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A. Harold Weber Writing Award, Notre Dame Law School

Student, Faculty, and Staff Awards

For Excellence in Legal Writing
What will it profit you to know all the law and the prophets if you lack the power to make these clear to others? – Lloyd T. Stryker

Mmu: 12/11/17 - 12/17/17, Notre Dame Law School

Monday Morning Update

The Monday Morning Update, or MMU as it is referred to by students, is a weekly email newsletter of news, events, and opportunities of special interest to Notre Dame Law School students.

Delimiting Fiduciary Status, Julian Velasco

Journal Articles

A familiar problem to scholars of fiduciary law is that of definition. Fiduciary law has been called “messy,” “elusive,” and “unusually vexing.” In part, this is because fiduciary law principles appear in many areas of law, but are applied differently in each. This has made the development of a unified theory difficult. Some scholars have doubted whether it is even possible; others have insisted that it is not possible. Nevertheless, scholars continue to try to bring order to the perceived chaos. My goal in this short paper will be to sketch out the contours of a reasonably coherent theory that ...

The Paris Agreement: Its Role In International Law And American Jurisprudence, Kayla Clark

Notre Dame Journal of International & Comparative Law

The Paris Agreement is the most articulate and influential international legal agreement on climate change to date. However, despite record breaking levels of international participation, the future of the Agreement remains uncertain. United States President Donald Trump's decision to remain a part of the international community's efforts on climate change has the potential to affect the scope and scale of this acclaimed treaty. In this note, I discuss the development of the Paris agreement as compared to the Kyoto Protocol, and how its construction promises to facilitate successful implementation. Additionally, given the United States' prominent international role, I ...

The Need For A Supranational Organization In Foreign Investment, David M. Howard

Notre Dame Journal of International & Comparative Law

While the World Trade Organization (“WTO”) does not regulate the field of foreign investment, the WTO has tried to negotiate multilateral rules on foreign investment in the past, and there are other current international agreements that contain investment provisions designed to regulate foreign investment. Even though the previous multilateral investment agreement negotiations did not come to fruition, some scholars still believe there are several practical reasons for the WTO to regulate investment. Most significantly, trade and investment are strongly linked in our globalizing world and both are complements one another, with an increase in one corresponding to an increase in ...

The Blessing Of Talent And The Curse Of Poverty: Rectifying Copyright Law's Implementation Of Authors' Material Interests In International Human Rights Law, Saleh Al-Sharieh

Notre Dame Journal of International & Comparative Law

The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) grants authors the right to the protection of the material interests resulting from their intellectual works. The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights interpreted these interests to comprise the ability to achieve an adequate standard of living (as a minimum). This paper argues that copyright law provides a useful yet incomplete model for the protection of authors’ material interests. Copyright creates the legal environment necessary for establishing a market for intellectual works but does not guarantee its benefits to authors. Therefore, States Parties to the ICESCR should both tailor ...

Letter From The Editer, Annie Bach Yen Nguyen

Notre Dame Journal of International & Comparative Law

The Notre Dame Journal of International and Comparative Law, Volume 8, Issue 2 (2018).

Masthead Volume 8

Notre Dame Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

The European Union, The Member States, And The Lex Mercatoria, Gabriella Saputelli

Notre Dame Journal of International & Comparative Law

The phenomena linked to the "internationalization" and "globalization" of the economy prompt the demand for uniform legal frameworks in supranational governance and encourage forms of “self-regulation”. This spontaneous attempt at harmonizing law at the supranational level is often prepared by market forces and comes to add to the classical legal models while leading to the emergence of a new lex mercatoria.

The aim of this paper is to analyze the openings of the European system to the transnational production of law identified under the term "new lex mercatoria" by verifying all the factors that allow its sources of law to ...

Increasing International Legal Protections For Freedom Of Expression, Alan Wehbé

Notre Dame Journal of International & Comparative Law

The international community seems to largely agree on the fundamental nature of the freedom of expression. Even countries that do not seem, in practice, to respect the freedom of expression still tend to ratify, sign, or be party to international instruments to that end. This duality tends to simplify the legal argument, but complicate the actual practice for promoting freedom of expression worldwide. For those who agree that the United States is a leader in international affairs, shift towards a more definitive State practice reinforcing the freedom of expression is an easy sell. For those who dispute whether the United ...

Refugees In The European Union: The Harsh Reality Of The Dublin Regulation, Lana Maani

Notre Dame Journal of International & Comparative Law

The refugee crisis is a highly contested and controversial issue. The world, and specifically Europe, has seen a rapid increase in the number of refugees applying for asylum. In fact, the European Union (“EU”) has received well over one million refugees: the highest number of refugees since the Second World War. The crisis is testing the EU’s main building blocks, including, most importantly, its Member States’ notion of an ever-closer union. Some Member States have been more responsive to the crisis than others. For example, Germany is the highest refugee hosting country in the EU. On the other hand ...

Combating Statelessness In The Wake Of The Syrian Conflict: A Right Without A Remedy, Tim Schultz

Notre Dame Journal of International & Comparative Law

In the wake of the Syrian Civil War, millions of persons have been displaced from their homes. As desperate families flee zones of conflict, they leave all but their most precious belongings behind, in search of safety in neighboring countries. The path to safety and security, however, is a dangerous one. Displaced persons must traverse national borders, military checkpoints, and journey great distances to find safe haven. Unfortunately, Syrian families often do not carry identification documents to establish a legal recognition of their nationality in foreign lands. Consequently, this population of refugees is left vulnerable to the ugly reality of ...

How Would The European Court Of Human Rights Decide Holt V. Hobbs?, Francesca M. Genova

Notre Dame Law Review Online

This Essay inquires: How would the ECtHR decide Holt v. Hobbs, given the same evidence provided at the district court level and the reasoning of the court of appeals? Analyzing this case through the ECtHR’s lens will elucidate the implications of the proportionality test in American jurisprudence. To do so, Part I will compare the two jurisdictions. Part II will summarize Holt v. Hobbs. Part III will describe the ECtHR’s relevant recent free exercise jurisprudence. Part IV will discuss how, based on this analysis, the ECtHR could decide Holt v. Hobbs in light of its overarching principles. Finally ...

Headscarf Bans, Equal Treatment, And Minority Integration In The Workplace, Elizabeth A. Clark

Notre Dame Law Review Online

Andrea Pin’s Essay on the Achbita and Bougnaoui cases effectively highlights the significance of the cases and the singularity of the rulings, as well as the tension they create with other European Union norms and policies. The European Court of Justice’s (ECJ) rulings in these cases are also in tension with the court’s own discrimination law and exacerbate the pressing European question, particularly significant in light of the recent migration crisis, of how best to incorporate ethnic and religious minorities into a society.

Islam And Religious Freedom: The Experience Of Religious Majorities And Minorities, Brett G. Scharffs

Notre Dame Law Review Online

It seems likely that change in Islam will be affected both by outside and internal sources, as was the case for the Catholic Church and its journey to Dignitatis Humanae. However, one thing the Catholic experience suggests is that meaningful and profound change does not simply come from outside pressures; it comes from authentic and sincere evaluation and interpretation by insiders of a religious tradition of that tradition itself. Thus, if Islam is going to come to embrace religious freedom as an important value, this will be the result, significantly if not primarily, of Muslims interpreting their own sacred texts ...

Employment Division V. Smith And State Free Exercise Protections: Should State Courts Feel Obligated To Apply The Federal Standard In Adjudicating Alleged Violations Of Their State Free Exercise Clauses?, Matthew Linnabary

Notre Dame Law Review Online

State courts should feel free to apply whatever test is most appropriate based on the textual provisions of their state constitution that protects the free exercise or worship of its citizens. Of course, such freedom to the state courts is greatly limited in many states by the passage of their own Religious Freedom Restoration Acts. These acts generally set forth precisely how the courts must determine whether or not a law violates the free exercise or worship of a claimant. Even if not limited by a RFRA—which would generally require strict scrutiny—a state court should apply strict scrutiny ...

The Limits Of Natural Law Originalism, Mikolaj Barczentewicz

Notre Dame Law Review Online

In Enduring Originalism, Jeffrey Pojanowski and Kevin C. Walsh outline how originalism in constitutional interpretation can be grounded in modern natural law theory as developed by John Finnis. Their argument to that effect is powerful and constitutes a welcome addition both to natural law theory and to originalist theory. However, the authors chose to present their account as a superior alternative to, or modification of, the “positive” (“original law”) originalism of Stephen Sachs and William Baude. It is that aspect of the paper that I focus on in this short Essay. Contrary to their strong claims in that direction, Professors ...

Helpless Giants? The National Park Service’S Ability To Influence And Manage External Threats To Redwood National And State Parks, Jack Mcleod

Notre Dame Law Review Online

This Essay analyzes the interactions between federal, state, and private landowners regarding Redwood National and State Parks (RNSP) to determine what power the National Park Service (NPS) has to stop the destruction of its trees resulting from externalities. Part I briefly discusses the historical development of RNSP, focusing on how its boundaries impact inner scenic resources. Part II argues that California state efforts have traditionally hampered redwood protection in RNSP, and Part III examines the limited resources the NPS possesses to protect redwoods. Ultimately, the NPS has few effective tools at its disposal to protect redwoods against external threats, except ...

Clarifying The “Probate Lending” Debate: A Response To Professors Horton And Chandrasekher, Jeremy Kidd Ph.D.

Notre Dame Law Review Online

The debate over third-party funding of legal claims just got more interesting. The debate already had plot twists, such as free-market scholars lining up in opposition to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and alongside proplaintiff scholars who they oppose in tort reform debates. Now add to the mix a recent paper by Professors Horton and Chandrasekher that introduced an entirely new angle to the debate: funding of probate disputes. Now that this parallel area of funding has been identified, comparing and contrasting probate funding with litigation funding should illuminate the incentives that funders/recipients face in both scenarios. By ...

A Statistical Analysis Of Privacy Policy Design, Ari E. Waldman

Notre Dame Law Review Online

This Essay takes a further step in a developing research agenda on the design of privacy policies. As described in more detail in Part II, I created an online survey in which respondents were asked to choose one of two websites that would better protect their privacy given images of segments of their privacy policies. Some of the questions paired notices with, on the one hand, privacy protective practices displayed in difficult-to-read designs, and, on the other hand, invasive data use practices displayed in graphical, aesthetically pleasing ways. Many survey respondents seemed to make their privacy decisions based on design ...

The Law Of Deception, Amit Pundik

Notre Dame Law Review Online

The purpose of this Essay is both descriptive and normative. On the descriptive level, this Essay details the Israeli jurisprudence and scholarly opinions on the issue of rape by deception in a way accessible to non-Hebrew readers, and briefly compares it with approaches taken elsewhere. On the normative level, the Essay seeks to show that the various attempts to answer the question of which characteristics can constitute deception all fail. In particular, it seeks to show that the Israeli approach is the least attractive, a conclusion that, it is hoped, may serve as a warning to reformers in other jurisdictions ...

Mmu: 4/30/18 - 5/6/18, Notre Dame Law School

Monday Morning Update

The Monday Morning Update, or MMU as it is referred to by students, is a weekly email newsletter of news, events, and opportunities of special interest to Notre Dame Law School students.

Mmu: 4/23/18 - 4/29/18, Notre Dame Law School

Monday Morning Update

The Monday Morning Update, or MMU as it is referred to by students, is a weekly email newsletter of news, events, and opportunities of special interest to Notre Dame Law School students.

"Thou Shalt Not Ration Justice": The Importance Of Autism Insurance Reform For Military Autism Families, And The Economic And National Security Implications Of Improving Access To Aba Therapy Under Tricare, Ariana Cernius

Journal of Legislation

No abstract provided.

Prevailing Wage Legislation And The Continuing Significance Of Race, David E. Bernstein

Journal of Legislation

No abstract provided.

Reforming By Re-Norming: How The Legal System Has The Potential To Change A Toxic Culture Of Domestic Violence, Melissa L. Breger

Journal of Legislation

No abstract provided.

Rejoining Moral Culpability With Criminal Liability: Reconsideration Of The Felony Murder Doctrine For The Current Time, William Bald

Journal of Legislation

No abstract provided.

Sentencing Enhancement For Aggravating Role: The Need For The Numerosity Test As The Legal Standard For The "Otherwise Extensive" Criminal Activity Determination, Nicole Borczyk

Journal of Legislation

No abstract provided.

The Pragmatic Disappointment Of State Preemption: The 2016 Defend Trade Secrets Act And Its Failure To Protect Employee Whistleblowers From Federal Computer Crime Law, Kristine Craig

Journal of Legislation

No abstract provided.

The Criminalization Of School Choice: Punishing The Poor For The Inequities Of Geographic School Districting, La Darien Harris

Journal of Legislation

No abstract provided.