Law Commons^™

Power Transitions In A Troubled Democracy, Peter L. Strauss, Gillian E. Metzger

Faculty Scholarship

Written as our contribution to a festschrift for the noted Italian administrative law scholar Marco D’Alberti, this essay addresses transition between Presidents Trump and Biden, in the context of political power transitions in the United States more generally. Although the Trump-Biden transition was marked by extraordinary behaviors and events, we thought even the transition’s mundane elements might prove interesting to those for whom transitions occur in a parliamentary context. There, succession can happen quickly once an election’s results are known, and happens with the new political government immediately formed and in office. The layer of a new administration’s political leadership …

The Uncertain Future Of Administrative Law, Jeremy K. Kessler, Charles F. Sabel

Faculty Scholarship

A volatile series of presidential transitions has only intensified the century-long conflict between progressive defenders and conservative critics of the administrative state. Yet neither side has adequately confronted the fact that the growth of uncertainty and the corresponding spread of guidance – a kind of provisional “rule” that invites its own revision – mark a break in the development of the administrative state as significant as the rise of notice-and-comment rulemaking in the 1960s and 1970s. Whereas rulemaking corrected social shortsightedness by enlisting science in the service of lawful administration, guidance acknowledges that both science and law are in need …

Legislatures, Executives And Political Control Of Government, Gillian E. Metzger

Faculty Scholarship

This chapter examines how political control over government is exercised today in the UK, the US, and France, focusing on control of the executive branch by the legislature and control of the administrative executive by the political executive. These three jurisdictions were chosen because they are paradigmatic examples of different political regimes: parliamentarism, separation of powers presidentialism, and semi-presidentialism. In theory, these different institutional structures should affect how political control is understood and wielded. In the traditional Westminster parliamentary model, for example, the government is formed from the leadership of the majority party in Parliament and it is the government …

Constitutional Law And The Presidential Nomination Process, Richard Briffault

Faculty Scholarship

The Constitution says nothing about the presidential nominating process and has had little direct role in the evolution of that process from congressional caucuses to party national conventions to our current primary-dominated system of selecting convention delegates. Yet, constitutional law is a factor in empowering and constraining the principal actors in the nomination process and in shaping the framework for potential future changes.

The constitutional law of the presidential nomination process operates along two axes: government-party, and state-national. The government-party dimension focuses on the tension between the states and the federal government in writing the rules for and administering the …

Fixing The Business Of Food: The Food Industry And The Sdg Challenge, Barilla Center For Food And Nutrition, Sustainable Development Solutions Network, Columbia Center On Sustainable Investment, Sanda Chiara Lab

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

In collaboration with the Barilla Center for Food and Nutrition, the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network, and the Santa Chiara Lab of the University of Siena, CCSI presented its first report on Fixing the Business of Food.

The document, part of a two-year effort, highlights the sustainable development challenge faced by the food industry. By proposing a Four Dimension framework, the report asks four overarching questions for companies in the food sector to address alignment with the SDGs:

1. Does the company contribute to healthy and sustainable dietary patterns through its products and strategy?
2. Are the company’s production processes economically, socially, …

Canadian Corruption And The Snc-Lavalin Affair, Center For The Advancement Of Public Integrity

Center for the Advancement of Public Integrity (Inactive)

On February 7, 2019, The Globe and Mail published a report alleging that Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, together with his aides and cabinet officers, had attempted to improperly influence former Attorney General Jody Wilson-Raybould in the Canadian Justice Department’s prosecution of Montreal construction firm SNC-Lavalin. SNC-Lavalin is a major company, which employs thousands of workers and reported 10 billion Canadian Dollars in revenue in 2018. The charges against them centered around allegations that they had made numerous bribes to Libyan officials from 2001-2011 in order to secure contracts. Due to these charges, SNC-Lavalin faces a potential ban on bidding …

Governance And Public Transparency: The Brazilian Case, Humberto E.C. Mota Filho, Cláudio Nascimento Alradique

Center for the Advancement of Public Integrity (Inactive)

Aiming to provide an overall assessment of the impact of the Constitution of the Federative Republic of Brazil (“CFRB” - which is in effect since 1988), in the construction of a Democratic State of Law, over the past 30 years, this article investigates how the institutional improvements achieved took form, the transformation of the State's role in the enforcement of human rights and individual guarantees, and the changes that took place towards a democratic political culture, both from the perspective of the citizen relating to the State and the citizen relating to the State's external oversight body (“TCU” - Federal …

Proposal For A New State Ethics Commission In New York, Center For The Advancement Of Public Integrity

Center for the Advancement of Public Integrity (Inactive)

With the start of the 2019 legislative session, some New York lawmakers are setting their sights on overhauling the state’s current anti-corruption and ethics structure. Since 2000, 30 New York lawmakers have left state office facing criminal or ethical allegations and many more public employees have faced allegations of criminal or unethical conduct and termination of their employment. Leading the effort to overhaul the current system is Senator Liz Krueger, a Democrat from Manhattan, who recently announced her plan to introduce a constitutional amendment that would create a new independent ethics commission to investigate wrongdoing by public officials. The Center …

The Constitution Comes To The County Unit: Georgia’S State Level Electoral College, David Crockett

Center for the Advancement of Public Integrity (Inactive)

As Prof. Akhil Amar outlines in his work, America’s Constitution: A Biography, the Philadelphia Plan and its outline of a stronger executive power inspired replication on the state level. States from Massachusetts to Georgia strengthened the power of their governors, with many granting them independent elections and a veto pen. Over time, most states replicated the Federal terms of office, and currently all but two states hold quadrennial gubernatorial elections balanced with biennial or other staggered legislative terms. Yet, even as many states replicated features of Article II, from the veto to the establishment of “supreme executive power,” nearly …

Transformative Change At Rikers Island And Beyond: The Department Of Investigation’S Campaign To Clean Up The Nyc Department Of Correction, Center For The Advancement Of Public Integrity

Center for the Advancement of Public Integrity (Inactive)

Since 2014, Commissioner Mark G. Peters has led the New York City Department of Investigation (DOI) in a wide-ranging campaign to root out fraud, waste, and abuse in the Department of Correction (DOC), focusing primarily on problems in the areas of DOC leadership and the city jails on Rikers Island. This heightened scrutiny came in response to revelations of widespread abuse in New York City’s jails–especially on Rikers Island. As a result of DOI’s efforts, over three dozen correction officers and other DOC staff have been arrested since 2014, and DOC top leadership has been replaced. As recently as February …

The Netanyahu Investigations, Center For The Advancement Of Public Integrity

Center for the Advancement of Public Integrity (Inactive)

Benjamin Netanyahu is the current and longest serving Israeli Prime Minister. He has held office for 12 years, most recently from 2009 to present, and previously between the years of 1996 and 1999. As chairman of the right-wing Likud Party, Prime Minister Netanyahu has led a conservative and defense focused coalition in Israel’s parliament. His career in public service has also included time spent as the Minister of Finance from 2003-2005, the Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2002-2003, and as Ambassador of Israel to the United Nations from 1984-1988.

United States V. Pawlowski: Prosecuting Corruption In A Post-Mcdonnell World, Center For The Advancement Of Public Integrity

Center for the Advancement of Public Integrity (Inactive)

Edwin “Ed” Pawlowski is the former mayor of Allentown, Pennsylvania. Pawlowski first became mayor in 2006, and he held the office until his resignation on March 9, 2018, when he was found guilty of 47 charges in total:

• one count of conspiracy,
• eleven counts of federal program bribery,
• two counts of attempted extortion,
• six counts of mail fraud,
• nine counts of wire fraud,
• two counts of honest services mail fraud,
• six counts of honest services wire fraud,
• seven counts of making false statements to federal officials,
• and three counts of Travel Act bribery.

The Aftermath Of The Senator Menendez Trial And Implications For Bribery Cases, Center For The Advancement Of Public Integrity

Center for the Advancement of Public Integrity (Inactive)

Robert “Bob” Menendez is a United States Senator from New Jersey. He was appointed to the Senate in 2006, and is the senior Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, having been reinstated after his recent criminal trial. He is also a member of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee and the Finance Committee. Between 1993 and 2006, Menendez represented New Jersey’s 13th district in the United States House of Representatives.

Profile In Public Integrity: Karl Racine, Center For The Advancement Of Public Integrity

Center for the Advancement of Public Integrity (Inactive)

Attorney General Karl A. Racine is the first elected Attorney General of the District of Columbia. With his inauguration at the beginning of 2015, the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) began an era of independence for the agency and accountability to District residents. As the chief legal officer for the District of Columbia, Attorney General Racine relies on his prior legal and leadership experience as a public defender and the first African-American managing partner of a top-100 US law firm, Venable LLP, to advise the Mayor and District agencies, defend the city in court and use the law to …

Recent Reforms Of Switzerland's Anti-Corruption Laws: What They Mean For International Sports Organizations, Nicole Gütling

Center for the Advancement of Public Integrity (Inactive)

Switzerland is perceived as one of the least corrupt countries in the world based on international rankings. According to the “Corruption Perception Index” of Transparency International, Switzerland has regularly been rated among the top eight least corrupt countries since 2009. Even before then, since 1995 in fact, Switzerland has consistently received good rankings on integrity. However, recent corruption allegations in the world of football, particularly the cases involving the FIFA World Cup 2018 and 2022, have led to international scrutiny of the effectiveness of Switzerland’s anti-money laundering and anti-corruption regimes. This issue is particularly significant for Switzerland, which is home …

The Corruption Case Of Former New York State Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, Center For The Advancement Of Public Integrity

Center for the Advancement of Public Integrity (Inactive)

Sheldon Silver is the former Democratic Speaker of the New York State Assembly, a post he held from 1994 until January 2015. He represented Manhattan’s Lower East Side from 1976 until November 30, 2015, when he was convicted on four counts of honest-services fraud, two counts of extortion and one count of money laundering. On July 13, 2017, his convictions were overturned.

The Lulu Stipend, Center For The Advancement Of Public Integrity

Center for the Advancement of Public Integrity (Inactive)

A “lulu” is a stipend available to New York State legislators for their work in leadership roles, such as committee chairperson. The stipends are in addition to legislator’s $79,500 base pay. Stipends range in value, from $9,000 for a ranking minority member of a committee, up to $41,500 for the temporary president of the Senate. The head of each State legislative body, the Speaker of the Assembly, and the Temporary President of the Senate direct the payment of these stipends. By law, no legislator may receive more than one stipend at a time. Because legislators routinely serve in more than …

America's Familial Tribalism: Will It Impact Education Internationally?, Amra Sabic-El-Rayess, Alexandra Seeman

Center for the Advancement of Public Integrity (Inactive)

With President Trump in power, the United States may have entered a new era of familial tribalism, a style of governing that could best be depicted as a sudden disruption to the traditional democratic governance and merited mobility the United States has historically promoted both at home and abroad. With this form of familial tribalism, a new level of power has been given to the members of the First Family, resulting in the United States increasingly mirroring the modus operandi of many developing countries that it had formerly criticized for their own lack of ethics, transparency, and competence …

Assessing Australia's National Integrity Framework: A New Way Forward, Anita Das

Center for the Advancement of Public Integrity (Inactive)

Historically, Australia has not been regarded as a particularly corrupt country. In 2012, Transparency International ranked Australia as the 7th least corrupt country in its Corruption Perceptions Index. This ranking has deteriorated six places in four years; in 2016, Australia landed in 13th place on the same index.

This sharp decline, in conjunction with continued revelations of corrupt conduct in the public, private and union sectors, has resulted in unprecedented national attention on corruption issues. As a result, the Australian federal government is currently considering a suite of reforms related to anti-corruption enforcement, including the introduction of deferred prosecution agreements, …

Ethical Issues In The Trump Era: A Conversation With Walter Shaub, Former Director Of The U.S. Office Of Government Ethics, Sabrina Singer

Center for the Advancement of Public Integrity (Inactive)

On October 17, 2017, CAPI hosted Walter Shaub, former Director of the U.S. Office of Government Ethics, in a conversation with Columbia Law School Professor Richard Briffault before a crowded room of students, faculty, and practitioners. Shaub, now a Senior Director at the Campaign Legal Center, spoke about his 15-year career at the Office of Government Ethics (OGE) that ended with his resignation in the summer of 2017. Most of the hour-long event focused on the work and the role of OGE, what Shaub intended to accomplish there, and why he resigned. Shaub indicated that his goal while serving as …

Enforcement Challenges And Victories, Andrew Kuntz

Center for the Advancement of Public Integrity (Inactive)

In June 2017, CAPI presented the second installment of our signature conference, Global Cities II, which brought together anti-corruption leaders from government and civil society worldwide, including delegates from Bogotá, Cape Town, London, Melbourne, Miami, Montréal, New York, Paris, Rio de Janeiro, and San Francisco, to discuss important topics such as using data analytics to combat corruption, government transparency, enforcement challenges and victories, and innovations in oversight.

Transparency Trends Around The World, Jason Bressler

Center for the Advancement of Public Integrity (Inactive)

In June 2017, CAPI presented the second installment of our signature conference, Global Cities II, which brought together anti-corruption leaders from government and civil society worldwide, including delegates from Bogotá, Cape Town, London, Melbourne, Miami, Montréal, New York, Paris, Rio de Janeiro, and San Francisco, to discuss important topics such as using data analytics to combat corruption, government transparency, enforcement challenges and victories, and innovations in oversight.

Innovations In Oversight: Cities' Proactive Approaches To Fighting Corruption, Adoree Kim

Center for the Advancement of Public Integrity (Inactive)

In June 2017, CAPI presented the second installment of our signature conference, Global Cities II, which brought together anti-corruption leaders from government and civil society worldwide, including delegates from Bogotá, Cape Town, London, Melbourne, Miami, Montréal, New York, Paris, Rio de Janeiro, and San Francisco, to discuss important topics such as using data analytics to combat corruption, government transparency, enforcement challenges and victories, and innovations in oversight.

New York State Constitutional Convention, Center For The Advancement Of Public Integrity

Center for the Advancement of Public Integrity (Inactive)

On November 7, 2017, New York voters will be asked whether the State should hold a convention to revise the State constitution. The New York State Constitution requires that voters be asked this question every 20 years. If a majority of voters say no, nothing happens. If a majority of voters say yes, then there will be an opportunity in 2018 to elect three delegates from each State Senate District and an additional 15 statewide delegates to represent the citizens of New York at the Convention. At the Convention, delegates will propose and vote on changes to the Constitution; delegates …

Evaluating Stock-Trading Practices And Their Regulation, Merritt B. Fox, Kevin S. Haeberle

Faculty Scholarship

High-frequency trading, dark pools, and the practices associated with them have come under tremendous scrutiny lately, giving rise to much hot rhetoric. Missing from the discussion, however, is a principled, comprehensive standard for evaluating such practices and the law that governs them. This Article fills that gap by providing a general framework for making serious normative judgments about stock-trading behavior and its regulation. In particular, we argue that such practices and laws should be evaluated with an eye to the secondary trading market’s impact on four main aspects of our economy: the use of existing productive capacity, the allocation of …

Sustainable Development Goals: How Can The Mining Sector Contribute?, Lisa E. Sachs

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

In September 2015, the heads of 193 United Nations (UN) Member States adopted 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to be achieved by 2030. The agenda provides a successor framework to the Millennium Development Goals, which were adopted in 2000, with a view to ending poverty in all forms and dimensions, protecting the planet, and ensuring prosperity for all.

The Conviction Of Alabama House Speaker Michael Hubbard, Center For The Advancement Of Public Integrity

Center for the Advancement of Public Integrity (Inactive)

Hubbard is the former speaker of the Alabama House of Representatives. First elected in 1998, he represented Auburn in the state legislature and served as House Minority leader from 2004 to 2010. As chairman of the Alabama Republican Party, Hubbard spearheaded his party’s successful effort to win control of both chambers of the state legislature for the first time in 136 years. In 2010, he was unanimously elected speaker and helped pass ethics laws considered among the nation’s strictest.

Profile In Public Integrity: Heather Holt, Center For The Advancement Of Public Integrity

Center for the Advancement of Public Integrity (Inactive)

Heather Holt is in her sixth year as the Executive Director of the Los Angeles City Ethics Commission. Before joining the Ethics Commission in 2006 as the Director of Policy and Legislation, Holt served as an ethics officer for the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority. She has served as legal and policy counsel to several cities in San Diego County, the United States House of Representatives, the federal Environmental Protection Agency, and the Maine State Legislature. She has also served as the director of a nonprofit agency that provides assistance to military families. A Southern California native, Holt holds …

Does Seeking Cell Site Location Information Require A Search Warrant?: The Current State Of The Law In A Rapidly Changing Field, Wesley Cheng

Center for the Advancement of Public Integrity (Inactive)

In 2015, a divided panel of the Fourth Circuit ruled in United States v. Graham that the collection of cell site location information (CSLI) without a search warrant was an unreasonable intrusion under the Fourth Amendment. With Graham, the Fourth Circuit split from all of the other circuits to have decided this question. Earlier this year, however, on May 31, 2016, an en banc Fourth Circuit reversed course, holding contrary to the original Fourth Circuit decision in United States v. Graham that a warrant is not required for CSLI.

With the new en banc decision the Fourth Circuit now …

Prison Corruption: The Problem And Some Potential Solutions, Center For The Advancement Of Public Integrity

Center for the Advancement of Public Integrity (Inactive)

Corruption occurs in the American prison system in a variety of forms. In the most basic version, correction officers accept bribes or sexual favors to smuggle weapons, drugs, or cell phones to inmates, or to provide inmates with other benefits. Other kinds of prison corruption can involve higher-level prison officials. For example, some prison officials have been implicated in pay-to-play schemes with private prisons. In other cases prison supervisors and administrators have been accused of covering up violations by correction officers or others within the prison, such as by shielding human rights abuses.