Law Commons^™

Equitable Tolling In State And Local Tax Cases, Steve R. Johnson

Scholarly Publications

Tax statutes, like statutes of all kinds, frequently prescribe dates or times by which actions are to be taken. If the actor – either the taxpayer or the state or local revenue authority – fails to act by the specified date or time, the actor sometimes can be rescued by any of several legal and equitable mechanisms.

This installment of Interpretation Matters addresses one of those mechanisms: the doctrine of equitable tolling. Part I below describes the doctrine generally and gives examples of successful use of the doctrine by taxpayers and by revenue authorities. Part II identifies possible barriers to …

Cityland – Vol. 6, No. 5, Center For New York City Law

CityLand - 2009

The June 2009 issue of CityLand covers major land use and preservation developments in New York City. The City Council approved Two Trees Management’s controversial Dock Street DUMBO development and its Clinton Park mixed-use tower. The City Planning Commission held hearings on the comprehensive Coney Island rezoning and a proposed Brighton Beach rezoning, both met with community concerns. Staten Island’s Cross Access Connection proposal was advanced to reduce traffic congestion. Landmark coverage includes the designation of the Fillmore Place and Audubon Park Historic Districts, and hearings on the St. Vincent’s Hospital redevelopment and a preschool conversion in the Upper West …

Imperfect Oaths, The Primed President, And An Abundance Of Constitutional Caution, Bruce Peabody

NULR Online

Presidential inaugurations frequently invite widespread civic celebration, the broad rhetoric of an incoming Chief Executive, and traditions stretching back for decades and even centuries. The inaugural ceremonies of January 20, 2009 offered all this and something more: a set of important constitutional puzzles radiating from Barack Obama’s imperfect recitation of his oath of office.

At 12:04 p.m., Mr. Obama attempted to fulfill the Constitution’s requirement that each President take a prescribed thirty-five word oath “[b]efore he enter on the Execution of his Office . . . .” During the recitation, Chief Justice John Roberts (who was administering the oath) prompted …

June 13, 2009: Pens Win, Bruce Ledewitz

Hallowed Secularism

Blog post, “Pens Win“ discusses politics, theology and the law in relation to religion and public life in the democratic United States of America.

International Courts : Are They Working?, James Rice

Conference on “Improving the Human Destiny"

This paper will address some of these questions by first tracing the establishment of international courts from the end of the Second World War to the most recent developments such as the establishment of the ad hoc Balkan and Cambodian Tribunals and the (permanent) International Criminal Court. Here, I will also seek to highlight both the successes and challenges to these diverse international judicial bodies. In the context of this examination, it is hoped that some new light may be shed on the inherent difficulties that international judicial bodies have faced, and on a viable path forward that in some …

June 11, 2009: The Sixth Wind, Bruce Ledewitz

Hallowed Secularism

Blog post, “The Sixth Wind“ discusses politics, theology and the law in relation to religion and public life in the democratic United States of America.

Application Of Cascade Theory To Online Systems: A Study Of Email And Google Cascades, April M. Barton

Working Paper Series

Why do markets boom and crash? Why do fads and social norms start and end? The answer is found in a branch of social science literature called “cascade theory.” Cascade theory explains the observable human behavior of imitation: following the actions of someone else simply because one has observed that behavior, rather than following one’s own intuition. This article discusses cascade theory in the context of online systems, namely e-mail and Google. E-mail cascades parallel their offline cascade counterparts as information and misinformation is spread from person to person. However, e-mail cascades also exhibit an amplified herd effect and an …

Summary Of Hd Supply Facilities Maint. V. Bymoen, 125 Nev. Adv. Op. No. 20, Casey G. Perkins

Nevada Supreme Court Summaries

Certified questions from the United States District Court, District of Nevada, arising from a action by HD Supply Facilities Maint., Ltd. (“HDS”), seeking enforcement of restrictive employment covenants against its former employee, Leif Bymoen (“Bymoen”) and Bymoen’s current employer AZ Partsmaster, Inc. (“AZP”). The questions each relate to whether the Nevada rule, set forth by the Nevada Supreme Court in Traffic Control Servs. v. United Rentals,2 prohibiting the assignment of noncompetition covenants in asset purchase transactions “applies when a successor corporation acquires covenants of noncompetition, nonsolicitation, or confidentiality as a result of a merger.”

Interview Of James Bacchus Conducted By Rosine Plank-Brumback On June 10, 2009, Institute Of International Economic Law, Georgetown University Law Center

The Oral History Project of the World Trading System

Interview of James Bacchus, Former WTO Appellate Body Member and Former U.S. Congressman (D-FL), conducted by Rosine Plank-Brumback on June 10, 2009.

Science Tools To Implement Ecosystem Based Management In Massachusetts (Draft), Mrag Americas, Incorporated, Massachusetts Ocean Partnership, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, Urban Harbors Institute, University Of Massachusetts Boston

Urban Harbors Institute Publications

In this report we provide a framework for implementing ecosystem based management (EBM) and suggest a range of science information tools and their appropriate application to the decision making process. These tools can be broadly classified as modeling tools, decision analysis tools, and indicators. Modeling tools allow the user to organize data, communicate scientific findings to management and stakeholder audiences, and test alternative management scenarios. When used unwisely, however, models can preclude options, present unusable scenarios, generate results in scales that differ from management needs, and impose huge time, data, and technical requirements (Manno et al., 2008). Decision analysis tools …

The Genesis Of Portland's Forest Park: Evolution Of An Urban Wilderness, Elizabeth M. Provost

Dissertations and Theses

Portland, Oregon, is steward to a 5,126 acre wilderness park called Forest Park. The park's size and proximity to downtown make it a dominate feature of Portland's skyline. Despite its urban location the park provides respite from city life with its seventy miles of trails, which wind through stands of Douglas fir, western red cedar, and western hemlock. Portland citizens enjoy this easy access to nature as well as the park's health and environmental benefits.

However, few people know of the park's history and how its journey toward parkhood reflects the changing values of Portland's citizens over time. Starting with …

June 8, 2009: Netroots Nation National Convention In Pittsburgh In August, Bruce Ledewitz

Hallowed Secularism

Blog post, “Netroots Nation National Convention in Pittsburgh in August“ discusses politics, theology and the law in relation to religion and public life in the democratic United States of America.

New-School Trademark Dilution: Famous Among The Juvenile Consuming Public, Alexandra J. Roberts

Law Faculty Scholarship

The recently enacted Trademark Dilution Revision Act of 2006 recalibrated the degree of fame necessary to garner protection: the TDRA applies only to a mark "widely recognized by the general consuming public of the United States as a designation of source of the goods or services of the mark’s owner." By privileging those major players who succeed in turning their brands into household names, the TDRA strengthens incentives for mark-owners to ensure their logos and brand names are well-recognized not only among adult consumers, but also among children. This Article examines a set of marketing behaviors aimed at children that …

Responding To Sovereign Funds: Are We Looking In The Right Place?, Wei Cui

All Faculty Publications

At a superficial glance, Internal Revenue Code Section 892 appears to favor sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) over foreign private investors by exempting the former from tax on a significant range of US investments. This has recently led to calls for its abolition. Several authors, however, have challenged this view by pointing out that the impact of US tax on the relative competitiveness of SWFs and private investors should be analyzed in terms of the investors’ comparative, not absolute, advantage. And such analysis hinges on whether foreign private investors are taxed by their home countries on a worldwide basis, as well …

Xilinx And The Arm's-Length Standard, Reuven S. Avi-Yonah

Articles

On May 7 the Ninth Circuit decided Xilinx v. Commissioner. By a 2-1 majority, the panel reversed the Tax Court and held that costs of employee stock options must be included in the pool of costs subject to a tax-sharing agreement. The Xilinx decision is important for three reasons. First, cost sharing is probably the key element in current transfer pricing law because it is the principal way in which profits from intangibles get shifted from the United States to low-tax jurisdictions. Moreover, informed observers agree that the allocation of income from intangibles is the most important problem in transfer …

Slides: Groundwater Law And Administration: From Conflict To Reform, Michael A. Gheleta

Western Water Law, Policy and Management: Ripples, Currents, and New Channels for Inquiry (Martz Summer Conference, June 3-5)

Presenter: Michael A. Gheleta, Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck LLP, Denver, CO

14 slides

Slides: Modifying Prior Appropriation: The Spectrum Of Experiences, Adam Schempp

Western Water Law, Policy and Management: Ripples, Currents, and New Channels for Inquiry (Martz Summer Conference, June 3-5)

Presenter: Adam Schempp, Environmental Law Institute, Washington, DC

12 slides

Slides: Next Evolutionary Steps In State Instream Flow Programs, Lawrence J. Macdonnell

Western Water Law, Policy and Management: Ripples, Currents, and New Channels for Inquiry (Martz Summer Conference, June 3-5)

Presenter: Lawrence J. MacDonnell, attorney and consultant, Boulder, CO

27 slides

June 5, 2009: Barack Obama: Theologian-In-Chief, Bruce Ledewitz

Hallowed Secularism

Blog post, “ Barack Obama: Theologian-in-Chief“ discusses politics, theology and the law in relation to religion and public life in the democratic United States of America.

Slides: Rethinking Western Water Law: Restoring The Public Interest In Western Water Law, Mark Squillace

Western Water Law, Policy and Management: Ripples, Currents, and New Channels for Inquiry (Martz Summer Conference, June 3-5)

Presenter: Mark Squillace, Director, Natural Resources Law Center, University of Colorado Law School

20 slides

A Health Insurance Exchange: Prototypes And Design Issues, Mark Merlis

National Health Policy Forum

Many reform proposals call for the creation of one or more health insurance exchanges, intermediaries that can help individuals or small employers navigate the insurance market. An exchange might be public or private, national, or local. It might serve simply as a clearinghouse for plan information or could play an active role in setting benefit packages, choosing high-quality plans, and negotiating premium rates. This paper begins with a summary of recent experience with insurance exchanges and similar systems. It then reviews basic issues in the design of an exchange.

Targeted Killing In U.S. Counterterrorism Strategy And Law, Kenneth Anderson

Working Papers

Targeted killing, particularly through the use of missiles fired from Predator drone aircraft, has become an important, and internationally controversial, part of the US war against al Qaeda in Pakistan and other places. The Obama administration, both during the campaign and in its first months in office, has publicly embraced the strategy as a form of counterterrorism. This paper argues, however, that unless the Obama administration takes careful and assertive legal steps to protect it, targeted killing using remote platforms such as drone aircraft will take on greater strategic salience precisely as the Obama administration allows the legal space for …

Not Just Collective Bargaining: The Role Of Trade Unions In Creating And Maintaining A Democratic Society, Barbara J. Fick

Journal Articles

This essay addresses the historical and contemporary roles which trade unions have played in creating conditions necessary for democracy to flourish. Their effectiveness in fulfilling these roles is due in large measure to the organizational characteristics which make trade unions the archetypal civil society organization: democratic representation, demographic representation, financial independence, breadth of concerns and placement within society. This essay explores these aspects of the trade union movement and suggests that advocates for democracy have cause for concern in the absence of a vibrant, and independent, domestic trade union movement.

Underwriting In The Non-Group Health Insurance Market: The Fundamentals, Kathryn Linehan

National Health Policy Forum

Non-group health insurance is coverage that individuals purchase on their own rather than as part of a group. Most states currently permit non-group insurers to underwrite, a process whereby an insurer assesses the health and other characteristics of individuals to determine their likely utilization of health services or risk; insurers then use this assessment to determine whether they will offer coverage and the premium they will charge. Policymakers have identified underwriting and related practices in non-group markets as a target for reform to enable broader access for the currently uninsured. This publication reviews the characteristics of non-group markets and insurers' …

Slides: Economic Incentives For Demand Reduction, Christopher Goemans

Western Water Law, Policy and Management: Ripples, Currents, and New Channels for Inquiry (Martz Summer Conference, June 3-5)

Presenter: Christopher Goemans, Department of Agriculture & Resource Economics, Colorado State University

17 slides

Slides: Indian Water Rights, Robert T. Anderson

Western Water Law, Policy and Management: Ripples, Currents, and New Channels for Inquiry (Martz Summer Conference, June 3-5)

Presenter: Robert T. Anderson, Native American Law Center, University of Washington Law School

19 slides

Slides: Challenges For Reclamation: A Western States' Perspective, Craig Bell

Western Water Law, Policy and Management: Ripples, Currents, and New Channels for Inquiry (Martz Summer Conference, June 3-5)

Presenter: Craig Bell, Western Water States Council, Midvale, Utah

9 slides

Slides: Opportunities: Softer Paths?, Sarah Bates

Western Water Law, Policy and Management: Ripples, Currents, and New Channels for Inquiry (Martz Summer Conference, June 3-5)

Presenter: Sarah Bates, Public Policy Research Institute, University of Montana

2 slides

Slides: Status Of Southern Nevada Water Authority (Snwa): Third Intake Into Lake Mead And Groundwater Project, Kay Brothers

Western Water Law, Policy and Management: Ripples, Currents, and New Channels for Inquiry (Martz Summer Conference, June 3-5)

Presenter: Kay Brothers, Southern Nevada Water Authority (SNWA), Las Vegas, NV

37 slides

Slides: Northern Integrated Supply Project, Northern Front Range--Colorado, Don Carlson

Western Water Law, Policy and Management: Ripples, Currents, and New Channels for Inquiry (Martz Summer Conference, June 3-5)

Presenter: Don Carlson, Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District

20 slides