Law Commons^™

The Constitutionality Of Statutes Of Repose: Federalism Reigns, Josephine H. Hicks

Vanderbilt Law Review

The development of common-law tort liability, especially since the late 1950s and early 1960s, has broken many of the barriers to plaintiff recovery. The abrogation of the privity requirement, the evolution of the discovery rule, and the advent of strict liability were primary agents in this "assault upon the citadel."' These developments have threatened many potential tort defendants, particularly members of the manufacturing and construction industries and the medical profession. In response to lobbying pressure from these groups, many state legislatures have adopted measures to limit tort recoveries. One of the measures most popular among defendants has been the enactment …

Reducing Diet-Induced Cancer Through Federal Regulation: Opportunities And Obstacles, Richard A. Merrill

Vanderbilt Law Review

For more than a decade, federal health regulatory agencies have devoted major attention to controlling human exposure to substances believed capable of causing cancer. These efforts have evoked a broad spectrum of criticism; government has been accused of both indolence in the face of an incipient epidemic' and reckless distortion of science to support restrictions on substances that present only trivial risks. A central object of regulatory concern has been the safety of the food supply. At least since the 1958 Food Additives Amendment to the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act),'with its famous Delaney Clause, the Food …

Samuel Enoch Stumpf: A Man Of Many Dimensions, Joe B. Wyatt

Vanderbilt Law Review

For more than a generation, Professor Stumpf's students and colleagues have enjoyed the luxury of learning from a man whose own interests and expertise cross traditional lines in academic disciplines and whose analysis of problems, issues, and ideas arches high above the traveled paths of those disciplines.

Truth In Judging: Supreme Court Opinions As Legislative Drafting, Ray Forrester

Vanderbilt Law Review

The first thesis this Article postulates is that the history of food and drug regulation during the past twenty centuries has been the history of the development of analytical chemistry, not the history of the development of law and regulation. Statutory law during this period has remained relatively static, while general understanding of analytical chemistry has leapt ahead with unparalleled achievement. Increased scientific enlightenment, largely achieved through analytical chemistry, has produced every important advance in food and drug regulation. Indeed, the overwhelming success of the field of analytical chemistry has created entire scientific disciplines as well as improvement in government …

Comity And Tragedy: The Case Of Rule 407, Marcia L. Finkelstein

Vanderbilt Law Review

This Note advocates that when a Federal Rule of Evidence conflicts with a state rule, a court should examine closely the purpose of the rules in an effort to balance the competing policies of comity and procedural uniformity. Part II of this Note provides a general background on legislative and court decisions concerning federal-state conflicts. Part II also illustrates the congressional and judicial inclination to protect state substantive law. Part III dis-cusses the conflict between the Maine Rule and Federal Rule 407. Part IV suggests an approach to the general conflict between state and federal rules and applies that approach …

Formal Justice And Judicial Precedent, David Lyons

Vanderbilt Law Review

This Article concerns an argument which, if sound, would sup-port a doctrine of precedent with unlimited scope-one that would provide some justification, though not overwhelming justification,for following all precedents, however regrettable they may be. The argument holds that respect for precedent is required by the principle that like cases should be treated alike.Although that argument is challenged here, no claim is made that a practice of precedent cannot be justified. The larger purpose of this Article is to clear the way for a systematic inquiry into the sound reasons for, as well as the legitimate scope of, such a practice.

Measuring Risks And Benefits Of Food Safety Decisions, Richard Zeckhauser

Vanderbilt Law Review

This Article discusses the assessment of risks and benefits as one approach to organizing information.The way information is organized should depend on the way it will be valued and used. For example, the decision making authorities within the regulatory process may choose to take different approaches to food substances consumed by young and old, or rich and poor. In that case, information should be organized into those categories. An exquisite breakdown of consumption patterns by counties would do little for an age-regarding regulatory process.The remainder of this Article is divided into four parts. Part II reviews the general nature of …

Proof Of Fault In Media Defamation Litigation, Lackland H. Bloom, Jr.

Vanderbilt Law Review

At common law, defamation was a strict liability tort. A defendant could be held liable for publishing a false and defamatory statement absent any evidence that the defendant suspected the statement's falsity or even its defamatory potential, and despite the fact that the defendant used reasonable care in attempting to ascertain the truth. The plaintiff only had to prove fault by the publisher when the plaintiff was attempting to overcome a qualified privilege or establish the liability of a secondary publisher such as a news vendor.' Since the United States Supreme Court's decision in New York Times v. Sullivan, however, …

The Hunter Doctrine: An Equal Protection Theory That Threatens Democracy, Robert H. Beinfield

Vanderbilt Law Review

Referenda effect basic constitutional objectives by allowing individuals to participate equally in the governing process. The Supreme Court recently relied on the equal protection clause of the fourteenth amendment' to invalidate a referendum procedure in Washington v. Seattle School District No. 1. A state initiative,which received support from a majority of the voting electorate,effectively forbade local school boards from implementing mandatory student reassignment programs aimed at eliminating de facto racial imbalance in state schools unless the electorate approved the proposed program. In finding an equal protection violation, the Court for the first time relied on a doctrine that it developed …

Landlord Liability For Crimes Committed By Third Parties Against Tenants On The Premises, Irma W. Merrill

Vanderbilt Law Review

The controversial subject of landlord liability for crimes committed by third parties on the apartment premises has been the subject of much debate. The discussion has produced a scattering of opinions rather than one settled rule. Not all jurisdictions agree that a landlord should be held liable to his tenants for crimes on the premises. Even jurisdictions that do hold landlords liable for such crimes disagree on the basis for liability. Some courts ground their decisions in contract. Other courts conjure landlord liability out of an implied warranty of habitability. Still other courts impose landlord liability for third party crimes …

Copyright And The Moral Right: Is An American Marriage Possible?, Roberta R. Kwall

Vanderbilt Law Review

The 1976 Copyright Act (the 1976 Act) embodies the most extensive reforms in the history of our nation's copyright laws. One proposed reform that is noticeably absent from the statutory scheme, however, is the explicit adoption of protections for the personal rights of creators with respect to their works. Instead,the 1976 Act continues this country's tradition of safeguarding only the pecuniary rights of a copyright owner. By assuring the copyright owner the exclusive rights to reproduce and distribute the original work, to prepare derivative works, and to perform and display publicly certain types of copyrighted works, the 1976 Act focuses …

Modern Property Law: Cases And Materials, Dale A. Whitman

Vanderbilt Law Review

Most book reviews attempt to analyze the subject matter of the book under review. Casebooks, however, serve different purposes than other books; they are teaching tools that are useful only in the hands of an effective teacher. The editors of Modern Property Law are law teachers, and so am I. The purpose of this book review is to offer, as a professor of law, a personal view of this property casebook and to consider how it would function in the classroom. I have not yet used the book in my own property course because at the time of this writing …

United States Taxation Of Its Citizens Abroad: Incentive Or Equity, Renee J. Sobel

Vanderbilt Law Review

The United States, unlike many sovereignties, has exercised worldwide income tax jurisdiction over its individual citizens since the inception of the income tax. Since 1926, however, United States citizens working abroad have received special treatment in the taxation of their foreign earned income. By the use of a tax credit, direct double taxation has been avoided. In addition, various exclusions and deductions have been permitted. Such tax preferences have been justified on the grounds that they promote tax equity and that they serve as incentives to encourage Americans to work overseas.

This Article considers whether the special treatment of United …

Protecting A Union Member's Right To Resign-Resolution Of The Conflict Between Dalmo Victor And Rockford-Beloit, Laura A. Norman

Vanderbilt Law Review

This Recent Development contends that a union restriction on a member's right to resign constitutes an unfair labor practice under section 8(b)(1)(A). Part II of this Recent Development focuses on judicial and Board treatment of the inherent conflict between an employee's section 7 right to refrain from collective activity and a union's authority to regulate internal affairs.

Part III examines three recent decisions addressing a union's authority to restrict a member's right to resign. Finally, part IV suggests that the Supreme Court should apply the Scofield v. NLRB three-part test to union rules restricting resignation. Part IV also asserts that …

The Resale Price Maintenance Compromise:A Presumption Of Illegality, Michael D. Mckibben

Vanderbilt Law Review

This Note explores several problems with recent RPM decisions: (1) the effect of the per se rule on producers' rights to control their marketing strategies; (2) inconsistent use of the plural action requirement as a foil for avoiding or invoking the per se rule; (3) the suppression of benign or pro-competitive activities because of the rule; (4) the difficulties with free rider marketing; and (5) the obstacles to advice and planning that recent decisions have created. This Note contends that a new standard, a rebuttable presumption against legality, would alleviate most, if not all, problems that the inflexible per se …

Customer Rights Under The Commodity Exchange Act, Jerry W. Markham, Kyra K. Bergin

Vanderbilt Law Review

This Article reviews customer rights and remedies now available under the CEA. Specifically, part II of this Article explores the scope of transactions covered by the CEA, part III addresses the antifraud provisions of the CEA, and part IV discusses the standard of intent required to prove that fraud has been committed under CEA provisions. Part V of this Article examines the secondary liability of brokerage firms and others for the fraudulent acts of its employees, part VI discusses fiduciary liability under the CEA, and part VII enumerates the various forums available for customer remedies." This Article concludes in part …

The Tax Benefit Rule -- A Judicially Broadened Tool For Transactional Tax Equity, Jerry N. Smith

Vanderbilt Law Review

In light of the recent Supreme Court holding in United States v. Bliss Dairy, Inc.10 that the tax benefit rule requires income recognition by a corporation when it distributes previously expensed assets in complete liquidation, this Note assesses the dubious continued vitality of the tax benefit rule's single taxpayer construct-that is, the requirement that the same individual or entity serve as both the deducting and the recovering taxpayer. As the following analysis indicates, expansion of the tax benefit rule into a multiple taxpayer construct potentially requires some form of "recapture" in numerous factual settings previously considered non-taxable under existing nonrecognition …

Ambivalent Legacy: A Legal History Of The South, Herbert A. Johnson

Vanderbilt Law Review

This volume of essays generated by a February 1983 conference at the University of Southern Mississippi represents a major step in the advancement of the legal history of the South.' Not only does the collection raise challenging questions concerning the history of law in the South, but it also presents outstanding examples of what can be accomplished when legal historians turn their attention to this region and the states that comprise it. Covering abroad geographical and topical range in individualistic fashion, the essays are, for the most part, well researched and written with clarity and style. This Review will address …

Criminal Prosecution Of Bank Personnel Under The Misapplication Statute: The Proper Mens Rea Standard For Establishing Intent, William J. Holley, Ii

Vanderbilt Law Review

This Recent Development advocates legislative adoption of a new Misapplication Statute as a long range solution to the courts'continued debate over the appropriate mens rea standard and judicial adoption of a uniform approach as a short run alternative. Part II of this Recent Development traces the various mens rea standards that courts have applied under the Misapplication Statute. Part III discusses the current confusion over the appropriate section 656 mens rea standard by looking at three recent circuit court decisions.' Part IV advocates the adoption of a new Misapplication Statute similar to the approach that the National Com-mission on Reform …

Tension Between The First And Twenty-First Amendments In State Regulation Of Alcohol Advertising, Brian S. Steffey

Vanderbilt Law Review

This Recent Development examines the tension between the first and twenty-first amendments when a state uses its twenty-first amendment power to regulate advertisements of alcoholic beverages that qualify for first amendment protection. Part II of this Recent Development explores the Court's standard of review in cases in which the twenty-first amendment impinges upon a fourteenth amendment right. Part II also reviews the scope of constitutional protection that the first amendment accords commercial speech. Part III examines three recent cases in which states have regulated alcohol advertising. Part IV criticizes these decisions for misapplying the appropriate standard and for relying extensively …

The Insider Trading Sanctions Act Of 1984 And Its Effect On Existing Law, Donald C. Langevoort

Vanderbilt Law Review

The legislative history of the Act shows that its principal drafters regarded those who trade on material confidential information as "thieves," deserving substantial penalties. The adoption of the Act is an expression that the existing laws should be used aggressively to curb the misuse of information. Unfortunately, such a result-oriented direction fits uncomfortably within the confining conceptual structure for rule 10b-5 built in recent years by the Supreme Court. Lower courts therefore must flesh out the law of insider trading based on inconsistent mandates, which will make the future path of the law both unpredictable and interesting.

Punitive Damages: A Relic That Has Outlived Its Origins, James B. Sales, Kenneth B. Cole, Jr.

Vanderbilt Law Review

The doctrine of punitive damages truly is an ancient legal concept that inexplicably has evaded commitment to the archives of history. Irrespective of the questionable validity of the doctrine at early common law, the simple fact remains that none of the historical justifications supports the punitive damage theory in today's tort reparations system. The quest to bestow increasing compensation no longer can justify punitive damage awards because actual damages currently recoverable compensate plaintiffs more than adequately for every conceivable element of physical, emotional, or imagined injury. The desire to inflict punishment, likewise, represents an insupportable basis for awarding quasi-criminal fines …

When Religious Exercise Is Not Free: Deprogramming And The Constitutional Status Of Coercively Induced Belief, Richard Delgado

Vanderbilt Law Review

The present Article offers a defense of deprogramming and a reply to its critics, particularly Shapiro. Part II reviews what hap-pens in many instances of cult joining and offers a conceptual account that justifies deprogramming of cult members who are unable to comprehend or surmount the coercive and deceptive influences that led to their commitment. Part III addresses constitutional problems that are triggered in the event that deprogramming should affect religious belief-an event that is by no means inevitable. Part IV discusses deprogramming and whether some variant of it is capable of remedying the type of situation ad-dressed in part …

The National Labor Relations Act Does Not Preempt A Discharged Permanent Replacement Worker's State Cause Of Action, Stephanie L. Stromire

Vanderbilt Law Review

The purpose of this Recent Development is to examine the issues surrounding discharged permanent replacement workers and to discuss problems confronting state courts that try to implement the Belknap decision. Part II of this Recent Development analyzes the legal background leading up to Belknap. Part III examines the Belknap opinion. Part IV criticizes the decision on three fronts and suggests possible ways of addressing the problems that Belknap presents.

Working Class Hero: A New Strategy For Labor, David L. Gregory

Vanderbilt Law Review

It is very rare to find a worthwhile book so fraught with fundamental weaknesses. Fortunately, Aronowitz' flawed conclusions readily can be separated from his fine historical and political analysis of the American labor movement. The first two sections of the book are a legitimate contribution to historical progressive labor scholarship. The broader perspective posited by Aronowitz, the union organizer, may enhance future labor scholarship. The crucial task, however, remains: Progressive labor scholars must move from criticism of conventional labor relations modalities to a formulation of realistic plans for the achievement of full human dignity in the employment environment. Working Class …

The Lemon Test Soured: The Supreme Court's New Establishment Clause Analysis, Kenneth M. Cox

Vanderbilt Law Review

This Recent Development argues that the Court's apparent trend toward basing establishment clause analysis on the pervasiveness or historical significance of government-supported religious activities represents an undesirable move away from strict examination of the questionable law or activity under the Lemon test. Part II briefly examines the theoretical bases of the establishment clause, then traces the Court's applications of each element of the Lemon analysis. Part III discusses the Marsh and Lynch decisions as the most recent Supreme Court additions to establishment clause doctrine. Finally, part IV analyzes two major effects of these decisions: first, the emergence of the historical …

The Continuing Puzzle Of Secured Debt, Alan Schwartz

Vanderbilt Law Review

In 1981, I wrote an article showing that no good answer had been given to the question why corporations issue some debt on a secured basis and other debt on an unsecured basis.' This showing had normative implications because claims that the institution of personal property security is efficient or otherwise desirable must be impeached if the actual purposes that security serves are unknown. Consequently, the law's favorable treatment of secured debt-for example, giving it first place in bankruptcy distributions--is without plausible support. My article did not advocate repealing the privileges attached to secured debt, however, because then--current knowledge also …

Automatic And Indefinite Commitment Of Insanity Acquittees: A Procedural Straitjacket, John B. Scherling

Vanderbilt Law Review

This Recent Development suggests that the Court erroneously decided Jones. Part II examines the Supreme Court's constitutional analysis of commitment procedures and discusses postacquittal commitment in state and lower federal courts. Part III analyzes the Jones decision and the exception that it allows for the commitment of insanity acquittees. Part IV contends that prior to involuntary and indefinite commitment an insanity acquittee deserves the same standard of proof as a civil commitment candidate-proof of mental illness and dangerousness by clear and convincing evidence. Part IV also argues that absent proof by clear and convincing evidence of the acquittee's need for …

Symposium: The Winds Of Change In Wills, Trusts, And Estate Planning Law, Law Review Editor

Vanderbilt Law Review

The articles in this Symposium illustrate three different aspects of change. The essay by Professor Fellows provides an analysis and criticism of one very important change, the trend toward the use of a legislative rather than judicial forum to create new law. In the second article, Professor Rein discusses adoption and proposes a mechanism by which the laws of succession can be modernized better to reflect the social phenomenon of adoption,whether of children or adults, legal or equitable. Professor Miller and Mr. Rainey in their article examine the premises that have prompted the increasing use of a revocable trust rather …

The Winds Of Change In Wills, Trusts, And Estate Planning Law, The Editor

Vanderbilt Law Review

The articles in this Symposium illustrate three different aspects of change. The essay by Professor Fellows provides an analysis and criticism of one very important change, the trend toward the use of a legislative rather than judicial forum to create new law. In the second article, Professor Rein discusses adoption and proposes a mechanism by which the laws of succession can be modernized better to reflect the social phenomenon of adoption,whether of children or adults, legal or equitable. Professor Miller and Mr. Rainey in their article examine the premises that have prompted the increasing use of a revocable trust rather …