Law Commons^™

“Testing” Fuller’S Forms And Limits: A Brief Response To Oldfather, Bockhorst, & Dimmer, Scott R. Bauries

Law Faculty Scholarly Articles

In Triangulating Judicial Responsiveness, Chad Oldfather, Joseph Bockhorst, and Brian Dimmer give us a methodology by which we can empirically assess (among other things) the effects that argumentation has on judicial decision making. Unlike the vast majority of empirical legal scholarship of judging, the authors do not use this methodology in their current study to compare “legalist” explanations of judging with “realist” explanations of judging. Rather, the study operates almost entirely within the “legalist” frame. This is a welcome development for many reasons, one on which this Response focuses—the authors’ methodology illustrates a way of scientifically “testing” descriptive legal …

Making Stuff Up, Richard H. Underwood

Law Faculty Scholarly Articles

Beginning with an article in this Journal almost thirty years ago, Professor Underwood continues to research and write about legal ethics and litigation. In this Commentary, he offers a witty look at several cases where, in his opinion, the judge allowed improper arguments to the jury.

Comments On Professor Rotunda's Essay, Richard H. Underwood

Law Faculty Scholarly Articles

In this comment, Professor Richard H. Underwood provides a response to An Essay on the Constitutional Parameters of Federal Impeachment, by Professor Ronald D. Rotunda. Rotunda’s essay was published in the Kentucky Law Journal, Vol. 76, No. 3, pp. 707-732.

Victim Participation In Plea Bargains, Sarah N. Welling

Law Faculty Scholarly Articles

There is a trend in the criminal law today to focus on the rights of victims. This trend has been manifested in actions by legislatures, courts, the President of the United States and others. Various programs have been implemented to ameliorate the crime victim's experience. For example, many states now provide compensation for victims, and victim/witness assistance programs have sprung up around the country. It has also been suggested that the victim's lot should be improved by granting them a right to participate in the prosecution of the defendant. This article examines whether victims should be accorded a right to …

Markets Overt, Voidable Titles, And Feckless Agents: Judges And Efficiency In The Antebellum Doctrine Of Good Faith Purchase, Harold R. Weinberg

Law Faculty Scholarly Articles

In considering American common law doctrines shaped during the nineteenth century, commentators have advanced differing theories on the primary judicial criteria employed by judges. Recent studies have argued that these doctrines reflect a criterion of economic efficiency. This work has been criticized for its failure to explain why there seems to be a correlation between efficiency and these decision rules or why judges might have preferred efficiency over other decisional criteria. Other studies have proposed that many judicial doctrines announced before the Civil War were intended to facilitate or ratify major shifts in the distribution of social wealth. This article …

Kentucky Law Survey: Criminal Procedure, Rutheford B. Campbell Jr.

Law Faculty Scholarly Articles

This article provides a survey of Kentucky legal developments in the area of criminal procedure. The Kentucky Court of Appeals has had an especially active year in the criminal procedure area. Since the nature of this article does not permit extended commentary on all of the Court's decisions, discussion will be limited to the more significant cases, which deal with automobile inventory searches, waiver of constitutional rights, and plea bargaining.

Sentencing: The Good, The Bad, And The Enlightened, Rutheford B. Campbell Jr., Bill Cunningham

Law Faculty Scholarly Articles

In June, 1968 the Kentucky Crime Commission, in keeping with legislative instruction, made certain recommendations for a change in Kentucky's current treatment of crime and punishment. Within its report was a suggestion that sentencing in all non-capital criminal cases be rendered by the judge instead of the jury. Thus, it must be emphasized that this discussion is confined only to sentencing in noncapital cases.

The authors have arrived at a definite recommendation which is offered at the conclusion of the paper. It is our opinion that the suggestion outlined is not only the most efficient and proper but also the …