Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Law Commons

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Articles 1 - 5 of 5

Full-Text Articles in Law

The Legal Profession’S Critical Role In Systems-Level Bioenergy Decision-Making, Jody M. Endres Nov 2012

The Legal Profession’S Critical Role In Systems-Level Bioenergy Decision-Making, Jody M. Endres

Jody M. Endres

Mounting resource scarcity confronts policymakers to make decisions based on predictions of complex system behavior under conditions of great uncertainty. Nowhere is this more evident than in bioenergy policy, which relies heavily on modeling to determine biofuels’ effects on complex climate, food and natural systems. This article provides a primer on models’ inner workings to facilitate engagement by the legal field so critical in building and applying models, and remedying them when they fail. Any conceptual model cannot predict future reality with accuracy absent accounting for regulatory and litigatory scenarios that only the legal discipline can assess fully. Administrative law …


Caremark's Irrelevance, Mercer E. Bullard Aug 2012

Caremark's Irrelevance, Mercer E. Bullard

Mercer E Bullard

In re Caremark Int’l Inc. Derivative Litig. is commonly held out as the iconic corporate law case on liability for a failure of legal compliance, but the true source of corporate law as to legal compliance is the higher standard established by other sources of law. The expected cost of liability, both criminal and civil, for violations of federal healthcare regulations, for example, is a far stronger determinant of corporate compliance systems than potential liability under Caremark. Other areas of industry-specific regulation, such as for financial services, telecommunications and energy, similarly play a greater role than state corporate law in …


Automatic Continuing Resolutions: A Cure Worse Than The Ailment, Philip J. Candreva Jul 2012

Automatic Continuing Resolutions: A Cure Worse Than The Ailment, Philip J. Candreva

Philip J. Candreva

Nearly every year Congress fails to pass all of the appropriations acts before the start of the federal fiscal year. This necessitates the passage of a temporary spending measure – a continuing resolution – or there will be at least a partial government shutdown. Both contingencies are costly and disruptive to the efficient and effective operation of government. Over the last 30 years, there have been several legislative proposals to enact an automatic continuing resolution mechanism that would mitigate the costs to public management. Such proposals, however, are costly for political and legal reasons. This article examines the arguments for …


Genealogies Of Risk: Searching For Safety, 1930s-1970s, William Boyd Mar 2012

Genealogies Of Risk: Searching For Safety, 1930s-1970s, William Boyd

William Boyd

Health, safety, and environmental regulation in the United States is saturated with risk thinking. It was not always so, and it may not be so in the future. But today, the formal, quantitative approach to risk provides much of the basis for regulation in these fields, a development that seems quite natural, even necessary. This particular approach, while it drew on conceptual and technical developments that had been underway for decades, achieved prominence during a specific, and relatively short timeframe; roughly, between the mid 1970s and the early 1980s—a time of hard looks and regulatory reform. Prior to this time, …


Equitable Power In The Time Of Budget Austerity: The Problem Of Judicial Remedies For Unconstitutional Delays In Claims Processing By Federal Agencies, James Ridgway Jan 2012

Equitable Power In The Time Of Budget Austerity: The Problem Of Judicial Remedies For Unconstitutional Delays In Claims Processing By Federal Agencies, James Ridgway

James D. Ridgway

This article begins the important work of synthesizing two areas of law that have been on a collision course recently: federal administrative law and structural reform remedies. The urgency of this problem is highlighted by two recent cases by the Supreme Court and the Ninth Circuit. They demonstrate both that the courts are unwilling to continue ignoring the widespread crises in federal agencies that manage benefit programs, and that the current model of equitable remedies for failing institutions is not up to the task of providing effective solutions. This article addresses the core case law and theory in both areas, …