Law Commons^™

Table Of Contents - Issue 1, Chicago-Kent Law Review

Chicago-Kent Law Review

No abstract provided.

New Energy Geopolitics?: China, Renewable Energy, And The "Greentech Race", Joel B. Eisen

Chicago-Kent Law Review

Commentators believe that programs in China promoting development of new renewable energy capacity have produced astonishing achievements in a short period of time. Evoking the "space race" between the United States and the U.S.S.R. after the launch of the Sputnik satellite in 1957, observers contend that the United States and China are in a "greentech race" to secure international leadership in the development and deployment of renewable energy. As U.S. Energy Secretary Chu has put it, many believe this is a modern "Sputnik moment." This Article finds that China's programs and initiatives are indeed leading to considerable success, but, using …

Biotech Biofuels: How Patents May Save Biofuels And Create Empires, Adam Wolek

Chicago-Kent Law Review

The United States' primary transportation energy sources are fossil fuels, namely, gasoline and diesel. These products have high environmental, security, and financial costs. A strong emphasis has been placed on biofuels, especially ethanol and biodiesel, to lessen reliance on fossil fuels. Historically, high production costs, lack of infrastructure, return on investment anxieties, and concerns about scaling-up production have slowed the development of these alternative technologies. Today, biotechnological solutions are lowering productions costs and making large scale production more economically feasible. Patents can lessen anxieties about investment as they can provide longer-term protection and market exclusivity for patented technologies. As biofuels …

Mercurial But Not Swift—U.S. Epa's Initiative To Regulate Coal Plant Mercury Emissions Changes Course Again As It Enters A Third Decade, Keith Harley

Chicago-Kent Law Review

The effort to establish national standards to control mercury air pollution from coal-fired power plants now spans twenty years, four presidential administrations, and remains undone. This note will briefly describe the failed twenty-year effort to regulate mercury emissions from coal-fired power plants. It will show how United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) efforts during the (first) Bush and Clinton Administrations to construct mercury regulations were dismantled during the Administration of George W. Bush. During the second Bush Administration, U.S. EPA substituted a new regulatory approach that was ultimately repudiated by the federal judiciary as plainly inconsistent with the Clean …

A Brief History Of Energy Law In United States Law Schools: An Introduction To The Symposium, Fred Bosselman

Chicago-Kent Law Review

No abstract provided.

Corporate Social Responsibility In The Oil And Gas Industry: The Importance Of Reputational Risk, David B. Spence

Chicago-Kent Law Review

Modern oil and gas production takes place in environments that are increasingly challenging, environments that pose very high levels of technical risk, as well as political, social, environmental, heal and safety risks. The people of the oil-rich nations of the world are growing more assertive politically and more sensitive to the environmental, health, and safety risks posed by oil and gas development. Governments, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), and local people seek the means to control oil and gas development so as to minimize the risk of harm and provide redress in the event harm is done. Oil and gas companies have …

Agriculture's Fate Under Climate Change: Economic And Environmental Imperatives For Action, John N. Moore, Van Bruggen

Chicago-Kent Law Review

Farming, ranching, and other agricultural activities are in a relatively unique position amongst all human-caused sources of global warming. Unlike fossil fueled power plants and vehicles, for example, agriculture will suffer direct economic losses from the impacts of global warming on its products, such as through reduced crop yields. Also unlike other causes of global warming, agriculture can both mitigate global warming and increase revenue through a range of different practices, such as carbon sequestration and investments in carbon-friendly renewable energy. This article explains how global warming affects agriculture, especially in the Midwest and Great Plains, and how agriculture contributes …

The Art Of Subsidizing Fuel-Free Electricity Under The European Economic Area Agreement As Illustrated By Norway's Reversion Instrument, Peter Ørebech

Chicago-Kent Law Review

The purpose of this article is to scrutinize legal barriers to state aid instruments in transforming fuel-based electricity into renewable energy, the subsidy prerequisites by which the national state may champion fuel free power production. Subsidy is illustrated by the 2004 Official Norwegian Report's (NOU) disapproval of the Norwegian Reversion Institute (NRI), as a result of a waiver clause to the benefit of municipal power plants. A licensing period of sixty years is final. Relicensing is not possible; only private leasing may occur.

As outlined, my basic criticism is that the NOU confuses interstate distortion of competition as it is …

Smart-Grid: Technology And The Psychology Of Environmental Behavior Change, Stephanie M. Stern

Chicago-Kent Law Review

There is a schism in the legal scholarship between scholars who argue that value, norm, and information campaigns can induce pro-environmental behavior and those who contend that structural, psychological, and social forces sharply constrain behavior change. Both sides of this debate have neglected the critical and ever-increasing role of technology in addressing residential pollution. The example of electricity "smart grids" illustrates how technology engineered to override cognitive and behavioral limitations can comprehensively reduce household consumption and emissions. Electricity conservation suffers from multiple barriers to collective action, including large numbers of geographically dispersed polluters, low financial payoffs, and, the contribution of …

Privacy Implications Of Smart Meters, Cheryl Dancey Balough

Chicago-Kent Law Review

Many people worry about the erosion of privacy in our society given developments in technology, but that loss of privacy may take a quantum leap as electric "smart meters" make it possible for strangers to know on a real-time basis what is occurring in our houses and apartments. Perhaps the greatest concern is that current laws and regulations do not fully protect us from this unprecedented threat to two of our most basic rights—to be left alone in our own homes and to control personal information. Utility companies across the country are replacing conventional electric meters with smart meters designed …

Of Nesting Dolls And Trojan Horses: A Survey Of Legal And Policy Issues Attendant To Vehicle-To-Grid Battery Electric Vehicles, Bryan Lamble

Chicago-Kent Law Review

2010 will not be remembered as the year when the domestic energy landscape changed, dominated as it was by environmental catastrophe and human calamity and tragedy caused by the search for and extraction of traditional fossil fuels. In fact, clean(er) energy and greater efficiency seem, in some ways, to be less of a reality at the beginning of the second decade of the twenty-first century than many would have predicted (and hoped). Furthermore, a contentious mid-term election season (stoked by fears of massive deficits, rising national debt and ballooning government) dominated the headlines at the expense of what could prove …

The Legal-Political Barriers To Ramping Up To Hydro, Dan Tarlock

Chicago-Kent Law Review

Hydroelectric energy is the oldest major source of non-carbon, renewable energy and is the only conventional renewable resource in the current energy mix. Increased hydro capacity would seem to be a key element of any United States energy policy designed to promote the greater use of renewable resources. However, for several decades hydro has been perceived as a mature, fully developed technology. This article argues that any effort to stimulate substantial new hydro capacity will face a series of environmental legal and policy constraints. Efforts to adapt to global climate change will further complicate efforts to increase hydro electric generation. …

Green Diesel: Finding A Place For Algae Oil, Fred Bosselman

Chicago-Kent Law Review

The prospect of obtaining domestically-produced biodiesel from algae has attracted wide investor interest. Although many analysts predict that economic production is five to ten years away, the production process involves such a wide range of environmental and land use issues that it is not premature to begin thinking about the kinds of places in which "green biodiesel" could be efficiently made in the United States. Our land use and environmental laws were all drafted by people who never imagined the possibility that huge volumes of algae would be an important energy resource; nor could they have known that the location …

High-Income Child Support Guidelines: Harmonizing The Need For Limits With The Best Interests Of The Child, Laura Raatjes

Chicago-Kent Law Review

Providing for the needs of children of separated parents lies at the heart of state child support laws. But what about providing for the special needs of children of high-income obligors and ensuring consistency in a system often marked by unpredictability and high emotions? This Note examines the manifold problems that discretionary high-income child support decisions can cause: inequitable settlement, increased litigation, injured family structures, and inconsistent decisions. This Note also proposes a solution: to set higher thresholds for triggering a high-income analysis and to require high-income parents to contribute to post-secondary educational trusts. Finally, this Note explains that, as …

Defiling The Retaliation Doctrine: Kasten V. Saint-Gobain And The Anti-Retaliation Provision Of The Fair Labor Standards Act, Madeline Engel

Chicago-Kent Law Review

The anti-retaliation provision of the Fair Labor Standards Act makes it unlawful for an employer to retaliate against an employee who has "filed any complaint" under the FLSA. In Kasten v. Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics Corp., the Seventh Circuit declared its position in a growing circuit split as to whether an employee can "file" a verbal complaint of an alleged FLSA violation. Kasten answered the question in the negative, holding that verbal complaints are not protected activity under the Act. This note analyzes relevant Supreme Court precedent and the evolution of the circuit split, as well as principles of statutory …

Twittering Away The Right Of Publicity: Personality Rights And Celebrity Impersonation On Social Networking Websites, Andrew M. Jung

Chicago-Kent Law Review

Within the past couple of years, social networking websites have become an immensely popular destination for people from all walks of life. Websites like Facebook and Twitter now count tens of millions of worldwide users, including world leaders and a number of celebrities. Eventually, users realized that social networking websites lent themselves to the quick and easy impersonation of celebrities through the creation of fake social networking accounts, often as a form of parody. One subject of such impersonation was professional baseball manager Tony La Russa, who took the then-unprecedented step of suing his impersonators and Twitter over the incident. …

Dependent On The Jury: Anticipation And Obviousness Of Dependent Patent Claims And Irreconcilable Jury Verdicts, Patrick Bickley

Chicago-Kent Law Review

A jury verdict finding an independent claim valid but a related dependent claim either anticipated or obvious is irreconcilable. However, the Federal Circuit has used the inconsistencies between regional circuits on the issue of jury verdicts to reach different outcomes in similar cases based solely on the region in which the patent case originated. This note advocates a modification to the Federal Circuit's rule of deference to consider irreconcilable verdicts of independent and dependent claims under its own independent analysis. A consistent approach allowing for appellate review regardless of post-verdict motions is advocated, although a more modest position of requiring …

Table Of Contents, Seventh Circuit Review

Seventh Circuit Review

No abstract provided.

United States V. Blagojevich: A Standard Bait And Switch, Timothy J. Letizia

Seventh Circuit Review

In United States v. Blagojevich, the Seventh Circuit addressed the issue of whether the presumption in favor of disclosure of jurors' names had been rebutted. The Seventh Circuit began its analysis by recognizing three bases by which judicial proceeding information is made available to the press and the public: (1) the First Amendment right of access, (2) the common law presumption of openness, and (3) the Jury Selection and Service Act. While each of these bases functions primarily to make information available to the press and public, each also carries its own distinct standard by which the presumption of …

Discharge Of Rcra Injunctive Claims In Bankruptcy: The Seventh Circuit's Decision In United States V. Apex Oil Co., Inc., Diana E. Rdzanek

Seventh Circuit Review

In its recent decision in United States v. Apex Oil, Inc., the Seventh Circuit considered whether an injunction under an environmental statute, even one that requires significant expenditures on the part of the debtor, could ever be a "right to payment" under the Bankruptcy Code, which would allow the claim to be discharged in the bankruptcy. The Seventh Circuit answered in the negative. Since the Supreme Court's decision in Ohio v. Kovacs, the federal circuits have disagreed on the discrete issue of when a claim arises for purposes of bankruptcy with respect to clean-up injunctions under environmental laws. …

What Does Speed Have To Do With It?: An Analysis Of The Seventh Circuit's Application Of The Speedy Trial Act, Meagan S. Winings

Seventh Circuit Review

A defendant's right to a speedy trial is ensured by the Sixth Amendment to the Constitution, as well as the Speedy Trial Act. The right was created to prevent oppressive pretrial incarceration, to minimize anxiety and concern of the accused, and to limit the possibility that the defense will be impaired. The Speedy Trial Act is to be interpreted in light of this purpose; however, the Seventh Circuit, along with the other circuits and the Supreme Court, has deviated from this principle.

The Seventh Circuit has applied the excludable days exception within the Speedy Trial Act so liberally as to …

The Gatekeepers Keep Changing The Locks: Swanson V. Citibank And The Key To Stating A Plausible Claim In The Seventh Circuit Following Twombly And Iqbal, Gregory L. Grattan

Seventh Circuit Review

In Swanson v. Citibank, the Seventh Circuit debated with new vigor how to properly interpret and apply the Supreme Court's requirement that all complaints state a plausible claim. Following the Supreme Court's decisions in Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly and Ashcroft v. Iqbal, if a complaint in any civil case does not state "a claim to relief that is plausible on its face," then it fails to meet the requirements of Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 8(a)(2) and is subject to dismissal under Federal Rule 12(b)(6). In Swanson, Judge Diane Wood advocated for a liberal interpretation of …

How Less Is More: The Unraveling Of The Inextricable Intertwinement Doctrine Under United States V. Gorman, Jaime L. Padgett

Seventh Circuit Review

In July 2010, the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit explicitly abolished the long-standing doctrine of inextricable intertwinement as a basis of admissibility for other bad acts evidence. The court held in United States v. Gorman that the doctrine had "become overused, vague, and quite unhelpful" and as such, "has outlived its usefulness." The court eliminated this basis of admissibility in favor of the exclusive use of Federal Rule of Evidence 404(b). Although the two bases have different origins and initial purposes, by virtue of confusion and realities of the judicial system, the bases have come to …

Two-Thirds Of An Evidentiary Requirement: Are Courts Too Strict In Construing The Two-Thirds Citizenship Requirement Of The Cafa Home-State Exception?, John P. Orellana

Seventh Circuit Review

In In re: Nextel Sprint Corporation, the Seventh Circuit addressed the requirement that plaintiffs show that two-thirds of class members are citizens of the state under the CAFA home-state and local controversy exceptions in order to avoid removal to federal court. A plaintiff class, composed of Kansas residents subscribing to the defendant's cell phone service under Kansas cell phone numbers and receiving their bills at Kansas mailing addresses, sought remand to state court. Though the court found common sense intuitions implicated that the class likely satisfied the two-thirds citizenship requirement of the home-state exception, the court refused to remand …

Papa Don't Preach: Badger Catholic V. Walsh Muddies The Line Between Church And State, Nicholas K. Graves

Seventh Circuit Review

Religion's role in government activity marks a contentious area in the legal community. The First Amendment, by its own language, is ambiguous and fails to give true, clear guidance on where a line might be drawn between religion and government. Spirited debate on their coexistence is all but a constant in American society. Enter public education. The edification of American children from kindergarten through higher education has led to furious debate on when and where it is appropriate for religion to enter. In a recent case, Badger Catholic v. Walsh, the Seventh Circuit discussed religion in education in the …

Conclude To Exclude: The Exclusionary Rule's Role In Civil Forfeiture Proceedings, Daniel W. Kaminski

Seventh Circuit Review

The United States Supreme Court established the exclusionary rule in order to deter law enforcement officers from conducting illegal searches and seizures. By excluding illegally seized evidence, the Court looked to provide American citizens with a remedy to uphold their Fourth Amendment rights. Traditionally, the exclusionary rule excluded only illegally obtained evidence in criminal proceedings. In One 1958 Plymouth Sedan v. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, however, the Court applied the exclusionary rule to civil forfeiture proceedings because the forfeiture statute was quasi-criminal in nature: like a criminal proceeding, its object was to penalize the commission of an offense.

The forfeiture …

Federal Preemption Of State-Law Failure-To-Warn Claims: Has The Presumption Against Preemption Gone Too Far?, Amanda N. Hart

Seventh Circuit Review

Prescription drug warning labels are regulated by both state products liability law and federal regulations imposed by the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. Often, federal law acts as a minimum standard to which states may add stricter labeling requirements. Occasionally, however, state and federal labeling requirements place a prescription drug manufacturer in a position where compliance with state products liability law causes it to violate federal regulations and vice versa. When this occurs, a decision must be made as to whether state or federal drug labeling requirements prevail. Historically, courts have taken the position that state products liability law preempted …

Scrutinizing The Seventh Circuit: How The Court Failed To Address The "Levels Of Scrutiny" Quagmire In United States V. Skoien, Kyle J. Pozan

Seventh Circuit Review

In Footnote 4 of United States v. Carolene Products, frequently referred to as the most famous footnote in constitutional law, the Supreme Court advanced the idea that a narrower standard of review, one that calls for a "more searching judicial inquiry," should operate against the presumption of constitutionality for legislation that is aimed at a discrete and insular minority, or legislation that infringes on a fundamental right. In the landmark decision of McDonald v. City of Chicago, the Supreme Court held that the Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms for self-defense is a fundamental right that …

Extending Tort Liability To Creators Of Fake Profiles On Social Networking Websites, Bradley Kay

Chicago-Kent Journal of Intellectual Property

No abstract provided.

A Definite Claim On Claim Indefiniteness: An Empirical Study Of Definiteness Cases Of The Past Decade With A Focus On The Federal Circuit And The Insolubly Ambiguous Standard, Christa J. Laser

Chicago-Kent Journal of Intellectual Property

No abstract provided.