Digital Commons Network^™

Consumer Credit--The Department Store Revolving Charge Account--Usury Resurrected--State V. J.C. Penney Company, Michigan Law Review

Michigan Law Review

The Attorney General of Wisconsin recently brought an action against the J.C. Penney retailing chain for an injunction against any further charges of 1½% per month on the declining balances of its revolving charge accounts. The state alleged that anything in excess of I% per month was a violation of the $12 per $100 per annum usury ceiling established by its legislature as the maximum chargeable for a loan or forbearance of money. Penney admitted that its monthly charge frequently exceeded the allowable rate but argued that its charge was a "time-price differential," exempt from statutory control under the time-price …

Bank Charge Cards: New Cash Or New Credit, Roland E. Brandel, Carl A. Leonard

Michigan Law Review

It is the premise of this Article that the bank charge card systems constitute a new, highly useful, and efficient payment and credit mechanism; that any decision-making body that promulgates a rule on the issue of the assertability of consumer defenses must carefully evaluate the true functions of bank charge cards, particularly their role as part of a sophisticated payment mechanism, and weigh the relative interests of the consuming public, merchants, and members of the banking industry to derive the best solution for society; that courts are ill-equipped to perform this function; and, that, given the national and international usage …

Regulation Of Intermodal Rate Competition In Transportation, Joseph R. Rose

Michigan Law Review

The controversy over intermodal rate competition comprehends both legal and economic issues. Clarity requires that each be explicitly stated and separately treated. The legal issues center on the meaning of section 15a(3) of the Interstate Commerce Act and the declaration of the National Transportation Policy that precedes the Act, which are the sources of the Commission's authority. The economic issues involve the effect on resource allocation of rate-making proposals devised to carry out these provisions of the Act.

Judicial Development Of The Law Of Selective Service Reopening, Michigan Law Review

Michigan Law Review

The purpose of this Comment is to restate the law of reopening as developed by the Act, the regulations, and the courts. The discussion will necessarily include a look at the abuses committed by local boards, the judicial reaction to these improprieties, and the availability of judicial review in various reopening situations, as well as comments on the various aspects of the substantive law of reopening.

Torts--Strict Liability--A Hospital Is Strictly Liable For Transfusions Of Hepatitis-Infected Blood--Cunningham V. Macneal Memorial Hospital, Michigan Law Review

Michigan Law Review

This Recent Development will briefly trace the development of hospital liability for transfusions of hepatitis-infected blood and will analyze both the impact of Cunningham on that area of the law and the correctness of the Cunningham decision.

Devising Procedures That Are Civil To Promote Justice That Is Civilized, Maurice Rosenberg

Michigan Law Review

In a democracy, process is king to a very large extent, and this is especially so in the judicial branch. Even though substantive laws command attention, procedural rules ensure respect. Why is this true? One powerful reason is that when people end up in court, their case typically is not a matter of right against wrong, but of right against right. Decent process makes the painful task of deciding which party will prevail bearable and helps make the decision itself acceptable.

To put my position plainly, I believe that the road to court-made justice is paved with good procedures. Later …

International Law--Extraterritoriality--Antitrust Law--Development Of The Defense Of Sovereign Compulsion, Michigan Law Review

Michigan Law Review

One of the most troublesome of these conflicts arises when an American business abroad is subjected to an order of a foreign government and the carrying out of that order requires that business to violate the antitrust laws of the United States. The recent case of Interamerican Refining Corporation v. Texaco Maracaibo, Incorporated confronted an American court with this precise issue for the first time. The United States District Court for the District of Delaware responded by saying that the defendants had been compelled to act as they did by the orders of a foreign sovereign government, and it held …

Criminal Procedure--Self-Incrimination--Harmless Error--Application Of The Harmless Error Doctrine To Violations Of Miranda: The California Experience, Michigan Law Review

Michigan Law Review

Using decisions of the appellate courts of California that have applied the federal harmless error rule to violations of Miranda v. Arizona and Escobedo v. Illinois, this Note will examine the logic and effects of the California application. However, the California experience can only be understood by first briefly describing the United States Supreme Court's decisions regarding harmless constitutional error and then showing the approaches taken by other states in their application of the harmless error rule to Miranda violations. Not only will this analysis put the California experience in its proper perspective, but it will also show the …

Constitutional Law--Double Jeopardy--Collateral Estoppel Is Constitutionally Required In Criminal Cases Because It Is Embodied In The Fifth Amendment Double Jeopardy Clause--Ashe V. Swenson, Michigan Law Review

Michigan Law Review

It is, therefore, important in any analysis of the Ashe decision to examine the policies and purposes behind collateral estoppel and double jeopardy and the current effectiveness of the two doctrines in light of these policies and purposes. The policies of the double jeopardy guarantee are well defined in the federal cases. Basically, it is recognized that the state, having at hand many more resources than the average defendant can muster, should not be allowed to make successive attempts to convict an individual for an alleged offense. Successive prosecutions cause the defendant expense and embarrassment and force him to live …

Metropolitanization And Land-Use Parochialism--Toward A Judicial Attitude, Michael H. Feiler

Michigan Law Review

The purpose of this Article is to explore those situations in which courts have given meaning to the Euclid caveat in operation, and, from those instances, to attempt to evolve a judicial approach to the problems posed by the conflict between purely local interests on the one hand and more comprehensive regional interests on the other. Four basic premises are herein indulged: (1) that strictly local zoning is unsatisfactory; (2) that new and innovative legislation will not be readily forthcoming; (3) that the burden of mediating these conflict situations will continue to fall upon the judiciary; and (4) that present …

Retroactive Laws--Environmental Law--Retroactive Application Of The National Environmental Policy Act Of 1969, Michigan Law Review

Michigan Law Review

On January I, 1970, Congress took a major step in the continuing struggle to control man's exploitation of his environment by enacting the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA). This Act, hailed by some conservationists as one of the most important environmental developments of the decade, is designed primarily to prevent the misuse and abuse of the environment resulting either directly or indirectly from federal agency activity. In essence, by establishing a broad national policy giving a strong priority to the consideration of ecological factors and by implementing procedures designed to bring agency action into line with this policy, …

Labor Law--The Permissible Scope Of The National Labor Relations Board's Rule Against Relitigation, Michigan Law Review

Michigan Law Review

Under section 9 of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA or Act), the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB or Board) is charged with the responsibility of determining what group of employees constitutes an appropriate unit for purposes of collective bargaining with an employer. While the Board itself originally handled representation petitions and determined appropriate bargaining units, Congress in 1959 amended the NLRA and authorized the Board to delegate its section 9 powers to the regional directors in order to expedite NLRB operations. Pursuant to this authorization, and in accordance with its rule-making authority under section 6 of the Act, the …

Civilizing University Discipline, Paul D. Carrington

Michigan Law Review

It is the purpose of this Article to suggest that the criminal model is not the only possible system of university discipline. There are alternatives to be found in the operation of the civil courts and other administrative agencies that have received little consideration. It is a common, but mistaken, assumption that the proper way to deal with offensive conduct is by means of social punishment. The unfortunate consequences of a general tendency of legislatures to "overcriminalize" have been noted elsewhere. The trend in university discipline may be regarded as a special application of that tendency, or, at least, as …

The Public-Interest Proxy Contest: Reflections On Campaign Gm, Donald E. Schwartz

Michigan Law Review

Proxy contests are generally fought for control of a corporation. The rules governing this form of corporate combat seek to provide shareholders with adequate information about the rival forces for control so that they can intelligently choose between them. The information furnished in proxy materials and discussions at annual meetings have traditionally been devoted almost entirely to subjects such as finance, production, acquisitions, and the like.

Residential Tenants And Their Leases: An Empirical Study, Warren Mueller

Michigan Law Review

Of particular interest is the application of this theory to residential leases, a classic example of the standard long-form contract. An abundance of traditional legal research and commentary has been devoted to the problem of disparity of bargaining power between the parties to a standard-form residential lease. The commentators have consistently called for reform measures to combat this problem. In order to adopt sensible and effective reform measures, however, it is first necessary to obtain factual data with which to test and clarify the reformers' underlying assumptions. Such data is virtually nonexistent, since, prior to the study described in this …

Restructuring Federal Estate And Gift Taxes: Impact Of Proposed Reforms On Estate Planning, Verner F. Chaffin

Michigan Law Review

It is undeniable that estate and gift taxes, in contrast to income taxes, have not received the legislative attention that they deserve. Congress has largely ignored these important segments of our tax structure for many years, and during that time a host of defects and inequities have become apparent. This congressional indifference in the estate and gift tax field can be attributed to the fact that these taxes, unlike the income tax, affect relatively few people, and that they produce less than two per cent of our total tax revenue. It is understandable, therefore, that while the major thrust of …

Evidence--Privileged Communications--The Attorney-Client Privilege In The Corporate Setting: A Suggested Approach, Michigan Law Review

Michigan Law Review

This Note will first review the development of the personal attorney-client privilege and the extent to which the term "client" has been expanded for use with that privilege. Then, the development of the corporate attorney-client privilege will be examined with an eye toward isolating the tests that the courts have used to define the extent of the term "client." Finally, with the results of these examinations in mind, an approach will be suggested that, if adopted by the courts, could effectively eliminate the confusion that presently exists with regard to the scope of the attorney-client privilege in the corporate setting.

Uniform Commercial Code--Sales--Sections 2-508 And 2-608--Limitations On The Perfect-Tender Rule, Michigan Law Review

Michigan Law Review

Section 2-601 of the UCC gives a buyer of goods a right to reject for any nonconformity to the contract specifications. While this section essentially codifies the "perfect tender" rule of pre-Code sales law, it expressly limits that rule by referring to section 2-612, which pertains to installment contracts, and sections 2-718 and 2-719, which allow contractual limitations on remedies. Moreover, other provisions in the Code have the effect of restricting the perfect-tender concept. This Note will examine how the courts have applied two such sections-2-508 and 2-608-to protect the interests of buyers and sellers after tender.

Wright: Comparative Conflict Resolution Procedures In Taxation, Thomas A. Troyer, Arthur B. White, Donald W. Bacon

Michigan Law Review

A Review of Comparative Conflict Resolution Procedures in Taxation edited by L. Hart Wright

Securities Regulation--Damages--The Possibility Of Punitive Damages As A Remedy For A Violation Of Rule 10b-5, Michigan Law Review

Michigan Law Review

Several lower federal courts have recently been faced with this issue and have reached conflicting results in their attempts to resolve it. This Note will examine both the problems of statutory interpretation and the policy considerations that are involved in deciding whether punitive damages should be awarded in civil actions based on violations of rule I0b-5.

A Requiem For Requiems: The Supreme Court At The Bar Of Reality, Stanley K. Laughlin Jr.

Michigan Law Review

It is true that the test set out in Roth v. United States is moribund. In a sense it was stillborn. While five Justices, only one of whom remains on the Court, joined in the majority opinion in Roth, that case only adumbrated certain considerations that later were forged into what has come to be known as the Roth test. No sooner did the forging process begin than the Court became fragmented on this issue, and a majority of the Justices has never since concurred in the test-certainly not in a compatible formulation of it. Today, it is not …

Labor Law--Boycotts And Strikes--Picketing--The Picketing Of An Independent Warehouse I Which A Primary Employer's Goods Are Stored-- Steelworkers, Local 6991 (Auburndale Freezer Corp.), Michigan Law Review

Michigan Law Review

When a group of employees strike against their own employer--the primary employer-their purpose usually is to disrupt his operations in the hope that economic pressure will persuade or coerce him to meet their demands. They may picket the primary employer's premises in order to publicize the strike or to try to persuade fellow employees to join it; and even if the picketing induces third persons not to deal with the primary, the employees' activity constitutes protected primary picketing. If the goal of the striking employees is in fact to publicize the strike and to persuade their co-workers, they will naturally …

Motor Vehicle Air Pollution: State Authority And Federal Pre-Emption, David P. Currie

Michigan Law Review

The problem of state authority over motor vehicle air pollution was recently highlighted when the Illinois Air Pollution Control Board, for the first time, adopted regulations to deal with vehicle emissions. Those regulations are disappointingly feeble. Except for outlawing visible smoke and for making it unlawful to dismantle pollution control devices, the new rules do nothing but state that the Board may decide to do something in the future about pollution from automobiles.

In attempting to improve upon these regulations, however, one is struck with a sense of considerable futility. Given the present limits of technology and the necessarily legislative …

Sovereign Immunity And Nonstatutory Review Of Federal Administrative Action: Some Conclusions From The Public-Lands Cases, Antonin Scalia

Michigan Law Review

The purpose of the present Article is not to propose yet another route toward logical reconciliation of the sovereign-immunity cases; but, on the contrary, to urge general acceptance of the fact that such reconciliation is, and will probably remain, unattainable; to explain why this is so; and to suggest why it is not so bad. This modest goal will be attempted through a detailed examination of two recent Supreme Court cases and their most pertinent antecedents.

Military Law--Military Jurisdiction Over Crimes Committed By Military Personnel Outside The United States: The Effect Of O'Callahan V. Parker, Michigan Law Review

Michigan Law Review

Until recently, it had generally been considered that the minimum condition necessary to justify the invocation of military jurisdiction was the offender's "status" as "a person who can be regarded as falling within the term 'land and naval forces.' " In O' Callahan v. Parker, however, the United States Supreme Court determined that while military status is still requisite to the attachment of military jurisdiction, it is not a sufficient basis in and of itself to warrant trial by a military tribunal. In a five to three decision authored by Justice Douglas, the Court held that in order for military …

Periodical Index, Michigan Law Review

Michigan Law Review

Subject Index of Articles, Comments, Notes, and Recent Developments Appearing in Leading Law Reviews

Antitrust Law--Restraint Of Trade--Antitrust Implications Of The Exchange Of Price Information Among Competitors: The Container Corporation Case, Michigan Law Review

Michigan Law Review

Traditionally, it has not proved difficult to find policy considerations which justify the existence of programs of price information exchange among competitors. There has been widespread agreement that businessmen require knowledge of all the economic forces which affect their operations. Justice Holmes once said: "I should have thought that the ideal of commerce was an intelligent interchange made with full knowledge of the facts as a basis for the forecast of the future on both sides." Similarly, Justice Brandeis commented that "[t]he Sherman Law ... certainly does not command that competition shall be pursued blindly, that business rivals shall remain …

Labor Law--Bankruptcy--The Effect Of The Bankruptcy Of An Employer On The Employment Relationship And On Jurisdiction Over Labor Disputes Involving The Employer, Michigan Law Review

Michigan Law Review

Litigation arising in connection with the recent bankruptcy of Turney Wood Products, Inc., has brought into issue the general problem of the operation of a bankrupt employer under the federal labor laws. The provisions of both the federal labor laws and the Bankruptcy Act are clear in purpose, but in areas of their interaction they have produced jurisdictional confusion. The situation presented to a single court by the cases arising from the Turney Wood Products bankruptcy provided an ideal vehicle to resolve much of that confusion; in fact, the parties involved viewed it as a test-case situation. But the resulting …

Platt: The Child Savers: The Invention Of Delinquency, Joseph Whitehill

Michigan Law Review

A Review of The Child Savers: The Invention of Delinquency by Anthony M. Platt

Choice Of Law In Secured Personal Property Transactions: The Impact Of Article 9 Of The Uniform Commercial Code, Russell J. Weintraub

Michigan Law Review

It is likely that, in view of the adoption in forty-nine states of the Uniform Commercial Code (Code), particularly of article 9 dealing with secured transactions, the incidence of interstate conflict-of- laws problems concerning commercial transactions in personal property will be greatly reduced. The reason for this anticipated reduction is that the Code creates uniformity in the applicable law governing the rights and duties both between the secured creditor and the debtor and between the secured creditor and third parties who challenge the secured creditor's right to enjoy his security interest.