Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Law Commons

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Articles 1 - 2 of 2

Full-Text Articles in Law

Reproducing A Fit Citizenry: Dependency, Eugenics, And The Law Of Marriage In The United States, Matthew Lindsay Jul 1998

Reproducing A Fit Citizenry: Dependency, Eugenics, And The Law Of Marriage In The United States, Matthew Lindsay

All Faculty Scholarship

Between the Gilded Age and the Progressive Era, American state legislatures enacted a series of new laws that delineated a class of citizens who were deemed ineligible to participate in the institution of marriage. Scholars have characterized this development as evidence that lawmakers had lost faith in a laissez-faire approach to nuptial governance, and thus transformed marriage into an object of public regulation. This essay argues that behind the ostensible nuptial privatism of the mid-nineteenth century lay a self-conscious policy. of judicial governance. Judges invoked the language of nuptial privacy and the common law of contract strategically to advance their …


Writing Rules Does Not Right Wrongs, Odeana R. Neal Apr 1998

Writing Rules Does Not Right Wrongs, Odeana R. Neal

All Faculty Scholarship

I believe the work that lawyers, legal academics, and judges do is important. Our work allows us to devise legal theories, develop litigation strategies and determine outcomes that can make a tremendous difference in people's lives. As a result, I applaud the insight and creativity of Judge Beck and Professors Glennon and Goldfarb. Their work demonstrates how law can be used to protect gay men, lesbians, bisexuals, their relationships and their families.