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Full-Text Articles in Law
Six Degrees Of Separation: Attribution Under The Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act In Obb Personenverkehr Ag V. Sachs, Daniel R. Echeverri
Six Degrees Of Separation: Attribution Under The Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act In Obb Personenverkehr Ag V. Sachs, Daniel R. Echeverri
Duke Journal of Constitutional Law & Public Policy Sidebar
The Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act (FSIA) generally prevents foreign sovereigns from falling within the jurisdiction of U.S. courts, subject to exceptions the FSIA lists. This commentary analyzes BB Personenverkehr AG v. Sachs, a case before the Supreme Court on the question of whether the commercial activities exception of the FSIA applies when only one element of a plaintiff's claim is based upon commercial activity occurring in the United States and whether that sale can be attributed to a foreign sovereign. In this case, the plaintiff purchased a rail pass through an online, third-party travel agent. While traveling abroad and …
Ohio V. Clark: Testimonial Statements Under The Confrontation Clause, Mesha Sloss
Ohio V. Clark: Testimonial Statements Under The Confrontation Clause, Mesha Sloss
Duke Journal of Constitutional Law & Public Policy Sidebar
In Crawford v. Washington, the Supreme Court declared that an accused right under the Constitution to confront the witnesses against him applied only to “testimonial statements.” That decision, however, did not attempt to fully define the scope of testimonial statements. This commentary analyzes Ohio v. Clark, a case which will decide the question of whether statements made by a child to a person with a duty to report allegations of child abuse are testimonial statements. In this case a young child was questioned at school by a teaching assistant about his injuries. This statement was then offered in …
Hiding In Plain Sight: Jesinoski And The Consumer’S Right Of Rescission, Milan Prodanovic
Hiding In Plain Sight: Jesinoski And The Consumer’S Right Of Rescission, Milan Prodanovic
Duke Journal of Constitutional Law & Public Policy Sidebar
No abstract provided.
Keeping Civil Rights Debates Civil: Removing Opportunities For Prejudice, Steven Saracco
Keeping Civil Rights Debates Civil: Removing Opportunities For Prejudice, Steven Saracco
Duke Journal of Constitutional Law & Public Policy Sidebar
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination on the basis of religion in employment decisions made by private employers. This commentary analyzes Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Abercrombie & Fitch, a case before the Supreme Court on the issue of whether a job applicant bears the burden of expressly notifying an employer of a conflict between the applicant’s religious beliefs and the employer’s policies before the employer must offer a reasonable accommodation. This case deals with a Muslim woman who was denied employment at a clothing store because her headdress was deemed to be a …
Violently Possessed: Johnson As The Vehicle For Limiting Sentencing Enhancement Under The Armed Career Criminals Act, Jonathan Robe
Violently Possessed: Johnson As The Vehicle For Limiting Sentencing Enhancement Under The Armed Career Criminals Act, Jonathan Robe
Duke Journal of Constitutional Law & Public Policy Sidebar
This commentary previews an upcoming Supreme Court case, Johnson v. United States in which the Court will decide whether conviction for mere possession of a short-barreled shotgun qualifies as a "violent felony" that warrants sentence-enhancement under the Armed Career Criminals Act. The Author argues that he plain text of the statute and the Court's prior cases on the issue suggest tat convictions for "mere possession" do not satisfy the definition of "violent felony" and that the Court should overturn the Eighth Circuit's ruling upholding Johnson's sentence enhancement.
Is That A Threat?: Elonis V. United States And The Standard Of Intent For True Threat Convictions, Peter S. Larson
Is That A Threat?: Elonis V. United States And The Standard Of Intent For True Threat Convictions, Peter S. Larson
Duke Journal of Constitutional Law & Public Policy Sidebar
This commentary analyzes the Supreme Court case Elonis v. United States where the Court will determine the applicable criminal-intent standard required to convict a defendant for threatening speech. After a series of violent Facebook posts against coworkers and his estranged wife, Petitioner Elonis was convicted for making so-called "true threats" of violence--speech not granted First-Amendment protection. Elonis argues that the prosecution should have been required to prove that he actually had the intent to threaten people when he wrote the posts, not simply that a reasonable person would find the posts threatening. The Author argues that the Court should rule …
Up In The Air: Department Of Homeland Security V. Maclean And The Whistleblower Protection Act, Mike Brett
Up In The Air: Department Of Homeland Security V. Maclean And The Whistleblower Protection Act, Mike Brett
Duke Journal of Constitutional Law & Public Policy Sidebar
This commentary analyzes the Supreme Court case Department of Homeland Security v. MacLean deciding whether an employee of the Department of Homeland Security comes under the protection of the Whistleblower Protection Act when they release potentially sensitive information to the media. Generally, the Act protects whistleblowers unless the information they release is not allowed "as specified by law." The particular statutory question in this case is whether the "law" prohibiting release must be contained in a statute, or can include the Department of Homeland Security's own promulgated regulation. The Author profiles the background of the case, applicable legal precedent, and …
Zivotofsky V. Kerry: Of Passports, Politics, And Foreign Policy Powers, Cara J. Grand
Zivotofsky V. Kerry: Of Passports, Politics, And Foreign Policy Powers, Cara J. Grand
Duke Journal of Constitutional Law & Public Policy Sidebar
This commentary profiles the upcoming Supreme Court decision in Zivotofsky v. Kerry, which will decide, for the first time in United States history, the dividing line between legislative and executive authority to recognize foreign nations. Though it emanates from a seemingly-benign passport disagreement about a place-of-birth designation, this case will address an unprecedented and extremely controversial issue about separation of powers that has somehow evaded a Supreme Court decision. The Author profiles the case history and applicable legal precedent and analyzes the arguments for both sides before recommending that the Court should not find the President's power in this …
Jennings V. Stephens And Judicial Efficiency In Habeas Appeals, Eric O'Brien
Jennings V. Stephens And Judicial Efficiency In Habeas Appeals, Eric O'Brien
Duke Journal of Constitutional Law & Public Policy Sidebar
This commentary previews the Supreme Court case Jennings v. Stevens which deals with several areas of federal habeas corpus law and procedure. The Court will consider, inter alia, whether a habeas petitioner who succeeds in federal district court nevertheless needs to request a certificate of appealability to bring an alternate grounds for habeas relief at the appellate level. Further, the Court can resolve a major circuit split on whether a court considering an ineffective assistance of counsel claim should consider each instance of ineffective assistance as a single claim or as all parts of one claim. Eric O'Brien suggests …