Law Commons^™

California’S 2023 Legislative Cycle: Governor Newsom Provides Victories And Losses For The Labor Movement, Victoria Chan

GGU Law Review Blog

During the 2023 legislative cycle, the California Legislature sent more than 900 bills to Governor Gavin Newsom’s desk for his review. Of the 900 bills, thirteen bills were sponsored by the California Labor Federation (CLF) in support of major labor initiatives. The CLF is a coalition of 1,200 unions dedicated to protecting workers. The CLF indicated that this past legislative year was a “fantastic year for organized labor in the [California] State Legislature,” specifically, thirteen of its sponsored bills passed the California Legislature and arrived at the Governor’s desk for his review.

Below is a preview of two workers’ rights …

Promises And Pitfalls: Former Lprs Quest For A Second Chance, Jeanin Alvarado

GGU Law Review Blog

Every year, the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) removes thousands of immigrants from the United States. In the fiscal year between October 2021 and September 2022, ICE executed the removal of 72,117 noncitizens, which is a 22% increase from the previous fiscal year. Of those removals, 44,096 noncitizens had criminal convictions or pending charges. According to the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS), as of January 2022, an estimated 12.9 million lawful permanent residents (LPRs) live in the United States. About 970,000 of these LPRs obtained status before 1980, while the remaining 11.9 million obtained status …

The Doom Loop: The Subtle Art Of Fear-Based Messaging In Politics, Kristen Foley

GGU Law Review Blog

Doom Loop (noun) – A scenario in which one negative development causes another negative development, which then makes the first problem worse. A vicious cycle.

Fear-based messaging is a compelling political tool that has been used to shape policy often at the expense vulnerable communities. A growing example of this has targeted governing practices in San Francisco. San Francisco has seen a barrage of criticisms lately, focused on blatant crime and open-air drug use among its streets. Local and national news have made these topics the centerpiece of a “doom loop” narrative that is plaguing a once thriving and desirable …

Florida’S Stop Woke Act And Its Function As A Content-Based Restriction, Emily Kearns

GGU Law Review Blog

May 2023, Florida Governor Ron Desantis signed into law Florida Senate Bill 266 (SB 266) concerning changes to funding requirements for Florida State University System institutions.. Under SB 266, university undergraduate courses may not “distort significant historical events or include a curriculum that teaches identity politics…or is based on theories that systemic racism, sexism, oppression, and privilege are inherent in the institutions of the United States and were created to maintain social, political, and economic inequities”.

The bill is popularly known as the “Stop Woke Act” (hereafter “the Act”)—an attempt to curtail the apparent horrors of Critical Race …

Expiration Of The Sunset Clause: Is The Clock Ticking For The Grutter Standard And Affirmative Action In Higher Education?, Simona Stodulkova

GGU Law Review Blog

Affirmative action, an active effort to provide access to educational and employment opportunities to historically underrepresented groups, is now in danger of being eradicated by the Supreme Court. While the Court upheld affirmative action in Grutter v. Bollinger in 2003, it suggested in its “sunset clause” of the opinion that the issue should be revisited in twenty-five years. Two cases concerning affirmative action in higher education are now before the current conservative-led Court, which has already indicated that it is prepared to overrule its precedent.

Affirmative action in higher education has been advanced as a solution to past discriminatory …

The Role Of Vaccination Decision Making In Coparenting In The Post Covid-19 World, Alexandria Kozak

GGU Law Review Blog

The practice of coparenting has long been fraught with difficulties and disagreements. The Covid-19 pandemic has compounded these difficulties. With the increased politization that surrounded the pandemic, vaccination became a particularly polarizing issue. So, what is a parent to do if they wish to vaccinate their child, but their coparent will not agree? This issue has found its way to many courts in the last few years.

Putin’S Arrest Warrant: The What And The Why Of “Unlawful Deportation Of Children”, Maxwell Granger

GGU Law Review Blog

Earlier this year, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin, president of the Russian Federation. The charge: unlawful deportation of children, a war crime. While there have been many calls to prosecute Mr. Putin for alleged war crimes in Ukraine (indeed, the United States even passed a new law which could allow such a prosecution in the U.S.), some might be wondering what “unlawful deportation of children” exactly entails and why the ICC chose this particular charge.

California Restaurant Workers Seeking Justice At The Workplace, Victoria Chan

GGU Law Review Blog

According to a finding by the Economic Policy Institute, about $2 billion in wages are stolen from workers in California every year. A report by the National Employment Law Project (NELP) found that over 1 in 10 workers in California are paid less than the state minimum wage. To an individual worker, the stolen wages can equal more than two months’ rent, three months of childcare, and nearly a year’s worth of groceries for themselves and their family. These workers are oftentimes people of color, women, and immigrants in the restaurant industry.

The Supreme Court Rolls Back The Clock For Juvenile Justice, Jack Lyons

GGU Law Review Blog

For decades, the Supreme Court has protected juveniles from harsh punishments, such as mandatory life without parole (LWOP), by acknowledging that children are different and must be sentenced accordingly. The developmental differences in children make it nearly impossible to determine that a child who commits a crime is beyond hope for rehabilitation. Jones v. Mississippi turned back the clock on juvenile justice by holding that sentencers need not find a child is “permanently incorrigible” before sentencing them to life without parole.

Temporary Protected Status For Ukraine – How Are Countries Selected For Tps And Who Qualifies?, Golden Gate University School Of Law

GGU Law Review Blog

Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Secretary Alejandro N. Mayorkas of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced that Ukraine has been designated for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for 18 months from April 19, 2022 to October 17, 2023. Eligible Ukrainian nationals who receive TPS are protected from deportation, allowed to live and work in the United States, and may be granted travel authorization. Under the designation of Ukraine, DHS estimates that roughly 59,000 individuals could be eligible to receive TPS. Despite the temporary nature of the program that allows TPS recipients to stay in the United States for a limited …

Does Ceqa Need A Rewrite Or Just A Better Public Relations Manager?, Brian Gillis

GGU Law Review Blog

I’ve recently been tempted to blame my existential climate-change-induced dread on a 50-year-old environmental law that may be exacerbating California’s contributions to the climate crisis. The impacts of climate change are here and will only grow more severe. I’m angry, and I am scared for the future because we aren’t doing nearly enough to mitigate the worst impacts of climate change. The climate action pledges taken by many countries are insufficient, and we aren’t even on track to meet these pledges. The calls-to-action are all about urgency: “we need to act yesterday to avoid a climate catastrophe.” So, an environmental …

Don’T Say Gay…At Least, Not In Front Of Your Teachers, Esra Coskun-Crabtree

GGU Law Review Blog

The Florida Senate passed The Parental Rights in Education bill, also known as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill by the media on March 28, 2022. This Bill proposes that a school district may not “discourage or prohibit parental notification of and involvement in critical decisions affecting a student’s mental, emotional, or physical health or well-being,” nor “encourage classroom discussion about sexual orientation or gender identity in primary grade levels or in a manner that is not age-appropriate or developmentally appropriate for students.” The bill would allow parents to “bring an action against a school district to obtain a declaratory judgment …

Nft: The Next Big Thing?, Golden Gate University School Of Law

GGU Law Review Blog

In 2021, Non-Fungible Tokens (“NFTs”) have taken the world of digital art to new heights. Artists are beginning to “tokenize” their art and sell them in NFT marketplaces for highly lucrative prices where bids can be made only with cryptocurrency. The “hype” surrounding NFTs grows by the day, thousands of new NFTs are being “minted” everyday. Even celebrities are getting involved in this digital movement. It seems however, that we have seen only the infancy of the blockchain based technology and that it may soon venture off beyond the world of digital art. For those in the legal profession, it …

Attacks On Affirmative Action: Holistic Review Of College Applicants Under Fire, Jennifer Gomez

GGU Law Review Blog

The Supreme Court has upheld affirmative action in higher education recognizing that the consideration of race in a holistic review of a college applicant is narrowly tailored to obtain the compelling state interest of educational benefits associated with a diverse student body. However, recent cases are challenging this precedent and threaten to end the holistic review of college applicants. The Supreme Court has agreed to hear Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President and Fellows of Harvard College and Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. University of North Carolina. These two cases will determine the future of race conscious admissions …

Here’S Why It’S Time The Lanham Act Recognizes Personal Brands, Golden Gate University School Of Law

GGU Law Review Blog

The Lanham Act defines and governs trademarks, service marks, and unfair competition, all to protect American consumers from market confusion. Under the Lanham Act, a mark is famous if it is “widely recognizable to the general consuming public of the United States.” When a celebrity brings a claim under the Lanham Act for the unauthorized use of their image, courts may find that the celebrity’s name and image constitute an unregistered trademark, while the celebrity’s persona is the goods or services which the celebrity places into commerce. To analyze the claim, several factors help determine the likelihood of market confusion. …

Modern-Day Slavery Ring Discovered On Georgia Farms: When Will It End?, Lizet Palomera Torres

GGU Law Review Blog

Although all people in the United States have fundamental human rights guaranteed by the United States Constitution and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), not everyone can enjoy them equally. Many people, such as employers, blatantly disregard these core human rights and exploit their migrant workers. However, despite migrant workers being disproportionately vulnerable to abuse, it is not uncommon for migrant workers to be reluctant to report employers because of their fear of retaliation and their relatively poor position. These workers often do not speak the language, are in remote and segregated areas and are exploited through their immigration …

California Consumer Protection Act (Ccpa): Narrowing Ccpa Exemptions Will Ensure Greater Privacy Protections, Brennan Gamwell

GGU Law Review Blog

The California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) has been touted as a “landmark” and one of the “strictest digital privacy laws in the United States.” Californians for Consumer Privacy first sponsored the CCPA in 2018 as a ballot initiative. Soon after, the CCPA was introduced into the California Assembly as AB 375 and signed into law later that same year. The CCPA went into effect on January 1, 2020, granting California residents rights regarding their personal information collected and sold by businesses.

Privacy protections for California consumers will become even stronger once the California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA) goes into effect …

Sb320: A Call To Arms For Victims Of Domestic Violence, Golden Gate University School Of Law

GGU Law Review Blog

Under California law, a person restrained by any domestic violence protection order is prohibited from owning, possessing, purchasing, receiving, or attempting to purchase or receive a firearm while the order is in effect. According to the Armed Prohibited Persons System (APPS), over 23,000 restricted people are armed in California. This number reflects only the number of known registered firearms in the state. Of these 23,000 restricted people, special agents recovered 1,243 prohibited firearms last year — 778 of those firearms were identified in APPS; however, 465 were previously unknown.

Senate Bill 320 purports to redress the inadequacy of current practice …

Biometric Data Collection: Market Necessity Or Unconstitutional Overkill?, Thomas Langtry

GGU Law Review Blog

Congress should pass, and the President should sign into law, the National Biometric Information Privacy Act of 2020 (National BIPA). Introduced by Senators Jeff Merkley (D-OR) and Bernie Sanders (I-VT), this bill limits the ability of private entities to collect biometric data and requires them to ensure the privacy and security of data they do collect. Unlike most federal regulatory legislation, it also provides for a private right of action through which individuals can seek meaningful remedies.

Critics argue that the bill will deprive consumers of online shopping services and convenient digital security, and that employers and retailers may retaliate …

Texas Heartbeat Act Poses Threat To The Future Of Abortion Access, Kodie Mcginley

GGU Law Review Blog

As the abortion debate in the United States has grown increasingly tense over the recent years, a newly enacted Texas law could lay the groundwork for a national trend of restrictive abortion laws. SB 8, also known as the Texas Heartbeat Act, was first signed by Texas Governor Greg Abbott in May 2021, and came into effect on September 1st. The Texas Heartbeat Act is not the only recent bill that attempts to challenge Roe v. Wade. In 2018, Mississippi passed the Gestational Age Act, which bans abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy. The Texas Heartbeat Act is even …

Constitutional Rights In The Time Of Covid-19: Sf Public Defender Sues Sf Superior Court, Alleging Violations Of Detainees’ Sixth Amendment Rights, Golden Gate University School Of Law

GGU Law Review Blog

“One of the most oppressive things a state can do is to take away your freedom and then deny you what’s necessary to win it back,” said Manojar Raju, San Francisco Public Defender, during a rally held on the front steps of San Francisco’s Hall of Justice.

On September 14, 2021, Raju filed a lawsuit against the Superior Court of California and the city of San Francisco. The lawsuit alleges that the San Francisco Superior Court has been routinely violating citizens’ Sixth Amendment right to a speedy trial.

In fact, as of August 30, 2021, there are about 429 people …

Holistic Public Safety: Prosecutor-Led Reform Through Ab 1308, Gwen West

GGU Law Review Blog

Prosecutors can promote safety in communities by approaching public safety holistically and by participating in legislative efforts to reform criminal justice. Some prosecutors in California did just that in 2021.

A Safer And More Liberating World For Sex Workers, Nicholas Kimura

GGU Law Review Blog

In recent years, violence against trans women of color has come to the forefront of public discourse. In 2020, there was a record number of fatal attacks against transgender and gender non-conforming people. This year the numbers are more devastating. Even with increased visibility of trans people, the death toll is rising, and we are set to surpass levels of violence from previous years. Trans women of color are particularly affected by the violence, facing a greater chance of being killed than the rest of the trans or cis population. Police are also responsible for disproportionate levels of violence against …

Biden’S Vaccination Mandate Plan: A Scatter-Shot Of Legal Solutions, Spencer Sellers

GGU Law Review Blog

The current COVID-19 pandemic is dominated by one trait. Data shows that nearly all COVID-19 related deaths in the United States are suffered by people who are not vaccinated. Hospitalizations are similarly unbalanced, with unvaccinated patients making up between 95% to 99.9% of the population of COVID-19 patients in hospitals.

In response, on September 9, 2021, President Joe Biden announced an action plan addressing the COVID-19 pandemic. The first part of the plan focused on increasing the population of domestically-vaccinated individuals. This first part of the plan can be divided into five policy goals. Four of those plan’s policy goals …

Democracy Is Fragile: Extreme Partisan Polarization Has Become Rampant In The World, Suzin Win

GGU Law Review Blog

The status of democracy once seemed irrelevant in discussions of government in the United States and other long-established democracies. However, with the rise of extreme partisan polarization and the contempt that each party shows for the other, maintaining constitutional democracy is now a major concern for people in America. There is no longer any ideological overlap between the most conservative Democrats and the most liberal Republicans. In the words of Professor Daryl J. Levinson and Professor Richard H. Pildes of NYU School of Law, the “separation of powers” has been replaced by a “separation of parties.” The actions of the …

Geofence Warrants: An Attack On The Fourth Amendment, Golden Gate University School Of Law

GGU Law Review Blog

Imagine a world where a king could compel the search of anybody, anywhere, and for anything. This world inspired James Madison to draft the Fourth Amendment, and is also a world we are returning to. The Fourth Amendment was created to protect against indiscriminate general warrants used in Georgian England, which subjected colonists to unrestricted invasions of privacy. Today, these general warrants come with a new name and in a new form: geofence warrants. Geofence warrants permit law enforcement to obtain the location data of every person that was in a specific geographic area where a crime occurred, in an …

Moore’S Law, Unemployment, And Homelessness: Why An Increasingly Automated Marketplace Demands Guaranteed Income Programs For Americans, Golden Gate University School Of Law

GGU Law Review Blog

Although the rate of people experiencing homelessness was increasing even before 2020, the Covid-19 pandemic contributed to a further rise in the nation’s unemployment rate. Studies have shown that a one-percent increase in the nation’s unemployment rate could bring an increase in homelessness of 0.065 per every 10,000 people. Unemployment during the pandemic rose to over fourteen percent, meaning that the pandemic will likely precipitate increased levels of homelessness in America. The influx of economic stimulus payments during the pandemic has refocused discussions on the extent to which guaranteed income programs could be used to provide some financial support to …

Remembering California’S History In Youth Corrections, Sadie Minjares Odom

GGU Law Review Blog

California Governor Gavin Newson’s 2021-22 state budget sets forth plans to permanently close the California’s Division of Juvenile Justice and transition any children in the state’s care to the counties who committed them. On September 30, 2020, California lawmakers passed SB 823, the pillar of this transition. As the closure of the state-run juvenile correctional system marks a new journey for California’s youth, the state’s gloomy history in youth corrections looms overhead.

Attacks On The Asian Community: When Can Prosecutors Seek Hate Crime Enhancements?, Golden Gate University School Of Law

GGU Law Review Blog

At the start of 2021, images of violent attacks on Asian individuals all across the nation began flooding social media timelines. Large protests shortly followed these attacks in support of the Asian Community to “Stop Asian Hate.” Since then, reports and images of such attacks have only become more and more common, with the Atlanta Spa Shootings at the forefront of the conversation. As a result, much of the public and the media have been referring to these attacks as “hate crimes.” Yet, prosecutors are not seeking hate-crime enhancements in many of these cases. Several high-profile cases demonstrate the evidentiary …

The Politics Of Stupidity At The U.S.-Mexico Border: The Devil’S Highway By Luís Alberto Urrea, Valeria Ramos Jansen

GGU Law Review Blog

A vivid, shocking, and provocative story about 26 “walkers”—migrating Mexican men who suffered and died in the Arizona desert on May 19, 2001—The Devil’s Highway is a profound work of nonfiction by Luís Alberto Urrea. Born in Tijuana to a Mexican father and an American mother, Urrea understands the contradictions and absurdities at the U.S.-Mexico border. While Urrea clearly wants the reader to learn about the walkers’ humanity and motivations to leave Mexico, he leaves it up to readers to arrive at their own conclusions about their coyotes and guides. Sometimes Urrea sympathizes with the walkers’ main guide, while …