In our previous article, Activating Actavis, we identified and operationalized the essential features of the Court’s analysis. Our analysis has been challenged by four economists, who argue that our approach might condemn procompetitive settlements.As we explain in this reply, such settlements are feasible, however, only under special circumstances. Moreover, even where feasible, the parties would not actually choose such a settlement in equilibrium. These considerations, and others discussed in the reply, serve to confirm …

Small Sustainability Supply: How Small Business And Lean Manufacturing Can Change Supply Chains, Carlos Lopez

Sustainable Development Law & Policy

No abstract provided.

Benefitting From Sustainable Development, Victoria Frappaolo

Sustainable Development Law & Policy

No abstract provided.

Batteries Included: Incentivizing Energy Storage, Lindsay Breslau, Michael Croweak, Alan Witt

Sustainable Development Law & Policy

Distributed Energy Storage (“DES”) technologies that allow households and businesses to store substantial amounts of electricity on site are rapidly advancing and could soon have dramatic impacts on the nation’s electricity generation, transmission, and distribution markets. These technologies could provide numerous benefits, including enhanced energy security, grid stability, and greater support for renewable generation technologies, but several obstacles are slowing their adoption throughout the country. Among these obstacles are stubbornly high manufacturing costs and the potential impacts of DES development on utilities and the traditional energy regulatory framework. Fortunately, policymakers in California, New York, Hawaii, and some other states are …

Appraising The Role Of The Ifc And Its Independent Accountability Mechanism: Community Experiences In Haiti’S Mining Sector, Kate Nancy Taylor

Sustainable Development Law & Policy

No abstract provided.

Green Is Good: How Green Bonds Cultivated Into Wall Street’S Environmental Paradox, Luke Trompeter

Sustainable Development Law & Policy

When the European Investment Bank issued the first green bond in 2007, few imagined this debt instrument would attract mainstream investors. Designed to finance projects ranging from climate change prevention to clean transportation development, green bonds were geared for socially responsible investors concerned with our planet’s sustainability. However, by 2015, green bonds were issued by major corporations like Apple and municipalities like New York City at a record $40 billion. Major players on Wall Street have taken notice and look to cash in on the rapidly growing green bond market. With this new influx of investment and the bonds’ tax-exempt …

About Sdlp

Sustainable Development Law & Policy

No abstract provided.

Editor's Note, Kimberly Reynolds, Ryan Schmidt

Sustainable Development Law & Policy

No abstract provided.

Can The Eu Carbon Tax The U.S. In Retaliation?, Annum Rashedi

Sustainable Development Law & Policy

No abstract provided.

Regional Disputes: It Is Not Just Ground Beef, Nicholas W. Laneville

Sustainable Development Law & Policy

No abstract provided.