Digital Commons Network^™

Trademarks On The Blockchain: Nft Domains And Collisions, Jelena Laketić

Michigan Technology Law Review

Blockchain technology supporting cryptocurrency transactions is one of the most critical innovations of this decade. Establishing a legal identity on blockchain, however, is fraught with uncertainty. In the 1990s, the internet faced a similar set of issues, which were resolved through the ICANN dispute resolution system. This Article asserts that blockchain technology urgently needs a similar cohesive approach to NFT domains.

This Article will explore trademark issues with non-fungible tokens (NFTs), specifically NFT domains. It begins by exploring the fundamental structure of NFTs by demystifying the technology and showing how NFTs contrast with other currency regimes. Increased usage of NFTs …

Innovation Originators, Tabrez Y. Ebrahim, Rafeel Wasif

Michigan Technology Law Review

Asian Americans are one of the most striking and undertheorized ethnic groups in the field of innovation. While a prolific ethnic group when it comes to being named as inventors on U.S. patents, very little has been written on this observation, perhaps because of previously limited datasets and unwieldy data analysis on ethnic backgrounds about patenting at the United States Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO). Research on inventor diversity and ethnicity in innovation has begun to explore some ethnic groups, but a more holistic account should focus on one particular overlooked group. Recently, entrepreneurship studies concerning ethnicity have shown that …

Athletic Donors’ Control Over The Future Of Collegiate Athletics, Matthew Thomas Gelder

Student Works

No abstract provided.

Personal Jurisdiction Doctrine Arising Out Of Bristol-Myers Squibb And Ford: The Death Of The Flsa Collective Action?, Santo Tiralosi

Student Works

No abstract provided.

What Is The Goal Of Health Insurance Reform?, Gabriel Scheffler

Articles

No abstract provided.

A Roadmap To Nil And Taxation, Doron Narotzki, Yariv Brauner

UF Law Faculty Publications

The landscape of college sports has dramatically changed in recent years. What was once considered a place for amateur athletes pursuing education now partially mirrors, at least for some student-athletes, the structure and financial dynamics of professional leagues such as the NFL, NBA, and MLB. However, the collegiate sports ecosystem still remains distinct, shaped by unique regulatory frameworks governed by the NCAA. This article reviews and analyses the implications of these changes, and focuses on the tax considerations surrounding Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) rights and how the evolving nature of college sports also presents certain tax implications, some of …

Ethical Oversight And Social Licensing Of Portable Mri Research, Barbara J. Evans

UF Law Faculty Publications

This article explores two questions: (1) whether portable MRI research might escape regulatory oversight altogether under existing U.S. privacy and research ethical frameworks, leaving research participants without adequate protections, and (2) whether existing regulatory frameworks, when they do apply, can guard society’s broader interest in ensuring that portable MRI research pursues socially beneficial, ethically sound aims that minimize the potential for externalities affecting nonparticipating individuals and groups, who might be stigmatized or otherwise harmed even if they decline participation in the research.

Sticky Procedure And Procedural Values In The Federal Appellate Courts, Merritt E. Mcalister

UF Law Faculty Publications

New federal appeals have fallen by forty percent over the last three decades. And yet the case management procedures—reduced oral argument, unpublished decisions, case-screening, and staff attorneys—adopted to help courts tackle rising caseloads have remained. And these case management adaptations appear as durable as ever. The “stickiness” of these adaptations suggest that efficient resolution of disputes is the sine qua non of modern appellate practice. Equally sticky are some longstanding disparities in the extent to which different federal appellate courts rely on these efficiencies, raising new questions about the extent to which the federal appellate courts share core adjudicatory values.

Death Is Disparate, Jesse Cheng

SMU Law Review

The high stakes of capital punishment demand heightened procedural safeguards: death is different, so the maxim goes. One such safeguard is the doctrine of individualized sentencing mitigation, which establishes the defense’s right to introduce expansively open-ended evidence about the defendant’s unique life circumstances when making the case for mercy at the penalty trial. But some have criticized individualized mitigation for upending prior efforts by the U.S. Supreme Court to establish consistency and fairness in death verdicts. This Article takes individualized sentencing to its logical limit by considering the doctrinal possibility of “adversarial parity,” whereby open-ended individualization is also extended to …

The Future Of Livestock Genetic Engineering In The United States: Going Against The Grain Or With The Herd?, Sam Harvey

St. Thomas Law Review

For several years, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have carried tension over which agency should regulate genetically modified livestock. Recently, this tension has boiled over with the release of many articles and statements from each organization as they battle over regulatory authority, most notably the USDA's claim that they are ready to take the bull by the horns and control the regulation of genetically engineered livestock. This note examines history and present-day practices to predict which agency will succeed in this battle of regulations, the USDA or the FDA.

Lessons From Rwanda: Why The U.K. Should Promote Reconciliation Through Localized Strategies In Place Of Prosecutorial Amnesty, Jeremy J. Perillo

St. Thomas Law Review

The United Kingdom ("U.K.") has a long, rich, and complicated history, but is likely better known contemporarily through its icons, the late Queen Elizabeth II and Big Ben, for example. Beyond that surface, formulated through its time as an expansive empire, is the complexity and controversy that comes with being the U.K., a prominent global hegemonic power throughout generations. One such complexity that has spanned centuries is the demarcation between Northern Ireland ("N.I.") and the Republic of Ireland. In early September 2023, the U.K.'s House of Commons ("Parliament") passed the Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act ("the Act"), intending …

Banned Books & Banned Identities: Maintaining Secularism And The Ability To Read In Public Education For The Well-Being Of America's Youth, Megan M. Tylenda

Indiana Journal of Law and Social Equality

Books containing LGBTQ+ themes and characters are being removed from public school libraries at a rapid rate across the United States. While a book challenge has made it to the Supreme Court once before, the resulting singular plurality opinion left courts without a clear test to apply, ultimately leaving students’ First Amendment rights in the air. Additionally, the increasingly relaxed view of courts towards religious influence in public schools indicates that if a modern case were to reach the Supreme Court, religious challenges may be accepted, which would leave LGBTQ+ students who seek to see themselves represented in literature without …

Don't Mess With Texans' Rights: Protecting Transgender Youth From The Paternalistic Policies Of State Executives, Mary Franklin

Indiana Journal of Law and Social Equality

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton issued an opinion in 2022 detailing how gender-affirming care for transgender minors constituted child abuse under the Texas Family Code. As a result of this opinion, multiple families of trans teens engaging in various forms of gender-affirming care were investigated by the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services. This Article applies the constitutional standards imposed by the equal protection clause, substantive due process, and parental authority to Paxton’s recommendation, using both the U.S. and Texas Constitutions. Ultimately, this Article concludes that Paxton’s opinion fails to meet these constitutional standards and recommends action from the …

Loan To Own, Robert W. Miller

Faculty Publications

Convertible debtor-in-possession ("DIP") financing is symptomatic of a paradigm shift in the control of large bankruptcy cases. During the prior era of lender control, distressed investors used DIP financing to shape the trajectory of bankruptcy cases and extract monopolistic rents at the expense of other constituencies. Enter the original loan-to-own: a common strategy commenced with a DIP loan, continued with a stalking-horse bid, and culminated in an acquisition of the debtor's assets. More recently, private equity sponsors ("Sponsors") and other sophisticated insiders are usurping control of bankruptcy cases. Convertible DIP financing (Loan-to-Own 2.0) is a byproduct. This Article situates convertible …

Everyone Is Talking About Bankruptcy Directors, Robert W. Miller

Faculty Publications

The proliferation of bankruptcy directors represents a controversial shift in the corporate governance landscape. Delegating corporate decision making to bankruptcy directors insulates conflicted transactions and claims from the elevated scrutiny provided by derivative standing and entire fairness. However, critics have questioned their independence and cleansing effect. Are bankruptcy directors really independent when their role includes negotiation with and/or investigation into the same parties who appoint them? Should their decisions be given deference when their appointment is associated with lower recoveries for creditors? Bankruptcy directors' salience is best illustrated by the numerous proposals for determining whether they have cleansing effect, including …

Politicians The Founders Warned You About, Neil Fulton

Faculty Publications

Many articles have explored the Founders' intentions regarding the constitutional text. Much less attention has focused on the Founders' ideas regarding the traits needed of the leaders in a constitutional republic. The Constitution focuses on governing structures, many of which relate to the electoral process. The Constitution does not spell out the ideal traits of the leaders elected pursuant to those processes. Nonetheless, the Founders possessed clear views about the virtues and qualifications that ideal political leaders required. Indeed, the Founders issued warnings about certain archetypal political figures who, because of their flagrant disregard of the ideal virtues and qualifications, …

Do Universities Meet Their Democratic Obligations?, Neil Fulton

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Assessing A Potential Deviation In The Legislative Process: The Use Of Vehicle Bills In South Dakota, Neil Fulton, Sarah Kammer, Patrick Garry

Faculty Publications

Vehicle bills are used by many state legislatures, including the South Dakota Legislature. These bills serve as empty shells to be amended with substantive text later in the legislative session. Critics charge that such vehicles allow legislators to meet the filing deadline with an essentially meaningless bill that gets amended late in the session, thereby depriving the public and opposition legislators from adequately investigating and debating the newly amended bill. This article examines how, and to what extent, the South Dakota Legislature has used vehicle bills over the past decade. In so doing, the article may provide some insight into …

Reinvigorating Congress's Role In The Administrative State: What The Major Questions Doctrine Suggests About Nondelegation, Patrick Garry, Sidney J. Hardy

Faculty Publications

In its recent decision in West Virginia v. EPA, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down administrative rules attempting to dramatically transform the electrical power generating industry. The Court's decision rested on its major questions doctrine, which states that on important enough matters the intent of Congress must be clearly expressed. This doctrine goes against the prevailing trend of deference toward the administrative state, as expressed through the permissive nondelegation and Chevron doctrines. While the major questions doctrine seeks to retain some congressional control over important issues, it nonetheless attracts much criticism on an array of grounds. This article proposes an …

State V. Vose, 287 A.3d 997 (R.I. 2023)., Amy Anthony

Roger Williams University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Environmental Monitoring Plan: For Work To Be Performed: July 1, 2023, Through June 30, 2024, Tennessee. Department Of Environment And Conservation.

Environmental Monitoring Plans

The Tennessee Department of Enviornment and Conservation, Division of Remediation, Oak Ridge (TDEC DoR-OR), provides the annual Fiscal Year 2023 EMP for the period of July 2, 2023, through June 30, 2024. This report is submitted as a comprehensive plan for TDEC DoR-OR monitoring and assessment activities across the Oak Ridge Reservation, Oak Ridge, Tennessee, (ORR) in accordance with terms of both the Environmental Surveillance and Oversight Agreement (ESOA), as well as in support of activities being conducted under the Federal Facilities Agreement (FFA).

Civil Procedure For The Anthropocene, Roger Michalski, Emily S. Taylor Poppe

Faculty Articles

Climate considerations must become an element of procedural analysis. Scholars, rule makers, legislators, and judges have historically prioritized procedural values including cost, speed, and accuracy. More recent waves of scholarship—including critical perspectives—have emphasized participation as a further procedural goal. Yet this list has grown stale. Current environmental realities force all areas of law, including civil procedure, to reckon with climate change. In the future, proceduralists will be forced to integrate climate-aware thinking into their analyses, proposals, and discussions. Predictably, minds will disagree on how to accomplish this and the kinds of trade-offs that are warranted. Yet the fundamental point of …

Assemblages And Actor Networks In The Borderlands - The Apposition Of Reproductive Rights Along The Mexican-American Border, Madeleine M. Plasencia

Articles

In 1971, Sarah Weddington argued Roe v. Wade as a class action on behalf of pregnant women living in Texas, many of whom, including herself had to flee the State to obtain an abortion in Mexico. In 2021, Texas enacted S. B. 8, otherwise known as the Texas Heartbeat Act, which created a private cause of action for injunctive relief and statutory damages awards against any person assisting in and any physician accused of performing an abortion, thus reigniting the cross-border flows that historically have made Mexico a haven for runaway enslaved people and pregnant persons heading south to freedom. …

Fowl Play And Lame Ducks: How A Three-Headed Circuit Split Confuses Century-Old Migratory Bird Protections, Omer Arain

Kentucky Journal of Equine, Agriculture, & Natural Resources Law

No abstract provided.

Bespoke Regulation Of Artificial Intelligence, Brenda M. Simon

Faculty Scholarship

The decision to regulate artificial intelligence (AI) has far reaching consequences. Determining how to address budding applications of AI technology should depend on their effects. This article describes how regulation should be carefully tailored to avoid harm while maximizing social welfare, building on Orly Lobel's taxonomy of regulatory tools. Part I examines the foundational difficulties in governing AI, including industry influence in regulation and deficiencies in enforcement. Part II elaborates on Lobel's framework, detailing the benefits and limitations of a variety of tools, such as voluntary standards, soft law mechanisms, and public-private partnerships. It describes how bringing in diverse stakeholders …

Shareholder Primacy Versus Shareholder Accountability, William W. Bratton

Seattle University Law Review

When corporations inflict injuries in the course of business, shareholders wielding environmental, social, and governance (“ESG”) principles can, and now sometimes do, intervene to correct the matter. In the emerging fact pattern, corporate social accountability expands out of its historic collectivized frame to become an internal subject matter—a corporate governance topic. As a result, shareholder accountability surfaces as a policy question for the first time. The Big Three index fund managers, BlackRock, Vanguard, and State Street, responded to the accountability question with ESG activism. In so doing, they defected against corporate legal theory’s central tenet, shareholder primacy. Shareholder primacy builds …

Defining Religion And Accommodating Religious Exercise, Justin Collings, Anna Bryner

Indiana Law Journal

It is a volatile time in the jurisprudence of the First Amendment’s Religion Clauses. In recent terms, the U.S. Supreme Court has revisited many key Church-State and free exercise questions, and the Justices seem poised to revisit several more. Each of these fundamental questions presupposes an antecedent question: what, for constitutional purposes, is religion itself? The Court has never answered this question consistently or systematically. But, at least in the case of constitutionally mandated religious exemptions, a clear pattern emerges over time: the broader the Court’s definition of religion, the weaker its regime of religious exemptions. The reverse has also …

Commandments Before Amendments: The Ministerial Exception & How The Court Prioritizes Religious Rights Over Other Constitutional Protections, Evelyn Doran

Minnesota Journal of Law & Inequality

No abstract provided.

Verses Turned To Verdicts: Ysl Rico Case Sets A High-Watermark For The Legal Pseudo-Censorship Of Rap Music, Nabil Yousfi

Seattle University Law Review

Whichever way you spin the record, rap music and courtrooms don’t mix. On one side, rap records are well known for their unapologetic lyrical composition, often expressing a blatant disregard for legal institutions and authorities. On the other, court records reflect a Van Gogh’s ear for rap music, frequently allowing rap lyrics—but not similar lyrics from other genres—to be used as criminal evidence against the defendants who authored them. Over the last thirty years, this immiscibility has engendered a legal landscape where prosecutors wield rap lyrics as potent instruments for criminal prosecution. In such cases, color-blind courts neglect that rap …

Wills & Trusts, Gerry W. Beyer

SMU Annual Texas Survey

This article discusses developments relating to the Texas law of intestacy, wills, estate administration, trusts, and other estate planning matters during the Survey period of December 1, 2022, through November 30, 2023. The reader is warned that not all newly enacted statutes or decided cases during the Survey period are presented, and not all aspects of each statute or case are analyzed. You must read and study each statute or case’s full text before relying on it or using it as precedent. The discussion of most cases includes a moral, that is, the important lesson to be learned from the …