Law Commons^™

Religious Rights In Historical, Theoretical, And International Context: Hobby Lobby As A Jurisprudential Anomaly?, S. I. Strong

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

The United States has a long and complicated history concerning religious rights, and the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc. has done little to clear up the jurisprudence in this field. Although the decision will doubtless generate a great deal of commentary as a matter of constitutional and statutory law, the better approach is to consider whether and to what extent the majority and dissenting opinions reflect the fundamental principles of religious liberty. Only in that context can the merits of such a novel decision be evaluated free from political and other biases.

This …

Deconstructing Transnationalism: Conceptualizing Metanationalism As A Putative Model Of Evolving Jurisprudence, Paul Enriquez

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

This Article builds upon Philip C. Jessup's revolutionary scholarship to pave new pathways for interdisciplinary research and expand the normative constitutional framework of universal human problems. To that end, this Article ties American constitutional theory to the new era of international globalization and provides context that facilitates the discussion of racial and ethnic diversity in education from a domestic and international perspective. By arguing for compelling treatment of diversity in elementary and secondary learning institutions, this Article introduces a new theory of constitutional interpretation vis-&-vis international law. This theory, called metanationalism, rejects Harold Koh's theory of transnationalism and demonstrates that …

The Use And Abuse Of Foreign Law In Constitutional Interpretation, Ganesh Sitaraman

Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications

This article provides an exhaustive typology of the uses of foreign law in order to provide insight into whether foreign law can be appropriately used in constitutional interpretation, when it can be used, and what the stakes and parameters are in each case. In doing so, the article addresses two significant problems in the debate on foreign law. First, much of the commentary has focused on the justifications for using foreign law and the principled or practical arguments against using foreign law. But the focus on the why of foreign law has obscured the more basic question about the ways …

Linking The International Legal Framework To Building The Formal Foundations Of A "State At Risk", Michael Schoiswohl

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

This Article describes and critically assesses the recent constitution-making process in Afghanistan in relation to the international legal framework. The Article provides an account of that process within the larger context of the state-building efforts as envisioned in the 2001 Bonn Agreement. Focusing on the interaction between national state-building and international normative benchmarks, the Article evaluates the extent to which the recently adopted Constitution links to the international legal framework. While paying lip service to the adherence of international law, including international human rights law, the Constitution does not adequately address the relationship between international legal obligations and municipal law. …

How We Should Think About The Constitutional Status Of The Suspected Terrorist Detainees At Guantanamo Bay, Akash R. Desai

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

In the aftermath of the September 11th attacks, the United States has held suspected terrorist detainees captured during the military campaign in Afghanistan indefinitely at the United States military facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Among those currently detained are members of the al-Qaeda terrorist group and the Taliban. Currently the detainees are in the peculiar situation of generally being outside the scope of protections offered by both the international humanitarian law and the Unites States criminal law regimes.

This Note examines the extraterritorial scope of the United States Constitution as it applies to the suspected terrorist detainees at Guantanamo Bay. …

Unratified Treaties And Other Unperfected Acts In International Law: Constitutional Functions, W. Michael Reisman

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

In international law's sociology of knowledge, unperfected legal acts are routinely examined and assigned some legal valence. Scholars quite properly use such material to assess incipient changes, and treatise and monograph writers are expected to determine whether some unperfected legal material is, or is in the process of becoming, customary international law. This is a perfectly proper use of unperfected legal material, because one of the functions of the scholar is to anticipate trends and to appraise incipient developments in terms of the impacts they may have on the most important goals of the international system. The most acute problem …

Anticipating Hong Kong's Constitution From A U.S. Legal Perspective, John M. Rogers

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

This Article explores the possible nature of Hong Kong's Constitution after July, 1997, and discusses alternative ways of interpreting and enforcing the constitution. The author first proposes three definitions for the word "constitution'" (1) how political power is actually "constituted," (2) a written document and (3) a referent for disputes. The author then explains Hong Kong's unusual constitutional status where Hong Kong will be governed under a written constitution the Basic Law. and at the same time, many aspects of the Basic Law will be "guaranteed" by an international agreement, the Joint Declaration. The author proceeds to evaluate the means …

Preface, Laurelyn E. Douglas

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

The symposium, HONG KONG'S REINTEGRATION INTO THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA: CONSTITUTIONAL ISSUES, POLICY APPROACHES & HUMAN RIGHTS CONCERNS, AND ECONOMIC & LEGAL IMPLICATIONS, was held at the Vanderbilt University School of Law on March 28-29. 1997. Featuring presentations by diverse speakers from a variety of places and perspectives, the symposium addressed a broad range of issues. Topics ranged from comparative constitutional law to human rights and practical business concerns. While differences emerged, it was clear that fully understanding any one area requires knowledge of the others: the viability of markets may well depend upon the validity of documents proclaiming …

The Incorporation Of International Law And The Impact On Constitutional Structures And Rights In Hungary, Duc V. Trang

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

In 1993, the Hungarian Constitutional Court upheld a draft law that would allow the prosecution of crimes committed during the 1956 uprising, despite the expiration of statutes of limitations. In reaching this result, the Court raised international law to the level of a constitutional standard by which Hungary's domestic laws would be judged. In this Article, the author examines the impact of the Court's decision to transform international law into domestic law. The author explores the implications of adopting international law on the relationship between the Court and other branches of the government, the development of domestic law, the growth …

The Scattered Remains Of Sovereign Immunity For Foreign States After Republic Of Argentina V. Weltover,Inc., Sarah K. Schano

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

The globalization of the United States economy in the latter half of the twentieth century has fostered greater interaction between the United States and foreign states and their instrumentalities. As a result, the likelihood of legal disputes arising between United States entities and foreign states has increased. Traditionally, foreign states have been immune from suit in United States courts. However, the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act (FSIA), enacted in 1976, specifies instances in which United States courts may deny immunity to foreign states and exercise jurisdiction over them. Under one provision of the FSIA, a foreign state may forfeit its immunity …

The "Constitutionalization" Of The Un Security System, Matthias J. Herdegen

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

The considerable activism displayed by the Security Council over the last years and its dynamic application of the powers under Chapter VII of the UN Charter recently have inspired concern for the institutional balance within the United Nations and the quest for justiciable restraints upon the Council. Such concern underlines a "constitutional" approach to the United Nations framework: the Charter is conceived as a kind of constitution for the community of states with the International Court of Justice as the ultimate guardian of its legality vis-a-vis the Council. Such a "constitutional" approach should be viewed with caution. The scrutiny of …

Case Digest, Law Review Staff

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

MEDICAL MALPRACTICE ABROAD BY UNITED STATES PHYSICIAN IN CONNECTION WITH DEPARTMENT OF STATE REGULATIONS GOVERNING TORT CLAIMS PROVIDED FOR AN INVESTIGATIVE PROCEDURE FOLLOWED BY AGENCY DECISION--AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT HOLDS NO CONSTITUTIONAL OBLIGATIONS TO EVALUATE MEDICAL MALPRACTICE CLAIM ON THE MERITS AND IN ACCORD WITH MINIMAL DUE PROCESS. Tarpeh-Doe v. United States, 904 F.2d719 (D.C. Cir. 1990).

THE FOREIGN CORRUPT PRACTICES ACT DOES NOT CREATE AN IMPLIED PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION THAT KENTUCKY TOBACCO GROWERS COULD USE TO RECOVER DAMAGES FROM COMPANIES THAT ALLEGEDLY ENGAGED IN CORRUPT PRACTICES TO THE DETRIMENT OF GROWERS. THE ACT OF STATE DOCTRINE, HOWEVER, DOES …

Political Refugees, Nonrefoulement And State Practice: A Comparative Study, Robert C. Sexton

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

This Article will survey and assess the attempts of five of the major refugee receiving countries of the West, the United States, Canada, Great Britain, France, and Italy, to comply with the mandates of the Convention and Protocol. Specifically, inquiry will focus on the two issues most applicable to the admission and exclusion of political refugees: (1) domestic interpretation of the Convention definition of "refugee;" and (2) adherence to the principle of nonrefoulement, which is the Convention's proscription on returning persons falling within its refugee definition to countries of alleged persecution.

Section II explores the precise substantive provisions of the …

Books Received, Law Review Staff

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

CIVIL JUDGMENT RECOGNITION AND THE INTEGRATION OF MULTIPLE STATE ASSOCIATIONS: CENTRAL AMERICA, THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, AND THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC COMMUNITY

By Robert C. Casad

Lawrence: The Regents Press of Kansas, 1981. Pp. 258.$25.00.

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COMPARATIVE LAW YEARBOOK

VOL. 4, 1980

Edited by Dennis Campbell

The Hague/Boston/London: Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, 1981. Pp. 371.

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CONSTITUTION-MAKING: PRINCIPLES, PROCESS, PRACTICE

By Edward McWhinney

Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1981.Pp. 231. $20.00.

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THE ENVIRONMENTAL LAW OF THE SEA

Edited by Douglas M.Johnston

Gland, Switzerland: International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, 1981. Pp. 419.

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INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS: ENVIRONMENTS AND …

Recent Decision, Duane A. Wilson

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals has taken the instant opportunity to write an essay on the law of search and seizure on the high seas. Applying Ramsey, the majority found authority for the Coast Guard action, either under section 89(a) or through the consent of the Panamanian Government. Although both conclusions are open to dispute, the major question arises from the court's analysis of the constitutionality of the Coast Guard action. While a firm resolution of the confusion engendered by previous conflicting Fifth Circuit decisions is certainly desirable, the instant court's resolution fails to provide necessary analytical clarity. Judge …

The Unconstitutional Detention Of Mexican And Canadian Prisoners By The United States Government, Jordan J. Paust

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

A recent article by Professor Bassiouni addresses the procedures for the transfer of prisoners under agreements with Mexico and Canada and certain "substantive constitutional issues" in a most interesting way. Nevertheless an interest in addressing constitutional problems from the most thorough of approaches possible compels further comment on federal powers and constitutional rights. Professor Bassiouni's efforts are noteworthy but his stated conclusion that "[t]he scheme for the transfer of offenders is a laudable step which should be supported by the bench and bar should not be unquestioningly accepted. The transfer agreements represent a retreat from the constitutional protection of fundamental …

The 1977 Soviet Constitution: A Historical Comparison, Igor L. Kavass, Gary I. Christian

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

Throughout the Soviet Union's history, its four constitutions have been a reflection of the political climate of the particular period. The documents thus viewed provide a historical and political benchmark against which life and thought in the U.S.S.R. may be fairly accurately gauged. When Brezhnev addressed the USSR Supreme Soviet on October 4, 1977, to recommend the inevitable adoption of the 1977 Constitution, he again stressed the historical perspective in which the document must be viewed. He stated: "We will adopt the new Constitution on the eve of the 60th anniversary of the Great October Socialist Revolution. This is not …

Case Digest, Journal Staff

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

1. Admiralty A State has Standing to Sue to Recover the Cost of Replacing Natural Resources Destroyed by Pollution

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2. Aliens' Rights Executive Order Barring Lawfully Admitted Resident Aliens from Federal Civil Service is Valid

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3. Constitutional Law Scope of Lacey Act Limited to Foreign Laws Designed to Protect Wildlife

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4. European Economic Community Restrictive Resale Provisions, Discriminating Pricing Policies, and Refusals to Deal by Corporation with a Dominant Position in a Substantial Part of EEC Violates Article 86 of the EEC Treaty

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5. International Travel Statute Suspending Social Security Income Benefits for Recipient Temporarily Out …

Books Received, C. C. S.

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

COMMERCIAL OPERATIONS IN EUROPE

Edited by R. M. Goode and K. R. Simmons Published for the Faculty of Laws; Queen Mary College, University of London Boston: A. W. Sijthoff, 1978. Pp. 448.

COMPARATIVE CONSTITUTIONAL LAW

By Mauro Cappelletti and William Cohen Indianapolis, Indiana: Bobbs -Merrill, 1979. Pp. 628.

COMPARATIVE LAW: WESTERN EUROPEAN AND LATIN AMERICAN LEGAL SYSTEMS

By John H. Merryman and David S. Clark Indianapolis, Indiana: Bobbs -Merrill, 1978. Pp. 1278.

THE DISCIPLINE OF LAW

By Lord Denning London: Butterworths,1979. Pp. 330.

INTERNATIONAL LAW AND THE MOVEMENT OF PERSONS BETWEEN STATES

By Guy S. Goodwin -Gill Oxford: Clarendon Press, …

Recent Decisions, Arthur R. Louv, Mark R. Von Sternberg, Jesse W. Hill, Glen T. Oxton

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

ADMIRALTY--DAMAGES--AWARD ALLOWED FOR EMOTIONAL DISTRESS OF SURVIVING SPOUSES AND CHILDREN, OR PARENTS, UNDER GENERAL MARITIME LAW

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ANTITRUST--EXTRATERRITORIAL JURISDICTION--EFFORTS TO SECURE ACTION BY A FOREIGN STATE CONDUCIVE TO MONOPOLIZATION NOT PRIVILEGED; ACT OF STATE DOCTRINE BARS ANTITRUST CLAIM ARISING FROM ACTS OF A FOREIGN SOVEREIGN ALLEGEDLY INDUCED BY DEFENDANT

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CONSTITUTIONAL LAW--CITIZENSHIP--FIVE YEAR STATUTORY RESIDENCE REQUIREMENT AS A CONDITION SUBSEQUENT TO RETENTION OF CITIZENSHIP BY PERSONS BORN ABROAD NOT VIOLATIVE OF FIFTH AMENDMENT DUE PROCESS

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PRIVATE INTERNATIONAL LAW--SOVEREIGN IMMUNITY--EXECUTIVE SUGGESTION BINDING ON COURTS DESPITE CONTRACTUAL WAIVER OF IMMUNITY

Recent Cases, Law Review Staff

Vanderbilt Law Review

Antitrust--Unincorporated Divisions of a Corporation May Be Separate Entities for Purposes of Antitrust Laws

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Constitutional Law--One-Year Residence Requirement as Condition of Eligibility for State Welfare Aid Held Unconstitutional

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International Law--Sovereign Immunity and Act of State--Hickenlooper Amendment Precludes Assertion of Act of State Where Act Is Violative of International Law

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Products Liability--Lender Held Liable for Gross Defects in Housing Development It Had Financed

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Taxation--Constructive Ownership Rules Automatically Applied to Section 302(b) (1)Dividend Equivalency Test

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Taxation--IRS Rules Organization Which Discriminates on Basis of Race Not Charitable

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antitrust, constitutional law, international law, products liability, taxation