Law Commons^™

Optimal Lead Plaintiffs, Elizabeth C. Burch

Vanderbilt Law Review

Good lead counsel is hard to find. We, Congress, the Securities Exchange Commission ("SEC"), and the public trust that class counsel will be a good and faithful agent so long as a lead plaintiff is there to monitor her every move. Problem is, good lead plaintiffs are hard to find, too. In part, we expect too much: the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act ("PSLRA") insists that a lead plaintiff monitor the class attorneys and hopes that she will prevent strike suits and deter fraud; Rule 23(a)(4), on the other hand, demands that the lead plaintiff adequately represent class members with …

Legal Beagle Blog (May 2011), Roger Williams University School Of Law Library

Law Library Newsletters/Blog

No abstract provided.

Causing Infringement, Mark Bartholomew, Patrick F. Mcardle

Journal Articles

Recent appellate decisions reveal a chaotic contributory infringement doctrine that offers little direction to entrepreneurs trying to balance digital innovation with legal strictures. Aware of the problem, both the Supreme Court and legal scholars urge a modeling of contributory infringement on common law tort rules. But common law tort is an enormous subject. Without further instruction, the subject area is too vast and contradictory to offer a realistic template for reform. Even when the narrower body of tort law for secondary actors is consulted, there is still too much variation in the existing precedent to provide the necessary guidance. Instead …

Anonymity And Democratic Citizenship, James A. Gardner

Journal Articles

Many aspects of modern democratic life are or can be performed anonymously – voting, financial contributions, petition signing, political speech and debate, communication with and lobbying of officials, and so forth. But is it desirable for citizens to perform such tasks anonymously? Anonymity frees people from social pressures associated with observation and identifiability, but does this freedom produce behavior that is democratically beneficial? What, in short, is the effect of anonymity on the behavior of democratic citizens, and how should we evaluate it?

In this paper, I attempt a first pass answer to these questions by turning to both democratic …

(Re)Constituting The Immigrant Body Through Policy: A Rhetorical Analysis Of The Narratives Within The Discourses Of The Development, Relief, And Education For Alien Minors Act (Dream Act), Emily Rae Ironside

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Using the testimonies surrounding the Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors Act (DREAM Act) as a primary case study, this project provides a rhetorical investigation of the interplay between narratives, nation building, national identity, policymaking, and the American immigrant. This project first identifies the grand narrative of exclusionary nationalism as the primary narrative constituting the American identity. Then, this project examines the rhetoric of policymakers to demonstrate how an Anglo-Saxonized, elitist notion of American identity is rhetorically constituted by assimilationist, racist, xenophobic, and classist discourses. Moreover, it argues policymakers maintain the narrative dominance of exclusionary nationalism through restrictive immigration …

The Silver Lining In The Red Giant: China’S Residential Mortgage Laws Promote Temperance Among The Surging Middle Class, Clayton D. Laforge

Law Student Publications

This comment examines the rise of China‘s middle class and proactive governance to protect its economy from a housing bubble during the global downturn. An analysis of recently enacted Chinese labor and corporate laws demonstrates how the government facilitated the rise of the middle class. The comment dis-cusses the ramifications of strict domestic residential mortgage regulations and how China‘s tempered investment structure secured its domestic housing market. Part II of this comment examines China‘s investment and consumption patterns compared to domestic growth. Part III discusses how the surging middle class grew to seek investment opportunities in the real estate market …

Conservative Eras In Supreme Court Decision-Making: Employment Division V. Smith, Judicial Restraint, And Neoconservatism, Stephen M. Feldman

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

Economic Policy After A Lost Decade--From Over-Spending To Innovation, Timothy M. Kaine

University of Richmond Law Review

In this article, I want to focus on one aspect of our economic recovery-namely, how do we grow an economy without relying upon debt-fueled overconsumption? I argue that the magnitude of the 2007-2009 collapse was based significantly on unsustainable spending that had propped up the previous expansion. National policy during the first years of the last decade turned a sizable national surplus into a huge deficit through war spending, tax cuts, and expansion of public programs that were not paid for.The spending patterns of American families followed a similar pattern in which traditional savings rates shrunk precipitously while family debt …

Fixing Unfair Contracts, Omri Ben-Shahar

Coase-Sandor Institute for Law & Economics Research Paper Series

Various doctrines of contract and consumer protection law allow courts to strike down unfair contract terms. A large literature has explored the question which terms should be viewed as unfair, but a related question has never been studied systematically—what provision should replace the vacated unfair term? How should a distributively unfair contract be fixed? This Article demonstrates that the law uses three competing criteria for a replacement provision: (1) the most reasonable term; (2) a punitive term, strongly unfavorable to the overreaching party; and (3) the minimally tolerable term, which preserves the original term as much as is tolerable. The …

What Nations Are Doing About Immigrant Workers In Downturn Economies: Examining And Comparing The Recent Treatment Of Immigrant Workers In The United States And Spain, María Pabón López

Notre Dame Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

How Effective The International Criminal Court Has Been: Evaluating The Work And Progress Of The International Criminal Court, Moses Retselisitsoe Phooko

Notre Dame Journal of International & Comparative Law

There are serious challenges facing the International Criminal Court (ICC). Two of these hindrances are that: firstly, the ICC has been accused of only targeting the African continent; and secondly, the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (Rome Statute) has no enforcement mechanism against the state parties who refuse to cooperate with the court. In light of these challenges, the question is whether the ICC would be able to meet the expectations of the international community. The significance of this study is to contribute to the effort of making the ICC an independent, credible and effective tribunal to end …

The Case Of Detainees Tortured In The Name Of National Security And The "War On Terror:" Are They Entitled To Reparations?, Julie Dubé Gagnon

Notre Dame Journal of International & Comparative Law

Between 2001 and 2009, the United States of America (U.S.) allegedly committed acts of torture initiated at high levels of the government and carried out by the U.S. military, the CIA, and private contractors in territories under U.S. control (Guantanamo Bay, Iraq and Afghanistan), in secret prisons abroad allowed by a policy of extraordinary renditions. The grand majority of the torture victims are not U.S. citizens, nor residents of this country. This paper concludes that the alleged victims of torture have a right to reparations under international human rights law and that the U.S.’s responses to such allegations thus far …

Human Rights Aspirations, Professional Obligations: Practitioner Survey On The Ethics Of Domestic Human Rights, Beth Lyon

Notre Dame Journal of International & Comparative Law

This article examines the little-explored ethical dimensions of an important trend toward the use of international law in U.S. civil rights and social justice advocacy. Internationalized civil rights work, described here as “domestic human rights,” is a growing practice area that plays out in a unique ethical context that has received little academic attention. An important first step toward generalizing about the ethical issues arising in domestic human rights advocacy is to learn about the current state of practice, and to begin that project, the author carried out an advocate survey. The goal of the survey was to gain insight …

Masthead Volume 1

Notre Dame Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

Jackpot! A Legal History Of Indian Gaming In California, Aaron Peardon

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Indian Gaming has transformed the economic, political, and sociological landscape of California. The growth of Indian casinos has had a profound impact on both Indian and non-Indian communities alike. California tribes took the lead in legalizing Indian Gaming throughout the nation. The efforts of California tribes in the legislative and political process have enabled many tribal groups to rise out of poverty and to gain prosperity that would otherwise be impossible to achieve. They have also brought increased revenue to local communities and have provided thousands of jobs to all Californians.

This thesis discusses the historical relationships between Native American …

The Harmonization Of Tax Treaties And Domestic Law, Sung-Soo Han

Brigham Young University International Law & Management Review

No abstract provided.

European Food Law Update, Emilie H. Leibovitch

Journal of Food Law & Policy

This EU Food Law Update will focus on the developments that occurred since October 2010 in the areas of genetically modified organisms, novel foods, contaminants, food quality, and labeling.

The Immediate And Lasting Impacts Of The 2008 Economic Collapse--Lehman Brothers, General Motors, And The Secured Credit Markets, Edward J. Estrada

University of Richmond Law Review

This article analyzes the early days of the credit crisis as well as two of the largest casualties of that period-Lehman Brothers and General Motors. In addition, by focusing on the bankruptcy proceedings of these two entities as well as other judicial decisions rendered since the financial crisis began, it examines the role that courts have played in the crisis.

Employment Division V. Smith: "The Sky That Didn't Fall", David B. Frohnmayer

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Religion Clauses As Mutually Reinforcing Mandates: Why The Arguments For Rigorously Enforcing The Free Exercise Clause And Establishment Clause Are Stronger When Both Clauses Are Taken Seriously, Alan Brownstein

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

Exemptions And The Establishment Clause, Angela C. Carmella

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

Religious Truth, Pluralism, And Secularization: The Shaking Foundations Of American Religious Liberty, Daniel O. Conkle

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Political (And Other) Safeguards Of Religious Freedom, Richard W. Garnett

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

Smith And Women's Equality, Leslie C. Griffin

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

Whose Body? Whose Soul? Medical Decision-Making On Behalf Of Children And The Free Exercise Clause Before And After Employment Division V. Smith, B. Jessie Hill

Cardozo Law Review

Within constitutional law, children's rights have suffered from severe neglect. The issue of parents' constitutional rights to deny children medical treatment based on religious belief is one area in desperate need of attention. Although the Supreme Court's 1990 decision in Employment Division v. Smith seemingly set forth a relatively clear rule regarding the availability of exemptions from generally applicable laws - such as those requiring parents to ensure that their children receive appropriate medical care - Smith has changed little in this realm, and if anything, it has only confused matters, highlighting the intractable nature of the issue. While Smith …

Religious Use Of Copyrighted Works After Smith, Rfra, And Eldred, Steven D. Jamar

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Forms And Limits Of Religious Accommodation: The Case Of Rluipa, Ira C. Lupu, Robert W. Tuttle

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Politics Of Free Exercise After Employment Division V. Smith: Same-Sex Marriage, The "War On Terror," And Religious Freedom, Richard Schragger

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

Religious Freedom And Its Enemies, Or Why The Smith Decision May Be A Greater Loss Now Than It Was Then, Steven D. Smith

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

Smith In Theory And Practice, Nelson Tebbe

Cardozo Law Review

Employment Division v. Smith controversially held that general laws that were neutral toward religion would no longer be presumptively invalid, regardless of how much they incidentally burdened religious practices. That decision sparked a debate that continues today, twenty years later. This symposium Essay explores the argument that subsequent courts have in fact been less constrained by the principal rule of Smith than advocates on both sides of the controversy usually assume. Lower courts administering real world disputes often find they have all the room they need to grant relief from general laws, given exceptions written into the decision itself and …