Law Commons^™

Favoring The Press, Sonja R. West

Scholarly Works

In the 2010 case of Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, the United States Supreme Court caught the nation’s attention by declaring that corporations have a First Amendment right to independently spend unlimited amounts of money in political campaigns. The Court rested its 5-4 decision in large part on a concept of speaker-based discrimination. In the Court’s words, “the Government may commit a constitutional wrong when by law it identifies certain preferred speakers.”

To drive home its point that speaker-based distinctions are inherently problematic, the Court focused on one type of speaker distinction — the treatment of news media corporations. …

How Dreamland Colored My Summer Vacation And Thinking About The Opioid Epidemic, Elizabeth Leonard

Scholarly Works

Book Review of Dreamland: The True Tale of America’s Opiate Epidemic by Sam Quinones,(2018).

Distributed Ledgers, Traceable Shares, And The Division Of Power In Corporate Law, Christopher M. Bruner

Scholarly Works

Review of Traceable Shares and Corporate Law, 113 Nw. U. L. Rev. __ by George S. Geis (forthcoming 2018)

Center-Left Politics And Corporate Governance: What Is The 'Progressive' Agenda?, Christopher Bruner

Scholarly Works

For as long as corporations have existed, debates have persisted among scholars, judges, and policymakers regarding how best to describe their form and function as a positive matter, and how best to organize relations among their various stakeholders as a normative matter. This is hardly surprising given the economic and political stakes involved with control over vast and growing "corporate" resources, and it has become commonplace to speak of various approaches to corporate law in decidedly political terms. In particular, on the fundamental normative issue of the aims to which corporate decision-making ought to be directed, shareholder-centric conceptions of the …

Medicalization Of Rural Poverty: Challenges For Access, Elizabeth Weeks

Scholarly Works

This article was prepared for a live conference, on “The Medicalization of Poverty,” held at the University of Illinois College of Law, and a symposium to be published in the Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics. My piece focuses on a constellation of challenges for health care delivery and access to care in rural areas. Discussions regarding health and poverty often seem to focus on the admittedly persistent and multilayered problems of the urban poor: unemployment, substandard and unaffordable housing, violent crime, nutrition and “food desserts,” recreation and safe outdoor spaces, and under-resourced public schools, to name a few. While …

Models Of Law, Christian Turner

Scholarly Works

The more we examine what is behind our most difficult legal questions, the more puzzling it can seem that we continue both to disagree strongly and, yet, to cooperate. If law is a reasoned enterprise, how is it that we are neither torn apart nor homogenized by our long social practice of it? I resolve this puzzle, and arrive at a richer understanding of law, using the idea of modeling familiar from the natural sciences and mathematics. I show (a) that theorists can model legal systems as abstract systems of institutions, information flows, and institutional processing or reasoning and (b) …

Athens Access To Justice Initiative: Judicial Leadership + Bar Support + Local Resources = Powerful Synergy, Eleanor Lanier

Scholarly Works

No abstract provided.

The Scale Of Misdemeanor Justice, Megan T. Stevenson, Sandra G. Mayson

Scholarly Works

This Article seeks to provide the most comprehensive national-level empirical analysis of misdemeanor criminal justice that is currently feasible given the state of data collection in the United States. First, we estimate that there are 13.2 million misdemeanor cases filed in the United States each year. Second, contrary to conventional wisdom, this number is not rising. Both the number of misdemeanor arrests and cases filed have declined markedly in recent years. In fact, national arrest rates for almost every misdemeanor offense category have been declining for at least two decades, and the misdemeanor arrest rate was lower in 2014 than …

A Union's Duty In Bankruptcy Cases To Fairly Represent Its Constituency, Denise Dessel

Bankruptcy Research Library

(Excerpt)

Under the National Labor Relations Act (“NLRA”), a union, as the sole representative of its workers, has a duty to fairly represent them. This duty entitles a union to fairly represent all employees, “whether members of the union or not, fairly.” A union breaches this duty when its conduct or decisions are arbitrary, discriminatory, or committed in bad faith.

The terms “arbitrary,” “discriminatory,” and “bad faith” have been interpreted through case law. Part I of this memorandum discusses the interpretation of arbitrary conduct; Part II addresses how courts have defined discriminatory conduct; and Part III analyzes how bad faith …

9 Strategies For Improving The Legal Internship Experience At Your Office, Nicole P. Dyszlewski, Laura Pickering

Law Library Staff Publications

No abstract provided.

European Commission Proposes Expanding The European Defence Fund—A Major Potential Barrier To Transatlantic Defense Procurement, Christopher R. Yukins

GW Law Faculty Publications & Other Works

The European Commission (EC) has proposed expanding the European Defence Fund, an initiative to fund defense technology developed in Europe. As a general matter, only European firms would have access to the fund for development, and participating European nations would need to commit themselves to purchasing the defense materiel developed under the fund. In effect, this could lock U.S. firms out of billions of euros worth of European defense procurement over the coming years—despite long-standing reciprocal agreements under which the U.S. and its European allies agreed to open their defense markets. The fund was announced quietly last year and now, …

Revisiting Revocation Upon Divorce?, Naomi R. Cahn

GW Law Faculty Publications & Other Works

In an increasing number of states, divorce presumptively renders an ex-spouse ineligible to benefit from the testator’s will. Divorce may also impact other revocable dispositions in favor of the ex-spouse and exclude the ex-spouse’s family members from benefitting in any way from the decedent’s death. Revocation upon divorce statutes have become more common as divorce itself has become more common, and courts have been quite rigorous in interpreting the statutes, creating an almost irrevocable presumption of revocation. By contrast, other countries vary in their approaches to the effect of a divorce on testamentary and nonprobate transfers to an ex-spouse and …

From Town Square To Twittersphere: The Public Forum Doctrine Goes Digital, Dawn C. Nunziato

GW Law Faculty Publications & Other Works

Government officials like President Donald J. Trump and Maryland Governor Larry Hogan are increasingly using popular social media sites like Twitter and Facebook to connect and interact with their constituents and to solicit public comment on matters of public importance – whether on officially-designated government platforms (like https://www.facebook.com/GovLarryHogan/) or on unofficial platforms used for the same purposes. In recent years, government officials have increasingly turned to social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook in place of (and in addition to) actual town halls and other real-space forums to solicit public participation in policy formulation and to engage with their constituents. …

Law & Entrepreneurship In Global Clinical Education, Susan Jones, Janet Thompson Jackson

GW Law Faculty Publications & Other Works

As clinical legal education (CLE) continues to evolve and prepare practice-ready lawyers, and governments worldwide focus on the multilayered impact of technology, automation and artificial intelligence, there is a pressing need to examine law and entrepreneurship through the lens of global clinical legal education. The range of issues include: corporate social responsibility, disruptive technologies, microbusiness, social entrepreneurship, social impact investing, the creative economy, sustainable local economies, cooperatives and shared work, and inclusive entrepreneurship.

Indeed, new legal entities like benefit corporations and low profit limited liability companies (L3Cs) have emerged to address contemporary legal needs and in the United States. the …

Sexism In The 'Bathroom Debates': How Bathrooms Really Became Separated By Sex, W. Burlette Carter

GW Law Faculty Publications & Other Works

This article challenges two widely-embraced theories about how public intimate spaces (e.g., toilets, locker rooms, showers, etc. hereinafter called "bathrooms") first became separated by sex. The first challenged theory claims that the very first instance of sex-separation in public bathrooms occurred in 1739 at a ball held in a restaurant in Paris. Under this first view, sex-separation first emerged as a sign of upper-class gentility and elitism. The second challenged theory argues that a consistent practice of differentiating bathrooms by sex did not emerge until the late nineteenth century. According to this view, bathroom sex-separation was imposed when authorities overreacted …

Alternative Spring Break 2018 Report, Roger Williams University School Of Law

School of Law Conferences, Lectures & Events

No abstract provided.

Immigration Enforcement And The Future Of Discretion, Shoba S. Wadhia

Roger Williams University Law Review

No abstract provided.

United States Supreme Court Surveys: 2016 Term. Still Standing After All These Years: Five Decades Of Litigation Under The Fair Housing Act And The Supreme Court Still Can't Say For Sure Who Is Protected, David A. Logan

Roger Williams University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Accreditation Under Fire: How Striking A Balance Between Accreditor Accountability And Autonomy Can Strengthen Educational Quality, Tyler J. Bishoff

Roger Williams University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Half Truths, Empty Promises, And Hot Coffee: The Economics Of Tort Reform, Eliot T. Tracz

Seton Hall Journal of Legislation and Public Policy

No abstract provided.

Dormant No Longer: New Jersey's Truth In Consumer Contract, Warranty And Notice Act Violates The Dormant Commerce Clause, Catherine B. Derenze

Seton Hall Journal of Legislation and Public Policy

No abstract provided.

The Joint Comprehensive Plan Of Action And Its Looming Shadow On American-Iranian Relations, Omid Irani

Seton Hall Journal of Legislation and Public Policy

No abstract provided.

Board Of Editors - Vol. 42, No. 2 2018

Seton Hall Journal of Legislation and Public Policy

No abstract provided.

Robots, New Technology, And Industry 4.0 In Changing Workplaces. Impacts On Labor And Employment Laws, Ronald C. Brown

American University Business Law Review

No abstract provided.

Front Matter

SMU Science and Technology Law Review

No abstract provided.

Re-Evaluating The Demise Of The Average, Ordinary, Reasonable Person: Unintended Consequences In The Law Of Nuisance, George P. Smith Ii, William P. Lane

Scholarly Articles

This Article advocates for a wider pleading use of the tort of nuisance—this, because of the unresolved complexities in the doctrine of causation which continue to plague an effective use of negligence. The confusing awkwardness or, perhaps, the actual demise, of the notion of an average, ordinary, reasonable person so essential to improving negligent wrongdoing has caused aggravation over the years and, indeed, given rise to a state of torbidity.

The judiciary can more easily resolve this evidentiary quagmire by shifting its judicial attention and analysis to the tort of nuisance. With alarming social indicators and statistical projections, confirming the …

Gundy V. United States: Reflections On The Court And The State Of The Nondelegation Doctrine, Jennifer L. Mascott

Scholarly Articles

This short "reflections" essay is an invited piece that addresses the Supreme Court's consideration of the "nondelegation doctrine" this coming Term in Gundy v. United States. The Court has not found any statutory provision to be unconstitutional on nondelegation grounds since 1935. Will that change this Term when the Court evaluates the Attorney General's authority to retroactively apply federal sex offender registration requirements to individuals convicted prior to enactment of those statutory rules? Will the new makeup of the Court after Justice Kennedy's retirement impact the likely outcome of this nondelegation challenge?

Effects Of Licensors’ Duty To Maintain Control Over A Trademark On Licensees’ Ability To Assert Rights Provided Under Section 365 Of The Bankruptcy Code, Arianna Clark

Bankruptcy Research Library

(Excerpt)

Under title 11 of the United States Code (the “Bankruptcy Code”), a debtor may reject or assume an executory contract, including a license for intellectual property. The definition of intellectual property does not include the term “trademark.” Consequently, it is not clear whether a non-debtor licensee can continue using a trademark if the debtor-licensor rejects it. Moreover, there appears to be a consensus forming among courts in that a debtor-licensee cannot assign a license to a third-party without the consent of the licensor. Regardless of which party initiates bankruptcy proceedings, there is a special consideration contemplated by courts– the …

Bankruptcy Schedules Will Not Be Treated As Judicial Admissions In Court, Charles Akinboyewa Jr.

Bankruptcy Research Library

(Exceprt)

When an individual debtor files for bankruptcy, it must file bankruptcy schedules listing, among other things, the creditors that hold claims against the individual. The information contained on the schedules may have ramifications on the debtor and its creditors. Specifically, often debtors unknowingly fail to list certain claims, which may affect the debtor’s right to discharge a creditor’s right to a recovery. Part I of this memo discusses bankruptcy schedules and claim dischargeability. Part II illustrates the distinction between judicial and evidentiary admissions. Part III explores cases that have held bankruptcy schedules to be admissions and others that have …

Bankruptcy Tourism: How A Comi Change Can Serve As Ammunition In Debt Wars, Taylor Anderson

Bankruptcy Research Library

(Excerpt)

In general, Chapter 15 of title 11 of the United States Code (the “Bankruptcy Code”) provides a mechanism to recognize a “foreign proceeding.” Upon recognition of a foreign proceeding, the foreign representative will be allowed to sue and be sued in the United States. However, Chapter 15 distinguishes between “foreign main proceedings” and “foreign nonmain proceedings.” Upon recognition of a “foreign main proceeding” section 1520 of the Bankruptcy Code provides for certain automatic relief, including an automatic stay of proceedings against the debtor in the United States. There is no automatic relief conferred upon recognition of a foreign nonmain …