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Full-Text Articles in Law

The Territorial Reach Of Federal Courts, A. Benjamin Spencer Jul 2019

The Territorial Reach Of Federal Courts, A. Benjamin Spencer

Faculty Publications

Federal courts exercise the sovereign authority of the United States when they assert personal jurisdiction over a defendant. As components of the national sovereign, federal courts' maximum territorial reach is determined by the Fifth Amendment's Due Process Clause, which permits jurisdiction over persons with sufficient minimum contacts with the United States and over property located therein. Why, then, are federal courts limited to the territorial reach of the states in which they sit when they exercise personal jurisdiction in most cases? There is no constitutional or statutory mandate that so constrains the federal judicial reach. Rather, it is by operation …


The Federal Courts’ Rulemaking Buffer, Jordan M. Singer May 2019

The Federal Courts’ Rulemaking Buffer, Jordan M. Singer

William & Mary Law Review

Procedural rulemaking is often thought of as a second-order task for the federal court system, relevant to the courts’ work but not essential to their function. In reality, rulemaking plays an integral role in the court system’s operation by actively insulating the courts from environmental pressure. This Article explains how power over procedural rulemaking protects the federal courts from environmental uncertainty and describes the court system’s efforts to maintain the effectiveness of the rulemaking buffer in response to historical and contemporary challenges.


Access To Justice: Impact Of Twombly & Iqbal On State Court Systems, Danielle Lusardo Schantz Jun 2018

Access To Justice: Impact Of Twombly & Iqbal On State Court Systems, Danielle Lusardo Schantz

Akron Law Review

Approximately a decade ago, the Supreme Court of the United States unexpectedly changed the pleading standard for federal cases with the Twombly and Iqbal decisions. Plausibility pleading replaced the more liberal notice pleading standard endorsed by the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. Since then, state courts have been faced with a choice to either mirror this change in pleading standards or maintain their commitment to notice pleading. Plausibility pleading has begun to creep into the state court system. Several states have formally changed their pleading standards, while others have declared their commitment to notice pleading. This Article considers the impact …


De Facto Class Actions: Plaintiff-And Defendant-Oriented Injunctions In Voting Rights, Election Law, And Other Constitutional Cases, Michael T. Morley Jan 2016

De Facto Class Actions: Plaintiff-And Defendant-Oriented Injunctions In Voting Rights, Election Law, And Other Constitutional Cases, Michael T. Morley

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.


A Curious Motion: The Uncertain Role Of Anti-Slapp Statutes In Federal Courts, Markus A. Brazill Jan 2016

A Curious Motion: The Uncertain Role Of Anti-Slapp Statutes In Federal Courts, Markus A. Brazill

Prize Winning Papers

No abstract provided.


Scott V. Harris And The Future Of Summary Judgment, Tobias Barrington Wolff Jul 2015

Scott V. Harris And The Future Of Summary Judgment, Tobias Barrington Wolff

All Faculty Scholarship

The Supreme Court’s decision in Scott v. Harris has quickly become a staple in many Civil Procedure courses, and small wonder. The cinematic high-speed car chase complete with dash-cam video and the Court’s controversial treatment of that video evidence seem tailor-made for classroom discussion. As is often true with instant classics, however, splashy first impressions can mask a more complex state of affairs. At the heart of Scott v. Harris lies the potential for a radical doctrinal reformation: a shift in the core summary judgment standard undertaken to justify a massive expansion of interlocutory appellate jurisdiction in qualified immunity cases. …


Is The Antidiscrimination Project Being Ended?, Michael J. Zimmer Jun 2013

Is The Antidiscrimination Project Being Ended?, Michael J. Zimmer

Indiana Journal of Law and Social Equality

No abstract provided.


A Plea For Help: Pleading Problems In Section 1983 Municipal Liability Claims, Evan S. Schwartz Jan 1990

A Plea For Help: Pleading Problems In Section 1983 Municipal Liability Claims, Evan S. Schwartz

Touro Law Review

No abstract provided.


Preclusion And Procedural Due Process In Rule 23(B)(2) Class Actions, Mark C. Weber Apr 1988

Preclusion And Procedural Due Process In Rule 23(B)(2) Class Actions, Mark C. Weber

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

This Article examines whether Rule 23(b)(2) violates the procedural due process rights of absent class members by binding them to the judgment in a class case without notice of the suit. It concludes that the Rule almost certainly violates due process and proposes a reform that would permit nonbinding class actions similar to the old "spurious" class suits.


The Federal Court Across The Street: Constitutional Limits On Federal Court Assertions Of Personal Jurisdiction, Pamela J. Stephens Jan 1984

The Federal Court Across The Street: Constitutional Limits On Federal Court Assertions Of Personal Jurisdiction, Pamela J. Stephens

University of Richmond Law Review

Twenty years ago, in a clear break with accepted theory, it was suggested that there were certain constitutional limitations on a federal court's authority to exercise personal jurisdiction. Such a departure from the traditional view might be expected to prompt an extensive examination of that issue by commentators. However, while assertions of personal jurisdiction by state courts have been the subject of intense scrutiny and ongoing constitutional refinements, this has not been the case regarding assertions of personal jurisdiction by federal courts. Generally, federal district courts sitting in diversity cases must look to personal jurisdiction limitations inherent in the state …


Non-Jury Trial Of Civil Litigation: Justifying A Complexity Exception To The Seventh Amendment, Barrett E. Pope Jan 1981

Non-Jury Trial Of Civil Litigation: Justifying A Complexity Exception To The Seventh Amendment, Barrett E. Pope

University of Richmond Law Review

The seventh amendment to the United States Constitution states that "[i]n Suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved."' When Congress enacted the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, the right to jury trial at common law remained undisturbed.


Constitutional Law- Civil Rights- Representative Party Need Only Show Sufficient Nexus With Class For Title Vii Class Action To Continue Jan 1976

Constitutional Law- Civil Rights- Representative Party Need Only Show Sufficient Nexus With Class For Title Vii Class Action To Continue

University of Richmond Law Review

For many years the brunt of racial discrimination was sorely felt in the area of employment. Today, however, an employee or job applicant who desires to redress an alleged racially discriminatory employment practice has two statutory remedies: 42 U.S.C. § 1981, and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Under section 1981, all citizens "have the same right .. . to make and enforce contracts," which necessarily includes the right to contract for employment. It has been established that an action under this section may be brought alleging racial discrimination in employment without demonstrating state action. Title VII …


Recent Developments, Various Editors Jan 1972

Recent Developments, Various Editors

Villanova Law Review

No abstract provided.


The Proper Standard For Directed Verdicts In The Federal Courts: The Influences Of The Seventh Amendment And The Erie Doctrine, Ward T. Williams Jan 1969

The Proper Standard For Directed Verdicts In The Federal Courts: The Influences Of The Seventh Amendment And The Erie Doctrine, Ward T. Williams

Villanova Law Review

No abstract provided.


The Release Of Government-Owned Technical Data Under The Freedom Of Information Law: Between Scylla And Charybdis, James A. Dobkin Jan 1968

The Release Of Government-Owned Technical Data Under The Freedom Of Information Law: Between Scylla And Charybdis, James A. Dobkin

Villanova Law Review

No abstract provided.


Contempt-Injunctions-Federal Civil Contempt Decree Orders Deputy Sheriff To Resign From Office-Lance V. Plummer, Michigan Law Review Jan 1967

Contempt-Injunctions-Federal Civil Contempt Decree Orders Deputy Sheriff To Resign From Office-Lance V. Plummer, Michigan Law Review

Michigan Law Review

During the summer of 1964, a federal district judge issued an injunction prohibiting various St. Augustine, Florida organizations and other persons with notice of the injunction from harassing or intimidating Negroes who were seeking motel or restaurant accommodations. Appellant Lance, an unpaid volunteer deputy sheriff, was not a member of any of the enjoined organizations, but he had actual notice of the order. Nonetheless, six days after the injunction was issued, he engaged in activities designed to intimidate a Negro citizen. In a subsequent civil contempt action arising from these activities, the federal district judge, asserting jurisdiction over him because …


Habeas Corpus--Custody And Release From Custody Requirements Of Habeas Corpus--Viability Of Mcnally V. Hill In The Moden Context, Michigan Law Review Nov 1966

Habeas Corpus--Custody And Release From Custody Requirements Of Habeas Corpus--Viability Of Mcnally V. Hill In The Moden Context, Michigan Law Review

Michigan Law Review

Section 2241 of Title 28 of the United States Code requires that a petitioner for a writ of habeas corpus be "in custody." As a corollary of the "custody" requirement, the common law tradition required that the effect of the writ must be the petitioner's "release from custody.'' Because the United States Constitution and the federal habeas corpus statutes guarantee the availability of the writ in general terms, it is to the common law that the courts have consistently turned for the definition of these terms and for the restrictive effect of these requirements on the availability of the writ …


Eleventh Amendment, Judicial Code, And Federal Rules Of Civil Procedure Restrict Ability Of United States To Implead A State In Connection With Suit Commenced By A Private Citizen--Parks V. United States, Michigan Law Review Jan 1966

Eleventh Amendment, Judicial Code, And Federal Rules Of Civil Procedure Restrict Ability Of United States To Implead A State In Connection With Suit Commenced By A Private Citizen--Parks V. United States, Michigan Law Review

Michigan Law Review

Suit was brought by an individual against the United States under the Federal Tort Claims Act to recover compensation for property damage alleged to have been caused by the Government's negligence in constructing and maintaining the physical components\ of a flood-control project in New York. Relying upon New York's promise to hold the United States harmless on any liability arising from damage of this nature, the Government impleaded the state. On a motion before the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York to dismiss the state as a third-party defendant, held, motion granted. The Federal …


Federal Civil Procedure--Right To Trial By Jury--State Law Controlling In Characterization Of Issues As Legal Or Equitable, Donald E. Vacin S.Ed. Dec 1962

Federal Civil Procedure--Right To Trial By Jury--State Law Controlling In Characterization Of Issues As Legal Or Equitable, Donald E. Vacin S.Ed.

Michigan Law Review

An action for declaratory relief was brought in a federal district court to determine the validity of a contingent fee contract and the reasonableness of attorney's fees in a will contest case. Plaintiff's motion for summary judgment was sustained. On appeal, the court of appeals reversed and remanded with instructions to grant defendant's motion for jury trial, in accordance with Oklahoma practice, on the question whether the contingent fee contract was fair and free from fraud. The Supreme Court granted certiorari, vacated the judgment, and remanded the case for reconsideration in the light of a recent state decision. On reconsideration …


Federal Procedure - Trial Practice - Not Reversible Error For Trial Judge To Summon Jury Sua Sponte After Waiver, Thomas A. Dieterich Dec 1957

Federal Procedure - Trial Practice - Not Reversible Error For Trial Judge To Summon Jury Sua Sponte After Waiver, Thomas A. Dieterich

Michigan Law Review

Plaintiff instituted this action for breach of contract and defendant counterclaimed. Neither party demanded a jury trial during the period in which it was claimable as of right. Subsequently defendant moved for a jury trial. The motion was denied and was never renewed. Seven months later, on the eve of the trial, the court issued an order sua sponte for a jury trial. Plaintiff's objection was overruled. The jury awarded damages to plaintiff in the same amount as the conceded counterclaim. On appeal, held, affirmed, one judge dissenting. Although the trial judge's action in calling a jury on his …


Suits Against Unincorporated Associations Under The Federal Rules Of Civil Procedure, John Kaplan May 1955

Suits Against Unincorporated Associations Under The Federal Rules Of Civil Procedure, John Kaplan

Michigan Law Review

Concepts, Benjamin Cardozo has said, "are useful, indeed indispensable, if kept within their place. We will press them quite a distance. . . . A time comes, however, when the concepts carry us too far, or farther than we are ready to go with them, and behold, some other concept, with capacity to serve our needs is waiting at the gate. 'It is a peculiar virtue of our system of law that the process of inclusion and exclusion, so often employed in developing a rule, is not allowed to end with its enunciation, and that an expression in an opinion …


States' Rights And Federal Procedure, Bernard C. Gavit Oct 1949

States' Rights And Federal Procedure, Bernard C. Gavit

Indiana Law Journal

No abstract provided.