Law Commons^™

Stemming The Hobby Lobby Tidal Wave: Why Rfra Challenges To Obama's Executive Order Prohibiting Federal Contractors From Discriminating Against Lgbt Employees Will Not Succeed, Kayla Higgins

Kayla Higgins

On July 21, 2014 President Obama released Executive Order 13672, which expressly aimed to provide for a uniform policy for the Federal Government to prohibit discrimination and take further steps to promote economy and efficiency in Federal Government procurement by prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Some commentators believe that the order “could be the next battleground” for the competing views of religious leaders and liberals when it comes to how to weigh religious liberty against other priorities. However, there are two main reasons why the most recent executive order should not crumble under the Hobby Lobby …

Facing The Unborn, Richard Stith

Richard Stith

Modern science tells us of the identity of each individual human being from conception to adulthood, but our imagination does not fully cooperate. It is difficult to look at a photograph of a zygote and see a fellow human being. There are, however, two strong ways to better align our knowledge and our intuition. One is to look backward in the developmental process. It is easy to grasp that our fellow human beings all used to be zygotes. A second method is now becoming available. DNA can be used to reveal the future face and even the eyes of each …

"You Miss 100% Of The Shots You Never Take": Virginia High School League's Policy Violates Title Ix By Preventing Transgender Student Athletes From Taking A Shot At Participating In Athletics, Sarah M. Jacques

Sarah M Jacques

No abstract provided.

From Reynolds To Lawrence To Brown V. Buhman: Antipolygamy Statutes Sliding On The Slippery Slope Of Same-Sex Marriage, Stephen L. Baskind

Stephen L Baskind

In 2003 in Lawrence v. Texas (striking Texas’ sodomy law), Justice Scalia predicted in his dissent the end of all morals legislation. If Justice Scalia is correct most, if not all, morals-based legislation may fall. For example, in recent years state laws prohibiting same-sex marriage have fallen to constitutional challenges. Ten years after Lawrence in 2013, a Utah Federal District Court in Brown v. Buhman, though feeling constrained by the 1878 Reynolds case (which rejected a First Amendment challenge to an antipolygamy law), nevertheless at the request of a polygamous family concluded that the cohabitation prong of Utah’s anti-bigamy …

Twenty-First Century Regression: The Disparate Impact Of Hiv Transmission Laws On Gays, Siobhan E. Murillo

Siobhan E Murillo

No abstract provided.

Why Chief Justice Roy Moore And The Alabama Supreme Court Just Made The Best Case For Same-Sex Marriage, Adam Lamparello

Adam Lamparello

The Alabama Court of the Judiciary should remove Roy Moore from the Supreme Court of Alabama for a second and final time. Over ten years after being ousted from the Alabama Supreme Court, Chief Justice Moore is embroiled in yet another controversy that involves disregarding the federal courts and creating chaos in the legal system. In fact, Moore recently stated that he would ignore the Supremacy Clause and not respect a U.S. Supreme Court decision invalidating same-sex marriage bans. That statement brings back memories of Governor Wallace’s infamous stand at the schoolhouse door. At least Wallace had a change of …

Equitable Tolling Denied: Uniform Standard Breaks Abuser’S Control Within Domestic Violence, Laura E. Petkovich

Laura E Petkovich

No abstract provided.

Once We’Re Done Honeymooning: Marriage Equality, Incrementalism, And Advances For Sexual Orientation Antidiscrimination, Jeremiah A. Ho

Jeremiah A Ho

Once We’re Done Honeymooning: Marriage Equality, Incrementalism, and Advances for Sexual Orientation Antidiscrimination

Abstract

Following the Supreme Court’s decision in U.S. v. Windsor, each recent victory in the federal courts has evidenced that the legal recognition of same-sex marriages in the U.S. is becoming increasingly secure. Yet, can marriage equality be the last stop in the pro-LGBT movement, or should we expect sexual minorities to advance in other legal arenas? Should we expect that the recent strides in marriage equality can somehow leverage broader protections of LGBT individuals beyond their marital relationships?

This article begins from the perspective that …

Definitions, Religion, And Free Exercise Guarantees, Mark Strasser

Mark Strasser

The First Amendment to the United States Constitution protects the free exercise of religion. Non-religious practices do not receive those same protections, which makes the ability to distinguish between religious and non-religious practices important. Regrettably, members of the Court have been unable to agree about how to distinguish the religious from the non-religious—sometimes, the implicit criteria focus on the sincerity of the beliefs, sometimes the strength of the beliefs or the role that they play in an individual’s life, and sometimes the kind of beliefs. In short, the Court has virtually guaranteed an incoherent jurisprudence by sending contradictory signals with …