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Full-Text Articles in Law

Public Opinion And The Abolition Or Retention Of The Death Penalty Why Is The United States Different?, Sara Sun Beale Jan 2014

Public Opinion And The Abolition Or Retention Of The Death Penalty Why Is The United States Different?, Sara Sun Beale

Faculty Scholarship

What explains the difference between the United States and the many other countries that have abolished capital punishment? Because the United States and many other nations that have abolished the death penalty are democracies, there seems to be an obvious answer: abolition or retention reflects the preferences of the electorate. According to this view, the U.S. electorate is simply more punitive, and the question becomes explaining the difference in national attitudes. There is some truth to this explanation. As I have argued elsewhere, the U.S. public generally does favor punitive criminal justice policies. But that cannot be the whole story. …


Public Discourse, Expert Knowledge, And The Press, Joseph Blocher Jan 2012

Public Discourse, Expert Knowledge, And The Press, Joseph Blocher

Faculty Scholarship

This Essay identifies and elaborates two complications raised by Robert Post’s Democracy, Expertise, and Academic Freedom, and in doing so attempts to show how Post’s theory can account for constitutional protection of the press. The first complication is a potential circularity arising from the relationships between the concepts of democratic legitimation, public discourse, and protected social practices. Democratic legitimation predicates First Amendment coverage on participation in public discourse, whose boundaries are defined as those social practices necessary for the formation of public opinion. But close examination of the relationships between these three concepts raises the question of whether public discourse …


A Coase Theorem For Constitutional Theory, Neil S. Siegel Jan 2010

A Coase Theorem For Constitutional Theory, Neil S. Siegel

Faculty Scholarship

There is much to admire about Barry Friedman’s new book, The Will of the People. Explaining how the institution of judicial review was made safe for democracy in America, Friedman’s story is extensively researched, beautifully written, scrupulously nonpartisan about the modern Court, and frequently humorous. What is more, his primary claim—that the Supreme Court of the United States is very much a democratic institution because judicial review always has been responsive to public opinion—is, to a large extent, convincing. I have taught The Will of the People in my first-year constitutional law course, and I plan to do so again. …


Shaping Public Opinion And The Law: How A “Common Man” Campaign Ended A Rich Man’S Law, Marjorie E. Kornhauser Jan 2010

Shaping Public Opinion And The Law: How A “Common Man” Campaign Ended A Rich Man’S Law, Marjorie E. Kornhauser

Law and Contemporary Problems

Kornhauser recounts the legislation which enacted in 1934 required all income taxpayers to submit "pink slips" with their tax returns. The information required by the pink slip would then be made available for public inspection. The disclosure regime was repealed less than one year later, largely through the remarkably effective efforts of one person--Raymond Pitcairn, a wealthy lawyer. She describes a multifaceted public-relations campaign, orchestrated by Pitcairn, that would be sophisticated even by today's standards. Two aspects of Pitcairn's campaign were especially impressive. The first was his ability to enlist the zeitgeist in his efforts; the trial of Bruno Hauptmann …


Mechanism Choice, Jonathan B. Wiener, Barak D. Richman Jan 2009

Mechanism Choice, Jonathan B. Wiener, Barak D. Richman

Faculty Scholarship

This chapter reviews the literature on the selection of regulatory policy instruments, from both normative and positive perspectives. It first reviews the mechanism design literature to identify normative objectives in selecting among the menu or toolbox of policy instruments. The chapter then discusses the public choice and positive political theory literatures and the variety of models developed to attempt to predict the actual selection of alternative policy instruments. It begins with simpler early models focusing on interest group politics and proceeds to more complicated models that incorporate both supply and demand for policy, the role of policy entrepreneurs, behavioral and …


Trial By Jury Involving Persons Accused Of Terrorism Or Supporting Terrorism, Neil Vidmar Jan 2006

Trial By Jury Involving Persons Accused Of Terrorism Or Supporting Terrorism, Neil Vidmar

Faculty Scholarship

This chapter explores issues in jury trials involving persons accused of committing acts of international terrorism or financially or otherwise supporting those who do or may commit such acts. The jury is a unique institution that draws upon laypersons to decide whether a person charged with a crime is guilty or innocent. Although the jury is instructed and guided by a trial judge and procedural rules shape what the jury is allowed to hear, ultimately the laypersons deliberate alone and render their verdict. A basic principle of the jury system is that at the start of trial the jurors should …


Pretrial Publicity, Presumed Prejudice, And Change Of Venue In Alaska: Public Opinion Surveys As A Tool To Measure The Impact Of Prejudicial Pretrial Publicity, Rich Curtner, Melissa Kassier Dec 2005

Pretrial Publicity, Presumed Prejudice, And Change Of Venue In Alaska: Public Opinion Surveys As A Tool To Measure The Impact Of Prejudicial Pretrial Publicity, Rich Curtner, Melissa Kassier

Alaska Law Review

No abstract provided.


The Japanese American Cases, 1942-2004: A Social History, Roger Daniels Apr 2005

The Japanese American Cases, 1942-2004: A Social History, Roger Daniels

Law and Contemporary Problems

Daniels examines the changing reactions of the government and the public to the internment of Japanese Americans during WWII and in the six decades following. Some comparisons can be drawn between this action and the attitudes encountered by the public in the wake of the Sep 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.


How The Health Care Revolution Fell Short, Clark C. Havighurst Oct 2002

How The Health Care Revolution Fell Short, Clark C. Havighurst

Law and Contemporary Problems

Managed Care I proved itself a poor public servant was appropriately deposed in the counter-revolution it inspired. Managed Care II apparently believes that, by cultivating a more benevolent image than its predecessor, it will be able to hang onto power and ride out any "perfect storm" that may be brewing and that its members can survive as private functionaries in a market increasingly dominated and controlled by government.


Market Failures And The Evolution Of State Regulation Of Managed Care, Frank A. Sloan, Mark A. Hall Oct 2002

Market Failures And The Evolution Of State Regulation Of Managed Care, Frank A. Sloan, Mark A. Hall

Law and Contemporary Problems

Sloan and Hall reflect on whether the market defects identified explain why the managed care revolution has stalled and whether patient protection laws can help put managed care back on track. From a perspective of reliance on market forces to achieve socially desirable outcomes, the fundamental failure of managed care is the failure to produce competing systems of health care delivery that force competitive processes and consumer choice to focus on trade-offs between the cost and quality of care.


Arbitrariness And The Death Penalty In An International Context, Mary K. Newcomer Dec 1995

Arbitrariness And The Death Penalty In An International Context, Mary K. Newcomer

Duke Law Journal

No abstract provided.


Deficit Reduction: Democracy, Technocracy, And Constitutionalism In The European Union, Paul D. Marquardt Apr 1994

Deficit Reduction: Democracy, Technocracy, And Constitutionalism In The European Union, Paul D. Marquardt

Duke Journal of Comparative & International Law

No abstract provided.


Rights And Irresponsibility, Linda C. Mcclain Mar 1994

Rights And Irresponsibility, Linda C. Mcclain

Duke Law Journal

No abstract provided.


Death By Default, James Lindgren Jul 1993

Death By Default, James Lindgren

Law and Contemporary Problems

It is argued that most people would prefer that their lives not be artificially prolonged and that, in the absence of evidence that a particular person would have preferred otherwise, courts should permit life support to be withdrawn. A counter argument is presented.


A Note On Quebec Attitudes Toward Constitutional Options, Allan Kornberg, Keith Archer Oct 1982

A Note On Quebec Attitudes Toward Constitutional Options, Allan Kornberg, Keith Archer

Law and Contemporary Problems

No abstract provided.


Hyphenated Americans—Economic Aspects, Martin Bronfenbrenner Apr 1982

Hyphenated Americans—Economic Aspects, Martin Bronfenbrenner

Law and Contemporary Problems

No abstract provided.