Law Commons^™

Capital Punishment: The Humanistic And Moral Issues Address., Helen Prejean

St. Mary's Law Journal

Death row reminds us that justice is not equal. Death sentences, opposed to being reserved for only the most heinous crimes, are generally related to the profile of the victim and identity of those most outraged by the crime. The majority of people on death row killed a white person, even though one-half of homicide victims in the United States are people of color. Because of this, and the fact that the law almost always sides with people of wealth and power, the death penalty works to compound societal trauma instead of healing or solving anything. The skewed and harmful …

Use Of A Pen Register May Be A Search Within The Purview Of Article I, Section 9 Of The Texas Constitution., Angie Patrick

St. Mary's Law Journal

In Richardson v. State, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals granted Richardson’s second petition for discretionary review to determine whether law enforcement’s use of a pen register constitutes a search. The use of a pen register may be a search within the purview of Article I, Section 9 of the Texas Constitution. Courts use the reasonable-expectation-of-privacy test, from Katz v. United States, to determine whether a search has occurred under the Fourth Amendment. In Richardson, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals reviewed whether the use of a pen register equates to a search despite the U.S. Supreme Court’s determination in …

Foreigners On Texas's Death Row And The Right Of Access To A Consul Symposium - Human Rights In The Americas., S. Adele Shank, John Quigley

St. Mary's Law Journal

Foreign nationals arrested in the United States confront the disadvantage of mounting a criminal defense in several ways. In most cases, they are unfamiliar with U.S. customs, police policies, and criminal proceedings. Although U.S. courts strive to prevent bias against accused based on alienage, discrimination does occur. To minimize the disadvantages experienced by accused foreigners, international law guarantees the right of consular access. Under internationally accepted norms applicable in the United States, an accused foreigner is entitled to contact his home-state consult office for assistance. Furthermore, mere involvement of a consul may encourage local government to follow procedural norms and …

The Subjection Of Women . . . Still: Unfulfilled Promises Of Protection For Women Victims Of Domestic Violence Comment., James Martin Truss

St. Mary's Law Journal

Throughout American history, women have fought to realize a full and independent legal identity, equal to men. Nonetheless, issues such as domestic violence have often remained obscured due partly to the judicial system’s reluctance to intrude into “family matters.” Although courts have long-since renounced the common-law rule which allowed a husband to discipline his wife, the plight of the battered woman remained largely ignored by courts and legislatures. The pervasiveness and severity of domestic violence are widely documented. On June 1, 1991, the Texas Supreme Court created the Gender Bias Task Force of Texas (Task Force) to consider whether gender …

The Role Of Courts In The Debate On Assisted Suicide: A Communitarian Approach, 9 Notre Dame J.L. Ethics & Pub. Pol'y 367 (1995), Donald L. Beschle

UIC Law Open Access Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Some Problems With Public Reason In John Rawls's Political Liberalism, Kent Greenawalt

Faculty Scholarship

Political Liberalism is a major addition to the political theory of John Rawls. In many respects, it develops or alters views expressed in his famous A Theory of Justice. For changes that appeared in various articles Rawls published after the earlier book, Political Liberalism tends to offer nuances of difference. The most original chapter is about public reason, and my comments are directed to that subject, which has now become a centerpiece of Rawls's theory. I draw in Rawls's other views only as they bear on public reason.

My aim is to present some problems I see with his …

Same-Sex Sexual Harassment: Subverting The Heterosexist Paradigm Of The Title Vii, Carolyn Grose

Faculty Scholarship

This article argues that the proper starting point is to provide protection for gay men and lesbians against discrimination and harassment. Until there is such protection, any attempt to use Title VII to regulate same-sex sexual harassment will intensify the privileging of one kind of same-sex interaction over another: straight subordinates will be protected from gay supervisors, while gay subordinates will not be protected from straight supervisors. The result will be increased tolerance not for expressions of gay and lesbian sexuality, but for expressions of heterosexism and homophobia in the workplace. Part I of this article examines the development of …

Proverbial Practice: Legal Ethics From Old Testament Wisdom, Gordon J. Beggs

Law Faculty Articles and Essays

The Old Testament book of Proverbs supplied foundational moral values for our nation's legal ethics. With the adoption and revision of formal codes, moral teaching has virtually disappeared from legal ethics. This essay suggests that the wisdom of Proverbs offers a timely challenge to the character of the legal profession by advocating values which include justice, purity, mercy, humility, honesty, candor, truthful testimony, and civility.

Rico—Economic Motive Unnecessary For The Proof Of An Enterprise. National Organization Of Women, Inc. V. Scheidler, 114 S. Ct. 798 (1994)., Bryan W. Riley

University of Arkansas at Little Rock Law Review

No abstract provided.

Taking It To The Streets: Putting Discourse Analysis To The Service Of A Public Defender's Office, Clark D. Cunningham, Bonnie S. Mcelhinny

Faculty Publications By Year

No abstract provided.

Finding Our Voices, Teaching Our Truth: Reflections On Legal Pedagogy And Asian American Identity, Natsu Taylor Saito

Faculty Publications By Year

No abstract provided.

1995 (Undated), Foe, Pol'y Brief, Analysis Of Ifc Procedures Against Fy 95 Certification Requirements, Friends Of The Earth

IFC E&S Performance Standards

No abstract provided.

When Legal Cultures Collide, Richard F. Devlin Frsc

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

In this essay, I attempt to consider the juridical significance of the Irish hunger strike of 1981. I focus on this almost unreal, but tragically too real, 'event' for two reasons. First, on the basis of the rereading or representation that I offer in this essay, the hunger strike provides an opportunity to reflect upon what is perhaps the most enduring and intractable question of social theory: the relationship between structure and agency. Specifically, it enables us to critically interrogate the aspirations and assumptions of a colonial legal structure and the agentic resistance of the juridically colonized. The second reason …

Fathers, The Welfare System, And The Virtues And Perils Of Child-Support Enforcement, David L. Chambers

Articles

For half a century, Aid to Families with Dependent Children ("AFDC")' -the program of federally supported cash assistance to low-income families with children-has been oddly conceived. Congress has chosen to make assistance available almost solely to low-income single-parent families, not all low-income parents with children. At first many of the eligible single parents were women whose husbands had died. Over time, a growing majority were women who had been married to their children's father but who had separated or divorced. Today, to an ever increasing extent, they are women who were never married to the fathers of their children.2

Are Twelve Heads Better Than One?, Phoebe C. Ellsworth

Articles

The jury's competence, unlike that of the judge, rests partly on its ability to reflect the perspectives, experiences, and values of the ordinary people in the community - not just the most common or typical community perspective, but the whole range of viewpoints.

J.E.B. V. Alabama Ex Rel. T.B.: Excellent Ideology, Ineffective Implementation., Nancy J. Cutler

St. Mary's Law Journal

Abstract Forthcoming.

Did We Treaty Away Ker-Frisbie Symposium - Human Rights In The Americas., Timothy D. Rudy

St. Mary's Law Journal

This Article explores whether U.S. ratification of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (Civil and Political Covenant) provides the American judiciary with reason to jettison the Ker-Frisbie doctrine. If the United States does not forego use of the Ker-Frisbie doctrine the country will violate its international obligations arising from a major human rights treaty. Part II discusses the customary norm of international law which forbids—and the American rule which permits—forcible abductions overseas. It also reviews whether extraterritorial abductions violate customary international law. Part III discusses applicability of the Civil and Political Covenant to the Ker-Frisbie doctrine and details …

The Natural Law Tradition On The Modern Supreme Court: Not Burke, But The Enlightenment Tradition Represented By Locke, Madison, And Marshall., R. Randall Kelso

St. Mary's Law Journal

A traditional common-law style of judicial decisionmaking exists which was present at this nation’s founding. This common law style is derived from natural law tradition. And this tradition stands as an alternative to the formalism of Justice Scalia or the Holmesian style of Chief Justice Rehnquist. This natural law style, with its focus on the religious and communitarian ethical tradition, was the dominant view of judicial interpretation for the framing and ratifying generation of the original Constitution and the Civil War Amendments. The decisionmaking style of Justices O’Connor, Kennedy, and Souter appears to have great affinity with this traditional common-law …

Should Taxpayers Pay People To Obey Environmental Laws?, John A. Humbach

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

Should taxpayers have to pay people not to put pollutants into streams and reservoirs? Should taxpayers have to pay people not to kill off entire species? Should taxpayers have to reach into their pockets and pay people not to disperse development seamlessly across the countryside, relentlessly consuming, fragmenting, and degrading our nation's remaining natural lands until almost all is gone? Should we, in short, have to pay people not to engage in land-uses that have been determined to be too socially unacceptable to allow?

On The Need For Asian American Narratives In Law: Ethnic Specimens, Native Informants, Storytelling And Silences, Margaret Chon

Faculty Articles

The race-ing process that leads to the "ethnic specimen" as well as to the resulting problems of the "native informant" deserves theoretical attention, for they affect how legal categories are constructed with respect to Asian Americans. This article attempts to expand on each of these phenomena. In part II, the author describes in more detail the concept of the "ethnic specimen" and in part III, the "native informant." Part III will also explore the various forms of silence, as well as other aspects of reticence the author and others have in the project of articulating an Asian American authentic native …

The Texas Home Equity Controversy In Context Forum - Introduction., James W. Paulsen

St. Mary's Law Journal

This Essay provides some historical and legal context for the Texas home equity debate during the 1990s. It begins with an examination of early Texas homestead law, which did not clearly prohibit home equity lending. Part II describes the genesis of the homestead exemption in Texas. Public policy surrounding the homestead law had at least three components: protection of debtors, protection of women, and the fostering of an independent spirit in Texas settlers. Part III evaluates the Texas Constitution’s 1876 ban on home equity loans and the subsequent public debate up until the 1970s. Although criticism of the prohibition on …

Home Equity Reform In Texas Forum., Jerry Patterson

St. Mary's Law Journal

Texas citizens should vote on home equity reform to be able to decide for themselves whether they desire the benefits of home equity borrowing. Texas is the only state in the nation that prohibits homeowners from using their home equity as they see fit such as to educate their children, to start or expand small businesses, or to enjoy their retirement years. Critics to home equity reform in Texas do not fully understand the scope of the amendments or the benefits that come with reform. The myth that equity loans would trigger an increase in foreclosure rates cannot be documented …

The Spoliation Tort: An Approach To Underlying Principles., Steffen Nolte

St. Mary's Law Journal

Abstract Forthcoming.

Private Plaintiffs May Not Maintain Aiding And Abetting Suits Under Securities Exchange Act Section 10(B) And Securities And Exchange Commission Rule 10b-5., Ginger E. Margolin

St. Mary's Law Journal

In Central Bank v. First Interstate Bank, the United States Supreme Court held that private plaintiffs may not maintain aiding and abetting suits under Securities Exchange Act Section 10(b) and Security and Exchange Commission Rule 10b-5. The Court views Section 10(b) of the 1934 Act as a “catchall antifraud provision” that makes the use of “any manipulative or deceptive device or contrivance” in contravention of the provision a violation of Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) rules if such acts occur during the purchase or sale of securities. Rule 10b-5 is substantially the same as Section 10(b). However, neither Section 10(b) …

The Women's Convention And The Equal Protection Clause Symposium - Human Rights In The Americas., Michael J. Corbera

St. Mary's Law Journal

This Article addresses whether the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (Women’s Convention) violates the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. Because international treaties such as the Women’s Convention carry the same weight and are subject to the same treatment as U.S. federal law, the constitutionality of the Convention is dictated by U.S. jurisprudence. Part II of this Article outlines and discusses the origin and content of the Women’s Convention. Part III contains a historical review of gender jurisprudence in the United States, with particular emphasis on …

Chief Justice Calvert: Man Of Imperturable Integrity In Memoriam., Thomas M. Reavley

St. Mary's Law Journal

Abstract Forthcoming.

Chief Justice Calvert: Simple Rules Made Him Great In Memoriam., Jack Pope

St. Mary's Law Journal

Abstract Forthcoming.

Chief Justice Calvert, Our Highly Regarded Of Counsel In Memoriam., Lloyd Lochridge

St. Mary's Law Journal

Abstract Forthcoming.

Shading Of America: Keynote Address Before The 1995 National Conference Of Law Reviews Address., Antonia Hernandez

St. Mary's Law Journal

Abstract Forthcoming.

Appellate Review Of Criminal Cases In Texas - Foreword Foreword., Charles F. Baird

St. Mary's Law Journal

Abstract Forthcoming.