Digital Commons Network^™

Why Lawyers Should Care, John C. Dernbach

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Product Liability In The United States Supreme Court: A Venture In Memory Of Gary Schwartz., Anita Bernstein

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

The Phenomenon Of Substitution And The Statute Quia Emptores, Ronald B. Brown

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Street Law, Winnie F. Taylor

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Searching For A Sense Of Control: The Challenge Presented By Community Conflicts Over Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations, Nancy A. Welsh, Barbara Gray

Faculty Scholarship

The growth in the number of concentrated animal feeding operations ("CAFOs"), particularly those involved in swine production, has brought with it increased community concern and outright conflict in many communities across the United States.' Most commentators have focused upon anticipated outcomes to explain the contentiousness of CAFO-related disputes.2 Meanwhile, even though the social dynamics that contribute to the development and escalation of conflicts over CAFOs parallel those exhibited in other kinds of community conflicts, little research has systematically examined the social dynamics associated with CAFO conflicts. One exception to this deficiency is recent work conducted by a team of researchers …

International Parallel Litigation - A Survey Of Current Conventions And Model Laws, James P. George

Faculty Scholarship

Parallel litigation is difficult to define and sometimes means what the speaker wants it to mean. It may be limited to identical lawsuits with exactly the same parties and the same claims. It may also mean any instance of two or more lawsuits that may result in claim preclusion for some or all of the parties. It includes concepts of reactive and repetitive litigation, related litigation, and derivative litigation. Whatever it is thought to encompass, it incurs criticism as being vexing and harassing, wasteful of the parties' and courts' resources, and inclined to produce inconsistent results and possibly inter-governmental discord. …

Beyond Observable Prejudice-Moving From Recognition Of Differences To Feasible Solutions: A Critique Of Ian Ayres' Pervasive Prejudice?, Mary Margaret Penrose

Faculty Scholarship

As a female professor working within the academic ranks of a law school, I did not have to read Ian Ayres' work, Pervasive Prejudice? Unconventional Evidence of Race and Gender Discrimination, to know that the odds remain quite high that blacks and women will be subjected to greater instances of discrimination in the marketplace, in medical facilities, and in judicial proceedings than their white male counterparts. Although I would not suggest that such conclusion is axiomatic, it certainly is observable on an experiential level by those falling within the two categories (race and gender) discussed in Professor Ayres' book. …

Perspectives Of A New Executive Director, William H. Henning

Faculty Scholarship

Article Extract:

It goes without saying that a national economy cannot function efficiently without a core set of commercial laws to provide a stable base. Can you imagine the added costs of doing business if common transactions were governed by truly idiosyncratic laws in the various states? We had just such a situation in secured-finance law before the widespread adoption of Article 9 of the Uniform Commercial Code. Creditors seeking to use personal property as security faced a bewildering array of devices-pledge, chattel mortgage, conditional sale, assignment of accounts receivable, trust receipt, equipment trust, factor's lien, etc. Some of the …

The Cookie Cutter Syndrome: Legal Reform Assistance Under Post-Communist Democratization Programs, Cynthia Alkon

Faculty Scholarship

Communism ended in most parts of Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union over ten years ago. However, the legal and judicial systems in many of these nations seemingly defy reform efforts. What I call in this article the "Cookie Cutter Syndrome" describes the standard approach Western nations developed to assist legal reform in the former Communist world.' Despite vastly different conditions in these countries, the model for judicial reform remains very similar, and is rooted in litigation and adversarial practices. The question of whether an adversarial-based approach is appropriate becomes even more acute as assistance efforts focus more on …

Asbestos Litigation Gone Mad: Exposure-Based Recovery For Increased Risk, Mental Distress, And Medical Monitoring, Aaron Twerski, J. A. Henderson

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

The Aftermath Of September 11, 2001: The Targeting Of Arabs And Muslims In America, Susan M. Akram

Faculty Scholarship

THE DEMONIZING OF ARABS AND Muslims in America began well before the terrible tragedy of September 11, 2001. It can be traced to deliberate mythmaking by film and media,² stereotyping as part of conscious strategy of 'experts' and polemicists on the Middle East,³ the selling of a foreign policy agenda by US government officials and groups seeking to affect that agenda,⁴ and a public susceptible to images identifying the unwelcome 'other* in its midst.⁵ Bearing the brunt of these factors are Arab and Muslim non-citizens in this country. A series of government laws and policies since …

Privacy And The Post-September 11 Immigration Detainees: The Wrong Way To A Right (And Other Wrongs), Sadiq Reza

Faculty Scholarship

In forthcoming work, I argue that this common-law privacy right should indeed attach to individuals arrested for or suspected of crime.9 I also argue that support for the right exists in a variety of judicial, statutory, and other sources, and that legislation to formally protect the right is warranted and constitutional. The reasoning is simple: being publicly named in connection with criminal allegations is stigmatizing, and the resultant personal harm-social, professional, emotional, other-lasts, and is difficult to justify when it is visited upon someone who is acquitted of the charges or against whom the charges are dismissed. Equally troubling is …

A Three-Dimensional Model For The Use Of Expert Psychiatric And Psychological Evidence In False Confession Defenses Before The Trier Of Fact, Joshua E. Kastenberg

Faculty Scholarship

Part I of this Article delineates a defendant's right to present voluntariness and credibility evidence against his or her confession. This section analyzes the basic constitutional framework of how a defendant can present this evidence and describes the traditional safeguards against false confessions. This background information provides a context for the overarching issue of expert testimony admissibility. Part II provides a basic understanding of differences between the psychiatric (medical model) and psychological (social model) approach to false confessions. It then examines the types of false confession defenses used by defendants and the interrogation techniques challenged by defendants. Part III reviews …

Form Over Substance?: Officer Certification And The Promise Of Enhanced Personal Accountability Under The Sarbanes-Oxley Act, Lisa M. Fairfax

Faculty Scholarship

This article argues that the requirement under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (the “Act”) that particular officers certify the accuracy of the financial information contained in their company’s periodic reports fails to alter significantly existing standards of liability for officers who signed or approved such reports prior to the Act’s passage. This failure creates cause for concern about the Act’s potential to meet its objectives. Indeed, the certification requirement represents one of the Act’s principal symbols of officer personal accountability. By demonstrating that the requirement may only be symbolic, my article questions whether the Act can impact the behavior of corporate officers, …

The Linguist On The Witness Stand: Forensic Linguistics In American Courts, Lawrence Solan, Peter Tiersma

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, Information Privacy, And The Limits Of Default Rules, Edward J. Janger, Paul M. Schwartz

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Whose Duty Is It Anyway?: The Kennedy Krieger Opinion And Its Implications For Public Health Research, Diane E. Hoffmann, Karen H. Rothenberg

Faculty Scholarship

In this article, the authors discuss the Maryland Court of Appeals decision in the case of Grimes v. Kennedy Krieger Institute, Inc. and its implications for the tort duty owed by researchers, in particular public health researchers, to their subjects. The Opinion resulted from two lawsuits alleging lead poisoning of children enrolled in a study conducted by the Kennedy Krieger Institute, a world renown pediatric research and treatment facility. The opinion shocked the research establishment with its scathing characterization of researchers and its apparent holding that in Maryland a parent cannot consent to the participation of a child in "nontherapeutic …

Toward A Great Sioux Nation Judicial Support Center And Supreme Court: An Interim Planning And Recommendation Report For The Wakpa Sica Historical Society’S Reconciliation Place Project, John P. Lavelle, Frank Pommersheim

Faculty Scholarship

This Interim Planning and Recommendation Report describes the significance and potential benefits of the Wakpa Sica Historical Society’s Reconciliation Place Project in its endeavor to facilitate the establishment of a Great Sioux Nation Supreme Court. The report emphasizes that the vision of establishing such a Court has existed among the Sioux tribes of South Dakota, North Dakota, and Nebraska for generations and that the project’s legitimacy and ultimate success depend on its ability to continue fostering the tribes’ endorsement of and participation in the Court’s development and implementation.

Self-Definition In The Constitution Of Faith And Family, David D. Meyer

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Antitrust, Health Care Quality, And The Courts, Peter J. Hammer, William M. Sage

Faculty Scholarship

Antitrust law represents the principal legal tool that the United States employs to police private markets, yet it often relegates quality and nonprice considerations to a secondary position. While antitrust law espouses the belief that vigorous competition will enhance quality as well as price, little evidence exists of the practical ability of courts to deliver on that promise. In this Article, Professors Hammer and Sage examine American health care as a vehicle for advancing understanding of the nexus among competition, quality, and antitrust law. The Article reports the results of a comprehensive empirical review of judicial opinions in health care …

Fortifying A Law Firm's Ethical Infrastructure: Avoiding Legal Malpractice Claims Based On Conflicts Of Interest, Susan Saab Fortney, Jett Hanna

Faculty Scholarship

This article addresses the prevailing problem of malpractice claims based on conflicts of interest. Part I of this article introduces the topic by underscoring the seriousness of all conflicts of interest and recommending preventative action. Part II describes measures that law firms can take to detect and manage conflicts and analyzes the effect of the firm’s ability to avoid conflicts claims on a firm’s ethical infrastructure. Part III focuses on some of the most common conflicts situations that result in malpractice claims and sanctions. The discussion includes selected conflicts cases that illustrate problems and patterns. Part IV concludes by urging …

Recent Developments In The Law Of Comparative Advertising In Italy – Towards An Effective Enforcement Of The Principles Of Directive 97/55/Ec Under The New Regime?, Irene Calboli

Faculty Scholarship

On February 25, 2000, the Italian Government adopted Legislative Decree No. 67, which enacted Directive 97/55/EC amending Directive 84/450/EEC concerning misleading advertising, so as to include comparative advertising. Contrary to what one could have expected in a country that has traditionally banned comparison in advertisements, Italy was one of the first among the Member States to implement Directive 97/55/EC. In order to allow consistent enforcement practices, however, the adoption of the new law must be followed by a profound change in the ways Italian courts and legal operators have approaches this issue so far. This Article explores this issue and …

Terrorism, The Use Of Force And International Law After 11 September, Michael Byers

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

A No-Buff Technique To Produce Surfaces That Induce Alignment In Liquid Crystals, Daniel Harrison, Michael R. Fisch, Rolfe G. Petschek, J.-F. Li

Faculty Scholarship

Alignment layers for liquid crystal cells were prepared by directional deposition of high molecular weight rigid-rod ionomers on glass and indium–tin–oxide substrates. Several deposition techniques were developed and tested. Material type, concentration, temperature, and application technique were systematically varied and the resultant alignment of the liquid crystals studied. Three different methods of applying the alignment layer were investigated: directional spray deposition, brushing, and directional deposition using a squeegee (doctor bar). The application temperature ranged from 30 to 80°C. The best results were obtained using a squeegee to perform directional deposition at temperature of less than 60°C. The alignment layers obtained …

Palestinian Refugees And Their Legal Status: Rights, Politics, And Implications For A Just Solution, Susan M. Akram

Faculty Scholarship

The Palestinian refugee problem is one of the longest-lasting refugee crises in the world——now exceeding fifty-three years——without a real solution in sight. Although at its core a political problem, the Palestinian refugee crisis is also a problem of legal distortion: Palestinian refugees fall into a legal lacuna that sets them outside minimal international protections available for all other refugee groups in the world. This paper provides background to the legal anomaly that sets Palestinian refugees apart; discusses the legal, practical, and political implications of that status; and proposes a framework and mechanisms aimed at promoting a rights-based solution for the …

Are Agreements To Keep Secret Information In Discovery Legal, Illegal Or Something In Between?, Susan P. Koniak

Faculty Scholarship

For at least eight years before the public and government authorities learned of the apparently dangerous combination of Ford Explorer sport utility vehicles ("SUVs") and their Bridgestone/Firestone brand of tires, Firestone had been settling lawsuits involving injuries and deaths caused by their tires failing on Ford SUVs. These settlements included terms requiring the plaintiffs and their lawyers to keep quiet about the settlements and about information learned through discovery, including information that might have alerted the public or the government to just how unsafe the Explorer/Firestone combination actually was. In some cases, these secrecy provisions were reinforced by court protective …

The Law Of Cross-Border Securitization: Lex Juris, Tamar Frankel

Faculty Scholarship

This article discusses the process by which the law of crossborder securitization evolves and becomes uniform. In a former article entitled Cross-Border Securitization: Without Law, but Not Lawless, I posited that "the laws governing cross-border securitization are developed first by decentralized lawmaking 'markets," and then absorbed by centralized lawmaking of communities, large intermediaries, and corporations."¹ I suggested that a cyclical process is involved. New forms of cross-border securitization and new legal issues emerge while old forms and settled issues solidify into rules. This article continues the inquiry. The first part of the article also defines the meaning of a …

Welfare Implications Of Costly Litigation Under Strict Liability, Keith N. Hylton

Faculty Scholarship

This article examines a model of strict liability with costly litigation and presents conditions under which (1) potential injurers take optimal precautions, (2) increasing the cost of litigation enhances precaution and social welfare, (3) the optimal level of liability exceeds the compensatory level, and (4) increasing the rate of settlement enhances social welfare. The results have implications for controversies surrounding fee shifting, optimal damage awards (e.g., punitive damages), and the social desirability of settlement. The most striking implication is that fee shifting in favor of prevailing plaintiffs is socially desirable in low-transaction-cost settings.

Ruminations On Tenure, Ronald E. Wheeler

Faculty Scholarship

As a newer law librarian having just completed by first year in a non-tenure track position, I often find myself wondering what my professional life would be like if my position were tenure track. After some reflection and discussion with peers, I've formulated the following thoughts on the subject of tenure for academic law librarians.

The Lawyer As Citizen, James E. Fleming

Faculty Scholarship

The moral schizophrenia of the lawyer-person wrought by the American adversarial system's differentiation of professional morality from personal morality is at once alienating and anesthetizing. Alienating in that it separates a person from her/his actions taken in performing a professional role by attributing responsibility for these actions and their consequences to the role itself rather than to the individual. Anesthetizing in that it permits if not requires a professional to constrict the moral universe inhabited on the job, extruding moral sentiments that she/he otherwise might feel, numbing the moral sense of ordinary personal responsibility.