Law Commons^™

The Taxation Without Representation Of Undocumented Immigrants: Counting Unlawfully Earned Tax Dollars While Intentionally Ignoring Unlawful Presence, María Fernanda Alfaro

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

Federal law mandates that wage earning undocumented immigrants pay taxes. Like all U.S. citizens and legal permanent residents, undocumented immigrants are not exempt from tax obligations solely because of their immigration status in the country. It seems like federal immigration laws are punishing undocumented immigrants for their unlawful presence in the United States, while federal tax laws praise and encourage their continued tax reporting. The Supreme Court’s opinion in Department of Commerce v. New York effectively ended the attempt to get a citizenship question on the 2020 Census, but it by no means closed the door on future attempts. Even …

Building A Lifeline: A Proposed Global Platform And Responsibility Sharing Model For The Global Compact On Refugees, Sarnata Reynolds, Juan Pablo Vacatello

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

In 2016, the leaders of 193 governments committed to more equitable and predictable sharing of responsibility for refugees as part of the New York Declaration, to be realized in the Global Compact on Refugees. To encourage debate, this paper presents the first global model to measure the capacity of governments to physically protect and financially support refugees and host communities. The model is based on a new database of indicators covering 193 countries, which assigns a fair share to each country and measures current government contributions to the protection of refugees. The model also proposes a new government-led global platform …

Dignity Takings In Leviathanic Immigration Proceedings, Christopher Mendez

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

Current immigration law in the United States is rife with racially motivated biases necessitating immediate correction. Among the many problems with current law, constitutional rights are withheld from a large populace. This article reflects upon the history of immigration law in the United States, noting key decisions which have formed the status quo. This article also proposes remedies such as the cessation of infringement by government agents on the property rights that affected immigrants have on their own bodies and a modern-day amnesty reflective of the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986. This article also introduces Bernadette Atuahene’s concept …

Combatting The Opioid Epidemic In Texas By Holding Big Pharma Manufacturers Liable, Katherine Spiser

St. Mary's Law Journal

Abstract forthcoming

City Of San Antonio Presents Official Congratulations On The 50th Anniversary Of The St. Mary’S Law Journal, Ron Nirenberg

St. Mary's Law Journal

City of San Antonio Presents Official Congratulations on the 50th Anniversary of the St. Mary’s Law Journal.

Lee Hargis Lytton Iii: A Most Extraordinary, Interesting And Instructive Life, Robert Summers

St. Mary's Law Journal

Tribute to Lee Hargis Lytton III, a professor at St. Mary's University School of Law in San Antonio, Texas.

My Friend—Lee H. Lytton, Leo Womack

St. Mary's Law Journal

Tribute to Lee H. Lytton, a professor at St. Mary's University School of Law in San Antonio, Texas.

Unlimited Liability For Banks: Deposits As Fraudulent Transfers, Katherine Zampas

St. Mary's Law Journal

One of a trustee’s most valuable resources in bankruptcy proceedings is his avoidance powers. A trustee is charged with the duty to recover and recapture any property wrongfully removed from the estate by way of fraudulent transfer or preference. In some cases, a trustee has attempted to treat a debtor’s deposit into a bank account as a transfer, rendering it subject to his avoidance powers. Such a result will leave banks collaterally responsible as a transferee for a debtor’s conduct despite their lack of culpability and control over the funds.

The definition of transfer within the Bankruptcy Code is comprehensive …

Standards Of Review In Texas, W. Wendell Hall, Ryan G. Anderson

St. Mary's Law Journal

Abstract forthcoming

Class Of 2022 Incoming Il Law Students, St. Mary's University School Of Law, St. Mary's University School Of Law

Incoming 1L Photos (Facebooks)

Photographs of incoming law students for the St. Mary’s University School of Law, class of 2022

Handcuffing The Vote: Diluting Minority Voting Power Through Prison Gerrymandering And Felon Disenfranchisement, Rebecca Harrison Stevens, Meagan Taylor Harding, Joaquin Gonzalez, Emily Eby

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

For the purposes of legislative redistricting, Texas counts prison populations at the address of the prison in which they are incarcerated at the time of the census, rather than their home prior to incarceration—regardless of whether the prisoners themselves maintain a residence in their home communities and intend to return home after incarceration. This deprives those home communities of full representation in the redistricting process. Combined with Texas’s felon disenfranchisement laws, this also results in arbitrarily bolstering the representational power of some Texans on the backs of other Texans who themselves are unable to vote. All of this takes place …

Challenging Voting Rights And Political Participation In State Courts, Irving Joyner

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

Abstract forthcoming

Still Writing At The Master’S Table: Decolonizing Rhetoric In Legal Writing For A “Woke” Legal Academy, Teri A. Mcmurtry-Chubb

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

When the author wrote Writing At the Master’s Table: Reflections on Theft, Criminality, and Otherness in the Legal Writing Profession almost 10 years ago, her aim was to bring a Critical Race Theory/Feminism (CRTF) analysis to scholarship about the marginalization of White women law professors of legal writing. She focused on the convergence of race, gender, and status to highlight the distinct inequities women of color face in entering their ranks. The author's concern was that barriers to entry for women of color made it less likely that the existing legal writing professorate, predominantly White and female, would problematize the …

Making Democracy Count: The Seemingly Technical Procedures That Can Make Or Break A Census, Charlotte Schwartz, Jeffrey Zalesin, Rachel Brown

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

Abstract forthcoming

The State Of Texas Recognizes The 50th Anniversary Of The St. Mary’S Law Journal, Greg Abbott

St. Mary's Law Journal

The Honorable Greg Abbott, Governor of the State of Texas, issued a certificate in 2019 recognizing the 50th Anniversary of the St. Mary's Law Journal and their contribution to the legal profession.

Article Iii Courts V. Military Commissions: A Comparison Of Protection Of Classified Information And Admissibility Of Evidence In Terrorism Prosecutions, Mohamed Al-Hendy

St. Mary's Law Journal

Abstract forthcoming

Latino Education In Texas: A History Of Systematic Recycling Discrimination, Albert H. Kauffman

St. Mary's Law Journal

Abstract forthcoming

Population Law And Policy: From Control And Contraception To Equity And Equality, Victoria Mather

St. Mary's Law Journal

Abstract forthcoming

Regulating Retirement: Understanding The Impact Of New Best Interest And Fiduciary Standards On Retail Investors, Michael Lichtmacher

St. Mary's Law Journal

Abstract forthcoming

Not Everybody Loves Raymond: How The Case Of Raymond V. Raymond Made A Shambles Of Interspousal Gift Presumptions And The Parol Evidence Rule In Matters Of Texas Community Property, Pamela E. George

St. Mary's Law Journal

Abstract forthcoming

The Remarkable First 50 Women Law Graduates Of St. Mary’S University: Part One, Regina Stone-Harris

St. Mary's Law Journal

Abstract forthcoming

Texas, The Death Penalty, And Intellectual Disability, Megan Green

St. Mary's Law Journal

Abstract forthcoming

Mandatory Legal Malpractice Insurance: Exposing Lawyers' Blind Spots, Susan S. Fortney

St. Mary's Journal on Legal Malpractice & Ethics

The legal landscape for lawyers’ professional liability in the United States is changing. In 2018, Idaho implemented a new rule requiring that lawyers carry legal malpractice insurance. The adoption of the Idaho rule was the first move in forty years by a state to require legal malpractice insurance since Oregon mandated lawyer participation in a malpractice insurance regime. Over the last two years, a few states have considered whether their jurisdictions should join Oregon and Idaho in requiring malpractice insurance for lawyers in private practice. To help inform the discussion, the article examines different positions taken in the debate on …

Judicial Ethics: A New Paradigm For A New Era, Charles G. Geyh

St. Mary's Journal on Legal Malpractice & Ethics

As the preamble to the Model Code of Judicial Conduct indicates, traditional notions of judicial ethics operate within a rule of law paradigm, which posits that the “three I’s” of judicial ethics—independence, impartiality, and integrity—enable judges to uphold the law. In recent decades, however, social science, public opinion, and political commentary suggest that appointed judges abuse their independence by disregarding the law and issuing rulings in accord with their biases and other extralegal impulses, while elected judges disregard the law and issue rulings popular with voters, all of which calls the future of the three I’s and judicial ethics itself …

“The More Things Change, The More They Remain The Same:” Lawyer Ethics In The 21st Century, Gregory C. Sisk

St. Mary's Journal on Legal Malpractice & Ethics

At an accelerating pace since the recession, our legal profession has been undergoing structural changes in the delivery of many legal services. At the same time, longstanding principles of ethics continue to govern the day-to-day lives of practicing lawyers.

This article lays out four examples of how meaningful change in lawyer practice has been accomplished since the turn-of-the-century with continued adherence to bedrock professional concepts. First, the rules now embrace the multi-jurisdictional practice of law, while the disciplinary authority of each jurisdiction is emphatically confirmed and strengthened. Second, rules on lawyer advertising are streamlined to grant largely open-ended permission for …

Connecting Prospective Law Students' Goals To The Competencies That Clients And Legal Employers Need To Achieve More Competent Graduates And Stronger Applicant Pools And Employment Outcomes, Neil W. Hamilton

St. Mary's Journal on Legal Malpractice & Ethics

The author’s chapters in the 2018 professional responsibility hornbook, Legal Ethics, Professional Responsibility, and the Legal Profession, discuss the new data available to help law faculties and students understand the competencies that clients and legal employers want. The foundation for many of these competencies—like ownership over continuous professional development and the relational competencies with clients and teams—is the student’s professional identity or moral core. But students need help to understand these connections.

We have seen some very useful new data over the last few months that will help build bridges among the three major stakeholders in legal education: the …

The Fiduciary Obligations Of Public Officials, Vincent R. Johnson

St. Mary's Journal on Legal Malpractice & Ethics

At various levels of government, the conduct of public officials is often regulated by ethical standards laid down by legislative enactments, such as federal or state statutes or municipal ordinances. These rules of government ethics are important landmarks in the field of law that defines the legal and ethical obligations of public officials. Such provisions can form the basis for the kinds of government ethics training that helps to minimize wrongful conduct by public servants and reduces the risk that the performance of official duties will be clouded by appearances of impropriety. Codified government ethics rules also frequently provide mechanisms …

The Practitioner’S Guide To Properly Responding To Requests For Disclosure Under The Texas Discovery Rules, Robert K. Wise, Kennon L. Wooten

St. Mary's Law Journal

Discovery, a pretrial procedure used to obtain information relating to the litigation, generally is the largest cost of civil litigation. By its very nature, discovery also is intrusive and invasive. Many practitioners are quick to dispute discovery requests, slow to produce information requested, and all too-eager to object at every stage of the discovery process.

This article relates to one of the most common types of written discovery—Texas Rule of Civil Procedure 194 disclosure requests, the responses to which are often incomplete and inadequate. Disclosure requests provide inexpensive, basic discovery without the delay relating to objections or work-product assertions. This …

Federal Jurisdiction For Above-Ground Oil Storage Tanks: A Practical Analysis For Navigating Federal Regulations, Kathryn Hussong

St. Mary's Law Journal

Clear, consistent, and concise jurisdictional boundaries will aid pipeline operators to determine which regulations apply to their operations and associated facilities. This will help alleviate legal and financial risk to pipeline operators, who may be liable for noncompliance regardless of whether the pipeline operator or the associated refinery commits the violation. Overlapping state and federal regulations of pipelines and refineries has created confusion amongst operators regarding what regulations apply to their facilities. Three federal agencies—the Pipeline and Hazardous Safety Administration (PHMSA), the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) respectively—and a myriad of state agencies simultaneously …

The State Of Texas Concurrent Resolution 19r474, José Menéndez, Four Price

St. Mary's Law Journal

Joint legislative resolution recognizing the St. Mary's Law Journal 50th anniversary in 2019.