Digital Commons Network^™

[Early Bird] The Texas Common Ownership Litigation: Sustainability, Competition, And The Boundaries Of Asset Manager Capitalism, Federico Ghezzi

Yearbook of Antitrust and Regulatory Studies

This article analyzes the recent attempt by the Texas Attorney General to invoke the common ownership doctrine as a new antitrust weapon against large institutional investors allegedly engaged in coordinated ESG strategies. The case represents a peculiar reversal of the traditional logic of the theory: rather than being used to constrain horizontal shareholdings that may reduce competition, common ownership is deployed here to challenge collective action aimed at promoting environmental sustainability. The paper situates this development within the broader debate on the anticompetitive effects of horizontal ownership, briefly examining the economic assumptions underlying the theory, the limits of its empirical …

Aligning Artificial Intelligence To The Law, Jack Boeglin

Villanova Law Review (1956 - )

No abstract provided.

Protecting Dependent Children In Bankruptcy, Michael D. Sousa, L. Alexis Whitley Esq.

Villanova Law Review (1956 - )

No abstract provided.

Lessons From Eugenics: Safeguarding Autonomy In Procreation, Claire Bass

Villanova Law Review (1956 - )

No abstract provided.

Living In The Past: The Corporate Practice Of Medicine Doctrine’S Misguided Revival In An Era Of Private Equity, John Palmer

Villanova Law Review (1956 - )

No abstract provided.

Still Working Nine To Five: How Boyer V. United States Keeps Women Stuck With Prior Pay Inequality, Mckenna Wark

Villanova Law Review (1956 - )

No abstract provided.

Anchoring’S Absurd Influence On Judging, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski, Andrew J. Wistrich

Arkansas Law Review

Society demands much from its judges. Notably, judges should never be illogical or inconsistent. The heart of what we expect of a judge is to apply the law to the facts in a logical and consistent way. The human mind, however, is not a giant syllogistic machine. People are obviously capable of using deductive logic, but decades of research on judgment and choice indicate that commonly used cognitive strategies to make decisions do not conform to the dictates of deductive logic. People rely on mental shortcuts, rather than logic. These shortcuts can be efficient and useful, but they do not …

A New Prescription: Arkansas Law On Pharmacy Benefit Managers, Emilee Webb

Arkansas Law Review

Seven thousand pharmacies have closed throughout the United States since 2019. This number includes both local pharmacies and larger chains. The effect of both types of closures, though, is the same—pharmacy deserts. A pharmacy desert can occur in all types of areas; it simply means that consumers lack “reasonable access” to a pharmacy. The usual standard is a pharmacy located more than one mile away in urban areas, two miles away in suburban areas, and ten miles away in rural areas. However, an objective mile range is not always dispositive of a pharmacy desert. Even if a pharmacy is located …

Judicial Rhetoric: Writing Persuasive Opinions, Gerald Lebovits

Arkansas Law Review

In 1947, Judge George Rose Smith denounced, in the Arkansas Law Review, the “dearth of material concerning the mechanics of writing a judicial opinion” as a “striking omission in legal literature.” He was right.

The lack of attention given to the judicial opinion-writing process back then was hard to justify. Judges spend much of their time writing decisions. Decisions are important. They determine rights and responsibilities, as well as resolve controversies. Scholars have written about every aspect of judging and legal issue—except one of the most important ones: how to decide a case and justify the decision. Judicial opinions set …

Promoting A Rhetoric Of Judicial Legitimacy In Pro Se Litigation, Alistair E. Newbern

Arkansas Law Review

In recent months, headline after headline has decried twin threats to the federal judiciary: declining public trust in the courts and escalating threats to judges’ personal safety. The public’s opinion of the Supreme Court reached “close to a three decade low” in 2025, while Americans’ confidence in the federal judiciary as a whole “dropped to a record-low 35% in 2024.”

In his 2024 Year End Report on the Federal Judiciary, Chief Justice John Roberts identified a recent uptick in four areas of “illegitimate activity” that “threaten the independence of judges on which the rule of law depends: (1) violence, (2) …

Intellectual Humility By Design: How Courts Earn Legitimacy And Improve Decisions, Steve Leben

Arkansas Law Review

Courts decide disputes as one branch of our government. Their authority depends not only on getting the outcome right but also on public acceptance of their authority. In a time when confidence in institutions is under pressure, courts cannot assume that legitimacy will take care of itself. They must earn it—case by case—through both the substance of what they decide and the way they exercise authority in public view.

A large body of procedural-justice research explains one side of that equation. People are more willing to accept court decisions, even unfavorable ones, when the process communicates voice, neutrality, respect, and …

Foreword, Amanda B. Hurst

Arkansas Law Review

This Symposium, The Art of Judging, delved into the complexity of the judicial craft, discussing the intellectual, practical, and human dimensions of judicial work. The Symposium addressed courtroom management, decision-making, and opinion writing, as well as the impact of evolving technologies on these core judicial functions. Another key focus was the increasing challenges judges face in responding to litigants’ wellness issues, managing their own well-being, and maintaining the judicial persona—both inside and outside the courtroom. Though the Symposium was not born out of the aim of combating the current climate, where misinformation and misunderstanding of the judicial role threaten …

Arkansas Law Review - Volume 79 Issue 2, Journal Editors

Arkansas Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Rise Of Options Contracts In Sports, The Post-Murphy Regulatory Conundrum, And Implications On Federalism, Scott Barboza

UNH Sports Law Review

The Supreme Court’s decision in Murphy v. N.C.A.A. dismantled the federal prohibition on state-authorized sports betting and returned its primary regulatory authority over to the states. Following Murphy, states adopted widely varying sports-betting regimes. At the same time, advances in financial technology and the growing popularity of prediction markets created a new form of event-based speculation operating outside the traditional sportsbook model. Platforms such as Kalshi began offering “yes-no” contracts tied to sporting outcomes through federally regulated exchanges overseen by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, framing such products not as wagers, but as financial derivatives governed by the Commodity Exchange …

Digitalization Of Medicine Through Telemedicine: The Legal Framework And Medical Liability, Samira Krourou

Revue Marocaine de Droit, d'Economie et de Gestion (Moroccan Journal of Law, Economics and Management)

This study examines telemedicine as a modern medical practice linked to the technological and informational advancements that humanity has witnessed and that have been positively integrated into the medical field. It has become possible to examine and treat patients without requiring their physical presence in a clinic or hospital, unlike the traditional approach, that necessitates the patient's presence and direct contact with their physician. Contemporary medical practice is no longer confined to examination and prescription alone; it has expanded to encompass more complex domains, notably enabling remote surgical interventions. In light of technological progress in medicine, it has become necessary …

The Notarial Profession Between Legal Roots And The Challenges Of Digital Modernization, Yassine Ait Ahmed

Revue Marocaine de Droit, d'Economie et de Gestion (Moroccan Journal of Law, Economics and Management)

This paper focuses on returning to the origins of the legal regulation of the notarial profession, which is linked to the development of mechanisms for the protection of rights and systems governing legal transactions. This protection symbolizes one of the official functions of the State and is manifested in the field of evidence, as the documents issued by this authority, by virtue of the legal powers vested in it, enjoy the status of official (authentic) instruments. This status has been further strengthened with the adoption of digitization, which has required its development in order to meet the expectations of digital …

The Independence Of Supervisory Authorities: A Comparative Analysis Of Morocco's Law 09-08 And The European General Data Protection Regulation, Zakariyae Hamdani, Karim Seffar

Revue Marocaine de Droit, d'Economie et de Gestion (Moroccan Journal of Law, Economics and Management)

The effectiveness of personal data protection presupposes the establishment of supervisory authorities endowed with substantial independence, guarantors of fundamental rights and capable of preventing the risks inherent in data processing. However, the comparison between the European GDPR and Moroccan Law No. 09-08 reveals a manifest institutional asymmetry. Indeed, European authorities operate within a substantially more comprehensive normative framework, characterised by enshrined autonomy, extended prerogatives and enhanced operational efficiency. Conversely, the Moroccan CNDP remains afflicted by structural deficiencies: institutional dependence, lack of coercive powers and budgetary insufficiency. Consequently, this comparative investigation aims to identify the cardinal principles likely to inform a …

Deepfake: A Practice On The Edge Of Legality, Bouthaïna Aaziz

Revue Marocaine de Droit, d'Economie et de Gestion (Moroccan Journal of Law, Economics and Management)

Deepfakes – hyperrealistic videos manipulated using deep learning algorithms – raise significant legal challenges touching on human rights and legal governance. A deepfake usurps the identity of its victim to exploit their credibility and reputation. This article examines the applicable legal framework, first identifying pre-existing rules from Moroccan law (civil liability, personal data protection under Law No. 09-08, criminal provisions of the Penal Code and Press Law No. 88-13) that can be applied to deepfakes, and then advocating for the adoption of an adapted legal framework. The author distinguishes between creative deepfakes (requiring informed consent) and manipulative deepfakes (requiring criminal …

Gafam And Competition Law: The Premises Of Regulation, El Mahdi Taimouri

Revue Marocaine de Droit, d'Economie et de Gestion (Moroccan Journal of Law, Economics and Management)

GAFAM are among those structural digital platforms whose ultra-dominant position in digital markets and the originality of their practices raise unprecedented competition issues. Their spontaneous tendency toward concentration results from the implementation of innovative business models based on massive data capture and exploitation through high-performance algorithms. The specificities inherent in these web giants raise questions about the ability of classical competition law rules to ensure efficient regulation. Indeed, competitive regulation of these platforms raises essential challenges and proves indispensable, even if the effective realization of such an undertaking appears laborious.

From Legal Norms To Algorithmic Rules: Reflections On Blockchain And Smart Contracts, Yassine Dourhani, Fatim Ezzahra Boussetta

Revue Marocaine de Droit, d'Economie et de Gestion (Moroccan Journal of Law, Economics and Management)

Blockchain technology and smart contracts are profoundly reshaping contract law by partially replacing traditional legal rules with algorithmic norms based on automation and self-execution. By embedding the parties' agreement into computer code deployed on a distributed ledger, these technologies promise enhanced security, certainty of performance, and the reduction of traditional intermediaries. However, this emerging algorithmic normativity confronts fundamental requirements of contract law, particularly those relating to validity, flexibility in the face of unforeseen events, and the protection of contracting parties. While automatic execution strengthens technical efficiency, it also exposes significant legal limitations, including the rigidity of code, the absence of …

The Legal Challenges Of Blockchain In Relation To The Legal Professions, Hind Tak-Tak, Hanane Jalal

Revue Marocaine de Droit, d'Economie et de Gestion (Moroccan Journal of Law, Economics and Management)

Blockchain technology was initially conceived as a disintermediation tool based on algorithmic trust, aiming to challenge the traditional role of trusted third parties in legal and economic relationships. By relying on distributed, immutable, and transparent ledgers, blockchain claims to offer an alternative to centralized institutions, particularly in the fields of evidence, contracts, and authentication. However, a legal analysis demonstrates that this promise of disintermediation remains largely relative. While blockchain enables technical certification of data and the automated execution of obligations through smart contracts, it does not ensure valid contract formation, effective protection of the weaker party, or compliance with the …

Editorial : Digital Law, Karim Seffar

Revue Marocaine de Droit, d'Economie et de Gestion (Moroccan Journal of Law, Economics and Management)

This special issue of REMADEG explores the profound transformations undergone by law in the face of the digital revolution. The contributions interrogate the legal challenges posed by disruptive technologies, their implications for traditional legal institutions, and the normative responses needed to govern these transformations. Topics covered include blockchain and smart contracts, digital platform labor relations, GAFAM regulation through competition law, deepfakes, personal data protection authority independence, telemedicine liability, and pretrained conversational robots.

Gender Perspective(S): Lessons From International Human Rights Law To Defend Against Pregnancy Related Prosecutions, Megan Osadzinski

Northwestern Journal of Human Rights

The criminalization of pregnancy outcomes—such as miscarriages, abortion, obstetric emergencies, and stillbirth—is a violation of fundamental human rights guarantees; including the right to a fair trial when read in conjunction with the right to equality and the right to health. This article outlines state obligations under international human rights law toward women charged in pregnancy prosecutions, translating them into national criminal defense strategies using a gender perspective. Using intersectional theory, this article calls for the use of a gender perspective to challenge such prosecutions as unlawful gender-based discrimination and a gendered violation of due process, using the case study of …

Comparative Analysis Of Freedom Of Thought, Conscience, And Religion In India, Pakistan, And Bangladesh, Abhishek Chakrabarti

Northwestern Journal of Human Rights

The freedom of thought, conscience, and religion is a fundamental human right enshrined in Article 18 of The Universal Declaration on Human Rights (UDHR). However, religious minorities in South Asia are often deprived of this fundamental right. Muslims in India, Ahmadiyyas, Hindus, and Christians in Pakistan, and Hindus in Bangladesh face challenges including educational marginalization, economic and political marginalization, and social stigma in the society. The Note presents a comparative analysis of the freedom of thought, conscience, and religion across the three most populous countries in South Asia–India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh–that also share a long cultural, linguistic, and religious history. …

Civil Society Associations And The Environment, Mohamed Ali Mekouar

Revue Marocaine de Droit, d'Economie et de Gestion (Moroccan Journal of Law, Economics and Management)

Presented in February 1987 and written in August of the same year, this paper examines the growing role of the associative movement in environmental protection, drawing on comparative law perspectives and situating the Moroccan case within the broader context of the global rise of environmental civil society. The author analyses the growth of environmental protection associations as a manifestation of a 'daily syndicalism' and a silent participatory revolution, reflecting the crisis of representative democracy and citizens' growing need for collective engagement in defence of their living environment, as attested by the emergence of global organisations such as IUCN, WWF, and …

The Institutional Means Of Environmental Protection In Morocco, Rachida Meziane

Revue Marocaine de Droit, d'Economie et de Gestion (Moroccan Journal of Law, Economics and Management)

This article analyses the institutional apparatus established in Morocco for environmental protection, in a context where the framework law on environmental protection and enhancement exists only in draft form, making the role of existing administrative structures all the more decisive. The author systematically inventories the environmental competences distributed among the various ministries (Interior, Agriculture, Public Health, Urban Planning, Maritime Fisheries) and specialised bodies, highlighting the institutional fragmentation characteristic of the Moroccan administrative landscape in environmental matters and the absence of a coordinating authority with real intersectoral arbitration capacity. The analysis focuses on the concrete environmental attributions of the Ministry of …

Urban Transport And Environmental Quality, Mohamed Ali Mekouar

Revue Marocaine de Droit, d'Economie et de Gestion (Moroccan Journal of Law, Economics and Management)

This research report, produced within a working group on urban transport in Casablanca, rigorously examines the interactions between motorised transport systems and urban environmental quality in a global context characterised by a vehicle fleet exceeding 400 million and rapid urbanisation. The author demonstrates that while the automobile has become a symbol of modernity and social aspiration, it is also the primary source of urban environmental degradation through air pollution (carbon monoxide, hydrocarbons, nitrogen oxides), noise nuisances, space and energy consumption, and traffic accidents. The legal analysis inventories the normative instruments available in Morocco to control the environmental impact of urban …

Solid And Liquid Waste Disposal And Environmental Law, Abdelmalek Guessous

Revue Marocaine de Droit, d'Economie et de Gestion (Moroccan Journal of Law, Economics and Management)

This article systematically examines the problem of solid and liquid waste disposal in Morocco from an environmental law perspective, combining technical and legal analysis to identify the challenges posed by waste management in a rapidly expanding urban context. The author first classifies waste types precisely and describes modern treatment and elimination techniques deployed in the sanitation sector, including through specialised bodies such as SAEM. The legal analysis then focuses on the applicable normative framework, revealing gaps in Moroccan waste collection, treatment, and disposal regulation, the absence of a framework law on waste, and the inadequacy of civil and criminal liability …

The Legal Protection Of The Urban Environment, Khadija Kaouakib-Kadiri

Revue Marocaine de Droit, d'Economie et de Gestion (Moroccan Journal of Law, Economics and Management)

This article offers an in-depth legal analysis of the concept of the urban environment and the instruments for its protection in Morocco, within the theoretical framework of environmental law as an emerging discipline. The author starts from a rigorous definition of the concept of environment, distinguishing its natural and artificial components and highlighting the difficulties inherent in delimiting the urban environment, whose geographical, functional, and normative boundaries remain fluid and subject to doctrinal debate. The study critically inventories the Moroccan legislative and regulatory texts applicable to urban environmental protection, covering urban law, public health law, classified establishments regulation, and general …

Report On The Use Of Nuclear Technologies In Morocco, Mahjoub El Haiba

Revue Marocaine de Droit, d'Economie et de Gestion (Moroccan Journal of Law, Economics and Management)

This report summarises an information day organised by the Association of Engineers in Nuclear Engineering in Morocco on 13 June 1987 in Casablanca. The author traces the origins of the nuclear question, distinguishing natural from artificial radiation and reviewing the historical development of nuclear energy from the discovery of natural uranium to artificial atomic energy. He examines the catastrophic consequences of incidents such as the Chernobyl disaster, analyses the peaceful applications of nuclear technologies in Morocco (medicine, agriculture, industry, energy generation), and highlights the absence of a national law regulating this strategic sector and ensuring safety and environmental protection against …