Law Commons^™

Rbg And Gender Discrimination, Eileen Kaufman

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No abstract provided.

Seeking Economic Justice In The Face Of Enduring Racism, Deseriee A. Kennedy

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No abstract provided.

Challenging Gender Discrimination In Closely Held Firms: The Hope And Hazards Of Corporate Oppression Doctrine, Meredith R. Miller

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The #MeToo Movement has ushered sexual harassment out of the shadows and thrown a spotlight on the gender pay gap in the workplace. Harassment and unfair treatment have, however, been difficult to extinguish. This has been true for all workers, including partners – those women who are owners in their firms and claim that they have suffered harassment or unfair treatment based on gender. That is because a partner’s lawsuit for discrimination often will suffer an insurmountable hurdle: plaintiff’s status as a partner in the firm means that they may not be considered an “employee” under the relevant employment discrimination …

Bias In, Bias Out, Sandra G. Mayson

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Police, prosecutors, judges, and other criminal justice actors increasingly use algorithmic risk assessment to estimate the likelihood that a person will commit future crime. As many scholars have noted, these algorithms tend to have disparate racial impact. In response, critics advocate three strategies of resistance: (1) the exclusion of input factors that correlate closely with race, (2) adjustments to algorithmic design to equalize predictions across racial lines, and (3) rejection of algorithmic methods altogether.

This Article’s central claim is that these strategies are at best superficial and at worst counterproductive, because the source of racial inequality in risk assessment lies …

A Homestead Act For The 21st Century, Mehrsa Baradaran

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The goal of the 21st century Homestead Act is to counteract the longstanding legacy of racially discriminatory housing policies by revitalizing distressed communities through public investment. The basic structure of the program is a wholesale transfer of land to residents who meet certain criteria. Accompanied by a holistic plan at the city level to revitalize the community through public investments in infrastructure and jobs, this proposal would benefit people who live in select small and medium-sized cities that are experiencing high vacancies.

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

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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 …

Telling Stories In The Supreme Court: Voices Briefs And The Role Of Democracy In Constitutional Deliberation, Linda H. Edwards

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On January 4, 2016, over 112 women lawyers, law professors, and former judges told the world that they had had an abortion. In a daring amicus brief that captured national media attention, the women “came out” to their clients; to the lawyers with or against whom they practice; to the judges before whom they appear; and to the Justices of the Supreme Court.

The past three years have seen an explosion of such “voices briefs,” 16 in Obergefell and 17 in Whole Woman’s Health. The briefs can be powerful, but their use is controversial. They tell the stories of non-parties—strangers …

Decriminalizing Childhood, Andrea L. Dennis

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Even though the number of juveniles arrested, tried and detained has recently declined, there are still a large number of delinquency cases, children under supervision by state officials, and children living in state facilities for youth and adults. Additionally, any positive developments in juvenile justice have not been evenly experienced by all youth. Juveniles living in urban areas are more likely to have their cases formally processed in the juvenile justice system rather than informally resolved. Further, the reach of the justice system has a particularly disparate effect on minority youth who tend to live in heavily-policed urban areas.

The …

Inattentional Blindness: Psychological Barriers Between Legal Mandates And Progress Toward Workplace Gender Equality, Rachel J. Anderson

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This Article uses a law and psychology approach to identify ways to strengthen the administration of justice in the corporate workplace. Essentially, a better understanding of human behavior provides insights that are useful in crafting effective laws and improving the implementation of existing laws. The analysis of perception gaps due to inattentional blindness uncovers an under-theorized factor contributing to an enduring problem. Part I sets out the workforce crisis at the individual, company, national, and international levels and the role of gender inequality in this crisis and the pace of change. Part II discusses perception gaps among demographic groups as …

Speaker Discrimination: The Next Frontier Of Free Speech, Michael Kagan

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Citizens United v. FEC articulated a new pillar of free speech doctrine that is independent from the well-known controversies about corporate personhood and the role of money in elections. For the first time, the Supreme Court clearly said that discrimination on the basis of the identity of the speaker offends the First Amendment. Previously, the focus of free speech doctrine had been on the content and forum of speech, not on the identity of the speaker. This new doctrine has the potential to reshape free speech law far beyond the corporate speech and campaign finance contexts. This article explores the …

Contesting A Contestation Of Testing: A Reply To Richard Delgado, Dan Subotnik

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This article was written as part of an ongoing dialog about the author’s previous article, Does Testing = Race Discrimination?: Ricci, The Bar Exam, the LSAT, and the Challenge to Learning, which defended the Supreme Court’s decision in Ricci v. DeStefano, as well as defending testing more generally against charges of irrelevance, racial obtuseness, and most seriously, race discrimination.

This article specifically responds to Richard Delgado’s article, Standardized Testing as Discrimination: A Reply to Dan Subotnik.

Race Indeed Above All: A Reply To Professors Andrea Curcio, Carol Chomsky, And Eileen Kaufman, Dan Subotnik

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This article was written as part of an ongoing dialog about the author’s previous article, Does Testing = Race Discrimination?: Ricci, The Bar Exam, the LSAT, and the Challenge to Learning, which defended the Supreme Court’s decision in Ricci v. DeStefano, as well as defending testing more generally against charges of irrelevance, racial obtuseness, and most seriously, race discrimination.

This article specifically responds to Andrea A. Curcio, Carol L. Chomsky, and Eileen Kaufman’s article, Testing, Diversity, and Merit: A Reply to Dan Subotnik and Others.

A Short Road To Statehood, A Long Road To Washington, Rachel J. Anderson

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This article documents the election in 2012 of the first African-American to represent Nevada in the U.S. Congress, Steven Horsford. It is part of "A Special Series on African Americans in Nevada Politics - Past and Present" on pages 16-21 of the issue." Sources are on page 21 of the issue.

Blacks In The Nevada Legal Profession, Rachel J. Anderson

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This article discusses the history of African-Americans in the Nevada legal profession. It is part of "A Special Series on African Americans in Nevada Politics - Past and Present" on pages 16-21 of the issue. Sources are on page 21 of the issue.

Blacks And Voting Rights In Nevada, Rachel J. Anderson

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This article is a brief foray into black suffrage and equal rights in Nevada legal history. It is part of "A Special Series on African Americans in Nevada Politics - Past and Present" on pages 16-21 of the issue. Sources are on page 21 of the issue.

Masculine Law Firms, Ann C. Mcginley

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This article describes the masculine culture in law firms and analyzes how this culture harms both men and women because of their gender. Part II explains MMT, and analyzes the masculine practices that exist in modern law firms. Part III studies a lawsuit brought by a law firm associate, a white male father of two who allegedly was fired in retaliation for taking leave under the Family Medical Leave Act and because of his failure to adhere to the macho stereotypes prevalent in the law firm. Part IV analyzes how the law should respond to masculine norms, and suggests that …

Introduction: Dukes V. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., Elizabeth Chamblee Burch

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This short introduction to Dukes v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. aims to explain the case and to set the table for what promises to be thought-provoking roundtable discussion hosted by Vanderbilt Law Review En Banc. Accordingly, what follows is a concise overview of the legal background and current debate over the two procedural issues that the Ninth Circuit explored in detail – how to evaluate Rule 23(a)(2)’s commonality when common questions heavily implicate the case’s merits, and when a Rule 23(b)(2) class can include relief apart from injunctive or declaratory relief without endangering due process.

In Search Of The Reasonable Woman: Anti-Discrimination Rhetoric In The United States, Francis J. Mootz Iii

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This article emerged from my participation in a Symposium addressing global perspectives on the topic, "Anti-Discrimination Discourse and Practices," sponsored by The Jean Monnet Chair of European Law at Cagliari University, Sardinia. The article examines the rhetorical development of the "reasonable woman" standard of hostile work environment sexual harassment under Title VII. I argue that the rhetorical framing of the standard has unnecessarily limited its impact, perhaps to the point of undermining its potential to radically revise our understanding of gender discrimination. I suggest how the rhetorical power of the standard might be recovered.

Discrimination Redefined, Ann C. Mcginley

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In this Response to Professor Natasha Martin's article Pretext in Peril, Professor Ann McGinley argues that courts' retrenchment in cases interpreting Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act results from a narrow definition of discrimination that focuses on conscious, intentional discrimination. Increasingly social science research demonstrates that much disparate treatment occurs as a result of unconscious biases, but the courts' reluctance to consider this social science has led, in many cases, to a literal, narrow definition of “pretext." Moreover, she posits that the recent Supreme Court case of Ricci v. DeStefano redefines discrimination in an ahistorical and acontextual …

Ricci V. Destefano: A Masculinities Theory Analysis, Ann C. Mcginley

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This Article applies masculinity theory to explore the aspects Ricci v. Destefano and its political reverberations. Empirical evidence showed that virtually all written tests have a disparate impact on minorities, that a neighboring city had reached less discriminatory results using a different weighting system, and that other fire departments used assessment centers to judge firefighters' qualifications for promotions. While the black male and all female firefighters were made invisible by the case and the testimony, the fact that Ricci's and Vargas' testimony lionized a particularly traditional form of heterosexual masculinity was also invisible. While the command presence required of a …

Don’T Ask, Don’T Tell: A Dying Policy On The Precipice, Robert I. Correales

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This article examines the labyrinth of statutes, regulations and directives that composed “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” a policy which those suspected of being gay or lesbian find difficult, if not impossible, to escape. It also analyzes the real-world and military consequences of the de facto ban and the effects of the moral condemnation of gays and lesbians by the U.S. Supreme Court upon deliberations of the policy in Congress and upon lower courts that have presided over challenges to the policy. Relying heavily on the legislative history of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” and the social and political context under which …

Discrimination Cases In The October 2004 Term, Eileen Kaufman

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No abstract provided.

Discrimination In Our Midst: Law School's Potential Liability For Employment Practices, Ann C. Mcginley

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Studies and articles examining tenured, tenure-track and contract faculty in law schools have exposed the inequalities that women face when compared with their male counterparts. This article asks the legal academic community to consider these conditions in light of established Title VII doctrine which forbids discrimination because of sex. This article offers a hypothetical about the fictitious National Law School, whose labor relationships mimic those of many real law schools in a number of ways. Based on the facts in this hypothetical, the article explores different possible causes of action, either systemic or individual, that employees could reasonably win against …

Masculinities At Work, Ann C. Mcginley

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This article focuses on the study of masculinities, a body of theoretical and empirical work by sociologists, feminist theorists and organization management theorists. This work, much of which employment law scholars have ignored, studies the role of masculinities, which are often invisible, in creating structural barriers to the advancement of many women and some men at work. Masculinities comprise both a structure that reinforces the superiority of men over women and a series of practices, associated with masculine behavior, performed by men or women, that aid men to maintain their superior position over women. In their less visible form, masculinities …

The Turner Thesis, Black Migration, And The (Misapplied) Immigrant Explanation Of Black Poverty, John Valery White

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Underlying most debates of racial inequality is the tacit reference to the Immigrant Tale, a story of “natural” class ascension of immigrant groups in the “land of opportunity.” This tale is affirming, celebrating the assimilation of ethnic immigrants in the American “melting pot.” It is also optimistic, implying social integration and economic parity of currently dissipated immigrant communities. “Its thrust is to defend the individualistic view of the American system because it portrays the system as open to those who are willing to work hard and pull themselves over barriers of poverty and discrimination.”

But there is an unsavory element …

Racial Discrimination In Jury Selection: Professional Misconduct, Not Legitimate Advocacy, Lonnie T. Brown, Jr.

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This Article examines the paradox between the adversary and disciplinary systems' outward condemnation of discrimination in jury selection and their apparent simultaneous inward acceptance of such conduct as legitimate advocacy.

Discrimination Cases In The 2001 Term Of The Supreme Court (Symposium: The Fourteenth Annual Supreme Court Review), Eileen Kaufman

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No abstract provided.

The Irrational Turn In Employment Discrimination Law: Slouching Toward A Unified Approach To Civil Rights Law, John Valery White

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This Article argues that the Supreme Court's recent disparate treatment decisions under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 represent a trend toward unifying all civil rights law under an approach most closely akin to traditional equity. This trend explains the curious tension between substance and process in the Court's most recent decisions, St. Mary's Honor Center v. Hicks and Reeves v. Sanderson Plumbing. It also explains the Court's uncommon confidence in its yet undefined notions of what constitutes discrimination on the basis of the several protected categories recognized in Title VII and related statutes. The trend toward …

Introduction: Employment Discrimination And The Problems Of Proof, John Valery White, Gregory Vincent

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This is an introduction to articles presented at a symposium on the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Reeves v. Sanderson Plumbing Prods. Co. sponsored by the Louisiana Law Review. Presenting papers were five of the leading scholars on employment discrimination law: Professor Catherine J. Lanctot of the Villanova University Law School, Professor Michael Selmi of the George Washington Law School, Professor Linda Hamilton Krieger, University of California at Berkely School of Law, Professor Rebecca Hanner White of the University of Georgia Law School, and Professor Michael Zimmer of the Seton Hall University School of Law. Respondents were the authors and …

Section 51 Actions Against Private Racial Profiling, Peter Zablotsky, Sa'id Vakili

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No abstract provided.