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Full-Text Articles in Law

Equality, Sovereignty, And The Family In Morales-Santana, Kristin Collins Nov 2017

Equality, Sovereignty, And The Family In Morales-Santana, Kristin Collins

Faculty Scholarship

In Sessions v. Morales-Santana, 3 the Supreme Court encountered a body of citizenship law that has long relied on family membership in the construction of the nation’s borders and the composition of the polity.4 The particular statute at issue in the case regulates the transmission of citizenship from American parents to their foreign-born children at birth, a form of citizenship known today as derivative citizenship.5 When those children are born outside marriage, the derivative citizenship statute makes it more difficult for American fathers, as compared with American mothers, to transmit citizenship to their foreign-born children.6 Over …


Discretionary Dockets, Randy J. Kozel, Jeffrey Pojanowski Oct 2017

Discretionary Dockets, Randy J. Kozel, Jeffrey Pojanowski

Randy J Kozel

The Supreme Court’s workload and its method for selecting cases have drawn increasing critical scrutiny. Similarly, and separately, recent commentary has focused on the disparate approaches the Court has taken to resolving cases on its (historically small) docket. In this Essay we draw these two lines of inquiry together to argue that the Court’s case selection should align with its approach to constitutional adjudication. In doing so, we discuss four modes of constitutional decisionmaking and then examine the interplay between those modes, the Court’s management of its docket, and its sense of institutional role. The Court, we argue, has neither …


Newsroom: Is Wall Between Church And State Crumbling? 10-10-2017, Diana Hassel Oct 2017

Newsroom: Is Wall Between Church And State Crumbling? 10-10-2017, Diana Hassel

Life of the Law School (1993- )

No abstract provided.


Rwu First Amendment Blog: Diana Hassel's Blog: Is The Wall Between Church And State Crumbling? 10-07-2017, Diana Hassel Oct 2017

Rwu First Amendment Blog: Diana Hassel's Blog: Is The Wall Between Church And State Crumbling? 10-07-2017, Diana Hassel

Law School Blogs

No abstract provided.


Justice Blackmun And Individual Rights, Diane P. Wood Oct 2017

Justice Blackmun And Individual Rights, Diane P. Wood

Dickinson Law Review (2017-Present)

Of the many contributions Justice Blackmun has made to American jurisprudence, surely his record in the area of individual rights stands out for its importance. Throughout his career on the Supreme Court, he has displayed concern for a wide variety of individual and civil rights. He has rendered decisions on matters ranging from the most personal interests in autonomy and freedom from interference from government in life’s private realms, to the increasingly complex problems posed by discrimination based upon race, sex, national origin, alienage, illegitimacy, sexual orientation, and other characteristics. As his views have become well known to the public, …


Sound Principles, Undesirable Outcomes: Justice Scalia's Paradoxical Eighth Amendment Jurisprudence, Mirko Bagaric, Sandeep Gopalan Jul 2017

Sound Principles, Undesirable Outcomes: Justice Scalia's Paradoxical Eighth Amendment Jurisprudence, Mirko Bagaric, Sandeep Gopalan

Akron Law Review

Justice Scalia is renowned for his conservative stance on the Eighth Amendment and prisoners’ rights. Justice Scalia held that the Eighth Amendment incorporates no proportionality requirement of any nature regarding the type and duration of punishment which the state can inflict on criminal offenders. Justice Scalia has also been labelled as “one of the Justices least likely to support a prisoner’s legal claim” and as adopting, because of his originalist orientation, “a restrictive view of the existence of prisoners’ rights.” A closer examination of the seminal judgments in these areas and the jurisprudential nature of the principle of proportionality and …


Justice Scalia As Neither Friend Nor Foe To Criminal Defendants, Tung Yin Jul 2017

Justice Scalia As Neither Friend Nor Foe To Criminal Defendants, Tung Yin

Akron Law Review

At first glance, Justice Scalia may appear to have been something of a “friend” to criminal defendants, as he authored a number of opinions ruling against law enforcement. However, his opinions reflect his fidelity to his constitutional vision of originalism rather than an intent to favor criminal defendants. Nevertheless, these cases are often offered as legitimate examples of how he did not have a purely results-oriented approach to deciding criminal procedure issues. Yet, a closer examination of Justice Scalia’s “defendant-favorable” opinions suggests that the results often have an air of unreality to them. In practice, there is no way for …


The Death Penalty And Justice Scalia's Lines, J. Richard Broughton Jul 2017

The Death Penalty And Justice Scalia's Lines, J. Richard Broughton

Akron Law Review

In Justice Scalia’s lone dissenting opinion in Morrison v. Olson, he lamented that, after the Court had upheld a law that he believed violated the separation of powers, “there are now no lines.” Lines were of critical importance to Justice Scalia – in law and in life – and informed much of his work on criminal law issues (Morrison, after all, was a case about the nature of federal prosecutorial authority). In the area of capital punishment, in particular, Justice Scalia saw clear lines that the Court should not cross. He believed that the Constitution contemplates the …


Justice Scalia's Eighth Amendment Jurisprudence: An Unabashed Foe Of Criminal Defendants, Michael Vitiello Jul 2017

Justice Scalia's Eighth Amendment Jurisprudence: An Unabashed Foe Of Criminal Defendants, Michael Vitiello

Akron Law Review

Justice Scalia’s death has already produced a host of commentary on his career. Depending on the issue, Justice Scalia’s legacy is quite complicated. Justice Scalia’s commitment to originalism explains at least some of his pro-defendant positions. Some of his supporters point to such examples to support a claim that Justice Scalia was principled in his application of his jurisprudential philosophy. However, in one area, Justice Scalia was an unabashed foe of criminal defendants: his Eighth Amendment jurisprudential dealing with terms of imprisonment. There, based on his reading of the historical record, he argued that the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition against cruel …


July 2, 2017: Trinity Lutheran Church Case Shows There Is No Originalism, Bruce Ledewitz Jul 2017

July 2, 2017: Trinity Lutheran Church Case Shows There Is No Originalism, Bruce Ledewitz

Hallowed Secularism

Blog post, “Trinity Lutheran Church Case Shows There is no Originalism“ discusses politics, theology and the law in relation to religion and public life in the democratic United States of America.


The Alien-Citizen Paradox And Other Consequences Of U.S. Colonialism, Ediberto Román Jun 2017

The Alien-Citizen Paradox And Other Consequences Of U.S. Colonialism, Ediberto Román

Ediberto Roman

This Article examines the United States' 100-year-old failed promise. In addition to detailing the unequal citizenship status of the people of Puerto Rico, this Article examines the role that racial and ethnic-based prejudice has played in this issue. 34 Essentially, this Article seeks to compare the traditional legal and political rhetoric of American inclusiveness and the virtues of U.S. citizenship to the reality of colonialism and the impact white supremacy has had on U.S. colonial history. By addressing the subordinated status of "aliencitizens," this Article illustrates the incompatibility of equality under colonialism. As Congress addresses the question of Puerto Rico's …


Brief Of The National Association For Public Defense As Amici Curiae Supporting Petitioner, Byrd V. U.S. (U.S. June 12, 2017) (No. 16- 1371)., Janet Moore Jun 2017

Brief Of The National Association For Public Defense As Amici Curiae Supporting Petitioner, Byrd V. U.S. (U.S. June 12, 2017) (No. 16- 1371)., Janet Moore

Faculty Articles and Other Publications

More than two centuries after it was ratified, the Fourth Amendment continues to protect the “right of the people to be secure” from “unreasonable searches.” U.S. Const. amend. IV. Modern technological advances and social developments do not render our rights “any less worthy of the protection for which the Founders fought.” Riley v. California, 134 S. Ct. 2473, 2494–95 (2014). This Court plays an essential role in ensuring that the Fourth Amendment retains its vitality as an indispensable safeguard of liberty, even as Americans dramatically change the ways they organize their everyday affairs. This case calls for the Court to …


Three Vital Issues: Incorporation Of The Second Amendment, Federal Government Power, And Separation Of Powers - October 2009 Term, Michael C. Dorf, Erwin Chemerinsky Jun 2017

Three Vital Issues: Incorporation Of The Second Amendment, Federal Government Power, And Separation Of Powers - October 2009 Term, Michael C. Dorf, Erwin Chemerinsky

Erwin Chemerinsky

No abstract provided.


The Second Amendment And Gun Control, Erwin Chemerinsky Jun 2017

The Second Amendment And Gun Control, Erwin Chemerinsky

Erwin Chemerinsky

No abstract provided.


The Rehnquist Revolution, Erwin Chemerinsky Jun 2017

The Rehnquist Revolution, Erwin Chemerinsky

Erwin Chemerinsky

[Excerpt] "When historians look back at the Rehnquist Court, without a doubt they will say that its greatest changes in constitutional law were in the area of federalism. Over the past decade, and particularly over the last five years, the Supreme Court has dramatically limited the scope of Congress’ powers and has greatly expanded the protection of state Sovereign Immunity. Virtually every area of law, criminal and civil, is touched by these changes. Since I began teaching constitutional law in 1980, the most significant differences in constitutional law are a result of the Supreme Court’s revival of federalism as a …


The Constitution And National Security, Erwin Chemerinsky Jun 2017

The Constitution And National Security, Erwin Chemerinsky

Erwin Chemerinsky

No abstract provided.


Supreme Court 2000-2001 Term: First Amendment Cases, Erwin Chemerinsky Jun 2017

Supreme Court 2000-2001 Term: First Amendment Cases, Erwin Chemerinsky

Erwin Chemerinsky

No abstract provided.


Qualified Immunity Developments: Not Much Hope Left For Plaintiffs, Karen Blum, Erwin Chemerinsky, Martin A. Schwartz Jun 2017

Qualified Immunity Developments: Not Much Hope Left For Plaintiffs, Karen Blum, Erwin Chemerinsky, Martin A. Schwartz

Erwin Chemerinsky

No abstract provided.


Presidential Powers Including Military Tribunals In The October 2005 Term, Erwin Chemerinsky Jun 2017

Presidential Powers Including Military Tribunals In The October 2005 Term, Erwin Chemerinsky

Erwin Chemerinsky

No abstract provided.


Look Back At The Rehnquist Era And An Overview Of The 2004 Supreme Court Term, Erwin Chemerinsky Jun 2017

Look Back At The Rehnquist Era And An Overview Of The 2004 Supreme Court Term, Erwin Chemerinsky

Erwin Chemerinsky

No abstract provided.


Law Enforcement And Criminal Law Decisions, Erwin Chemerinsky Jun 2017

Law Enforcement And Criminal Law Decisions, Erwin Chemerinsky

Erwin Chemerinsky

No abstract provided.


An Overview Of The October 2007 Supreme Court Term, Erwin Chemerinsky Jun 2017

An Overview Of The October 2007 Supreme Court Term, Erwin Chemerinsky

Erwin Chemerinsky

No abstract provided.


An Overview Of The October 2005 Supreme Court Term, Erwin Chemerinsky Jun 2017

An Overview Of The October 2005 Supreme Court Term, Erwin Chemerinsky

Erwin Chemerinsky

No abstract provided.


May 22, 2017: Putnam Versus Scalia, Bruce Ledewitz May 2017

May 22, 2017: Putnam Versus Scalia, Bruce Ledewitz

Hallowed Secularism

Blog post, “Putnam versus Scalia“ discusses politics, theology and the law in relation to religion and public life in the democratic United States of America.


Newsroom: Donald Trump Vs. Roger Williams 05-09-2017, David Logan May 2017

Newsroom: Donald Trump Vs. Roger Williams 05-09-2017, David Logan

Life of the Law School (1993- )

No abstract provided.


The Highest Court: A Dialogue Between Justice Louis Brandeis And Justice Antonin Scalia On Stare Decisis, P. Thomas Distanislao Iii May 2017

The Highest Court: A Dialogue Between Justice Louis Brandeis And Justice Antonin Scalia On Stare Decisis, P. Thomas Distanislao Iii

University of Richmond Law Review

No abstract provided.


Habeas As Forum Allocation: A New Synthesis, Carlos M. Vázquez Apr 2017

Habeas As Forum Allocation: A New Synthesis, Carlos M. Vázquez

University of Miami Law Review

The scope of habeas relief for state prisoners, especially during the decades before the Supreme Court’s 1953 decision in Brown v. Allen, is a famously disputed question—one of recognized significance for contemporary debates about the proper scope of habeas review. This Article provides a new answer. It argues that, until the enactment of Anti-Terrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 (“AEDPA”), it was broadly accepted that state prisoners were entitled to plenary federal review of the legal and mixed law/fact questions decided against them by state courts. Until 1916, such review was provided by the Supreme Court; after 1953, …


April 14, 2017: The Judicial-Industrial Complex, Bruce Ledewitz Apr 2017

April 14, 2017: The Judicial-Industrial Complex, Bruce Ledewitz

Hallowed Secularism

Blog post, “The Judicial-Industrial Complex“ discusses politics, theology and the law in relation to religion and public life in the democratic United States of America.


April 8, 2017: The Supreme Court And Politics, Bruce Ledewitz Apr 2017

April 8, 2017: The Supreme Court And Politics, Bruce Ledewitz

Hallowed Secularism

Blog post, “The Supreme Court and Politics“ discusses politics, theology and the law in relation to religion and public life in the democratic United States of America.


April 2, 2017: Friday Op-Ed In The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Concerning Judge Gorsuch And Interpretation, Bruce Ledewitz Apr 2017

April 2, 2017: Friday Op-Ed In The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Concerning Judge Gorsuch And Interpretation, Bruce Ledewitz

Hallowed Secularism

Blog post, “Friday Op-ed in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Concerning Judge Gorsuch and Interpretation“ discusses politics, theology and the law in relation to religion and public life in the democratic United States of America.