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Articles 1 - 6 of 6
Full-Text Articles in Law
Rights, Privileges, And The Future Of Marriage, Adam Macleod
Rights, Privileges, And The Future Of Marriage, Adam Macleod
Adam MacLeod
On the eve of its final triumph, has the cause of marriage equality fallen short? This essay discusses persistent differences in the incidents that attach to same-sex marriages versus man-woman marriages. It examines these in light of the distinction between fundamental rights and concessions of privilege in marriage law, and in common law constitutionalism generally. The Obergefell majority's premise that the marriage right is created and conferred by positive law renders the rights and duties of same-sex marriage unstable. By contrast, the rights and duties of the natural family have proven surprisingly resilient, despite their incompatibility with full marriage equality, …
Religious Exemptions, Marriage Equality, And The Establishment Of Religion, Nancy J. Knauer
Religious Exemptions, Marriage Equality, And The Establishment Of Religion, Nancy J. Knauer
Nancy J. Knauer
The advent of nationwide marriage equality has sparked a robust debate over the extent of religious liberties and the limits of civil rights protections. As public opinion regarding LGBT individuals and the families they form has evolved, religious beliefs that once served as the basis for law and policy have been increasing marginalized. Various efforts have been made to protect religious objectors who continue to believe that marriage is only between one man and one woman. For example, all of the states that had enacted marriage equality legislation included exceptions for clergy and religious organizations to ensure that they would …
Suspect Classification And Its Discontents, Susannah W. Pollvogt
Suspect Classification And Its Discontents, Susannah W. Pollvogt
Susannah W Pollvogt
Suspect classification analysis and the associated tiers of scrutiny framework are the primary doctrinal features of contemporary equal protection jurisprudence. How plaintiffs fare under these twin doctrines determines the ultimate fate of their equal protection claims. But neither doctrine finds firm footing in precedent or theory. Rather, a close examination of the United States Supreme Court’s equal protection jurisprudence reveals these doctrines as historically contingent and lacking in any principled justification. But rather than disregard the contributions of these cases altogether, this Article mines that same body of law not for the discrete doctrinal mechanisms developed in each case, but …
The Reactionary Road To Free Love: How Doma, State Marriage Amendments And Social Conservatives Undermine Traditional Marriage, Scott Titshaw
The Reactionary Road To Free Love: How Doma, State Marriage Amendments And Social Conservatives Undermine Traditional Marriage, Scott Titshaw
Scott Titshaw
Much has been written about the possible effects on different-sex marriage of legally recognizing same-sex marriage. This article looks at the defense of marriage from a different angle: It shows how rejecting same-sex marriage results in political compromise and the proliferation of “marriage light” alternatives (e.g., civil unions, domestic partnerships, or reciprocal beneficiaries) that undermine the unique status of marriage for everyone. In the process, it examines several aspects of the marriage debate in detail. After describing the flexibility of marriage as it has evolved over time, the article focuses on recent state constitutional amendments attempting to stop further development. …
Of Cops And Bumper Stickers: Notes Toward A Theory Of Selective Prosecution, Richard Delgado
Of Cops And Bumper Stickers: Notes Toward A Theory Of Selective Prosecution, Richard Delgado
Richard Delgado
The author, Professor Richard Delgado, takes as his point of departure a remark by the chair of the Colorado committee that voted academic sanctions against Ward Churchill. This essay explores the role of retaliatory motives in academic misconduct cases. In Churchill’s case, Colorado authorities delved deeply and painstakingly into Churchill’s publications only when it appeared that the state could not fire him from his tenured position for his inflammatory remarks on the victims of the 9/11 tragedy. What bearing should the investigation’s relation to the hue and cry that led to it have on its own legitimacy? Professor Delgado examines …
The Structural Constitutional Principle Of Republican Legitimacy, Mark D. Rosen
The Structural Constitutional Principle Of Republican Legitimacy, Mark D. Rosen
All Faculty Scholarship
Representative democracy does not spontaneously occur by citizens gathering to choose laws. Instead, republicanism takes place within an extensive legal framework that determines who gets to vote, how campaigns are conducted, what conditions must be met for representatives to make valid law, and many other things. Many of the “rules-of-the-road” that operationalize republicanism have been subject to constitutional challenges in recent decades. For example, lawsuits have been brought against “partisan gerrymandering” (which has led to most congressional districts not being party-competitive, but instead being safely Republican or Democratic) and against onerous voter identification requirements (which reduce the voting rates of …