Law Commons^™

Nicole Ludwig, Tsos, Nicole Ludwig

TSOS Interview Gallery

In September 2016, Nicole Ludwig led a group of her neighbors in Germany to assist newly-arrived Syrian and Afghani refugees. The volunteers collected clothing and toys, organized activities and field trips for the refugee children, and taught them German. Later, the volunteers offered homework support and led library reading groups. For the adult refugees, the volunteers provided cultural assimilation instruction and cooking classes. While there were occasional challenges to working together, the volunteers and refugees fostered a collaborative system and even hosted a Christmas party, during which one elderly Syrian man said, “This is one of the best memories I …

Layla, Layla, Tsos

TSOS Interview Gallery

Layla left Ethiopia 10 years ago to look for work opportunities. She left behind a father and three brothers. She went to Syria on a three-year work contract. She worked in a house and learned Arabic. She then went to Turkey by boat and then went on to Greece for 5 years. She worked and learned the Greek language. When she became pregnant she had to stop working. She travelled to Serbia to Macedonia to Austria all on foot. Then the Red Cross moved Layla and her daughter to Giessen, Germany where a roommate periodically beat her baby. Seeking safety …

Katja, Ketevahi 'Katje', Tsos

TSOS Interview Gallery

Ketevahi “Katja” is from Georgia. She’s in her late 40’s. She grew up on a farm in the country and became the financial support for her family after her mother died and her father became “emaciated.” When Putin came to power, diplomatic ties deteriorated between Georgia and Russia, which eventually led to war. She fled her country using forged documents and first worked in Turkey but has now lived in Naples for nine years and regularly sends money home to her brother, who cares for their father.

Katja expresses her feelings about war, government, liberty, and what it means to …

Fadel, Tsos, Fadel

TSOS Interview Gallery

Fadel's family was originally from Palestine. However, for reasons he couldn’t recall, they moved to Libya, where Fadel was born, and he grew up there. He recalled that life inLibya used to be good, but that it became dangerous. Fadel came to Italy alone. His parents died and left him nothing seven years ago. His siblings died as well. He came to Italy 6 months ago seeking asylum by way of Tripoli to Sabratha, and then to Sardinia and Calabria. He has been living on the streets, and because he couldn’t provide an address, he was denied asylum

Felix, Tsos, Felix

TSOS Interview Gallery

Felix is originally from Nigeria and has now been inItaly under a year. He came from a family with a polygamous father who “married” multiple wives illegally. After returning home from a service mission for his church, which his father supported, Felix began to study engineering. At some point conflict arose within the family that causedFelix to have to flee.He was smuggled through Niger to Libya, losing several friends along the way.There he was held for ransom, before taking a treacherous voyage across the sea in an overfilled boat, where he witnessed several drown. Now he lives in a camp …

Momo, Momo, Tsos

TSOS Interview Gallery

When Momo was only nine years old, he returned home to find his parents and his six sisters and four brothers had been killed in their own home. Sometime after that, he and his uncle left Somalia together to live in Yemen. He stayed in Yemen until he was sixteen, but when things became unsafe there, he moved to Libya. He had hoped to get on a boat in Libya to go somewhere for a new life, but he was thrown in prison instead. He was harassed and told to ask his family to send money so that he could …

Almonds, A Fiesty Industry, Kenneth M. Petrowsky

Marriott Student Review

A bitter power struggle between the almond industry and the milk industry has become a test of the United States’ free market. The National Milk Producers Federation has turned to Washington for aid while the Almond board of California and the Blue Diamond co-op have focused on improving their product.

Industry Spotlight: Technology Patents

Marriott Student Review

Technology patents serve two purposes: to protect competition in the marketplace and to promote collaborative innovation amongst rival firms. Society benefits when technology firms are made to share patents at fair rates. The costs and benefits of technology patents are discussed in the context of industry expectations, and the broader implications for society. Firms should be encouraged to continue innovating, benefiting society as they go.

Mass Communication Law And Policy Research And The Values Of Free Expression, Edward L. Carter

Faculty Publications

Mass communication law and policy research, including on values and theory of freedom of expression, has played an important role in Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly for decades. Mass communication law research in Quarterly reached a high point with a special issue on the First Amendment in 1992 and numerous articles in the decade that followed. A relationship is explored between First Amendment theory and structural archetypes of constitutional argument. Future research could focus on international law and contemporary challenges involving technology, surveillance and changes in democratic citizenship.

National Parks And The Threats They Face: A World Survey, Jared Meek, Brigham Daniels

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The earth is experiencing profound changes in its ecological health and rate of biodiversity loss across the globe. For example, birds, insects, and mammals of Europe are migrating northwards and uphill in response to observed climate changes1, and these changes are affecting the rate of European plant development2. According to one author, “It is estimated that one-third of all reef-building corals […] a third of sharks and rays, a quarter of all mammals, a fifth of all reptiles, and a sixth of all birds are headed toward oblivion. The losses are occurring all over: in the South Pacific and in …

Obamacare: Under The Knife, Kylan Rutherford

Marriott Student Review

President Trump and Congress have tried and failed to pass through a replacement plan for Obamacare. This article details why this effort failed, and several issues extant in Obamacare that may move the law toward insolvency. These issues are the mandate, guaranteed issue, and the 'risk corridor' funding set up to back struggling insurance companies.

Norwegian Airlines International's Violation Of The Us/Eu Open Skies Agreement, Tinesha Zandamela

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

Outsourcing labor has become an increasing concern in the United States as unemployment rates have been volatile for the past ten years. Because of this, the US and the EU created the Open Skies Agreement, with the hope of increasing the amount of jobs in the airline industry by putting a ban on outsourcing cheap labor. However, this agreement now has the potential to be undermined by the US Department of Transportation's decision to allow Norwegian Airline International (NAI) to reap the benefits of this agreement, while simultaneously breaking the outlined code of conduct regarding labor. The US Dep't of …

The Secular Benefits Of Comparative Religious Education, Wen Jie (Fred) Tan

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

This paper builds on current literature surrounding the need for increased religious freedom. Theories on conflict and threat describe how peace and religious freedom must be preceded by religious understanding. However, it is erroneous and presumptuous to claim that such religious understanding will increase naturally without intentional policies facilitating a climate tolerance and acceptance. Taboos limit governments' interaction with religion. It will be shown how secular benefits that religious freedom brings provide strong justification for cooperation between both institutions. A policy of comparative religious education improves mutual religious understanding and helps bring about increased economic growth and national security. Because …

Child Prisoners: Asylum-Seeking Detainees In The U.S. And The Violation Of The Flores Settlement Agreement, Miriam L B Sweeney

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

The Flores Settlement Agreement allows for asylum-seeking minors to be released from detention if the minors are in unsafe circumstances. Children are experiencing physical and mental harm in asylum-seekers’ detention. This harm constitutes a lack of safety. Therefore, the current conditions of detention for asylum-seekers violate the Flores Settlement Agreement.

The Battle Of Birthright Citizenship, Joshua White

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

This article examines the legal case behind denying birthright citizenship to the children of illegal aliens born on U.S. territory and thereby correcting the present interpretation of the Citizenship Clause. Currently, children of illegal aliens born on U.S. territory are automatically granted citizenship jus soli. This removes the sovereignty of the American citizen by supplanting the citizen with an illegal alien in determining who can become citizens of the United States. To resolve this problem, Congress must enact legislation specifically restricting birthright citizenship from children of illegal aliens. While other articles focus on the morality of accepting refugees or illegal …

Abstinence-Only Sex Education On Trial, Kendall W. Orton

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

Title V abstinence-only sex education funds are used to fund programs that do not reduce sexual activity, STDs, or pregnancy in high school students, contrary to the purported goals of public school sexual education. This paper outlines the history and legal and social research regarding sexual education. It also argues that comprehensive sex education does not violate the Establishment clause or Free Exercise clause by applying the Lemon doctrine. This paper advocates that the United States government should only fund comprehensive sexual education models that have shown positive results and promote healthy attitudes about sex.

Shaping Immigration Law Through A Business Law Model, Mitchell Reber

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

This article argues that state-produced immigration law can be a more effective method of regulating immigration when compared with current federal regulation. Currently, regulation as controlled by the federal government supersedes any laws created at the state level and subjects those laws produced by states to extensive review by the courts. The article proposes that immigration law should follow a business-law model when regulating immigration on a state level and discusses how the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 needs to be reinterpreted. The article then describes three ways this change in immigration law could be implemented and confers …

Supplying Justice: Unethical Practices In State Supreme Courts, Emmanuel Morga, Clint Saylor

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

Contemporary judicial election processes in many states allow for judicial campaign donors to appear, unethically, in court before the justice to whom they contributed funds. This paper studies various cases involving apparent quid pro quo between State Supreme Court justices and their constituents in court, the ethics of their rulings, and examines a judge’s role in government as a representative of the law. It reaches the conclusion that judicial elections facilitate unethical practices in the courtroom, and an alternate method of judicial appointment, still allowing public oversight, is presented.

Workplace Discrimination And The Inefficiency Of The Ellerth/Faragher Defense, Kimberly F. Medina

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

This article addresses the growing problem of workplace discrimination. Even though a few states have implemented laws requiring employers to train their employees on workplace discrimination, the number of discrimination claims has continued to rise each year. In 1998 the Supreme Court ruled on two important cases regarding workplace discrimination. Their opinion on these cases established what is known as the Ellerth/Faragher defense. The Ellerth/Faragher defense sets standards that an employer must meet to claim affirmative defense in cases of illegal discrimination. This article argues that the current standards set in this defense are flawed and need to be updated. …

The Systematic Neglect Of Inmates Suffering From Substance-Use Disorder In The American Prison Systems, J Lyons

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

While the problem of crime and its perpetuation is multifactorial and inherently complex, the mental and physical health of criminals falls under the legal oversight of the penal system. Prisoners have a legal right to quality medical care—a right that is often forgotten and neglected by society at large and, more specifically, the court system itself.

Death And Dignity, Michael Gardner

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

This paper discusses the contemporary debate over physician-assisted suicide and focuses specifically on Oregon’s Death with Dignity Act. Because the majority of the states have yet to pass legislation on physician-assisted suicide, the greatest debate over the legality of euthanasia is yet to come. This paper addresses the arguments for and against physician-assisted suicide with the purpose of educating the reader regarding the social, moral and ethical consequences of allowing or denying its practice.

Leaving Behind Self-Righteousness: Using Mutual Respect And Compromise To Solve Emerging Conflicts Between Religious Liberty And Same-Sex Marriage, Benjamin Issa

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

This paper attempts to provide a reasonable framework for thinking about religious liberty issues following the Supreme Court's decision in Obergefell v. Hodges. Following the decision in that case, which requires states to wed same-sex couples, there has been a national debate about when - and if - religious business owners can discriminate based on sexual orientation. This issue pits religious liberty organizations against LGBT rights organizations, and leaves both sides feeling demonized and misunderstood. This paper advocates a more nuanced approach, and suggests that reasonable compromise is possible if we are willing to leave behind self-righteousness and instead engage …

Redefining Immutability: Utah's Model For Advancing Lgbt Rights, Zachary Herzog

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

This paper attempts to explain the Supreme Court’s recent efforts to expand the definition of immutable rights to protect LGBT Americans and argues that gender identity also be included in that definition. States should expand this definition in their own constitutions and do so in a way that protects the interests of the LGBT community as well as other demographics. Utah Senate Bill 296 is a good example of how this definition can be successfully expanded, and should be a model for states in which LGBT antidiscrimination legislation has been less effective.