Law Commons^™

Is There A Federal Right To A Minimum Education?, Martha Mccarthy

BYU Education & Law Journal

This article first reviews the Sixth Circuit panel decision, settlement agreement, and en banc appellate court action. Then, it explores related recent cases that also address a constitutional right to some level of education. The final section analyzes the viability of arguments asserting a federal right to access to a minimum education under the Fourteenth Amendment and implications of establishing such a federal right.

Who, What, Why & How: Reimagining State Constitutional Analysis In School Finance Litigation, William Thro

BYU Education & Law Journal

Despite the Supreme Court’s recognition of the importance of public education, America’s public schools remain ravaged by “savage inequalities”which lead to failure of the public schools.Because every State, except Hawaii, partially finances local public schools through local property taxes and because there are differences in the value of real property, there are vast disparities in available funding for local school districts. While every State Constitution requires the State Legislature to establish a public school system and while the State Legislatures have enacted a variety of statutes in an attempt to meet the state constitutional obligations, virtually every State has seen …

Race-Conscious Admissions Policies In American Institutions Of Higher Education: How Students For Fair Admissions V. Harvard Could Impact The Practice Of Affirmative Action, Christine Kiracofe

BYU Education & Law Journal

Since inception, affirmative action programs have been char-acterized as everything from institutional ‘reverse’ racism, to neces-sary plans that seek to ameliorate decades of racism. Data from the Pew Research Center indicates that a large majority of Americans support affirmative action. When asked whether “[a]ffirmative ac-tion programs designed to increase the number of black and minori-ty students on college campus are. . . good or bad,” 71% of respond-ents answered “good” in 2017.16 This is a significant increase in the percentage of Americans responding favorably to affirmative action programs. In comparison, when Americans were asked the same question in 2003, just …

Patterns Of Provision Of One On One Aides In Due Process Hearings: A National Sample, Joel K. Perkins, Michael Owens, Scott Ferrin, Gordon Gibb, Vance Randall

BYU Education & Law Journal

In decisions regarding services for a student classified with a

disability under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement

Act (IDEIA), one of the most impactful choices for an IEP

team or local education agency is whether a student should receive a

one-on-one aide to enhance the least restrictive environment. Many

parents seek such services for their children, while many education

agencies resist, claiming that that one-on-one aides are not appropriate

for a particular student and in fact may not actually provide

the least restrictive environment for the student as established under

the IDEA.

This study examined patterns of legal provision …

Sexual Education As A Form Of Sexual Assault Prevention: A Survey Of Sexual Education Among States With The Highest And Lowest Rates Of Rape, Brittney Herman

BYU Education & Law Journal

Our Nation overwhelmingly supports sexual education in public

schools. A study by Siecus found that 98% of people surveyed support

sexual education in public high schools and 89% in public middle

schools. Unfortunately for some students, they will receive no sexual

education of very limited, ineffective sexual education, simply because

of where they live. Even if a student is fortunate to live in an

area which has or requires sexual education, this education may be

insufficient.

There have been countless advocates for sexual education.

With the rise of each new sexual education concern, advocates emerge

as if in waves. Most …

Administering Medical Marijuana At School In Colorado: A Legal Analysis, Spencer C. Weiler, Philip Westbrook

BYU Education & Law Journal

The topic of this legal analysis is the administration of medical

marijuana to students attending Colorado K-12 public schools.

Colorado has been a pioneer in legalizing the use of marijuana. Beginning

in the year 2000, Colorado voters approved Amendment 20

legalizing the use of marijuana for medical purposes. This law specifically

allows minors to receive a prescription for medical marijuana

under certain conditions. An unintended consequence of this law

is that minors meeting its requirements are requesting, along with

their caregivers and physicians, to have marijuana-based medication

administered to them at schools. The purpose of this legal analysis

is to …

Being A Good College Student: The History Of Good Moral Character Rules In State Financial Aid Programs, 1850 To Now, Bradley Custer

BYU Education & Law Journal

Federal and state governments regulate the character of

their residents as a condition of immigration, employment, social

services, and beyond. At the state level, “good moral character”

rules have been analyzed in depth for decades, mostly as they pertain

to admission to the bar and other licensed professions. Character

requirements also affect the ability of college students to get

state-funded financial aid, but these policies have received no scholarly

analysis. According to this study’s findings, there have been at

least 50 state financial aid grant programs with character rules,

which begs the question: what does it mean to be a …

New Policies Give Solar Users An Economic Boost, Olivia Fowler

Marriott Student Review

The future looks bright for Solar Energy, as more States and Territories in the United States commit to moving to 100% renewable energy. What are the different states and territories committing to exactly, and what economic incentives are they bringing? Find out in this article by author Olivia Fowley.

Business Ethics: Co-Opting Macro-Influences For Corporate Success, Aaron Loertscher

Marriott Student Review

Business ethics matter. Businesses can and should mitigate the macro-influences that their employees face to promote high ethical values which will in turn maximize shareholder value.

Prosecuting Human Trafficking In The Wake Of Epstein: A Proposal For The Implementation Of Aggravated Human Trafficking Statutes, Katherine F. Erickson, Lynette A. Dalley

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

In June of 2008, Jeffrey Epstein plead guilty in a Florida court on

two counts of felony prostitution for nonconsensual sex acts against

two girls under eighteen. Evidence showed, however, that the true

scope of his crime encompassed dozens of underage girls. He

was sentenced to eighteen months in jail but ended up only serving

thirteen. Because of the terms of his prison sentence, Epstein

was allowed to leave the jail during the day for work release.

Underlying Racism Within The Opioid Epidemic, Hannah L.A.S. Wilson

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

Within the past century, the United States attempted different legal

avenues to address drug abuse. Some of these efforts made access

to drugs punishable and illegal. Others encouraged research to look

at underlying issues of drug abuse and implement those findings.

Within the past fifty years, these laws tended to treat drug addicts

as criminals instead of as persons suffering from a health crisis.

According to the FBI and Uniform Crime Reports, from the 1980’s

to the 2000’s, drug arrests rose by 1.5 million per year, while drug

usage rates stayed the same.3 The severe increase in the criminalization

and …

Realigning Federal Statutes: Contradictions Between The Federal Arbitration Act And The National Labor Relations Act, Denise Han

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

Christopher Steele and Brendan Leveron were employees at a private

maintenance company named Pinnacle. Both Steele and Leveron

reported that Pinnacle allegedly forced them to work overtime without

just compensation—an allegation that, if proven valid, would

violate the Fair Labor Standards Act and California state law. They

also claimed that Pinnacle was guilty of unfair business practices,

retaliation and whistleblowing violations, and a failure to account.

Soon after Steele and Leveron filed these allegations, they discovered

that their predicament was not unique across the firm. In 2012,

they decided to represent their fellow employees in a class-action suit

which so …

Front Matter

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

No abstract provided.

Disaggregation & Diversity: A Case For Race Conscious Admissions, Connor Oniki

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

Since its founding, people all over the world have looked towards

America as a land of opportunity. Immigrants viewed it as a place

for fresh starts, new beginnings, and equal chances. However, for

centuries, concrete and subtle barriers have slowed the opportunity

for progress for those who are not in the majority. Throughout America’s

beginnings, lawmakers legalized segregation and discrimination

throughout the country multiple times. The Chinese Exclusion

Act prevented Asian Americans from immigrating to the United

States to pursue opportunities. Jim Crow laws enforced racial segregation

and ensured that though African Americans were no longer

enslaved, they did not …

Evaluating The Classification Of Gender Confirmation Surgery As A Medical Necessity For Inmates, Alexis J. Watson

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

In 2012, Mason Edmo pleaded guilty to the sexual abuse of a fifteenyear-

old boy and was sentenced to ten years in prison. While in

prison, Edmo announced that she identified as a female and changed

her name to Adree. Edmo went on to request gender confirmation

surgery (also known as “sex reassignment surgery”) while still in

prison. Initially, Edmo was not granted the surgery by the Idaho

Department of Corrections, and went on to self-harm and attempt

self-castration twice. In 2017, Edmo filed suit against the Idaho State

Department of Corrections (IDOC) and won. The IDOC disagreed

with the …

Eliminating Mandatory Minimum Sentences: Putting Sentencing Power Back In The Hands Of The Judiciary, Hunter Anderson, Joseph Dummar

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

Ron Miller had been a general manager of a company for twentyfour

years with no criminal record when his best friend asked

him to allow a shipment of drugs to be delivered to his company’s

address. Ron reluctantly agreed to help his friend, who was desperate

for money. Before the drugs arrived, Ron backed out and asked

his friend not to send the drugs, but by that point the shipment had

already been made. The police tracked the shipment to Ron and

arrested him. Even though Ron never knew the type nor the quantity

of drug that was delivered to …

Editor In Chief And Managing Editor's Note

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

No abstract provided.

Flunked Out: A Comparative Look At State Educational Code, Title Vi Of The Civil Rights Act, And Slavery Education, Emory French-Folsom, Maryn Rolfson

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

In 2017, a mock slave auction was held in a 5th grade classroom at

South Orange Elementary School in New Jersey, which included the

‘sale’ of a black child by white students. A few weeks after this incident,

students from another elementary school in the same district

made posters advertising the sale of African American slaves, which

were displayed in school hallways. Wisconsin 4th graders in 2018

were given a homework assignment which asked them to explain

“three good reasons for slavery.”

Alimony: The Taxing Economic Implications Of Divorce, Jared Mason, Amaia Kennedy

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

In 2017 alone, over 750,000 American couples chose to divorce3.

Nationally, fifty percent of marriages end in divorce, with each of

these marriages lasting eight years, on average. Put another way,

a divorce occurs every 13 seconds, and each of those divorces is

expensive, with an average cost of approximately $15,000 per person.

Evolving Standards Of Decency: A View Of 8th Amendment Jurisprudence And The Death Penalty, Jared Lockhart, Madeline Hill

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

In July 1997, Kenneth Foster was indicted on capital murder charges

and sentenced to death even though he had only committed robbery.

3 On August 14, 1996, Kenneth Foster and his friends, Mauriceo

Brown, DeWayne Dillard, and Julius Steen, rented a car and

drove to downtown San Antonio, Texas. Later that night, Brown

suggested that the men rob a few people in order to make up for the

money they had lost while partying. After their second robbery that

evening, Foster did not want to continue breaking the law, according

to Dillard’s courtroom testimony four years later. Dismissing

his request, …

Stretching The Law: The Application Of Public Nuisance To The Opioid Epidemic, Lindsay Manning, Hannah L. Thompson

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

Opioid use in the United States increased five-fold in the last decade.

Every day ninety Americans die from drug abuse overdose. Is it

illegal opioid trafficking, or is it a problem within the medical profession?

Recent litigation strategies, like those used in the recent

landmark case of Oklahoma v. Johnson and Johnson, show that opioid

production and distribution are being linked to fueling the opioid

epidemic. Oklahoma is just one of the states that have concluded that

Johnson and Johnson, a large pharmaceutical company, is “overstating”

the efficiency of opioids and “understating” the harmful effects

of these drugs. Consequently, litigation …

Publisher's Note

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

No abstract provided.

Narrow, Narrower, Narrowest: Appropriate Force Majeure Specificity, Tayzlie T. Haack, Max A. Esplin

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

Imagine you are the owner of a small construction company and

are contracted to build a large office building. As is customary, you

signed a contract agreeing to complete the building by a specific

deadline for a set amount of money. Included is a brief force majeure

clause, which allows you to be relieved of the contract in the case of

“unforeseeable circumstances” that might prevent completion of the

project. During construction, heavy tariffs affect your main suppliers,

exponentially increasing the projected cost of completing the

project. Your company cannot afford the supplies necessary to complete

the building, and you …

The Census, Citizenship, And Improved Legislation: A Constitutional Compromise, Kaitlyn A. Marquis

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

Why should the census avoid asking a question concerning citizenship?

Are there alternatives in providing information to aid government

functions while still protecting the rights of residents? In

early 2019, the Trump administration requested that the 2020 census

include an inquiry concerning the citizenship status of residents, for

claimed reasons of better legislation (i.e. the allocation of government

funds to the states and the drawing of electoral districts). The

Supreme Court considered this issue in Dept. of Commerce v. New

York. In sum, their opinion was, “not yet.” The Supreme Court did

not definitively conclude that it was unconstitutional to …

Law And Policy Impacts On Teacher Attrition In Public Education: Data Suggesting A New Focus Beyond The Silver Bullets Of Targeted Stem And Other Salary Increases, Joseph Hanks, Scott E. Ferrin, Randall S. Davies, Steven S. Christensen, Scott P. Harris, W. Bryan Bowles

BYU Education & Law Journal

Most current legislative and policy efforts to combat teacher shortages in public schools in the U.S. focus on raising teacher salaries, or on incentivizing certain key subject matters in the sciences and math, known as Science, Technology and Math (STEM) initiatives. The ostensible purpose of these legislative and policy efforts is to increase induction and subsequent retention of highly qualified teachers who will then impact educational attainment of students. The major tool used has been salary incentives for new teachers or salary augmentation for existing teachers in certain subject matters. This research investigates teacher perceptions on factors that impact their …

Covid Closing Down Colleges: How The Covid-19 Pandemic Accelerated Nonprofit College Closings, Patrick Baker, Paula Hearn Moore, Kaleb Byars, Christie Aden

BYU Education & Law Journal

Private nonprofit colleges have experienced an increasing amount of financial pressure over time, making it arduous to survive. Internal and external factors such as geographical challenges, lack of economies of scale, and unchecked board mismanagement have historically led to the closures. COVID-19 is accelerating the rate of these college closures. Diminishing enrollment, volatile endowments, and inoperable revenue programs are some of the reverberations the virus has caused.

Preventative measures need to exist to alleviate the risks of unforeseen crises in the future. Harsher penalties, increased scrutiny of automatic extensions, and more accurate and complete Form 990 disclosures will protect stakeholders …

Baby Suffragettes: Girls In The Woman's Suffrage Movement Across The Atlantic, Mckenzi Christensen

AWE (A Woman’s Experience)

No abstract provided.