Law Commons^™

Environmental Tax Incentives: What The United States Can Learn From The Netherlands And Japan, Kali Waller

Golden Gate University Environmental Law Journal

This Comment explores policy developments in the United States, Netherlands, and Japan, and identifies elements possessed by the most successful environmental tax schemes: simplicity, cost-effectiveness, and culture-specificity. These countries offer a diverse view of Western and Eastern culture and tax paradigms. Each country has a distinct way of managing taxes while implementing programs that encourage environmental reform. Additionally, the culture in each country is unique, making tax implementations and management particular to each.

In Part II, this Comment addresses the historical development of Green Building and Energy efficiency globally and in the United States, the Netherlands, and Japan. Part III …

Taming The West: Senate Bill 4 And California's Struggle To Regulate Fracking, Justin Hedemark

Golden Gate University Environmental Law Journal

This Comment begins with a history of fracking, the current impact of the practice, and why it has become such a highly contested issue. It will explain how fracking is being done in California and present the current landscape of federal and state regulations. Specifically, California fracking regulations are currently in a state of flux due to the recent enactment of California State Senate Bill 4 ("SB 4"). The Argument section of this Comment posits that SB 4 may have some beneficial effects regarding increased environmental protection and regulatory oversight, but there remain weak spots in the current regulations that …

An Unfulfilled Promise: How National Security Deference Erodes Environmental Justice, Mccall Baugh

Golden Gate University Environmental Law Journal

This Comment focuses on two main issues: environmental justice's procedural limitations following Alexander v. Sandoval, and the loopholes within existing environmental legislation as they apply to military activities. In this respect, Richard Armour's famous idiom "hindsight is 20/20" is telling. As long as the military has carte blanche to ignore environmental laws, environmental justice will continue to remain a legal mirage beholden to the government's pecking order of judicial deference. Vague notions of national security and deference to the military wrinkle the fabric of environmental laws that are intended to create safe and healthy communities. Legislators must close loopholes …

Creating Middle Harbor Shoreline Park, Jim Mcgrath

Golden Gate University Environmental Law Journal

This Article is a remembrance of the collaborative planning efforts that led to the creation of Middle Harbor Shoreline Park in Oakland.7 As the Article proceeds, it will shift between a third-person account and a first-person narrative recorded by the author, who served as manager of the Port of Oakland's Environmental Department and led the planning efforts that resulted in the creation of Middle Harbor Shoreline Park. The author believes that to tell the story of the park's creation, it is necessary to explain the controversies that surrounded its creation and to discuss the values and techniques that led to …

The M/V Cosco Busan Oil Spill: Turning The Tide - A Model Of Successful Collaboration, Lgnacia S. Moreno, Bradley R. O'Brien

Golden Gate University Environmental Law Journal

There are numerous federal and state statutes that allow for the recovery of natural-resource damages and other relief in the event of an oil spill. This Article provides a practical overview of the federal laws that were utilized in the aftermath of the M/V Cosco Busan Oil Spill; discusses the natural resource injury and damage evaluation; and describes how the settlement funded projects that restore, rehabilitate, or replace natural resources injured, destroyed, or lost as a result of the Oil Spill.

Environmental Resistance: Defying Capitalism's Structure Of False Rebellion, Laura A. Cisneros

Golden Gate University Environmental Law Journal

This Article analyzes a collection of landmark environmental protection laws and mainstream ecological strategies to point out their concessions to the overarching capitalist paradigm and to begin thinking about resistance as a distinctive experience that has the ability to move environmentalism beyond the constraints currently imposed on it by capitalist structures, language, and psychology. Part II examines the theories of and arguments for market-based environmental protection strategies, concluding with a critique of those strategies. Part III explores the false antinomy between capitalism and environmentalism as it is currently expressed within United States environmental law. Part IV discusses how the false …

In This Volume, Owen P. Stephens

Golden Gate University Environmental Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Volume 8, No. 1 Table Of Contents

Golden Gate University Environmental Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Volume 8, No. 1 Masthead

Golden Gate University Environmental Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Regulation Of Rule 506 Private Placements: The Teetering Balance Between Investor Protection And Capital Formation, Ilon Oliveira

Golden Gate University Law Review

This Comment aims to show that since the creation of Reg. D private placements, Congress and the SEC have promulgated a series of amendments and enactments that have collectively resulted in a heightened risk of fraud and inadequate safeguards for investors. Part I of this Comment will discuss private placements and the significant enactments and amendments that affect Rule 506 private placement offerings (“Rule 506 offerings”). The most notable amendments in this discussion will include the preemption of state blue-sky laws in 1996, the shortening of the holding period before resale in 2007, the exclusion of an investor’s primary residence …

Do-It-Yourself Privacy: The Need For Comprehensive Federal Privacy Legislation With A Private Right Of Action, Alec Wheatley

Golden Gate University Law Review

This Comment will argue that there is a significant gap in federal privacy law that must be addressed. New federal legislation is needed to fill this gap and would be preferable to a mishmash of potentially conflicting state laws currently in development that will make compliance more difficult for companies that do business online. The incorporeal nature of the Internet also cuts against relying on state legislation, because it makes it difficult to determine the proper jurisdiction for a claimed privacy violation, creating complex choice-of-law disputes.

Judging And Administration For Far-Off Places: Trial, Appellate, And Committee Work In The South Pacific, Stephen L. Wasby

Golden Gate University Law Review

Little attention is paid to the far reaches of the federal judicial system, which extends beyond the boundaries of the continental United States and even beyond the outermost states of Alaska and Hawaii; Puerto Rico is part of the First Circuit,1 and the Virgin Islands are part of the Third Circuit.2 Most particularly, the Ninth Circuit encompasses not only Hawai’i but also the territories of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands (NMI). Not only has the Ninth Circuit provided judges to hear cases in the district courts in Guam and the NMI as needed and reviewed cases appealed from those …

Volume 45 No.3 Table Of Contents

Golden Gate University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Volume 45 No.3 Masthead

Golden Gate University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Nothing To Sneeze At: Severe Food Allergy As A Disability Under The Ada Amendments Act Of 2008, Jason Mustard

Golden Gate University Law Review

This Comment argues that the courts must classify individuals with severe food allergies as having a disability under the ADAA going forward and accordingly must extend the accommodations and protections that come with that designation to these individuals. Part II of the Comment examines the prevalence and severity of food allergies in the United States. Part III examines the history of disability law and how that law has been applied to individuals with severe food allergies. Part IV discusses the status of severe food allergies going forward in light of the ADAA and the effect of the law on recent …

Asleep At The School-Bus Wheel: The Success And Failure Of School Desegregation In San Jose Unified School District And How To Save It, Richard Miyasaki

Golden Gate University Law Review

This Comment will examine the history of school desegregation in San Jose, how the law bears upon those orders and any possible future plans, whether San Jose will likely again face allegations of operating segregated schools, and how the school authorities or courts may find a more lasting solution. Specifically, it will examine the impact of desegregation in the District’s high schools and possible solutions. Although no simple solutions are present, it is my hope that this Comment may both bring attention to this issue and offer areas for further exploration in attempting to deal with segregated schools today.

Davey Jones’S Lockup: Changing The U.S. Approach To Prosecution And Punishment Of Maritime Piracy In Universal Jurisdiction Cases, Collin Mccarthy

Golden Gate University Law Review

Recognizing the need for the United States government to take a leadership role in confronting and suppressing the resurging threat of maritime piracy, this Comment evaluates the current status of maritime piracy laws in the United States. Moreover, as the use of legal mechanisms will play a vital part in combating maritime piracy, this Comment seeks to demonstrate that the statutory system as it stands is both outdated and illsuited for addressing the complexities of piracy in the modern era, and will only impede the achievement of current strategic objectives. More specifically, as the crime of piracy is no longer …

Emulating The German Two-Tier Board And Worker Participation In U.S. Law: A Stakeholder Theory Of The Firm, Eric Engle, Tetiana Danyliuk

Golden Gate University Law Review

The U.S. corporate governance system failed in 2002, and again in 2008, leading to the deepest economic downturn in the United States since the Great Depression. Germany, in contrast, suffered neither widespread regulatory failure nor market collapse. Important differences in the U.S. and German corporate structure and capital markets may explain the divergent economic performance. This Article examines whether and how to emulate German corporate governance structures in the U.S. market, a theme which may be of interest to German corporations considering locating operations in the United States, such as Volkswagen in Tennessee.

This Article is structured in three parts. …

Volume 45 No.2 Table Of Contents

Golden Gate University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Volume 45 No.2 Masthead

Golden Gate University Law Review

No abstract provided.

A Wall Of Legislative Obstacles In The Path Of A Woman Exercising Her Right To An Abortion: Planned Parenthood Arizona, Inc. V. Betlach, Angela Breslin

Golden Gate University Law Review

This Note addresses the limited impact of the Ninth Circuit’s holding in Planned Parenthood Arizona, Inc. v. Betlach, especially for women living in states hostile to abortion rights. These legislative attempts to infringe on a woman’s right to an abortion are based on opinion and emotion, not reason and common sense. An objective view of the legislation stacked against a woman in exercising her right, including legislation against physicians who provide the service, illustrates how all of these obstacles have effectively become a wall. A woman’s constitutional right should not continue to be chipped away, one state statute at …

With Federal Money Up For Grabs And The Clean Energy Dream Within Reach, The Ninth Circuit Rubber Stamps The Central District’S Flawed Judgment In Western Watershed Project V. Salazar: Should Nepa Jurisprudence Be Modified?, Erik Faussner

Golden Gate University Law Review

As a clean-energy leader, California has been rapidly developing clean-energy infrastructure to meet its goal of supplying 33% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2020. The federal government has also been an active participant in this push for a clean-energy future, creating an atmosphere where big projects can thrive on federal land with help from the federal purse. With support from the state and federal governments, large-scale clean-energy projects will become commonplace in the California desert. The Southwest is an ideal place for solar development because of its reliably sunny weather. Unfortunately, the rapid expansion of clean-energy infrastructure has …

Foie Gras Ban In California, Erica Williams Morris

Golden Gate University Law Review

Section 25982 of the California Health and Safety Code was unsuccessfully challenged by one restaurant that served foie gras to customers for many years prior to the ban imposed by the statute. If the courts do not invalidate the statute, foie gras will be permanently banned in the state. The statute is unconstitutional, and if challenged correctly, the courts should so find. However, although foie gras production is very controversial, there are alternative methods that allow all interested parties have what they want: foie gras and happy birds.

Introduction: Reflections From A Time Of (Near) Disaster And Renewal, Cathy Catterson

Golden Gate University Law Review

In welcoming the latest edition of the Golden Gate University Law Review’s annual Ninth Circuit Survey, the Ninth Circuit’s Court and Circuit Executive reflects on the 25th Anniversary of the Loma Prieta earthquake and its impact on the court.

Judges Of The United States Court Of Appeals For The Ninth Circuit

Golden Gate University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Preface, Ilon Oliveira

Golden Gate University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Table Of Contents

Golden Gate University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Masthead

Golden Gate University Law Review

No abstract provided.

“Fat Taxes” Fighting Globesity Ignore Food Demand Inelasticities, John Andrew Brunner-Brown

Annual Survey of International & Comparative Law

The obesity pandemic is not unique to the United States, where obesity has been a major health concern for decades. Whereas in the 1980s only about one in six adult Americans were obese, recent surveys reveal that approximately one in three adult Americans are obese today. Worldwide there is a similar upward trend in obesity, as the global obesity rate has doubled since 1980. Because of this trend, the World Health Organization has described the pandemic as “globesity.”

There are extreme costs associated with individual obesity. For many, obesity diminishes quality of life in general because it creates a threat …

One Step Forward, Two Steps Back: A Brief History Of Legal Discriminations Against Women In Iran And The Violations Of International Human Rights, Delaram Farzaneh

Annual Survey of International & Comparative Law

In recent years Iran has primarily been under international scrutiny because of concerns over its development of a nuclear program. However, there have been other developments in Iran that also raise grave concerns among the international community. Since the 1990s, the Rights of Women have been one of the major categories of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Iran. The current direction of the Iranian government, with regard to improving women’s fundamental rights, seems to be back to the “good old days” rather than towards modernizing and humanizing strict patriarchal law. To best understand these current backward steps, it is …