Law Commons^™

Lest We Be Lemmings, Claire Wright

Faculty Articles

Lest We Be Lemmings concerns global warming, which is the most grave threat facing humanity today. In this article, I first: (1) discuss how the U.S. Congress and the U.S. Executive Branch, for decades, have been aware of the existence of global warming and its main cause – the burning of fossil fuels and emission of CO₂ - but have consistently failed to regulate the fossil fuel industry, reduce the lucrative subsidies that they provide to the fossil fuel industry, and hold the fossil fuel industry responsible for global warming; (2) explain how the fossil fuel industry, for decades, …

40 More Writing Hacks For Appellate Attorneys, Brian C. Potts

Faculty Articles

Script for Trailer: “40 More Writing Hacks for Appellate Attorneys”

Fade in on aerial view of Washington, D.C.

Zoom in on Supreme Court Building. Chopper sounds. Enter helicopter fleet flying by.

Cut to Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr., sitting at his desk, reading. He rubs his forehead. Tired. Anxious. Distraught.

Chief: “What a mess! This brief could have been 10 pages shorter!”

Phone rings. Chief answers on speaker.

Law clerk’s voice through phone: “Chief, turn to Appellee’s brief. You’ve got to see this!”

Chief picks up different brief. Flips it open. Zoom in on face. Eyes widen. Jaw drops. …

Beyond Social Media Analogues, Gregory M. Dickinson

Faculty Articles

The steady flow of social-media cases toward the Supreme Court shows a nation reworking its fundamental relationship with technology. The cases raise a host of questions ranging from difficult to impossible: how to nurture a vibrant public square when a few tech giants dominate the flow of information, how social media can be at the same time free from conformist groupthink and also protected against harmful disinformation campaigns, and how government and industry can cooperate on such problems without devolving toward censorship.

To such profound questions, this Essay offers a comparatively modest contribution—what not to do. Always the lawyer’s instinct …

Dog Owners Deserve Public Housing: Why Florida's Dog Breed Restrictions Are Discriminatory And Should Be Repealed, Melissa Betancourt

St. Thomas Law Review

This Comment analyzes why dog breed restrictions are discriminatory and ineffective, and how responsible dog owners throughout Florida lack access to inclusive public housing laws. Part II provides background on the breed-specific ordinances in Florida and Public Housing Authorities, including history and definitions. Part III discusses why breed-specific legislations are ineffective, and Florida’s recent attempts to eliminate them. Part IV considers three solutions to trump over Florida’s dog breed restrictions and aid dog owners during the current housing crisis. Lastly, Part V will summarize and conclude the analysis throughout the Comment.

Claim Denied - Access Denied: The Black Wall Street Insurance Grift, Andre D.P. Cummings, Kalvin Graham

St. Thomas Law Review

The subject of Corporate Reparations has gained noteworthy momentum in recent years. The murder of George Floyd at the hands of former police officer Derek Chauvin in 2020 galvanized major United States corporate leadership into thinking about and committing to playing a sizeable role in ending systemic racism and bringing economic equality and social justice to the nation.
Doug McMillon, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Fortune #1 company Walmart, Inc. expressed as much when he stated in the wake of the George Floyd summer of protests:

"What I’ve come to realize is that it wasn’t just the physical weight of …

Lack Of Access To The Law: Saving Black Americans A Seat At The Legal Table Symposium Transcript, Benjamin L. Crump

St. Thomas Law Review

Transcript: Opening Remarks of "Lack of Access to the Law: Saving Black Americans a Seat at the Legal Table" Symposium by Benjamin L. Crump, Esq.

The Wolf In Sheep's Clothing: How Historical And Blight Designations In The Absence Of Constitutional Safeguards Can Render Property Rights Illusory, Kyle B. Teal, Dane L. Stuhlsatz

St. Thomas Law Review

This article summarily analyzes those more subtle forms of property rights infringement, including historical designations and blight designations, and it critiques laws in place that purport to grant local government the authority to assert such designations. This article also provides a summary of the causes of action owners aggrieved by unjust designations could bring in response, and critiques the flaws in those elective safeguards, which are prevalent even in property rights friendly jurisdictions such as Florida. It then proposes high-level solutions to enact legislation to limit fee exposure for property owners who bring inverse condemnation actions and Bert J. Harris …

The Key Deer Is Headed For Extinction: How Repealing A Trump-Era Federal Rule Defining "Habitat" Could Allow Assisted Migration To Save Species Threatened By Climate Change, Kennedi Fichtel

St. Thomas Law Review

Climate change induced sea level rise is imminent. In fact, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has predicted that “[b]y 2045, the sea level in the Florida Keys will rise 15 inches . . . .” Such a projection usually invites questions about the implications for coastal residential homeowners. However, this projection means so much more for the voiceless inhabitants of the Florida Keys. Anthropogenic climate change that leads to sea level rise of this magnitude will be responsible for permanently destroying species’ habitats, and therefore impacting their ability to survive. For endangered and threatened species, this means extinction. As …

Tick, Tock: Clarifying The Fmla Statute Of Limitations For Claims Involving Absenteeism Policies, Sarah H. Lavelanet

St. Thomas Law Review

This Comment addresses the ambiguity within the FMLA statute of limitations, specifically the contested interpretation of “last event.” Part II provides background on the FMLA, including its history, purpose, and relevant provisions such as eligibility, rights, and enforcement thereunder. Part III analyzes how federal circuit courts are split on the interpretation of “last event” and how this affects the timeliness of FMLA claims. Part IV proposes amending the FMLA regulations to clarify the limitations period using the Barrett holding that “last event” constitutes the last denial of FMLA rights. Finally, Part V concludes, asserting that if this solution is adopted, …

How Beneficial Is Florida's Community Property Trust Act To The Marital Estate? A Legislative Analysis Of Florida's Community Property Trust Act, Massiel Alonso

St. Thomas Law Review

Florida is a migratory state, famous for its tropical climate and its generous tax laws. Now, Florida is joining Alaska, Tennessee, South Dakota, and Kentucky in offering a Community Property Trust for marital property. One of the benefits of a Community Property Trust Act (“CPTA”) is that when a spouse owning community property dies, the basis of both the deceased spouse’s and the surviving spouse’s (50%) shares of the property are adjusted to the property’s fair market value at the date of the decedent spouse’s death. This sort of tax adjustment is referred to as a “double step-up in basis,” …

Combating Fraud Under The False Claims Act: Not-Protecting Against Post-Employment Retaliation Is A Self-Defeating Policy, Alejandro Flores Jr.

St. Thomas Law Review

Every year, fraudulent activity against the United States government costs taxpayers billions of dollars. The majority of these losses result from acts of fraud against federal health care programs like Medicare and Medicaid, and to a lesser extent, from matters involving contracts with the government for the purchase of goods and services. However, the United States Department of Justice (“DOJ”) fights back to regain lost taxpayer dollars by taking action under the False Claims Act (“FCA”), which imposes liability on such types of government fraud. Since 1986, actions taken by the DOJ resulted in the recovery of over $64 billion …

Front Matter

St. Thomas Law Review

Front Matter includes Title Page, Masthead, advisors, and Table of Contents for St. Thomas Law Review Volume 35, Issue 1, Fall 2022.

A Call For Transparency In Sports To The Government Of Puerto Rico, Karla V. Aponte

St. Thomas Law Review

Much like a state, Puerto Rico is self-governed, but cannot interfere with federal law. However, sports federations in Puerto Rico are not governed by the existing applicable federal law. Sports federations are avoiding most of the strict regulations imposed by federal acts, mainly because Puerto Rico has its own Olympic identity, and is recognized by the International Olympic Committee as a separate country. As a result, the language on the federal acts has been interpreted to only apply to those organizations representing the United States. Because of this, federations avoid strict auditing procedures, and other regulations, which consequently have deterred …

The Constitutional Issues Of Publishing Mugshots In The Age Of Screenshots And Digital Media, Ryan J. Mcelhose

St. Thomas Law Review

This paper takes the position that American people’s Due Process rights are violated when their mugshots are digitally disseminated prior to a conviction. The press’s First Amendment rights are not violated by not having access to pre-conviction booking photos because the press can report on other publicly accessible information. The same conclusion can be made relating to private citizens and private companies who assert that their Freedom of Speech rights are violated by not having access to obtain, publish, and disseminate pre-conviction mugshots. Existing scholarship has addressed the issue of publishing mugshots with privacy arguments related to the Freedom of …

U.S. Drug Reform: A Cultural Shift, Leionah J. Noah

St. Thomas Law Review

When a human body ingests a lethal dose of heroin, the body goes through an enormous physiological transformation. The functions of the central nervous system begin to depress, breathing is shallowed, the pulse is weakened, and the skin turns blue or gray with dark lips and fingernails. An alert person must quickly administer naloxone, an opioid antagonist, to reverse the effects of a heroin overdose, as symptoms typically begin after ten minutes. For many, however, their lives end with an overdose, despite this outcome being preventable. This paper will establish that drug overdose deaths are preventable for an entirely different …

Front Matter

St. Thomas Law Review

Front Matter includes Masthead and advisors for St. Thomas Law Review Volume 34, Issue 2, Spring 2022.

Media Paratext And Constitutional Interpretation, Benjamin J. Priester

Faculty Articles

In the fields of media studies and fan studies, the concept of paratext is an analytical paradigm for understanding how audiences consume and interpret media texts, such as a novel or movie. Amid today's media-rich society, it is all but impossible to encounter a media text in isolation. Rather, we also invariably interact with a wide variety of associated paratexts, from official materials like trailers or marketing to unofficial materials like reviews or fan reactions, which play a role in shaping our interpretation of the core media text. This concept of media paratext provides a compelling analogy for constitutional interpretation. …

28 Usc § 1782 In Aid Of Foreign Arbitration: "A Tribunal By Any Other Name", Attilio M. Costabel

St. Thomas Law Review

No abstract provided.

Front Matter

St. Thomas Law Review

Front Matter includes Table of Contents for St. Thomas Law Review Volume 33, Issue 2, Spring 2021.

Race & Policing In America Symposium Transcript

St. Thomas Law Review

The symposium was moderated by Professor andré douglas pond cummings of University of Arkansas at Little Rock William H. Bowen School of Law.

From Tiktok To Racial Violence: Anti-Blackness In The Gendered Sphere, Dr. Donald F. Tibbs

St. Thomas Law Review

This article proceeds in four sections. Section I begins with a brief historiography of the danger of White gendered racism to Black life; specifically, when White women falsely accuse Black men of crimes. The seriousness of this provocative history is undisputed. It has been captured as a movie adaptation of a famous novel, well documented in academic scholarship, sang in negro spiritual songs, described in countless media stories, and documented by the federal government when the accusations involved brutal retaliation-style killings. After discussing the historical underpinnings of gendered racism, Section II uses a case study of a White woman, named …

Public Health Policing And The Case Against Vaccine Mandates, Dr. Tryon Woods

St. Thomas Law Review

There can be no simple reading of a text, be it literary, philosophical or scientific, nor of the social text in the most general sense. Rather, the question must turn upon itself, no less than its putative object, as a matter of interpretation and, more important, as a matter of the forces at work in the interpretative activity under way. There is always the ascription of voice to what is otherwise silent, the attribution of a face or the placement of a mask. Le germe n’est rien, c’est le terrain qui est tout. The microbe is nothing, the soil is …

Let's Make Some "Scents" Of Our Fourth Amendment Rights: The Discriminatory Truths Behind Using The Mere Smell Of Burnt Marijuana As Probable Cause To Search A Vehicle, Alessandra Dumenigo

St. Thomas Law Review

This Comment addresses the negative effects that have resulted and will continue to result if police officers are encouraged by jurisprudence to conduct a warrantless search of an entire vehicle based on the smell of burnt marijuana. Warrantless searches of an entire vehicle based merely on the smell of burnt marijuana grant officers unlimited power that will likely result in police misconduct, an increase in racially profiled traffic stops, and a distrust between police officers and the Black community amid the nationwide outrage over the death of George Floyd. Part II of this Comment discusses the history of the Fourth …

Front Matter

St. Thomas Law Review

Front Matter includes Title Page, Masthead, advisors, and Table of Contents for St. Thomas Law Review Volume 34, Issue 1, Fall 2021.

Employment Classification And Human Dignity In The Gig Economy, Bridget Nicole Gonzalez

St. Thomas Law Review

What drives a business? Most simply put, profit. But to what end? Employment classification has a significant impact on a business’s profit. The two most common worker classifications recognized globally are the independent contractor and the employee. This classification determines whether the individual receives access to pay, qualifies for benefits, and gains protection from discrimination. All these factors come at a cost to an employer and result in a cut in their overall profit. In the twentieth century, employment classification has been subject to heavy litigation in a particular field: the gig economy. The gig economy, which primarily grew in …

Meek Mill's Trauma: Brutal Policing As An Adverse Childhood Experience, Todd J. Clark, Caleb G. Conrad, Andre D.P. Cummings, Amy D. Johnson

St. Thomas Law Review

Meek Mill, in his intimate autobiographical tracks of Trauma, Oodles O’Noodles Babies, and Otherside of America, describes experiencing not just several instances of childhood trauma as identified by the CDC-Kaiser Permanente study, but as a teenager, he suffered additional cruel trauma at the hands of U.S. police and a criminal justice system that wrongly imprisoned and unfairly positioned him in a revolving door between probation and prison. The data tells us that the trauma Meek experienced as a child and teenager statistically predicts a poorer life expectancy for him than those individuals that experienced no trauma or little trauma as …

Future Disabilities And Employment Discrimination Law, Amanda Valero

St. Thomas Law Review

This Article will first discuss the purpose of the ADA, the importance of the 2008 ADA Amendments, and how recent decisions will once again deny protections to individuals who are “regarded as” disabled. Part II describes the evolution of disability law in the form of the Rehabilitation Act, the ADA (Title I – Employment), and its amendments. Part III analyzes the “regarded as” prong of the ADA, the Sutton case which narrowly construed the protections afforded by the ADA, how the Sutton decision negatively impacted individuals discriminated against on the basis of a “disability,” and how the 2008 ADA amendments …

The Nil Game Plan: How The Florida Legislature Can Become Student-Athletes' "Ambassador Of Quan", Alexa Rae Martinez

St. Thomas Law Review

The movie Jerry Maguire follows a successful sports agent who questions the morals of his work, which leads to him being stripped of his contribution at his firm and being left with one client. Throughout the movie, Maguire struggles to build his clientele while pursuing the best interests of his only client, Rod Tidwell. Somewhere along the way, Tidwell uses the word “Quan” and leaves Maguire perplexed; “Quan? That’s your word?” Tidwell replies: “Yeah, that’s my word. You know some dudes might have the coin. But they’ll never have the Quan.” “Wha…what is that?” Maguire asks, still clearly confused. Tidwell …

Transnational Punitive And Compensatory Damages: Villains Or Role Models?, Attilio M. Costabel

St. Thomas Law Review

This Article concludes that the purpose and the scale of the American punitive damages and compensatory damages alike should not be disparaged as excesses of a society spoiled by exaggerated wealth; instead, they should be seen as a model for valuing the universal integrity of human life, while not depending on technicalities of international forum shopping.

Florida's Late Entrance To The Ongoing Trend: Sexual Orientation In The Workplace, Ernesto Rivero

St. Thomas Law Review

John Doe is an exceptional firefighter who also happens to be a homosexual. John performs his duties every day to the utmost of his ability; however, in response to his sexual orientation, John is verbally harassed daily, underpaid for his line of work, and subsequently discharged from his position. This is a consequence of practicing his protected constitutional right of same sex marriage at his workplace. Every individual ought to have a fair and inclusive workplace free from discrimination; that is not the case in today’s America. Although employees are protected from discrimination by the Civil Rights Act of 1964 …