Law Commons^™

High Speed Rail In America: An Evaluation Of The Regulatory, Real Property, And Environmental Obstacles A Project Will Encounter, Darren A. Prum, Sarah L. Catz

Darren A. Prum

In 2009, President Barak Obama allocated $8 billion in stimulus funding for high speed rail projects across the United States. One year later, in 2010, an additional $2.5 billion was distributed to corridors with High Speed Rail Projects. Even though the most recent congressional budget eliminated high speed rail funding, many corridors are working diligently to break ground by the end of 2012. Before a high speed rail project can be fully implemented there are many legal and environmental issues and regulations to examine. This paper conducts a complete analysis of those issues and regulations and suggests how to apply …

In Third Parties We Trust? The Growing Antitrust Impact Of Third-Party Green Building Certification Systems For State And Local Governments, Darren Prum, Robert Aalberts, Stephen Del Percio

Darren A. Prum

According to the American Institute of Architects, there has been a 50 percent increase in the number of municipalities with a green building program in place since 2007. And 24 of the country's 25 largest metropolitan areas are built around a city with green building legislation on its books. Reducing buildings' environmental impact is a noble - and critical - goal. But governments' reliance on private, third-party standard-setting organizations - and the rating systems that they promulgate - as the basis for that legislation may be legally problematic.

This Article reviews one of those potentially problematic bases: antitrust. In order …