Digital Commons Network^™

Will There Be A Neurolaw Revolution?, Adam Kolber

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Ideology, Qualifications, And Covert Senate Obstruction Of Federal Court Nominations, Ryan J. Owens, Daniel E. Walters, Ryan C. Black, Anthony Madonna

Faculty Scholarship

Scholars, policymakers, and journalists have bemoaned the emphasis on ideology over qualifications and party over performance in the judicial appointment process. Though, for years, the acrimony between the two parties and between the Senate and President remained limited to appointments to the United States Supreme Court, the modern era of judicial appointments has seen the so-called “appointments rigor mortis” spread throughout all levels of judicial appointments. A host of studies have examined the causes and consequences of the growing acrimony and obstruction of lower federal court appointments, but few rely on archival data and empirical evidence to examine the underlying …

The Myth Of Strict Scrutiny For Fundamental Rights, James E. Fleming, Linda C. Mcclain

Faculty Scholarship

Dissenting in Lawrence v. Texas, Justice Scalia stated that, under the Due Process Clause, if an asserted liberty is a "fundamental right," it triggers "strict scrutiny" that almost automatically invalidates any statute restricting that liberty. For strict scrutiny requires that the challenged statute, to be upheld, must further a "compelling governmental interest" and must be "necessary" or "narrowly tailored" to doing so. Scalia also wrote that if an asserted liberty is not a fundamental right, it is merely a "liberty interest" that triggers rational basis scrutiny that is so deferential that the Court all but automatically upholds the statute in …

Towards Universal Fiduciary Principles, Tamar Frankel

Faculty Scholarship

Fiduciary relationships play an important role in civil law and common law jurisdictions. While both legal systems offer similar outcomes in upholding fiduciary law principles, the way they achieve these ends is fundamentally different. In common law jurisdictions, fiduciary law is rooted in the law of property. By contrast, in civil law jurisdictions, fiduciary principles find their source in contract law. This article seeks to reconcile these differences, by identifying universal principles that apply to both systems. The author describes the sources of fiduciary law in the common law and the civil law, then highlights underlying differences between the two …

Preface, Ken I. Kersch, Linda C. Mcclain

Faculty Scholarship

In an essay in the Texas Law Review not too long ago, Sandy Levinson lamented the degree to which law reviews—most prominently the Michigan Law Review—were sharply cutting down on the space they were devoting to book reviews. This was especially unfortunate as law professors were publishing more and more books. The publication of a book, as opposed to a journal article, was for many a deliberate choice involving an effort to address subjects at greater length, in greater depth, and on a broader scale for a wider scholarly (and perhaps educated popular) audience. Thematic review essays on books, whether …

Property And Democratic Deliberation: The Numerus Clausus Principle And Democratic Experimentalism In Property Law, Anna Di Robilant

Faculty Scholarship

First-year law students soon become familiar with the numerus clausus principle in property law. The principle holds that there is a limited menu of available standard property forms (the estates, the different types of common or joint ownership, the different types of servitudes) and that new forms are hardly ever introduced. Over the last fifty years, however, property law has changed dramatically. A wealth of new property forms has been added to the list. This dynamism in the list has remained largely unexplored and is the subject of this Article. This Article focuses on a selection of recently created property …

The Trouble With Inclusion, Yuvraj Joshi

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Scandal - Early Supreme Court News Coverage And The Justice-Journalist Divide, Amy Gajda

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Language Disenfranchisement In Juries: A Call For Constitutional Remediation, Jasmine Gonzales Rose

Faculty Scholarship

Approximately thirteen million U.S. citizens, mostly Latinos and other people of color, are denied the right to serve on juries due to English language requirements and despite the possibility (and centuries-old tradition) of juror language accommodation. This exclusion results in the underrepresentation of racial minorities on juries and has a detrimental impact on criminal defendants, the perceived legitimacy of the justice system, and citizen participation in democracy. Yet, it has been virtually ignored. This Article examines the constitutionality of juror language requirements, focusing primarily on equal protection and the fair cross section requirement of the Sixth Amendment. Finding the existing …

Let's Talk About Race, Ronald E. Wheeler

Faculty Scholarship

Despite other scholars’ suggestions that law librarianship and the American Association of Law Libraries lack diversity, Mr. Wheeler examines numerical and anecdotal data indicating that efforts to promote racial and ethnic diversity within AALL and the profession are beginning to show positive results.

The Dangers Of Press Clause Dicta, Ronnell Andersen Jones

Faculty Scholarship

The United States Supreme Court has engaged in an unusual pattern of excessive dicta in cases involving the press. Indeed, a close examination of such cases reveals that it is one of the most consistent, defining characteristics of the U.S. Supreme Court’s media law jurisprudence in the last half century. The Court’s opinions in cases involving the media, while almost uniformly reaching conclusions based on other grounds, regularly include language about the constitutional or democratic character, duty, value, or role of the press — language that could be, but ultimately is not, significant to the constitutional conclusion reached. Although scholars …

Problem Faced By Digital Evidence In U.S. Law, Juan Carlos Marin Gonzalez, Guillermo J. Garcia Sanchez

Faculty Scholarship

El presente artículo analiza los problemas que en el derecho de los Estados Unidos de Norteamérica enfrenta la prueba digital. Al no contar con una regulación particular para este tipo de prueba, los jueces han aplicado las normas previstas para las pruebas físicas. Lo anterior si bien ha resultado útil en muchos casos, ha generado más de algún problema que la doctrina de Estados Unidos ha criticado. Desde esta perspectiva se debe tener presente que no todas las reglas y procedimientos previstos para las pruebas físicas, se pueden aplicar sin más a la confiscación de una prueba digital.

Brief For Professors At Unm School Of Law As Amicus Curiae, Fry V. Lopez, George Bach

Faculty Scholarship

Argument:

This Court should reject the application of the death sentence to Robert Fry and Tim Allen for statutory and constitutional reasons. First, H.B. 285, 49th Leg., 1st Sess. (N.M. 2009) repealed the statutory authority governing execution of the death sentence. Without statutory authority, the Corrections Department cannot act. In addition, in light of the repeal of the death sentence in New Mexico, the application of the death sentence to Mr. Fry and Mr. Allen would violate the Cruel and Unusual Punishment Clause and the Equal Protection Clause of the New Mexico Constitution. An alternative basis for precluding the use …

Copyright Expert Burr Shares Love For Writing, Teaching, Sherri L. Burr

Faculty Scholarship

Sherri Burr was one of the first to offer to teach a workshop at last year’s National Federation of Press Women (NFPW) conference in Salt Lake City. I was impressed with her enthusiasm for what she does. In addition, this amazing woman lectures around the world on copyright protection, in addition to being a university professor teaching intellectual property law in New Mexico. Meet another unique, unbelievable NFPW member.

Painful Disparities, Painful Realities, Amanda C. Pustilnik

Faculty Scholarship

Legal doctrines and decisional norms treat chronic claims pain differently than other kinds of disability or damages claims because of bias and confusion about whether chronic pain is real. This is law’s painful disparity. Now, breakthrough neuroimaging can make pain visible, shedding light on these mysterious ills. Neuroimaging shows these conditions are, as sufferers have known all along, painfully real. This Article is about where law ought to change because of innovations in structural and functional imaging of the brain in pain. It describes cutting-edge scientific developments and the impact they should make on evidence law and disability law, and, …

The 2013 Irs Crisis: Where Do We Go From Here?, Donald B. Tobin

Faculty Scholarship

This article argues that the IRS’s new proposed regulation on candidate-related political activities is a good first step. It creates a bright-line standard that is easy to apply and will reduce concerns that the IRS is manipulating the enforcement process for political gain. The regulation addresses serious concerns that some independent groups are circumventing disclosure laws in the code. These groups are improperly arguing that they qualify as social welfare organizations when in fact they are political organizations subject to disclosure under section 527. A better solution would be for Congress to pass broad-based campaign disclosure laws that would apply …

An Overview Of The Fannie And Freddie Conservatorship Litigation, David J. Reiss

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Impeachment By Unreliable Conviction, Anna Roberts

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

When Women Kill Newborns: The Rhetoric Of Vulnerability, Susan Ayres

Faculty Scholarship

This chapter explores feminist jurisprudence regarding women who commit acts of violence, focusing specifically on questions of agency in neonaticide (killing a newborn). A case study approach illustrates the debate in feminist theory between same-treatment and different-treatment of women as compared to men. While some feminist criminologists urge that women who kill must be viewed the same as men (as having agency and responsibility), other feminists question this approach and point out that women who commit crimes that intersect with family law receive disproportionately harsh treatment and should be treated differently than men.

This chapter contends that the paradox raised …

Joint Ventures Of Nonprofits And For-Profits, Terri Lynn Helge

Faculty Scholarship

This article summarizes special tax considerations that should be taken into account when for-profit parties seek to engage in joint ventures with charitable organizations. In particular, there are two areas of concern unique to charitable organizations with respect to joint ventures with for-profit parties. First, certain rules restrict or prohibit a charitable organization's ability to enter into transactions with insiders. Second, a charitable organizations' participation in a joint venture with a taxable party may cause the charitable organization to incur unrelated business taxable income or lose its tax-exempt status. Underlying both of these areas of concern is the overriding concern …

Justice On The Fly: The Danger Of Errant Deportations, Fatma Marouf, Michael Kagan, Rebecca Gill

Faculty Scholarship

The government may deport an immigrant appealing a deportation order in federal court even before the court rules on the case, unless the court issues a stay of removal. In its 2009 decision in Nken v. Holder, the Supreme Court clarified that the legal standard for stays of removal is the same test courts use for preliminary injunctions. Yet Justice Kennedy expressed frustration that the Court had little data to inform its decision. The Court will likely need to revisit this issue, as doubts cloud the meaning of Nken’s main holdings, in part because the government misled the …

Buying Time: False Assumptions About Abusive Appeals, Michael Kagan, Fatma Marouf, Rebecca Gill

Faculty Scholarship

The federal government has expressed fear that immigrants abuse the appellate process to delay their deportations by filing meritless petitions for review with the federal courts. Some courts have responded to these concerns by imposing stricter standards for issuing stays of removal, so that the government can more easily deport petitioners even while their appeals remain pending. The risk with this approach is that immigrants who ultimately prevail may be erroneously deported. What is often overlooked is that the potential for abuse is really a function of time, with longer appeals posing a greater threat to immigration enforcement. This study …

Encouraging The Development Of Low Bono Law Practices, Luz E. Herrera

Faculty Scholarship

For decades, the discussion about access to justice has primarily focused on the ability of low–income individuals to obtain free representation by lawyers. Lawyer representation is the “gold star” of the legal profession and advocates of legal services for the poor have fought difficult battles to ensure the most disadvantaged in our country have access to these professionals. As a result, legal aid programs and pro bono services that assist the most economically disadvantaged in our country are now common in our legal service delivery system.

Despite those important efforts, only 50% of those eligible for free legal services actually …

Introducing Plea Bargaining Into Post-Conflict Legal Systems, Cynthia Alkon, Ena Dion

Faculty Scholarship

Criminal justice systems around the world face overwhelming caseloads and ever-increasing pressure to handle more. This pressure can be even more serious in post-conflict countries that face additional problems such as limited resources and fragile political environments. In overloaded criminal justice systems it may be difficult, if not impossible, to hold trials for every accused person in a timely way. As a result, countries are increasingly looking to alternative processes to handle criminal cases beyond traditional formal trials. Plea bargaining is frequently considered as a possible solution to problems of case backlogs, long periods of pretrial detention, and to help …

Justice Deferred Is Justice Denied: We Must End Our Failed Experiment In Deferring Corporate Criminal Prosecutions, Peter Reilly

Faculty Scholarship

According to the U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”), deferred prosecution agreements are said to occupy an “important middle ground” between declining to prosecute on the one hand, and trials or guilty pleas on the other. A top DOJ official has declared that, over the last decade, the agreements have become a “mainstay” of white collar criminal law enforcement; a prominent criminal law professor calls their increased use part of the “biggest change in corporate law enforcement policy in the last ten years.”

However, despite deferred prosecution’s apparent rise in popularity among law enforcement officials, the article sets forth the argument …

Energy Reform In Mexico: Lessons And Warnings From International Law, Guillermo J. Garcia Sanchez

Faculty Scholarship

The article analyzes some of the contents of the Mexican Energy Reform of 2013 and warns on the international legal implications that the path that Mexico has chosen to follow could bring to its economy and international relations. Concretely, it argues that in order to avoid falling into the same mistakes made by other Latin American countries in the region, Mexico must consider its obligations contained in international treaties signed with the United States on transboundary resources, and its obligations in bilateral investment treaties that protect foreign investors from certain government acts and policies.

The Growing Public Domain In Medicine, Saurabh Vishnubhakat

Faculty Scholarship

This essay describes the growing public domain of inventions associated with drugs and medicine, and geographies associated with identifiable shifts in the balance of innovation that may be especially favorable for promoting wider access to socially useful technologies. To do so, it departs from the largely ex ante perspective that currently informs the intersectional debate regarding human rights and patent rights and, instead, looks backward to inquire what innovations from past patents have already become publicly available in service of the human rights objective of greater access to technology. Ex post analysis of this kind may help public and private …

New Beginnings: Texas A&M University School Of Law Has The Noble Charge Of Being Texas's First Public Law School In The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, Aric K. Short

Faculty Scholarship

On the evening of Aug. 12, 2013, the doors to Texas Wesleyan University School of Law in downtown Fort Worth closed for a final time. The following morning, those same doors opened, and Texas A&M University School of Law began operations. During the next week, the school welcomed 250 1Ls to orientation, and fall classes began for all 770 students.

For Aggies, this transition in ownership capped a decades-long effort to bring a law school to Texas A&M University. For those of us at the law school, Aug. 13 concluded a busy and challenging year laying the foundation for our …

The U.S. Supreme Court's Failure To Fix Plea Bargaining: The Impact Of Lafler And Frye, Cynthia Alkon

Faculty Scholarship

In the 2012 companion cases of Lafler v. Cooper and Missouri v. Frye, the United States Supreme Court held that there is a right to effective assistance of counsel during plea bargaining, even when a defendant later loses at trial. Legal commentators suggested the cases were "the single greatest revolution in the criminal justice process since Gideon v. Wainwright," that the cases will have a "significant effect,"' and that they were "the term's decisions with the greatest everyday impact on the criminal justice system." But, will things really change for defendants in the wake of Lafler and Frye …

Secrecy, Intimacy, And Workable Rules: Justice Sotomayor Stakes Out The Middle Ground In United States V. Jones, Miriam H. Baer

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.