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When A Statute Comes With A User Manual: Reconciling Textualism And Uniform Acts, Gregory A. Elinson, Robert H. Sitkoff
When A Statute Comes With A User Manual: Reconciling Textualism And Uniform Acts, Gregory A. Elinson, Robert H. Sitkoff
College of Law Faculty Publications
This Article develops an interpretive theory for statutes that originate as Uniform Acts promulgated by the Uniform Law Commission. Although overlooked in the literature on statutory interpretation, state-enacted Uniform Acts are ubiquitous. They shape our life cycles—governing marriage, parentage, divorce, and death—and structure trillions of dollars in daily commercial transactions.
Largely focusing on textualism, today’s dominant form of statutory interpretation, we analyze the interpretive consequences of two unusual features of state-enacted Uniform Acts. First, the text of every Uniform Act directs courts to interpret it to “promote uniformity.” Second, each provision is accompanied by an official explanatory comment, analogous to …
Vol. 1 No. 1, Fall 2009; Toy Story: Being Right For The Wrong Reasons In The Search For A "Greater Freedom"—A Critical Analysis Of The Dissenting En Banc Opinions In Reliable Consultants, Inc. V. Earle, Steven L. Boldt
Northern Illinois Law Review Supplement
This Note analyzes how the landmark United States Supreme Court case of Lawrence v. Texas has been used by the Fifth Circuit in Reliable Consultants, Inc. v. Earle to extend “sexual privacy interests” into the commercial realm. This Note begins by exploring the historical trend of cases that have led to the birth of sexual privacy. The Fifth Circuit in Reliable was given the task to decide whether the Texas legislature’s statutory proscription of promoting or selling devices used for sexual stimulation infringed on a mere commercial right or an individual’s right to sexual privacy. After the Fifth Circuit held …