Law Commons^™

Sovereignty Migrates In Us And Mexican Law: Transnational Influences In Plenary Power And Non-Intervention, Ernesto Hernandez-Lopez

Ernesto A. Hernandez

Mexico and the US exercise increasingly transnational, less absolute, sovereignty with respect to migration. This is evident in changes to Mexico's norm of non-intervention (NIV) and the US' plenary power doctrine (PPD), two doctrines sourced in international sovereignty. Both historically defined sovereign authority in absolute terms, avoiding any foreign influence or domestic limitation. NIV prohibits Mexican foreign relations from interfering in another state's domestic affairs. Traditionally it barred a foreign policy on migrants in the US, leading to Mexico's 'no policy' on migrants. PPD labels immigration law as immune from judicial review because the political branches have complete, 'plenary,' authority …

Statute Of Liberty?, Emily A. Harrell

Emily A Harrell

This essay presents a brief overview of the United States’ immigration policy with respect to sponsorship laws, as well as a brief introduction to the Federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) and how it has affected these laws. This essay also illustrates the extent of judicial deference toward Congress in the realm of immigration. Following this introductory material, there is a discussion of the traditional and modern view of homosexuals as pertains to immigration law. Aside from an analysis of the sponsorship laws, this essay also glances at the exigent circumstances that create loopholes for homosexuals in immigration law, such …

Municipal Overreaching; Federal Preemption As It Applies To Town Ordinances Outlawing The Rental Of Housing To Undocumented Aliens, Hayden Patrick O'Byrne

Hayden Patrick O'Byrne

Within the past year or so a handful of towns around the United States have passed ordinances prohibiting undocumented aliens from renting housing. This paper explores how these ordinances are incompatible with the Federal Immigration Scheme and preempted by Federal Law.

Employers On The Fence: A Guide To The Immigratory Workplace, Natalie Prescott

Natalie Prescott

The Article discusses potential problems employers across the nation face when hiring, promoting, or employing foreign workers. It gives practical advice to employers on how to prevent discriminatory practices and avoid discrimination lawsuits and penalties and serves as an abbreviated employer's manual to immigration law.

Introduction To Morality, Justice And The Law, M. Katherine B. Darmer

M. Katherine B. Darmer

MORALITY, JUSTICE AND THE LAW is a co-edited volume pulling together selections on theories of the moral underpinnings of law, morality and lawyering (including the religious lawyering movement), civil disobedience, capital punishment and immigration. The book was published by Prometheus Books in 2007.

Canons, The Plenary Power Doctrine And Immigration Law, Brian G. Slocum

Brian G. Slocum

There is a fundamental dichotomy in immigration law. On one hand, courts have consistently maintained that Congress has “plenary power” over immigration and reject most constitutional challenges on that basis. On the other hand, courts frequently use canons of statutory construction in an aggressive fashion to help interpret immigration statutes in favor of aliens. Immigration scholars have almost exclusively focused on the plenary power doctrine. They have either ignored the important role that canons have played in immigration law or have viewed canons as serving only a temporary and marginally legitimate role as substitutes for the lack of constitutional rights …

Blackwater And The Privatization Of Immigration Control, Robert E. Koulish

Robert E. Koulish

This paper documents the privatization of immigration control being led by the Blacwater Inc. invasion of the border. Preety much the same time that Iraqi Prime Minister Maliki said he would expel Backwater from Iraw, Salon Magazine documented that Blackwater was headed to the US-Mexico Border. I argue that Blackwater symbolizes the privatization of immigration control as well as a larger integration of immigration control with what Klein refers to as a post 9/11 neo-liberal economic shock doctrine. The paper focuses on how the Courts have participated in in the phenomenon through "non-decision," with a focus on the patriot act, …

Curbing Day Laborers: Anti-Solicitation Ordinances, Commercial Speech, And Hiring Centers. A User's Guide To Protecting Municipalities From Day Labor-Related Lawlessness And Litigation, Jon D. Feere

Jon D Feere

As Americans across the country become increasingly frustrated by continuous violations of immigration laws, many legal groups aimed at suing city, state, and federal governments have been created with the hope that increased pressure will result in increased enforcement. Laws not originally designed to specifically address immigration issues, such as the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), and basic laws of trespass are being used by the public to creatively fight immigration violations. At the same time, state and local governments are also discovering a need to act creatively in managing the massive increase of illegal immigrants moving into …

Border Vigilantism And Comprehensive Immigration Reform, Christopher J. Walker

Christopher J. Walker

While many actors and conditions contribute to the problems at the border, one set of actors has been unexplainably missing from the literature and policy analysis: border vigilantes. These vigilantes have painted the border as a dangerous locus of criminal and terrorist activity, necessitating concerned citizen sentinels. They have blitzed the public with portrayals about the number of migrants crossing the border illegally and the need for law enforcement to increase border protection. Their message is powerful because they back their rhetoric with action: these individuals camp out near popular desert border-crossing points, document the rate of undocumented migration, and …

Counterproductive And Counterintuitive Counterterrorism: The Post-September 11 Treatment Of Refugees And Asylum Seekers, Marisa Cianciarulo

Marisa S. Cianciarulo

This Article critiques U.S. counterterrorism measures that directly target refugees and asylum-seekers. The United States currently offers protection to individuals and families fleeing persecution through two programs: the overseas refugee resettlement program (available to refugees residing outside the United States) and the asylum system (available to those who apply for refugee protection on U.S. soil). Almost immediately after the September 11 terrorist attacks, the United States implemented a refugee resettlement moratorium that resulted in lengthy delays and the failure to resettle thousands of refugees previously cleared to enter the United States. Several years later, on May 11, 2005, Congress passed …

Modern-Day Slavery And Cultural Bias: Proposals For Reforming The U.S. Visa System For Victims Of International Human Trafficking, Marisa S. Cianciarulo

Marisa S. Cianciarulo

The international trafficking of human beings has emerged as one of the most lucrative and far-reaching industries in the world, second only to trafficking in drugs and tied with trafficking in arms. Many victims of international human trafficking, including teenagers and young children, are forced to work in the sex trade. Others work in areas such as agriculture, restaurants and sweatshops. In 2000, in an effort to combat trafficking and encourage trafficking victims to assist in the prosecution of traffickers, the United States enacted the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act (VTVPA), which created a new visa, called the …

A Localist's Case For Decentralizing Immigration Policy, Matthew J. Parlow

Matthew Parlow