Law Commons^™

Situating Ai Within The History Of Technological Adaptation In Law, Karin Mika

Law Faculty Articles and Essays

This Article will first trace this history of technological disruption and adaptation in the law. It will then situate the current AI moment within this established pattern, arguing that AI’s capabilities create an unprecedented opportunity to accelerate a pedagogical shift from foundational structure to sophisticated substance. Further, it will explore AI's significant potential as an equalizer for multilingual students. Finally, it will address the legitimate risks of AI, concluding that a framework grounded in professional ethics and critical human oversight is the key to harnessing its benefits responsibly. The challenge is not to resist this new technology, but to adapt …

Forever Young: Student Employee Unionization In Higher Education, William A. Herbert

Publications and Research

This article presents history and data about unionization among graduate and undergraduate student employees in the United States. It demonstrates that student employee unionization is not a new phenomenon and is part of a second curriculum for higher education students, which provides first-hand experience in workplace representational democracy and citizenship, including maintaining a majority coalition and making hard necessary compromises

Individualized Cannabis Reparations, Scott Bloomberg

Faculty Publications

This Article makes an argument that should be obvious. The best way for governments to right the wrongs of cannabis prohibition is to give money to people with cannabis offenses. Nonetheless, this straightforward reform has been consistently overlooked, dismissed, or minimized by policymakers and scholars alike, eschewed in favor of other social equity programs that do not right those wrongs nearly as effectively. Governments have indeed invested hundreds of millions of cannabis tax dollars in social equity licensing programs and community reinvestment initiatives. These programs-while often worthwhile-do not benefit the vast majority of people with past cannabis offenses. Governments should …

Behind The Suit: How Recovering A Biblical Worldview And Implementing Spiritual Formation Practices Can Improve The Mental Health Crisis In The Legal Profession, Makayla G. Johnson

Senior Honors Theses

A Biblical worldview is the foundation upon which the United States government and legal system is built, however in recent years the understanding of a Biblical Worldview has been in decline. This shift has had a profound impact on the legal field, causing a loss of purpose and meaning in the profession, which research asserts has in part caused many mental health issues found in the legal field. With this in mind, the following study will include information regarding the extent to which the implementation of spiritual formation practices, when practiced specifically by those in the legal profession, could impact …

Order And Orthodox: The Influence Of Ecclesiastical Courts On The Federal Rules Of Civil Procedure And A Biblical Worldview, Rachel Auld

Senior Honors Theses

When analyzing the English history of American civil procedure, one could stop at the common law; however, England had two distinct courts at the time of the American Revolution: King’s courts and Ecclesiastical courts. At this time, the Ecclesiastical courts governed religious and moral issues including divorce, defamation, and probate. As a result, the Ecclesiastical courts had separate procedures from the common law King’s courts. America adopted the Ecclesiastical courts’ legal fields, and in turn, aspects of the Ecclesiastical court procedure. This thesis addresses the influence of the Ecclesiastical courts on the modern American Federal Rules of Civil Procedure by …

Great Division In The United States & How To Implement Unification, Hadley Grace Blansfield

Senior Honors Theses

Today’s political hostility is largely due to political parties and extreme political perspectives. This paper will demonstrate the historical background regarding political divide that has plagued America over the past 200 years. In addition, other issues such as modern-day violence, violence due to political conflict, social and political segregation, and the monopolization by the Democratic and Republican parties will be referenced and connected with political party conflict. While political parties are the root cause of the violence and division within the United States, external triggers are also at play at exacerbating the divide of political parties which will be reviewed. …

Antitrust And Economic Liberty, Doha Mekki

Center for Law and the Economy

Over the last few years, antitrust plaintiffs have won important victories in cases against digital platforms. They’ve won important cases involving real estate associations, elite private colleges, sports leagues, pharmaceutical companies, pork processors, and health insurers. In some cases, they have secured record-breaking jury verdicts and redress for harmed individuals.

The U.S. Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division has been active too. Last year, a federal court held that Google illegally maintained monopolies in general internet search and related search advertising markets. That case is about access to the information we see and use to make decisions about how we want …

The Revival Of Section 5: A Return To The Ftc’S Roots In A Time Of Democratic Crisis, Shaoul Sussman

Center for Law and the Economy

On November 10, 2022, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC or the “Commission”) issued a policy statement on the scope of unfair methods of competition under section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act (FTCA). This policy statement marked a significant shift, reviving a broad interpretation of the agency’s authority to police anticompetitive conduct. The antitrust defense bar reacted with alarm, arguing that the principles are overly ambiguous and lack guidance. This Essay contends that reaction is misplaced. The statement draws on a rich body of U.S. Supreme Court and circuit court precedent that the antitrust bar seems to have largely …

Bringing Order To Chaos: Hearsay Rules In Immigration Courts, Joseph Romano

Immigration Law Blog

This Article examines the admission of hearsay evidence in immigration courts, where judges apply a flexible “probative and fundamentally fair” standard rather than the Federal Rules of Evidence. The Article identifies a lack of clear doctrinal guidance and resulting disparities across cases. To address this gap, the Article proposes a structured four-factor framework focusing on reliability, corroboration, opportunity for rebuttal, and outcome centrality to better ensure consistent and fair adjudication.

Fluctuating Hallucinations: On The Boundaries Of Immigration Judges’ Discretion In The Determination Of Asylum Based On Political Opinions, Yan Zhang

Immigration Law Blog

This article examines the enigmatic nature and blurred boundaries of the discretionary power exercised by immigration judges in asylum cases, highlighting how the scope of such discretion—whether broad or narrow—proves decisive for the applicants and their families. Through a comparative analysis of specific cases, the article underscores the critical importance of immigration judges seeking to discern and follow the true intent of the law—specifically, by deeply understanding and defining the threshold of “persecution,” delineating the boundaries of “political opinion,” and appropriately weighing and prioritizing immigration policies within their specific historical contexts. Furthermore, it is essential that judges conduct a comprehensive …

From Subjective Truth To Professional Duty: Navigating Controversy In The Law School Classroom, Karin Mika

Law Faculty Articles and Essays

By engaging in analyzing opposing viewpoints, students do more than just develop a broader understanding of other perspectives. Rather, students are forced to more clearly define and evaluate their own convictions. Moreover, by shifting the focus from a professor’s discussion of controversial opposing viewpoints to a student’s self-discovery, examining controversy remains an essential component of the classroom.

The Pennsylvania Bar Association Quarterly: A 10-Year History Volumes 87-96 (2016-2025), Joel Fishman

Law Faculty Publications

This article is the second supplement to my previous two articles covering the history of The Pennsylvania Bar Association Quarterly.² For the period of this article, Robert E. Rains, Professor Emeritus, Penn State Dickinson Law, has been the editor, replacing Professor Louis Del Duca, who had served as editor for an amazing 47 years. The January 2016 issue appropriately began with two articles in homage to Prof. Del Duca.³

Uncovering Settlements: Problems, Opportunities And Solutions For Settling Liability Cases In Which Insurance Coverage Is In Dispute, Marialuisa Gallozzi, Jodi Mcdougall, James Murray, Catalina Sugayan

Connecticut Insurance Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Artificial Intelligence In The Insurance Industry And Bad Faith Risk, Mary E. Borja, Edward J. Currie Jr., Lorelie Masters

Connecticut Insurance Law Journal

No abstract provided.

An Ethics Conundrum: What Am I? Coverage Counsel Or Claim Investigator Or Both?, Neil B. Posner

Connecticut Insurance Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Backlash: How Racial Justice In Higher Education Is Being Trumped By Politics, Aaron N. Taylor

AccessLex Institute Research

This article discusses contemporary social and political backlash to racial justice and how it has overshadowed and flouted higher education antidiscrimination law and principles of racial justice. The first three parts chart the evolution of U.S. Supreme Court precedent in higher education affirmative action cases. Part I interrogates the Court’s fallacious detachment of affirmative action from its racial justice origins in Defunis and Bakke. Part II discusses how the Grutter majority tacitly departed from Bakke, using the vague concept of critical mass to seemingly empower schools to engage in affirmative action as a racial justice tool. Part III explains how …

People's Upr Written Record: Compiled By The International Human Rights Clinic At The University Of Illinois Chicago School Of Law And The Human Rights At Home Litigation Clinic At The Saint Louis University School Of Law, Sarah Dávila A., Lauren E. Bartlett

Faculty White Papers

This written record compiles the lived experiences of directly impacted persons. Directly impacted persons include people who have personally faced the conditions, policies, or practices documented in this written record in the United States and who have chosen to share their testimonies. The testimonies in this written record include those provided in-person, via video recording, which have been transcribed, or in writing. Testimonies are presented anonymously with ▊ sign as names and identifiable information has been redacted. Their accounts provide first-hand evidence of how these human rights issues operate in practice, offering essential context and depth that cannot be captured …

What Common Themes Are Challengers Trying To Silence And What Would Be Lost Without Them?, Corrine H. Martello

Richard T. Schellhase Essay Prize in Ethics

This research paper aims to analyze the controversies surrounding The Catcher in the Rye, written by J.D. Salinger, The Bluest Eye, by Toni Morrison, and The Perks of Being a Wallflower, by Stephen Chbosky, three commonly challenged books that are often found in high school English classes, in order to answer the question “what themes in these books are challengers trying to silence, and what would be lost without them?”. It will be broken into four sections, Alienation, Mental Health Struggles & Trauma, The Loss of Innocence, and Exploring Identity, which are common themes presented in all three books. …

United States Response To Questionnaire: Alai Congress 2026 - Copyright And Free Expression In The Age Of Algorithms, Philippa Loengard

Kernochan Center for Law, Media, and the Arts

ALAI-USA is the U.S. branch of ALAI (Association Littèraire et Artistique Internationale). ALAI-USA was started in the 1980's by the late Professor Melville B. Nimmer, and was later expanded by Professor John M. Kernochan.

Tokenized Real Estate: The Law And Tech Of Digital Deeds, Christopher K. Odinet, Andrea Tosato

Faculty Scholarship

The advent of blockchain technology has generated bold claims that non-fungible tokens (NFTs) can fundamentally transform real estate. Proponents assert that digital assets can tokenize real property interests: the concept of using digital tokens to represent ownership rights in physical property. Their goal is to allow buyers and sellers to transfer real estate through simple blockchain transactions, thereby eliminating traditional intermediaries, reducing costs, and accelerating deal velocity. This Essay provides the first comprehensive legal analysis examining whether American law actually supports such a direct tokenization of real estate rights.

Our investigation reveals a stark disconnect between technological capability and legal …

Childhood, Likelihood, And Probative Value: A Further Call For Greater Probity And Less Childism In Evidence Law, Mae C. Quinn

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Governing The Energy Bottleneck, Hannah Jacobs Wiseman, Matthew Mchale

Faculty Scholarship

The electrical grid is falling short of its mandate to accommodate new generation—much of which happens to be “clean” zero-carbon generation—and to service load (demand). The bottleneck of grid access, which has vexed renewable energy developers, now affects industries seeking massive quantities of electricity to power single facilities— “large loads” such as data centers and other artificial intelligence operations.

Many of these highly capitalized loads seek clean energy generation; they could, in theory, fund an energy renaissance and provide scale-based benefits for all consumers. But loads that obtain service  are negatively impacting other consumers’ rates and, potentially, the reliability of …

How Ip Ends, Dave Fagundes, Aaron Perzanowski

Articles

Real and personal property may last forever, but intellectual property (IP) ends. Despite the doctrinal complexity and practical significance of the mechanisms that terminate IP rights, scholarship has scarcely focused on them, and none has analyzed these doctrines as a unified field. As a result, the discourse about the ways IP ends remains impoverished, with courts, legislatures, and commentators offering imprecise and inconsistent formulations that obscure the rationales for these doctrines. This Article offers the first comprehensive taxonomy of IP’s terminal mechanisms, providing much-needed conceptual and definitional coherence. It then reveals the underappreciated policy leverage these mechanisms can deliver and …

Solidarity, Strength, And Lessons Learned: The Repeal Of Right To Work In Michigan And Its Immediate Effects On Unions, Ella Compau

Honors Projects

This is a research paper on the immediate qualitative effects of the repeal of Right to Work laws in Michigan. It uses the UFCW Local 951 as a case study, analyzing the findings from interviews with union representatives and stewards. The literature review explains the history and effects of unions and Right to Work laws. The transition to a post-repeal workplace was reported as smoother than expected, and has resulted in the union now having much more time to build relationships with members and management, solve issues more efficiently, and invest in core values. Solidarity among workers is higher due …

An Elegy For The Hereditary Peers, Declan M. Hurley

Notre Dame JLEPP: In Limine

Declan Hurley reflects on the role of the hereditary peers, and what is lost with their demise.

Decline And Fall Of The House Of Lords, Thomas H. Schacht

Notre Dame JLEPP: In Limine

Thomas Schacht recounts the inevitable momentum of the last one hundred years, which has rendered the House of Lords impotent

A Problem For Traditionalism, Marc O. Degirolami

Notre Dame JLEPP: In Limine

Prof. DeGirolami explains traditionalism and why it might pose a problem in the United States.

The Crime We Forget? White-Collar Crime: Problems In Defining Motive And Enforcement Of Followers, John Stillman

Notre Dame JLEPP: In Limine

John Stillman explains problems in defining and enforcing against white-collar crime, focusing on followers.

Why A “Blog” For Law, Ethics & Public Policy?, Declan M. Hurley, Jack Manning

Notre Dame JLEPP: In Limine

Hurley and Manning explain why JLEPP needs a new short-form publication--JLEPP In Limine--for relevant scholarly commentary.

An Austrian Approach To Accounting Regulation: How Policy Intervention Distorts The Market For Assurance Services, Kyan Howe

Student Scholarship

This thesis applies the causal-realist method of the Austrian School of Economics to the market for assurance services in the United States. The central argument is that post-crisis accounting regulation has systematically distorted the incentive structures of independent public accounting firms in ways regulators do not predict and cannot fully control. Financial crises, properly understood through Austrian Business Cycle Theory, originate in monetary distortions rather than market failure. Post-crisis regulatory responses nonetheless target the profession rather than the underlying distortion, introducing rules that alter the institutional constraints within which auditors exercise professional judgment.

The thesis develops a judgment-based equation of …