Digital Commons Network^™

Obama’S National Security Exceptionalism, Sudha Setty

Faculty Scholarship

This Article discusses how continued national security exceptionalism engenders a view of the United States as considering itself to be above international obligations to investigate and prosecute torturers and war criminals, and the view by the global community that the United States is willing to apply one standard for itself, and another for the rest of the world. Exceptionalism not only poses real challenges in terms of law, morality, and building useful relationships with allied nations, but acts as a step backward for the creation of enforceable international norms and standards, and in efforts to restore a balance in the …

Avoiding Overtreatment At The End Of Life: Physician-Patient Communication And Truly Informed Consent, Barbara A. Noah, Neal R. Feigenson

Faculty Scholarship

This Article considers how best to ensure that patients have the tools to make informed choices about their care as they near death. Informed decision making can help reduce excessive end-of-life care and unnecessary suffering, and result in care that aligns with patients’ well-considered values and preferences. The many factors that contribute to dying patients receiving too much therapy and life-prolonging care include: the culture of denial of death, physicians’ professional culture and attitudes toward treatment, physicians’ fear of liability, physicians’ avoidance of discussions about prognosis, and the impact of payment incentives that encourage overutilization of medical technologies.

Under the …

"As Who They Really Are": Expanding Opportunities For Transgender Athletes To Participate In Youth And Scholastic Sports, Erin E. Buzuvis

Faculty Scholarship

The aim of this Article is to assist the efforts of inclusion of transgender athletes by helping decision-makers in scholastic athletics and youth sports understand why and how to create inclusive policies. These decision-makers include leaders and stakeholders in local, state, and national sport organizations.

This Article begins with an overview of policies already adopted by interscholastic athletic associations and sport governing bodies that regulate youth sport programs. It critiques policies that categorically exclude and otherwise impose limitations on transgender persons who seek to participate in sports in a manner consistent with their gender identities (what this Article will refer …

Housing Crisis Leaves Lasting Imprint On Children In Cleveland, Claudia J. Coulton, Robert L. Fischer, Francisca García Cobián Richter, Youngmin Cho

Faculty Scholarship

Study finds link between poor housing conditions and kindergarten readiness. Over time, living in substandard housing conditions leads to lower literacy scores for children entering kindergarten. Living in a home that is owned by a speculator, is tax delinquent, or is in foreclosure contributes to lower literacy scores among children entering kindergarten. Living within 500 feet of distressed properties lowers literacy scores among kindergarteners; living in homes farther away (up to 1500 feet) has a smaller, though still negative, effect. Living in a distressed home (either in poor condition or in foreclosure) is associated with a higher risk for child …

Asylum Crisis Italian Style: The Dublin Regulation Collides With European Human Rights Law, Maryellen Fullerton

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

The Under-Policed, I. Bennett Capers

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Shareholder Proposal Settlements And The Private Ordering Of Public Elections, Sarah Haan

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

The Risks Of Clouded Property Title For Cannabis Business Owners, Investors, And Creditors, Sean O'Connor

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

The Reciprocal Of Macpherson V. Buick Motor Company, Anita Bernstein

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Toward A Civilized System Of Justice: Reconceptualizing The Response To Sexual Violence In Higher Education, Hannah Brenner, Kathleen Darcy

Faculty Scholarship

The reporting, investigation, and prevention of sexual violence in settings that are closed off from the greater community and subject to their own laws, rules, norms and biases present special challenges for survivors of sexual violence. This essay builds on our existing scholarship that explores the pervasive problem and exceedingly high incidence of sexual violence perpetrated against women in closed institutional systems like prison, the military, and immigration detention centers. Survivors in these contexts are routinely denied access to justice internally and from the external criminal justice system; they also face major limitations (imposed by both federal law and Supreme …

The Bumpiness Of Criminal Law, Adam Kolber

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Bars To Justice: The Impact Of Rape Myths On Women In Prison, Hannah Brenner, Kathleen Darcy, Gina Fedock, Sheryl Kubiak

Faculty Scholarship

This article stems from a National Science Foundation-funded interdisciplinary research project that addresses a major gap in understanding the reporting of sexual victimization in prison and the confluence of factors that contribute to the ineffectiveness of internal laws and policies. As a basis of this work, our cohort of scholars in law, social work, and psychology utilized data and personal narratives from the groundbreaking class action lawsuit, Neal v. MDOC, brought on behalf of over 800 female inmates against the State of Michigan. In this article, we identify the most prevalent rape myths we observed from women who were involved …

Criminal Laws On Sex Work And Hiv Transmission: Mapping The Laws, Considering The Consequence, Sienna Baskin, Aziza Ahmed, Anna Forbes

Faculty Scholarship

Lawmakers historically justify the mobilization of criminal laws on prostitution and HIV as a means of controlling the spread of disease. Over time, however, public health research has conclusively demonstrated that criminal laws on prostitution and HIV significantly impede the ability of sex workers to access services and to live without the stigma and blame associated with being a transmitter of HIV. In turn, mainstream public health approaches to sex work and HIV emphasize decriminalization as a way to improve the lives of sex workers in need of care, treatment, and services. Our current legal system, which criminalizes both prostitution …

A Study On Immigrant Activism, Secure Communities, And Rawlsian Civil Disobedience, Karen Pita Loor

Faculty Scholarship

This Article explores the immigrant acts of protest during the Obama presidency in opposition to the Secure Communities (SCOMM) immigration enforcement program through the lens of philosopher John Rawls’ theory of civil disobedience and posits that this immigrant resistance contributed to that administration’s dismantling the federal program by progressively moving localities, and eventually whole states, to cease cooperation with SCOMM. The controversial SCOMM program is one of the most powerful tools of immigration enforcement in the new millennium because it transforms any contact with state and local law enforcement into a potential immigration investigation. SCOMM has now been revived through …

Beyond Lifestyle: Governing The Social Determinants Of Health, Wendy K. Mariner

Faculty Scholarship

Non-communicable and chronic diseases have overtaken infectious diseases as the major causes of death and disability around the world. Despite recognition that reduction in the chronic disease burden will require governance systems to address the social determinants of health, most public health recommendations emphasize individual behavior as the primary cause of illness and the target of intervention. This Article argues that focusing on lifestyle can backfire, by increasing health inequities and inviting human rights violations. If States fail to take meaningful steps to alter the social and economic structures that create health risks and encourage unhealthy behavior, health at the …

Recurring Issues In Indian Gaming Compact Approval, Kevin Washburn

Faculty Scholarship

Achieving agreement between a state and a tribe, and then achieving ratification of that agreement through state and tribal legislative processes, are challenging endeavors. Failing to account for the need for federal approval can undermine the entire negotiation process. The purpose of this article is to highlight several recurring problem areas that can place compact approval at risk. These include the requirement in IGRA that a compact avoid issues that are not germane to gaming,that the compact avoid regulating Class II gaming,which is beyond state authority, and the requirementthat the state avoid expanding its reach over ancillary services and spaces …

Inviting Everyone To The (Risk) Pool Party: Reforming The Premium Tax Credit To Boost Participation, Mary Leto Pareja

Faculty Scholarship

The year 2014 marked the first opportunity for American taxpayers to receive subsidized health insurance through the Affordable Care Act’s (“ACA”) new Premium Tax Credit (“PTC”). About 4.8 million people enrolled in an ACA plan in 2014 were eligible, and nearly 97% of these claimants were approved for advance payments of the PTC. The year 2015 marked the first tax return where taxpayers received the unpleasant surprise that they must repay excess credits due to reconciliation. Advance PTC estimates turned out to be highly inaccurate, with only 8% of claimants receiving accurate advance payments. A majority, 51%, had to repay …

After The Tmdls, Dave Owen

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Informed Consent, Body Property, And Self-Sovereignty, Radhika Rao

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Open Letter On Ethical Norms In Intellectual Property Scholarship, Robin Feldman, Mark A. Lemley, Jonathan S. Masur, Arti K. Rai

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Property Damage In The Domestic Violence Context, D. Kelly Weisberg

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Rebellious Heroes, Ascanio Piomelli

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Regulatory Property: The New Ip, Robin Feldman

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

The Multiplication Effect Of Legal Insurance, Ben Depoorter, Jef De Mot, Michael G. Faure

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Navigating, Building, And Strengthening Relationships, Debra Gerardi, Nancy Vanderlip, Scott Partridge, Jeremy Lack

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Arbitration: Creature Of Contract, Pillar Of Procedure, Hiro Aragaki

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

From Global To Local: Domestic Human Rights Norms In Theory And Practice, Thalia Gonzalez

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Guardians Of Municipal Public Trees: Commonwealth Of Massachusetts Tree Wardens’ Authority And Accountability, Julie E. Steiner

Faculty Scholarship

Today’s tree wardens are continually called upon to strike a balance between preservation of public trees and protection of the public from hazardous tree conditions. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts has been a pioneer in tree protection legislation, including the enactment of the first state legislation requiring a municipal tree warden. As guardians of the municipal landscape, tree wardens decide whether and when to plant new public shade trees, or to permit those that already exist to be cut, trimmed, or removed. This Article describes the important historical role the Commonwealth of Massachusetts has played in protecting public trees, the legal …

Symposium: Environmental Accountability In An Age Of Consequences: Foreword, Julie E. Steiner

Faculty Scholarship

The five articles in this Symposium issue each take a different approach to addressing environmental accountability. There is unequivocal evidence that the climate system is warming, caused mainly by the measurable increase in anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions. The Symposium authors include Denis Binder, Susan Stark, Julie E. Steiner, Chris Erchull, Laura Fisher, and Daniel DePasquale. These Authors challenge all to think broadly about utilization of different accountability mechanisms to ensure more efficient environmental outcomes.

What Legal Writers Can Learn From Paint Nite, Beth Cohen, Pat Newcombe

Faculty Scholarship

Paint Nite activities and adult coloring have captured the nation’s interest and gone mainstream. Creating something on our own is what drives similar trends like the popular Do It Yourself movement and the resurgence of knitting after 9/11. At the same time, these fun, creative activities can provide us with a window into the process of legal writing. Using Paint Nite as a reference point throughout a legal writing course allows faculty to present a holistic view of the writing process and provides a useful analogy for faculty as well as an accessible context for students. Legal writing instructors share …