Law Commons^™

Mississippi River Stories: Lessons From A Century Of Unnatural Disasters, Christine A. Klein, Sandra B. Zellmer

Christine A. Klein

In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, the nation pondered how a relatively weak Category 3 storm could have destroyed an entire region. Few appreciated the extent to which a flawed federal water development policy transformed this apparently natural disaster into a "manmade" disaster; fewer still appreciated how the disaster was the predictable, and indeed predicted, sequel to almost a century of similar disasters. This Article focuses upon three such stories: the Great Flood of 1927, the Midwest Flood of 1993, and Hurricanes Katrina and Rita of 2005. Taken together, the stories reveal important lessons, including the inadequacy of engineered flood …

Managing The ‘Republic Of Ngos’: Accountability And Legitimation Problems Facing The U.N. Cluster System, J.Benton Heath

J.Benton Heath

This Article identifies and critically assesses the crucial but troubled system for the coordination of international humanitarian assistance (the U.N. “Cluster Approach”). Regardless of whether the Cluster Approach actually helps in disaster response, it exercises substantial power over affected populations by assigning competences and leadership roles. The built-in mechanisms for controlling this power are unworkable, as they ultimately fail to resolve the tension between humanitarian organizations’ autonomy and the need for coordination. This Article identifies the emergence of an alternative model of accountability, based on mutual monitoring and “peer review.” Drawing on theories of network governance and experimentalism, this Article …

The Uncertain Trumpet: Disaster Communications And The Law, Russell V. Randle, Jeffery Reinhardt

Seattle University Law Review Online

Planning for the next disaster is not just a task for first responders. A catastrophic disaster can affect a wide range of industries, such as banking, telecommunications, education, and zoning; and lawyers play a critical role in reducing loss and minimizing liability. By drawing from lessons learned during previous disasters, including terrorist attacks, natural disasters, and environmental catastrophes, Randle and Reinhardt explain the steps lawyers should take to help organizations anticipate problems and create plans to minimize damages.

This Article illustrates how lawyers can help organizations remain in control by maintaining critical communications through multiple system modalities; using those systems …

Participation And Disintermediation In A Risk Society, Robert J. Rhee

Robert Rhee

The chapter argues that financing extreme catastrophic loss will become more problematic as catastrophes become more frequent and severe. An effective strategy must increase the level of participation in the spreading of risk and loss. Currently, risk spreading is done largely through insurers and government as they are the default aggregators of private and public capital. An enlargement of participation may mean the disintermediation of the traditional insurance and public compensation functions, thus allowing more direct and efficient participation between those are exposed to risk and those who are willing to bear it. This chapter also argues that tax policy …

Returning To New Orleans: Reflections On The Post-Katrina Recovery, Disaster Relief, And The Struggle For Social Justice, Susan L. Waysdorf

University of the District of Columbia Law Review

No abstract provided.

Participation And Disintermediation In A Risk Society, Robert J. Rhee

Faculty Scholarship

The chapter argues that financing extreme catastrophic loss will become more problematic as catastrophes become more frequent and severe. An effective strategy must increase the level of participation in the spreading of risk and loss. Currently, risk spreading is done largely through insurers and government as they are the default aggregators of private and public capital. An enlargement of participation may mean the disintermediation of the traditional insurance and public compensation functions, thus allowing more direct and efficient participation between those are exposed to risk and those who are willing to bear it. This chapter also argues that tax policy …

Restoring Responsibility And Accountability In Disaster Relief, John K. Warren

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

No abstract provided.

Responsible Response: Do The Emergency And Major Disaster Exceptions To Federal Environmental Laws Make Sense From A Restoration And Mitigation Perspective?, Julia C. Webb

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

No abstract provided.

Mississippi River Stories: Lessons From A Century Of Unnatural Disasters, Christine A. Klein, Sandra B. Zellmer

UF Law Faculty Publications

In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, the nation pondered how a relatively weak Category 3 storm could have destroyed an entire region. Few appreciated the extent to which a flawed federal water development policy transformed this apparently natural disaster into a "manmade" disaster; fewer still appreciated how the disaster was the predictable, and indeed predicted, sequel to almost a century of similar disasters. This Article focuses upon three such stories: the Great Flood of 1927, the Midwest Flood of 1993, and Hurricanes Katrina and Rita of 2005. Taken together, the stories reveal important lessons, including the inadequacy of engineered flood …

Beatrice B. Mcwaters Et. Al. V. Federal Emergency Management Agency, Et. Al., John C. Brittain

Court Briefs

No abstract provided.

Trends. Message To Another People: Historic Moment, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

The article discusses gratitude expressed for aid during the aftermath of an earthquake in Turkey.

Newsletter - 1971-04-15, E. De La Garza

Kika de la Garza Congressional Papers - Newsletters

No abstract provided.