Law Commons^™

Constructing Illegality In America: Immigrant Experiences, Critiques, And Resistance, Daniel Kanstroom, Cecilia Menjívar

Daniel Kanstroom

The topic of 'illegal' immigration has been a major aspect of public discourse in the United States and many other immigrant-receiving countries. From the beginning of its modern invocation in the early twentieth century, the often ill-defined epithet of human 'illegality' has figured prominently in the media; in vigorous public debates at the national, state, and local levels; and in presidential campaigns. In this collection of essays, contributors from a variety of disciplines - anthropology, law, political science, religious studies, and sociology - examine how immigration law shapes immigrant illegality, how the concept of immigrant illegality is deployed and lived, …

Border Searches In The Age Of Terrorism, Robert M. Bloom

Robert Bloom

This article will first explore the history of border searches. It will look to the reorganization of the border enforcement apparatus resulting from 9/11 as well as the intersection of the Fourth Amendment and border searches generally. Then, it will analyze the Supreme Court's last statement on border searches in the Flores-Montano27 decision, including what impact this decision has had on the lower courts. Finally, the article will focus on Fourth Amendment cases involving terrorism concerns after 9/11, as a means of drawing some conclusions about the effect the emerging emphasis on terrorism and national security concerns will likely have …

The Legitimacy Of Crimmigration Law, Juliet P. Stumpf

Juliet P Stumpf

Crimmigration law—the intersection of immigration and criminal law—with its emphasis on immigration enforcement, has been hailed as the lynchpin for successful political compromise on immigration reform. Yet crimmigration law’s unprecedented approach to interior immigration and criminal law enforcement threatens to undermine public belief in the fairness of immigration law. This Article uses pioneering social science research to explore people’s perceptions of the legitimacy of crimmigration law. According to Tom Tyler and other compliance scholars, perceptions about procedural justice—whether people perceive authorities as acting fairly—are often more important than a favorable outcome such as winning the case or avoiding arrest. Legal …

Specific Intent And The Purposeful Narrowing Of Victim Protection Under The Convention Against Torture, Mary Holper

Mary Holper

Article 3 of the United Nations Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment of Punishment (“CAT”) prevents removal of a person to a country where there is a substantial likelihood of torture. The U.S. ratified the CAT in 1994, yet modified the treaty’s definition of “torture” by inserting an understanding that “torture” includes only pain or suffering that is “specifically intended.” Specific intent, an antiquated criminal law term, has several different meanings in criminal law jurisprudence. In Matter of J-E-, the Board of Immigration Appeals in 2002 chose the most narrow definition of specific intent, “purposeful,” and …

Stirring The Melting Pot: A Recipe For Immigrant Acceptance (Review Of The Immigration Crucible: Transforming Race, Nation, And The Limits Of The Law By Philip Kretsedemas), Michael Scaperlanda

Michael A. Scaperlanda

No abstract provided.

"Alien" Litigation As Polity-Participation: The Positive Power Of A "Voteless Class Of Litigants", Daniel Kanstroom

Daniel Kanstroom

No abstract provided.

Easing The Guidance Document Dilemma Agency By Agency: Immigration Law And Not Really Binding Rules, Jill Family

Jill E. Family

Teague New Rules Must Apply In Initial-Review Collateral Proceedings: The Teachings Of Padilla, Chaidez And Martinez, Rebecca Sharpless, Andrew Stanton

Rebecca Sharpless

The Corrupting Influence Of The United States On A Vulnerable Intercountry Adoption System: A Guide For Stakeholders, Hague And Non-Hague Nations, Ngos, And Concerned Parties, David M. Smolin

David M. Smolin

This article provides an extensive analysis of the corrupting influence of the United States on the development and present workings of the intercountry/international adoption system. A context for this corrupting influence is provided through a careful analysis of the theoretical and practical vulnerabilities of the intercountry adoption system. The distinctive approaches of the United States to social work, adoption, human rights, children's rights, constitutional law and humanitarian intervention also provides careful analysis. The article is designed to be practical in providing both a clear guide to those interested in reforming the United States' approach to intercountry adoption and related matters, …

A Paradox In Employment: The Contradiction That Exists Between Immigration Laws And Outsourcing Practices, And Its Impact On The Legal And Illegal Minority Working Classes, Mary O'Sullivan

Mary T O'Sullivan

The drastic distinctions between the United States’ immigration and outsourcing policies have created a system where American companies are able to send unlimited jobs overseas, yet, have very restricted ability to bring workers to domestic offices and factories. Restrictive immigration policies seek to protect American jobs, while liberal outsourcing regulations permit, and encourage, employers to send jobs outside of the United States. As a result, the United States’ outsourcing policy sabotages the purpose of American immigration laws. The uncertainty of the contradiction between immigration and outsourcing policy may be the cause of unusually high unemployment numbers, particularly in the minority …

Of Civil Wrongs And Rights: Kiyemba V. Obama And The Meaning Of Freedom, Separation Of Powers, And The Rule Of Law Ten Years After 9/11, Katherine L. Vaughns, Heather L. Williams

Katherine L. Vaughns

This article is about the rise and fall of continued adherence to the rule of law, proper application of the separation of powers doctrine, and the meaning of freedom for a group of seventeen Uighurs—a Turkic Muslim ethnic minority whose members reside in the Xinjiang province of China—who had been held at the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base since 2002. Most scholars regard the trilogy of Hamdi v. Rumsfeld, Hamdan v. Rumsfeld, and Boumediene v. Bush as demonstrating the Supreme Court’s willingness to uphold the rule of law during the war on terror. The recent experience of the Uighurs suggest that …

Taming The Asylum Adjudication Process: An Agenda For The Twenty-First Century, Katherine Vaughns

Katherine L. Vaughns

No abstract provided.

Border Fixation: The Appearance Of Security And Control In Immigration Reform, Katherine L. Vaughns

Katherine L. Vaughns

Immigration reform is the subject of intense discussion among politicians, policy experts, analysts, and advocacy groups alike; America’s never-ending debate which today has been infected with shameless demagoguery, rendering sound policy choices virtually impossible. And in this political cauldron, the appearance of border security and control through symbolism and political rhetoric substitute for the practical realities that are essential to inform policymakers about the appropriate administration and enforcement of U.S. immigration laws. For Congress has had an ongoing, unsound focus on sealing the border it shares with Mexico, its southwestern neighbor, seemingly without regard to costs especially in the post-9/11 …

A Tale Of Two Opinions: The Meaning Of Statutes And The Nature Of Judicial Decision-Making In The Administrative Context, Katherine L. Vaughns

Katherine L. Vaughns

No abstract provided.

Asylum And Inspections Reform, Katherine L. Vaughns

Katherine L. Vaughns

No abstract provided.

The New Immigration Federalism, Stella Burch Elias

Stella Burch Elias

The Supreme Court’s recent rulings in Arizona v. United States and Chamber of Commerce v. Whiting and lower courts’ decisions in a variety of related cases have redefined the parameters of engagement in immigration regulation by local, state, and national governmental actors. These decisions, and the evolving legal, political, and policy contexts in which they arise, portend a new immigration federalism. American scholars, jurists, and policymakers previously debated whether the delegation of responsibility for some aspects of immigration regulation to states and localities was constitutionally or statutorily permissible, whether states and localities could exercise immigration-related functions without such express delegation, …

Kiyemba, Guantanamo, And Immigration Law: An Extraterritorial Constitution In A Plenary Power World, Ernesto A. Hernandez-Lopez

Ernesto A. Hernandez

Immigration law is central to justifications for why five men remain detained indefinitely at Guantanamo, despite having writs of habeas approved in 2008. Since then, the Court of Appeals in Kiyemba v. Obama I, II, and III has used plenary powers reasoning to justify detentions under immigration law. The detainees are all non-combatants and Uighurs, Turkic Muslims from China. The Supreme Court may review these cases. Kiyemba I and III concern their judicial release into the U.S., while Kiyemba II regards barring their transfer because they may be tortured overseas. These cases raise significant constitutional habeas issues, but they also …

Opinion Analysis: Deferring To (Even More) Limited Relief From Removal, Jill Family

Jill E. Family

Explaining The Rise Of State And Local Immigration Laws, Pratheepan Gulasekaram

Pratheepan Gulasekaram

This Article provides a systematic empirical investigation of the genesis of state and local immigration regulations, discrediting the popular notion that they are caused by uneven demographic pressures across the country. Instead, we find systematic evidence for the significance of political contexts such as the strength of political parties in states and localities. The story we tell in this paper is both political and legal: understanding immigration politics uncovers vital truths about the recent rise of subnational involvement in a policy arena courts and commentators have traditionally ascribed to the federal government. This recognition of the political dynamics of immigration …

U.S. Asylum Law As A Path To Religious Persecution, Jack Dolance

Jack C Dolance II

U.S. asylum law protects against persecution “on account of . . . religion.” But must the law protect a non-believer seeking religious asylum in the United States? Many may instinctively answer “no,” for a non-believer is by most definitions not “religious.” Such a response misses the mark, however—at least in the context of U.S. asylum law, which is subject to the First Amendment. The protection of religious liberty enshrined in the First Amendment embodies freedom from persecution on account of one’s “religion”—in whatever form that religion may take. In the asylum context, then, “religion” must be defined broadly. Protection from …

U.S. Asylum Law As A Path To Religious Persecution, Jack Dolance

Jack C Dolance II

U.S. asylum law protects against persecution “on account of . . . religion.” But must the law protect a non-believer seeking religious asylum in the United States? Many may instinctively answer “no,” for a non-believer is by most definitions not “religious.” Such a response misses the mark, however—at least in the context of U.S. asylum law, which is subject to the First Amendment. The protection of religious liberty enshrined in the First Amendment embodies freedom from persecution on account of one’s “religion”—in whatever form that religion may take. In the asylum context, then, “religion” must be defined broadly. Protection from …

U.S. Asylum Law As A Path To Religious Persecution, Jack Dolance

Jack C Dolance II

U.S. asylum law protects against persecution “on account of . . . religion.” But must the law protect a non-believer seeking religious asylum in the United States? Many may instinctively answer “no,” for a non-believer is by most definitions not “religious.” Such a response misses the mark, however—at least in the context of U.S. asylum law, which is subject to the First Amendment. The protection of religious liberty enshrined in the First Amendment embodies freedom from persecution on account of one’s “religion”—in whatever form that religion may take. In the asylum context, then, “religion” must be defined broadly. Protection from …

U.S. Asylum Law As A Path To Religious Persecution, Jack Dolance

Jack C Dolance II

U.S. asylum law protects against persecution “on account of . . . religion.” But must the law protect a non-believer seeking religious asylum in the United States? Many may instinctively answer “no,” for a non-believer is by most definitions not “religious.” Such a response misses the mark, however—at least in the context of U.S. asylum law, which is subject to the First Amendment. The protection of religious liberty enshrined in the First Amendment embodies freedom from persecution on account of one’s “religion”—in whatever form that religion may take. In the asylum context, then, “religion” must be defined broadly. Protection from …

You Are Living In A Gold Rush, Richard Delgado

Richard Delgado

This article argues that our times, characterized as they are by dreams of vast wealth, environmental destruction, and growing social inequality, resemble nothing so much as earlier get-rich-quick periods like the Gilded Age and the California gold rush. I put forward a number of parallels between those earlier periods and now and suggest that the current fever is likely to end soon. This will come as a relief to those of you who, like me, deplore the regressive social policies, bellicose foreign relations, and coarsening of public taste that we have been living through—even if some of our more libertarian …

Panel Two: Should There Be Remote Public Access To Court Filings In Immigration Cases?, The Honorable Robert Hinkle, David Mccraw, Daniel Kanstroom, Eleanor Acer

Daniel Kanstroom

No abstract provided.

The Law And Economics Of Peripheral Labor: A Poultry Industry Case Study, Charlotte S. Alexander

Charlotte S. Alexander

Drawing on data and anecdotal accounts from a wide variety of sources, this Article investigates the law and economics of peripheral labor, so called because low wage, low skill workers on the periphery are excluded from the promotion ladders, job security, and steadily increasing pay available to supervisory and managerial workers in the core. Using the U.S. poultry industry as a case study, this Article describes the terms and conditions of peripheral poultry work: de-skilled jobs, low wages, lack of job security, and negligible prospects for promotion. Worker bargaining power is also highly constrained, as workers have little ability to …

Argument Recap: Imputing Eligibility For Relief From Removal, Jill Family

Jill E. Family

Argument Preview: Calculating Relief From Removal, Jill Family

Jill E. Family

Aftermath: Deportation Law And The New American Diaspora, Daniel Kanstroom

Daniel Kanstroom

Since the passage of harsh new deportation laws in 1996, the United States has deported millions of noncitizens--many undocumented, but many others long-term legal residents with U.S. families--back to their countries of origin. The early Obama administration continued such aggressive deportation policies. But few know that once deportees have been expelled to places like Guatemala, Cambodia, Haiti, and El Salvador, many face severe isolation, alienation, persecution and, sometimes, death. Many may never be able to return. Daniel Kanstroom--author of the authoritative history of deportation, Deportation Nation--turns his attention in Aftermath to the current U.S. system and deportation's actual effects on …

Deportations And Repatriations, Daniel Kanstroom

Daniel Kanstroom

No abstract provided.