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Catherine R. Albiston

2013

Legislation

Discipline

Articles 1 - 2 of 2

Full-Text Articles in Law

Bargaining In The Shadow Of Social Institutions: Competing Discourses And Social Change In Workplace Mobilization Of Civil Rights, Catherine R. Albiston Sep 2013

Bargaining In The Shadow Of Social Institutions: Competing Discourses And Social Change In Workplace Mobilization Of Civil Rights, Catherine R. Albiston

Catherine R. Albiston

The Family and Medical Leave Act requires employers to provide job-protected leave, but little is known about how these leave rights operate in practice or how they interact with other normative systems to construct the meaning of leave. Drawing on interviews with workers who negotiated contested leaves, this study examines how social institutions influence workplace mobilization of these rights. I find that leave rights remain embedded within institutionalized conceptions of work, gender, and disability that shape workers' perceptions, preferences, and choices about mobilizing their rights. I also find, however, that workers can draw on law as a culture discourse to …


The Rule Of Law And The Litigation Process: The Paradox Of Losing By Winning, Catherine Albiston Sep 2013

The Rule Of Law And The Litigation Process: The Paradox Of Losing By Winning, Catherine Albiston

Catherine R. Albiston

This article expands upon the idea that repeat players influence the development of law by settling cases they are likely to lose and litigating cases they are likely to win. Through empirical analysis of judicial opinions interpreting the Family and Medical Leave Act, it shows how the rule-making opportunities in the litigation process affect the development of law and the judicial determination of statutory rights. In addition, the article explains how early judicial opinions might influence later judicial interpretations of the law. Although individuals may successfully mobilize the law to gain benefits in their disputes, that success often removes their …