Law Commons^™

A Divided Nation: Political Polarization And Dispute Resolution, Lindsey Phipps

Pepperdine Dispute Resolution Law Journal

This article will discuss the causes and consequences of party polarization and propose that the legislative body work more collaboratively and cooperatively through direct implementation of alternative dispute resolution techniques such as negotiation and mediation in the legislative process. Part I will define political polarization, what it looks like today, its causes and its consequences. Part II will propose and explain the use of dispute resolution techniques and tactics, such as, negotiation, mediation and alternative dispute resolution to mitigate the effects of political polarization. Part III will conclude that dispute resolution techniques and tactics will mitigate the inadequacies created by …

Religious Accomodation, Religious Tradition, And Political Polarization, Marc O. Degirolami

Faculty Publications

A religious accommodation is an exemption from compliance with the law for some but not for others. One might therefore suppose that before granting an accommodation, courts would inquire about whether a legal interference with religious belief or practice is truly significant, if only to evaluate whether the risk of political polarization that attends accommodation is worth hazarding. But that is not the case: any assessment of the significance of a religious belief or practice within a claimant’s belief system is strictly forbidden.

Two arguments are pressed in support of this view: (1) courts have institutional reasons for acquiescing on …

Religion And Polarization: Various Relations And How To Contribute Positively Rather Than Negatively, Kent Greenawalt

Faculty Scholarship

The theme of this Essay is that in our present culture, we need badly to understand and accept those who see things differently from ourselves, and to afford people some latitude not to directly violate their deepest convictions. For example, those with religious convictions that marriage should be between men and women need to see why those with gay sexual inclinations feel strongly they are entitled to equal treatment and the latter need not reject as deeply prejudicial all those whose religious convictions lead them to subscribe to the more limited, unwise, historical view about marriage. This understanding on both …