Law Commons^™

Justice Thomas, Civil Asset Forfeitures, And Punitive Damages, Jill W. Lens

Jill Wieber Lens

Will Retroactive Proposition 30 Ever Be Challenged?, Frank J. Doti

Frank J. Doti

Professor Doti's article challenges the constitutionality of California Proposition 30. California voters passed Proposition 30 in 2012 to increase for seven years the income tax rates for those making more than $250,000. The highest tax bracket for individuals with more than $500,000 in taxable income was increased from 9.3% to 12.3%. Proposition 30 was approved by voters on November 6, 2012, but the increased rates were made retroactive—without effective notice—to January 1, 2012.

Retroactive tax laws eviscerate respect for the law and may result in a deprivation of due process of law under the Fifth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. …

A ‘Simple Test’: Posthumously Conceived Children And Social Security Entitlements In Astrue V Capato, Mel Cousins

Mel Cousins

This case note examines a recent Supreme Court decision concerning the interpretation of the provisions of the Social Security Act concerning entitlement to survivor’s benefits in respect of children. The case involved the correct construction of the term ‘child’ in the Act but arose, more specifically, from a series of cases concerning posthumously conceived children. Courts of Appeal had come to different interpretations as to correct interpretation of the Act and the Supreme Court intervened to resolve the conflict. The Court accepted the Social Security Agency’s (SSA) interpretation of the legislation. However, although legally correct, this does little if anything …

The Mandatory Death Penalty And A Sparsely Worded Constitution, Jack Tsen-Ta Lee

Jack Tsen-Ta LEE

It was not unexpected that the Singapore Court of Appeal would reaffirm the constitutionality of the mandatory death penalty for certain forms of drug trafficking in Yong Vui Kong v Public Prosecutor [2010] 3 S.L.R 489. ... The appellant made submissions based on Articles 9(1) and 12(1) of the Constitution, which respectively guarantee rights to life and personal liberty, and to equality before the law and equal protection of the law. This note examines aspects of the Article 9(1) arguments.

Presidential Control Over The Regulatory Affairs Of Federal Administrative Agencies, Jennifer Allison

Jennifer Allison

This paper outlines the historical exertion of presidential control over the regulatory affairs of federal agencies. It first examines the historical understanding of the constitutionality of examining such control. Then, it describes the two main methods that modern Presidents use to exercise such control: presidential directives and presidential regulatory approval regimes. Finally, it discusses how this has manifested itself during the early days of the Obama administration, exploring the regulatory effects of President Obama's executive order that directed agencies to expand funding programs for research using embryonic stem cells.

Indecent Speech On Broadcast Television: A Constitutional Challenge To The Government’S Time-Channeling Provisions, Krista Jacobsen

Krista S. Jacobsen

What is the correct level of scrutiny under which to evaluate the constitutionality of restrictions of indecent speech in broadcast television? The Supreme Court has never articulated the answer to this question. Since the mid-1970s, however, courts have seemingly afforded a lower-than-strict level of scrutiny to governmental restrictions of indecent speech in broadcast television.

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) attempts to “time-channel” indecent content on television to the hours when children are unlikely to be in the audience. In 2006, the FCC announced that it was adopting a more aggressive approach to indecent speech on television. In the future, even …