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Full-Text Articles in Law

Urban Decay, Austerity, And The Rule Of Law, Brent T. White Jan 2014

Urban Decay, Austerity, And The Rule Of Law, Brent T. White

Publications

Detroit has failed and its infrastructure is crumbling. But Detroit is not an isolated case. It is a paradigmatic example of increasing urban decay across the United States. While commentators have warned that the declining state of the country's infrastructure threatens U.S. prosperity, there is a bigger issue at stake. Decaying urban environments jeopardize the rule of law, undermining the very foundation of the social contract. This Article shows that the strength of the rule of law in a given country can be predicted by that government's ability (or inability) to provide public services-particularly, a livable urban environment. When urban …


Mapping Proportionality Review: Still A "Road To Nowhere", Rachel A. Van Cleave Apr 2008

Mapping Proportionality Review: Still A "Road To Nowhere", Rachel A. Van Cleave

Publications

This article examines how a majority of the Supreme Court went out of its way to vacate a punitive damages award in Philip Morris and further reinforced the inconsistency with which it applies the principle of proportionality. When it comes to punitive damages awards, a majority of Justices continue to convey distrust of juries and of trial and appellate court judges who review these awards. However, when it comes to terms of imprisonment, the Court has eschewed substantive review under the Eighth Amendment while insisting that the Sixth Amendment requires that all facts supporting an increase in a sentence be …


Crisis On The Immigration Bench: An Ethical Perspective, Michele Benedetto Neitz Jan 2008

Crisis On The Immigration Bench: An Ethical Perspective, Michele Benedetto Neitz

Publications

The purpose of this article is to suggest a new lens through which to examine the crisis in immigration courts: judicial ethics. Ethical considerations frequently play a decisive role in the resolution of immigration cases, in part because the outcomes for litigants in immigration courts can depend almost entirely on the attitude of the judge. Accordingly, the acknowledged crisis in immigration courts has severe implications for judicial ethics. Because the term "judicial ethics" encompasses a broad array of principles, this article will narrow its focus to bias and incompetence on the part of immigration judges in the courtroom. Part II …


Eustitia: Institutionalizing Justice In The European Union, Helen E. Hartnell Oct 2002

Eustitia: Institutionalizing Justice In The European Union, Helen E. Hartnell

Publications

The European Union is installing new infrastructure upon which to build a "genuine European area of justice. This "European judicial area" constitutes a key component of the "area of freedom, security and justice" ("AFSJ"). The Amsterdam Treaty added the AFSJ as a dimension of the Union, in order to promote the free movement of persons. "EUstitia" is a neologism that aims to capture both pragmatic and aspirational aspects of this new European governance project. The term is used here to refer solely to the civil law component of the AFSJ. This article both examines EUstitia's key features, and explores the …


Must Jury Instructions Clearly Explain The Consequences Of Jury's Failure To Reach A Unanimous Verdict As To Either Life Imprisonment Or Death?, Rachel A. Van Cleave Jan 1999

Must Jury Instructions Clearly Explain The Consequences Of Jury's Failure To Reach A Unanimous Verdict As To Either Life Imprisonment Or Death?, Rachel A. Van Cleave

Publications

No abstract provided.


An Offer You Can't Refuse? Punishment Without Trial In Italy And The United States: The Search For Truth And An Efficient Criminal Justice System, Rachel A. Van Cleave Oct 1997

An Offer You Can't Refuse? Punishment Without Trial In Italy And The United States: The Search For Truth And An Efficient Criminal Justice System, Rachel A. Van Cleave

Publications

This Article compares the steps taken by Italy and the United States to reconcile the need for an efficient criminal justice system on the one hand, and the desire to achieve justice or discover the truth on the other. Plea bargaining in the United States has a significant history and has generated a substantial amount of literature critical of the device as violative of a criminal defendant's constitutional rights, particularly the right to be tried by a jury of one's peers. In addition, scholars have criticized the distortive effect of plea bargaining on the roles of the prosecutor, judge, and …