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Playing God In The 21st Century: How The Push For Human Embryonic Germline Gene Editing Sidelines Individual And Generational Autonomy, Anna E. Melo Jan 2023

Playing God In The 21st Century: How The Push For Human Embryonic Germline Gene Editing Sidelines Individual And Generational Autonomy, Anna E. Melo

Catholic University Journal of Law and Technology

Every four and a half minutes a child with a genetic birth defect is born in the United States. For some, these conditions are treatable and manageable, but sadly for others, they are a death sentence. Congenital malformations and chromosomal abnormalities are the leading cause of infant mortality. CRISPR-Cas9 presents hope for the future, a liberation from the heritable genetic shackles that a child would otherwise be trapped in. With such optimism for future applications of germline gene editing, there are also great concerns with what national and global limitations and auditing must be in place to permit “genetic hedging.” …


Equitable Relief For Erisa Benefit Plan Designation Mistakes, Raymond C. O'Brien Aug 2018

Equitable Relief For Erisa Benefit Plan Designation Mistakes, Raymond C. O'Brien

Catholic University Law Review

Since its enactment in 1974, the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) and related insurance and disability programs provided retirement security for employees and employers, amassing more than $9 trillion in protected assets. Congress preempted conflicting state laws so as to promote certainty of distribution and ease of administration, two hallmarks of ERISA-governed plans. Nonetheless, since 1974, American society embraced spousal equality, an increased number of marriages end in divorce, and wealth most often passes through nonprobate transfers such as insurance contracts and pension policy plans. To accommodate these societal and wealth changes, states enacted statutes to provide elective share …


Assessing Assisted Reproductive Technology, Raymond C. O'Brien Jan 2018

Assessing Assisted Reproductive Technology, Raymond C. O'Brien

Catholic University Journal of Law and Technology

Technological innovation possesses both opportunity and challenge. Because assisted reproductive technology (ART) involves sexual intimacy, parenthood, personhood, gender identity, privacy, legacy, and a plethora of religious, historical, sociological, and ethical underpinnings, the challenges presented in such technological innovation are substantial. Nonetheless, the opportunities are significant and progressive. Because of in vitro fertilization, gestational and genetic surrogacy, posthumous conception, and mitochondrial replacement therapy, humans now have the opportunity to overcome infertility, gender obstacles to parentage, dynastic limitations, and diseases that have long plagued mothers and infants. However, challenges include the exploitation of surrogates, unequal access to ART services, possibilities of cloning …


Equitable Relief For Erisa Benefit Plan Designation Mistakes, Raymond C. O'Brien Jan 2018

Equitable Relief For Erisa Benefit Plan Designation Mistakes, Raymond C. O'Brien

Scholarly Articles

Since its enactment in 1974, the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) and related insurance and disability programs provided retirement security for employees and employers, amassing more than $9 trillion in protected assets. Congress preempted conflicting state laws so as to promote certainty of distribution and ease of administration, two hallmarks of ERISA-governed plans. Nonetheless, since 1974, American society embraced spousal equality, an increased number of marriages end in divorce, and wealth most often passes through nonprobate transfers such as insurance contracts and pension policy plans. To accommodate these societal and wealth changes, states enacted statutes to provide elective share …


Whose Fault Is It Anyway?: Analyzing The Role “Fault” Plays In The Division Of Premarital Property If Marriage Does Not Ensue, Arielle L. Murphy Apr 2015

Whose Fault Is It Anyway?: Analyzing The Role “Fault” Plays In The Division Of Premarital Property If Marriage Does Not Ensue, Arielle L. Murphy

Catholic University Law Review

Whenever an engagement comes to a premature end, the first question that seems to be asked is: “who gets the engagement ring?” This Comment seeks to answer this question. As societal views regarding marriage and a woman’s role within it began to change in the mid-twentieth century, courts started to recognize engagement rings as conditional gifts that were conditioned upon the marriage actually occurring. Even with this framework, states remain divided on whether fault should be included as part of the analysis in determining which party is entitled to the ring if an engagement ends before marriage occurs. This Comment …


Integrating Marital Property Into A Spouse’S Elective Share, Raymond C. O'Brien Jan 2010

Integrating Marital Property Into A Spouse’S Elective Share, Raymond C. O'Brien

Scholarly Articles

First, this Article begins with history, as this forms the basis of electiveshare law. It is necessary to begin with the historical basis of a spouse's right to support, and then proceed to examine how and why a spouse obtained a share of the property acquired during marriage. Second, because a spouse's rights at death were often very different from those that a spouse would obtain at divorce, it is necessary to explain the various judicial and statutory models adopted by the states to provide a modicum of protection to a surviving spouse at death. There are many models and …