Law Commons^™

The Cycles Of Constitutional Theory, Barry Friedman

Law and Contemporary Problems

Friedman presents information on the cyclical nature of constitutional theory. Because constitutional theory is a reaction to the current developments of constitutional law, it is interesting to view constitutional issues through the framework of different historical circumstances.

The Antebellum Political Background Of The Fourteenth Amendment, Garrett Epps

Law and Contemporary Problems

Epps presents information concerning the historical context of the Fourteenth Amendment. Among other implications, the Amendment should be viewed as an effort to defend the national government from control by transient majorities or undemocratic factions in the states.

Journal Staff

Law and Contemporary Problems

No abstract provided.

“Bad Cop” Diplomacy & Preemption: An Analysis Of International Law And Politics Governing Weapons Proliferation, Blake Klein

Duke Journal of Comparative & International Law

No abstract provided.

Taking Pop-Ups Seriously: The Jurisprudence Of The Infield Fly Rule, Neil B. Cohen, S. W. Waller

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Rwandan Gacaca: An Experiment In Transitional Justice, Maya Goldstein Bolocan

Journal of Dispute Resolution

This paper argues that shifting the emphasis from the retributive nature of Gacaca to its restorative potential may, in the long term, offer better perspectives of peace and reconciliation to a deeply wounded society. It also argues that, where Gacaca retains its retributive element, it should do so while trying to respect the human rights of those brought before it. Part II of this paper briefly discusses the dominant model of transitional justice, namely the prosecutorial approach of criminal trials, and its effectiveness vis-A-vis alternatives that emphasize the search for truth and reconciliation instead of retribution. Part III provides a …

State Legislative Update, Robert J. Fisher, Katherine M. Massa, Benjamin B. Nelson, Cassandra A. Rogers

Journal of Dispute Resolution

Senate Bill 1970 was introduced in the Florida Senate on March 2, 2004. It was initially referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee where it passed on April 19 with an 8-0 vote. Senate Bill 1970 was read for the first time in the Senate on April 21. The bill passed the full Senate on April 24 with a 39-0 vote. It was then sent to the full House on April 26 where it was substituted for House Bill 1765. Senate Bill 1970 was read and passed in the House on April 27 with a 114-0 vote. The bill was presented …

Eighty Years Of Indian Voting: A Call To Protect Indian Voting Rights, Danna R. Jackson

Montana Law Review

Eighty Years of Indian Voting

Disability And Technology, Edward L. Myers Iii

Montana Law Review

Disability and Technology

Will Montana Breathe Life Into Its Positive Constitutional Right To Equal Educational Opportunity?, Hillary A. Wandler

Montana Law Review

Will Montana Breathe Life Into Its Positive Constitutional Right to Equal Educational Opportunity?

Recent Decisions Affecting The Montana Practitioner

Montana Law Review

Recent Decisions Affecting the Montana Practitioner

Between 'Merit Inquiry' And 'Rigorous Analysis': Using Daubert To Navigate The Gray Areas Of Federal Class Action Certification, Elizabeth Chamblee Burch

Scholarly Works

In recent years, the class action certification hearing has become the latest forum for disputes over the reliability of expert testimony. Since these hearings may involve complex technical matters, litigants frequently try to introduce expert testimony to either establish or challenge the basic requirements for class certification. Yet, most courts do not conduct a Daubert analysis before admitting expert testimony during certification, evaluate the evidence according to a uniform standard, or adequately weigh opposing expert opinions.

Even though the Federal Rules of Evidence codify procedures to ensure the reliability of expert testimony, courts have been reluctant to employ them during …

Necessity Never Made A Good Bargain: When Consumer Arbitration Agreements Prohibit Class Relief, Thomas V. Burch

Scholarly Works

The American system of arbitration is constantly evolving. From the first formal arbitration tribunal in 1786—established by the New York Chamber of Commerce—to the creation of the Federal Arbitration Act in 1925—passed to suppress judicial hostility towards arbitration -- the system has continuously adapted to accommodate changing business practices and rising judicial concerns over the legitimacy of the institution. In fact, the system’s adaptation has been so effective that the Supreme Court now recognizes a “national policy favoring arbitration.” This “national policy” is the most recent phase of the arbitration evolution, and it raises several concerns. Most significantly, lower courts …

The Blockbuster Punitive Damages Awards, W. Kip Viscusi

Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications

This paper provides an analysis of 64 punitive damages awards of at least $100 million. Based on an inventory of these cases, there is evidence that these blockbuster awards are highly concentrated geographically, as two states account for 27 of the 64 awards. The awards also have been rising substantially over time, with the majority of these blockbuster awards taking place since 1999. An assessment of the current status of the blockbuster punitive damages awards indicates that most of these awards have been appealed, but the reversal of these punitive damages awards is the exception rather than the rule. Many …

Is Atkins The Antithesis Or Apotheosis Of Anti-Discrimination Principles? Sorting Out The Groupwide Effects Of Exempting People With Mental Retardation From The Death Penalty, Christopher Slobogin

Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications

In "Atkins v. Virginia", the U.S. Supreme Court held that people with mental retardation may not be executed. z Many advocates for people with disability cheered the decision, because it provides a group of disabled people with protection from the harshest punishment imposed by our society. But other disability advocates were dismayed by "Atkins", not because they are fans of the death penalty, but because they believe that declaring disabled people ineligible for a punishment that is accorded all others denigrates disabled people as something less than human. If people with disability are to be treated equally, these dissenters suggest, …

The Myth Of What Is Inevitable Under Ecosystem Management: A Response To Pardy, J.B. Ruhl

Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications

This article, second in a five-part dialogue appearing in the Pace ELR, responds to Professor Bruce Pardy's initial evaluation of ecosystem management. I defend ecosystem management, arguing it is not directed at changing nature as Pardy suggests.

Expanding Homeownership Opportunity: The Softsecond Loan Program, 1991-2003, Jim Campen

Gastón Institute Publications

The SoftSecond Loan Program emerged at the end of a tumultuous year of struggle over community reinvestment issues that began on January 11, 1989. The lead story in that day’s Boston Globe reported that a draft study by researchers at the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston had found that there was a pattern of “racial bias” in Boston’s mortgage lending, that the number of mortgage loans in the predominantly black neighborhoods of Roxbury and Mattapan would have been more than twice as great “if race was not a factor,” and that “this racial bias is both statistically and economically significant.” …

Report Of The Governor's Workers' Compensation Review Commission, Thomas A. Eaton, David B. Mustard

Scholarly Works

The editors of the Georgia Law Review asked me to write this Foreword to explain why a government report of this nature should be published in an academic journal. I write solely in my capacity as a law professor--not as Chair of the Governor's Workers' Compensation Review Commission. My case, simply put, is that the Report illustrates how service and scholarship can go hand in hand.

John D. Becker On Islam, Liberalism, And Human Rights: Implications For International Relations By Katerina Dalacoura (Revised Edition). London: I.B. Tauris, 2003. 248pp., John D. Becker

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

Islam, Liberalism, and Human Rights: Implications for International Relations by Katerina Dalacoura (revised edition). London: I.B. Tauris, 2003. 248pp.

A Government Of Laws And Not Men: Prohibiting Non-Precedential Opinions By Statute Or Procedural Rule, Amy E. Sloan

All Faculty Scholarship

Non-precedential judicial opinions issued by the federal appellate courts have generated significant controversy. Given that the federal appellate courts are unlikely to abandon the practice of issuing non-precedential opinions on their own, what other options exist for prohibiting the practice? This article discusses the constitutionality of a procedural rule or statute prohibiting the federal appellate courts from prospectively designating selected opinions as non-precedential. It explains how the rules governing non-precedential opinions allow federal appellate courts to "opt out" of their own rules of precedent. It then examines the rulemaking process, showing how the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure are promulgated …

Law Librarians As Educators And Role Models: The University At Buffalo's Jd/Mls Program In Law Librarianship, James G. Milles

Other Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Making Lawyers Compete, Lester Brickman

Articles

The article argues that the market for contingent-fee-financed tort litigation is not price competitive, primarily due to uniform contingency fees charged by lawyers regardless of case-specific factors such as risk or effort required. This lack of competition leads to excessive costs for claimants and contributes to the expansion of tort liability. The author contends that the legal profession maintains this system through various barriers, including ethical rules and entry restrictions, which prevent competitive market forces from functioning effectively.

Holding Internet Service Providers Accountable, Douglas Gary Lichtman, Eric A. Posner

Coase-Sandor Institute for Law & Economics Research Paper Series

Internet service providers are today largely immune from liability for their role in the creation and propagation of worms, viruses, and other forms of malicious computer code. In this Essay, we question that state of affairs. Our purpose is not to weigh in on the details—for example, whether liability should sound in negligence or strict liability, or whether liability is in this instance best implemented by statute or via gradual common law development. Rather, our aim is to challenge the recent trend in the courts and Congress away from liability and toward complete immunity for Internet service providers. In our …

Defendant Class Actions And The Right To Opt Out: Lessons For Canada From The United States, Vince Morabito

Duke Journal of Comparative & International Law

No abstract provided.

Conflict Between State Legal Norms And Norms Underlying Popular Beliefs: Witchcraft In Africa As A Case Study, Mohammed A. Diwan

Duke Journal of Comparative & International Law

No abstract provided.

Liking To Be In America: Puerto Rico’S Quest For Difference In The United States, Angel R. Oquendo

Duke Journal of Comparative & International Law

No abstract provided.

The Challenges Of Europeanization In The Realm Of Private Law: A Plea For A New Legal Discipline, Christian Joerges

Duke Journal of Comparative & International Law

No abstract provided.

Comparative Constitutional Reasoning: The Law And Strategy Of Selecting The Right Arguments, Taavi Annus

Duke Journal of Comparative & International Law

No abstract provided.

What Does Pruneyard Have To Do With California Internet Trade Secret Law?, Adam J. Sheridan

Marquette Intellectual Property Law Review

This comment discusses the facts of the Bunner case and the decisions of the Sixth District and the Supreme Court. The Bunner case involves Andrew Bunner and his act of putting a link on his Web page allowing visitors to access a Digitial Video Disc (DVD) descrambler program, which allowed a computer user to decrypt DVDs. The DVD Copy Control Association sought an injunction against Bunner under the California Uniform Trade Secrets Act (UTSA). The author analyzes the historical protection given free speech and trade secrets under California law. Looking at the Bunner case in light of Pruneyard, the author …

Toward Global Democracy: Thoughts In Response To The Rising Tide Of Nation-To-Nation Interdependencies, Hassan El Menyawi

Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies

No abstract provided.