Digital Commons Network^™

An Interview With Outgoing Secretary Of Agriculture Tom Vilsack: Reflections On His Legacy & Challenges Facing A New Era In American Agriculture Policy, Lauren Manning

Journal of Food Law & Policy

In a special interview with Lauren Manning, former Secretary of Agricultural Tom Vilsack reflects on his eight-year tenure at the Department of Agriculture (USDA). Sec. Vilsack discusses such issues as the farm bill, opportunities for beginning and disadvantaged farmers, and trade. In addition to recounting the successes of the Obama administration’s USDA, Sec. Vilsack explains his hopes for the incoming Secretary of Agriculture and the Trump administration.

Farmers Market Rules And Policies: Content And Design Suggestions (From A Lawyer), Jay A. Mitchell

Journal of Food Law & Policy

Farmers market rules and policies can set out what products can be sold, how vendors are selected, what’s expected of vendors from growing practices to signage to paperwork, and how vendors are disciplined or removed from the market. Rules and policies can do even more, adding to their length and complexity. The landscape gets even more complex when the rules are accompanied by separate vendor applications, hold-harmless agreements, membership materials, and the market has a website providing additional information. All this can put a quite a reading burden on vendors and quite a management burden on the market. This article …

Exploring The Boundaries Of Obergefell, Andrew J. Pecoraro

William & Mary Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Conservation Of Marine Ecosystem From Trawl Usage By The Local Government Based On Sustainable Marine Preservation Principle, Waluyo Waluyo, Djoko W. Winarno, Ayub T. S. Kusumo, Rosita Candrakirana

Indonesian Journal of International Law

Fisheries practice using trawl and seine nets in Indonesia are still numerous since fishermen round that it will yield much more. However, the practice also threatens the life of small and young fishes as well as destroys the coral reef. The government then issued the regulation namely the Regulation of Minister on Marine Affairs and Fishery Number 2/Permen-KP/2015 about the Prohibition of Trawl and Seine Nets Usage which apply to the whole area of fisheries in Indonesia. It was one of the efforts by the Government of the Republic of Indonesia in conserving its marine ecosystem. The aim of this …

The Development Of Asean's Intellectual Property Rights Law, From Trips Compliance To Harmonization, Nurul Barizah

Indonesia Law Review

Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) is one of the most important subjects of trading, not only in the era of globalism, but also in this era of regionalism. In the regional ASEAN, its significant of IPR protection has made Member Nations introduced ASEAN Framework Agreement on Intellectual Property (IP) Cooperation in 1995, a year after the conclusion of the Trade-related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs) Agreement of the World Trade Organization (WTO). This paper discusses the current development of this Framework in the light to harmonise Intellectual Property (IP) laws in the region, covering the objectives, the basic principles, and …

Asymmetries In The Generation And Transmission Of Wealth, Felix B. Chang

Faculty Articles and Other Publications

This Article assigns a redistributive role to the legal rules of trusts and estates. Unlike business law, trusts and estates has lagged in articulating a comprehensive theory on inequality. Consequently, income inequality is compounded intergenerationally as wealth inequality, with dire consequences for economic productivity and social stability. To move the discourse on wealth inequality, this Article explores the divergent approaches toward inequality in business law and trusts and estates.

Additionally, this Article recasts trusts and estates’ legal rules as wealth transfer mechanisms. Four categories of rules are implicated: (1) rules that interact with the tax system, (2) rules that govern …

Food Date Labels And Hunger In America, Gwen B. Thomson

Concordia Law Review

Millions of Americans go hungry, while 40% of the food in the United States is wasted. Research has shown that 43% of the waste occurs in homes and that consumers are making decisions about purchasing and throwing away food without understanding the meaning of the food date labels. One of the most cost-effective ways to begin to effect a change is to eliminate the myriad of confusing food date labels so that individuals do not throw away good food. In May 2016, the Food Date Labeling Act of 2016 was proposed in both houses of Congress. This bicameral bill was …

A Return On Investment: How The Breastfeeding Promotion Act Can Change The Make-Up Of The Private Workforce, Krishna Jani

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

No abstract provided.

“Johnny Pushed Me And I Can’T Get Up . . . And I Can’T Get Help!”: The Intersection Of Elder Abuse And Domestic Violence In South Carolina And Its Effect On Older Battered Women, Mary D. Antley

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

No abstract provided.

Mcdonnell V. United States: Defining “Official Action” In Public Corruption Law, Christopher Murphy

Duke Journal of Constitutional Law & Public Policy Sidebar

McDonnell v. United States involved the former Governor of Virginia leveraging the power of his position to help a wealthy constituent gain access to top state decision makers in exchange for valuable gifts and loans. The Government argued that conduct like setting up phone calls and meetings, as well as hosting receptions on behalf of the constituent was sufficient to constitute an “official act” under public corruption laws. Governor McDonnell argued for a narrower interpretation of “official act,” claiming that his conduct was akin to run of the mill things public officials do every day to benefit their constituents. The …

State V. Brown: A Test For Local Food Ordinances, Ryan Almy

Maine Law Review

For many of us, adding a little milk to our morning coffee is likely one of the more insignificant tasks of the day. For Dan Brown of Blue Hill, Maine, that splash of dairy in his coffee mug is the result of his personal labor and constant, meticulous attention paid to the health and well-being of a single 1,000 pound mammal. Besides fresh raw milk, what does Brown gain from his efforts? He knows the exact source of the milk he puts in his coffee, as well as the butter his daughter spreads on her toast: Sprocket, Brown’s sole dairy …

Liberty Of Palate, Samuel R. Wiseman

Maine Law Review

As lawmakers concerned with problems as diverse as childhood obesity, animal cruelty, and listeria have increasingly focused their attention on consumers, legal issues surrounding food choice have recently attracted much broader interest. Bans on large sodas in New York City, fast food chains in South Los Angeles, and foie gras in California and Chicago have provoked national controversy, as have federal raids on raw milk sellers. In response, various groups have decried restrictions on their ability to consume the food products of their choice. A few groups have organized around the principle of what we might call liberty of palate, …

How Reliance On The Private Enforcement Of Public Regulatory Programs Undermines Food Safety In The United States: The Case Of Needled Meat, Diana R. H. Winters

Maine Law Review

Mechanically tenderized meat is a relatively small, although persistent, food-safety problem in terms of the number of individuals affected by foodborne illness. However, the regulatory history of mechanically tenderized meat is a window into a much larger issue, that of regulatory inertia and the inadequacy of existing mechanisms to counter this stasis. This regulatory inertia does not have a simple cause, nor is it amendable to a simple solution. It cannot be reduced to a problem of agency capture, or a problem with agency incompetence, and although I will propose a couple of fixes, all of them have flaws. Telling …

A Hungry Industry On Rolling Regulations: A Look At Food Truck Regulations In Cities Across The United States, Crystal T. Williams

Maine Law Review

Although street vending has always been a part of the American food economy, in recent years modern food trucks have become a dining trend that is sweeping the country. With the booming popularity of food trucks, cities across the country are serving up various ways to regulate the growing number of vendors selling convenient and creative meals to patrons from mobile food units, commonly known as food trucks. Food trucks are regulated by local government agencies, which take a wide range of approaches. For example, in thirty-four of the nation’s largest cities, entire neighborhoods are off-limits to vendors, often including …

When Fox And Hound Legislate The Hen House: A Nixon-In-China Moment For National Egg-Laying Standards?, Lucinda Valero, Will Rhee

Maine Law Review

It is no secret that the vast majority of American eat animals and animal products. Because of the popularity of animals and animal products as food, “foxes”—agricultural producers—have long struggled against “hounds”—animal welfare advocacy groups—to influence the popular American appetite. This essay focuses upon one such fox, the United Egg Producers (UEP), the nation’s largest egg farmer organization, and one such hound, the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), the nation’s largest animal advocacy organization. JSUS had already outmaneuvered UEP by successfully swaying popular opinion in California, Michigan, Ohio, Oregon, an Washington to pass state law referenda or legislation …

Follow The Leader: Eliminating Perverse Global Fishing Subsidies Through Unilateral Domestic Trade Measures, Anastasia Telesetsky

Maine Law Review

Perverse subsidies including fuel tax rebates lead to overfishing though a combination of overcapacity and excess fishing effort. The current overfishing trend has depleted certain key commercial fisheries with implications for future food security, particularly in regions dependent on fish protein. Over the course of the past four decades, there have been a number of multilateral efforts to eliminate the subsidies including environmental treaties, environmental targets, and trade negotiations. None of these attempts and a global cooperative response have achieved a reduction in perverse subsidies. This Essay proposes the adoption of unilateral trade measures or a set of “Friends of …

Whatever Happened To The "Frankenfish"?: The Fda's Foot-Dragging On Transgenic Salmon, Lars Noah

Maine Law Review

AquaBounty Technologies has genetically modified the Atlantic salmon through the introduction of a growth hormone gene from the Chinook salmon, which allows the fish to reach market size almost twice as quickly as its farmed counterparts. The research began more than two decades ago. The company secured licenses for the patents that emerged out of this research, and its plans to commercialize the transgenic salmons (branded “AquAdvantage”) took shape more than a decade ago. In late 2010, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) appeared to be on the verge of authorizing production, but, more than two years later, the …

A National "Natural" Standard For Food Labeling, Nicole E. Negowetti

Maine Law Review

What do Juicy Juice fruit punch, SunChips, Nature Valley granola bars, and Skinny Girl Margaritas have in common? These products are all branded with the term “natural.” From canned vegetables to cereals to soft drinks, the term “natural” has become one of the most common claims on food, drugs, dietary supplements, and personal care products. The word “natural on the label or in advertising brings to mind nature, and things that are pure, clean, healthy, free of artificial additives, and therefore safe, harmless, and beneficial to overall health. In 2011, “all-natural” was the second-most-used claim on the new American food …

The New England Food System In 2060: Envisioning Tomorrow's Policy Through Today's Assessments, Margaret Sova Mccabe, Joanne Burke

Maine Law Review

As the local food movement gains critical mass around the country, deep and important issues concerning food system policy arise. The modern American food system spans from agricultural production to food processing to food consumption, and finally, to health outcomes. The system’s components include economic, environmental, social, political, and scientific aspects that interact in ways that far outstrip any one discipline’s capacity to analyze and resolve problems. Additionally, the system is profoundly shaped by a complex architecture of laws and regulation. With much credit to the local and regional food movements, people have begun to question not only the current …

The Renewable Fuel Standard: Food Versus Fuel?, Brent J. Hartman

Maine Law Review

Created by the Energy Act of 2005 and substantially amended by the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) mandates an increasing amount of fuel from renewable sources that must be blended into the transportation fuel supply of the United States. Starting in 2008, RFS began with a mandated volume of nine billion gallons. By 2002, RFS requires blending 36 billion gallons of renewable fuel. Thus, in a little over a decade, RFS requires the amount of renewable fuel to quadruple. Meeting the targets of RFS would make substantial strides in energy security and independence, …

Zoning And Land Use Controls: Beyond Agriculture, Lisa M. Feldstein

Maine Law Review

If one were playing a word association game and were asked what comes to mind when the terms “food” and “land use” are given, chances are high that the response would be “agriculture.” Yet every stage in the food system, from being grown or raised through being consumed, is place-based. Put differently, everything that happens with our food system involves land use in some way. Even the acquisition of aquatically sourced foods requires a journey that begins from the shore, and yet it is rare to consider the profound ways in which our every interaction with food system utilizes or …

Obesity Prevention Policies At The Local Level: Tobacco's Lessons, Paul A. Diller

Maine Law Review

For at least a decade, commentators have speculated that obesity is the next tobacco, a public health scourge that might nonetheless offer a gold mine to ambitious plaintiffs’ lawyers. Successful lawsuits, as in the tobacco context, might spur the food industry to reform its practices so as to help reduce the alarmingly high national obesity rate. The obesity narrative, however, has not played out accordingly to the same script as tobacco. Relatively quick action by most state legislatures immunized the food industry to tort lawsuits seeking obesity-related damages, and the scant judicial opinions on the issue have skeptically assessed plaintiffs’ …

The Symbolic Garden: An Intersection Of The Food Movement And The First Amendment, Jaime Bouvier

Maine Law Review

What is communicated when a neighbor raises raspberries instead of roses on the porch trellis, grows lacinato kale rather than creeping bentgrass in the front yard, or keeps Buckeye hens rather than a bulldog? This essay asserts that these and other urban agricultural practices are expensive—that they are not just ends in themselves but are commutative acts. These acts are intended to educate neighbors, assert a viewpoint, establish identity, and area widely viewed as symbols of support for a social and political movement—what Michael Pollan has dubbed the “Food Movement.” And, as symbolic acts, they deserve protection under the First …

Abortion And The Conscience Clause: Current Status, Dennis J. Horan

The Catholic Lawyer

No abstract provided.

Corporations And Human Life, Frank Partnoy

Seattle University Law Review

In Part I, I address decision-making. How should risk to human life be included in the jurisprudence of corporate decision-making? In terms of finance, how should corporations make net present value decisions when risk to human life is a factor? In terms of law, is there a case for exceptions to the business judgment rule based on risk to human life? Second, in Part II, I address oversight. How should risk to human life be included in the jurisprudence of oversight? In terms of finance, how should corporations approach risk management when human life is a factor? In terms of …

The Recent Enactment Of National Mandatory Gmo Labeling Law: Superior To A Voluntary Labeling Scheme But Unlikely To End The Labeling Controversy, Nan Feng

Seattle University Law Review

Part I of this Note provides background information about the major controversies related to GM foods, including the debate about whether such foods should be labeled, and the history of GMO labeling laws in the United States. Part II compares S. 764 with H.R. 1599 and explains why a national mandatory labeling approach is superior to the voluntary labeling approach advocated by the House. Part III discusses the potential drawbacks and effect of S. 764 and finally concludes that the rulemaking process that will follow may create controversies and litigation.

Commercial Deception By Anti-Vaccine Homeopathic Websites: A Consumer Protection Approach, Donald C. Arthur

North Carolina Central University Science & Intellectual Property Law Review

No abstract provided.

Burning Out: The Effect Of Burnout On Special Education, Jordan Radford Mcdowell

Brigham Young University Education and Law Journal

No abstract provided.

The Constitutionality Of Laws Banning Physician Assisted Suicide, Richard S. Myers

Brigham Young University Journal of Public Law

No abstract provided.

International Coverage, Human Rights Brief

Human Rights Brief Spring 2017 Regional Coverage

No abstract provided.