Law Commons^™

December 30, 2013: The Moral Universe, Bruce Ledewitz

Hallowed Secularism

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

An Opinion For The Ages, Bruce Ledewitz

Ledewitz Papers

Published scholarship collected from academic journals, law reviews, newspaper publications & online periodicals

December 25, 2013: The Future Of The Secular Outlook, Bruce Ledewitz

Hallowed Secularism

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

Medtronic V. Boston Scientific: Allocating The Burden Of Proof In Declaratory Judgment Actions For Patent Non-Infringement, Brianna Strange

Duke Journal of Constitutional Law & Public Policy Sidebar

This commentary previews an upcoming Supreme Court case, Medtronic, Inc. v. Boston Scientific Corporation, in which the Court will decide which party bears the burden of proof in a declaratory judgment action for patent non-infringement.

December 21, 2013: Donald Rumsfeld And The Banality Of Evil, Bruce Ledewitz

Hallowed Secularism

Blog post, “Donald Rumsfeld and the Banality of Evil“ discusses politics, theology and the law in relation to religion and public life in the democratic United States of America.

December 15, 2013: Self Actualization Is Sin, Bruce Ledewitz

Hallowed Secularism

Blog post, “Self Actualization Is Sin“ discusses politics, theology and the law in relation to religion and public life in the democratic United States of America.

The Incompatible Treatment Of Majorities In Election Law And Deliberative Democracy, James A. Gardner

Journal Articles

Deliberative democracy offers a distinctive and appealing conception of political life, but is it one that might be called into service to guide actual reform of existing election law? This possibility seems remote because election law and deliberative democracy are built around different priorities and theoretical premises. A foundational area of disagreement lies in the treatment of majorities. Election law is structured, at both the legislative and constitutional levels, so as to privilege majorities and systematically to magnify their power, whereas deliberative democracy aims at privileging minorities (or at least de-privileging majorities). The main purpose of the election law now …

At Home In The Outer Limits: Daimlerchrysler V. Bauman And The Bounds Of General Personal Jurisdiction, Todd W. Noelle

Duke Journal of Constitutional Law & Public Policy Sidebar

This commentary previews an upcoming Supreme Court case, DaimlerChrysler v. Bauman, in which the Court may decide whether maintaining a wholly-owned subsidiary in a forum state can render a foreign parent corporation "essentially at home" in that state, thereby permitting the forum state to exercise general personal jurisdiction over the parent corporation.

December 8, 2013: President Obama In The Sweet Spo, Bruce Ledewitz

Hallowed Secularism

Blog post, “President Obama in the Sweet Spo“ discusses politics, theology and the law in relation to religion and public life in the democratic United States of America.

Censorship 101, Sonja R. West

Popular Media

This article looks at censorship in the public school setting.

December 4, 2013: God Again, Or, Am I An Atheist?, Bruce Ledewitz

Hallowed Secularism

Blog post, “God Again, Or, Am I an Atheist?“ discusses politics, theology and the law in relation to religion and public life in the democratic United States of America.

Atlantic Marine V. J-Crew: The Future Of Forum-Selection Clauses In Federal Courts, Sarah Sheridan

Duke Journal of Constitutional Law & Public Policy Sidebar

This commentary previews an upcoming Supreme Court case, Atlantic Marine v. J-Crew, in which the Court may clarify a circuit split regarding the enforceability of forum-selection clauses by deciding which procedure should govern the enforcement of these clauses and which party carries the burden of proof in these disputes.

Government Nonedorsement, Nelson Tebbe

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Factual Precedents, Allison Orr Larsen

Faculty Publications

Lawyers and judges speak to each other in a language of precedents—decisions from cases that have come before. The most persuasive precedent to cite, of course, is an on-point decision of the U.S. Supreme Court. But Supreme Court opinions are changing. They contain more factual claims about the world than ever before, and those claims are now rich with empirical data. This Supreme Court factfinding is also highly accessible; fast digital research leads directly to factual language in old cases that is perfect for arguments in new ones. An unacknowledged consequence of all this is the rise of what I …

Government Nonendorsement, Nelson Tebbe

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

What are the constitutional limits on government endorsement? Judges and scholars typically assume that when the government speaks on its own account, it faces few restrictions. In fact, they often say that the only real restriction on government speech is the Establishment Clause. On this view, officials cannot endorse, say, Christianity, but otherwise they enjoy wide latitude to promote democracy or denigrate smoking. Two doctrines and their accompanying literatures have fed this impression. First, the Court’s recent free speech cases have suggested that government speech is virtually unfettered. Second, experts on religious freedom have long assumed that there is no …

The Illusory Eighth Amendment, John F. Stinneford

UF Law Faculty Publications

Although there is no obvious doctrinal connection between the Supreme Court’s Miranda jurisprudence and its Eighth Amendment excessive punishments jurisprudence, the two are deeply connected at the level of methodology. In both areas, the Supreme Court has been criticized for creating “prophylactic” rules that invalidate government actions because they create a mere risk of constitutional violation. In reality, however, both sets of rules deny constitutional protection to a far greater number of individuals with plausible claims of unconstitutional treatment than they protect.

This dysfunctional combination of over- and underprotection arises from the Supreme Court’s use of implementation rules as a …

The Singapore Constitution: A Brief Introduction, Smu Apolitical

Student Publications

This primer seeks to provide an easy guide to those interested in finding out more about the Singapore Constitution. The Constitution provides for the structure of the government and the roles of the judiciary and the parliament. It also secures our fundamental liberties. Hence, some basic knowledge of the Constitution is useful for every citizen.

The primer starts by providing an introduction to the Singapore Constitution and explains the meaning of the concept of separation of powers among the executive, legislature and the judiciary. It also touches on the functions of the three entities, such as how laws are made …

The Resilience Of Property, Lynda L. Butler

Faculty Publications

Resilience is essential to the ability of property to face transforming social and environmental change. For centuries, property has responded to such change through a dialectical process that identifies emerging disciplinary perspectives and debates conflicting values and norms. This dialectic promotes the resilience of property, allowing it to adapt to changing conditions and needs. Today the mainstream economic theory dominating common law property is progressively being intertwined with constitutionally protected property, undermining its long-term resilience. The coupling of the economic vision of ordinary property with constitutional property embeds the assumptions, choices, and values of the economic theory into both realms …

Constitutionally Tailoring Punishment, Richard A. Bierschbach, Stephanos Bibas

All Faculty Scholarship

Since the turn of the century, the Supreme Court has begun to regulate non-capital sentencing under the Sixth Amendment in the Apprendi line of cases (requiring jury findings of fact to justify sentence enhancements) as well as under the Eighth Amendment in the Miller and Graham line of cases (forbidding mandatory life imprisonment for juvenile defendants). Though both lines of authority sound in individual rights, in fact they are fundamentally about the structures of criminal justice. These two seemingly disparate lines of doctrine respond to structural imbalances in non-capital sentencing by promoting morally appropriate punishment judgments that are based on …

November 28, 2013: The Theology Of The Disappearance Of Thanksgiving, Bruce Ledewitz

Hallowed Secularism

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

Dispatches From The Trenches Of America's Great Gun Trust Wars, Lee-Ford Tritt

NULR Online

No abstract provided.

Stretching Religious Liberty, Bruce Ledewitz

Ledewitz Papers

Published scholarship collected from academic journals, law reviews, newspaper publications & online periodicals

Using Social Media In Rulemaking: Possibilities And Barriers, Michael E. Herz

Online Publications

“Web 2.0” is characterized by interaction, collaboration, non-static web sites, use of social media, and creation of user-generated content. In theory, these Web 2.0 tools can be harnessed not only in the private sphere but as tools for an e-topia of citizen engagement and participatory democracy. Notice-and-comment rulemaking is the pre-digital government process that most approached (while still falling far short of) the e-topian vision of public participation in deliberative governance. The notice-and-comment process for federal agency rulemaking has now changed from a paper process to an electronic one. Expectations for this switch were high; many anticipated a revolution that …

November 20, 2013: God Is Not A Supernatural Thing, Bruce Ledewitz

Hallowed Secularism

Blog post, “God is not a Supernatural Thing“ discusses politics, theology and the law in relation to religion and public life in the democratic United States of America.

November 16, 2013: The Mythical Elements Of The Bible, Bruce Ledewitz

Hallowed Secularism

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

November 13, 2013: Huffington Post Blog Entry On Legislative Prayer, Bruce Ledewitz

Hallowed Secularism

Blog post, “Huffington Post Blog Entry on Legislative Prayer“ discusses politics, theology and the law in relation to religion and public life in the democratic United States of America.

Why Scalia Should Have Voted To Overturn Doma, Andrew Koppelman

NULR Online

No abstract provided.

November 8, 2013: Legislative Prayer, Bruce Ledewitz

Hallowed Secularism

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

November 3, 2013: Ronald Dworkin's Confusion, Bruce Ledewitz

Hallowed Secularism

Blog post, “Ronald Dworkin's Confusion“ discusses politics, theology and the law in relation to religion and public life in the democratic United States of America.

A Visual Guide To United States V. Windsor: Doctrinal Origins Of Justice Kennedy's Majority Opinion, Colin Starger

NULR Online

No abstract provided.