Administrative Law Commons^™

Brief Amici Curiae Of Intellectual Property Professors In Support Of Petitoner, Thomas G. Field Jr., John F. Duffy, Craig Allen Nard

Law Faculty Scholarship

Congress enacted the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) in 1946 as a comprehensive statute to regulate the field of federal administrative law. In holding that the PTO Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences is not subject to the standards of judicial review set forth in the APA, the [Zurko] decision isolates patent law from the rest of administrative law and undermines the APA’s goal of achieving consistency and uniformity in federal administrative law.

Amicus Brief Of Thomas G. Field, Jr., Pro Se Supporting In Principle, On Rehearing The Commissioner Of Patents And Trademarks, Thomas G. Field Jr.

Law Faculty Scholarship

To those unfamiliar with the long, often bitter, struggle over equally compelling needs to provide, on the one hand, innovators with an adequate opportunity to recoup risk capital and to avoid, on the other, erecting unwarranted barriers to competition, a dispute over the proper scope of review for Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) patent appeals will seem both trivial and arcane. This case involves more than semantics -- its resolution turns on the allocation of power among three, and arguably four, branches of government. This Court, itself, has a stake.

The Irony Of Deregulatory Takings, Jim Rossi

Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications

This is a critical review essay, exploring the thesis advanced by Gregory Sidak and Daniel Spulber in their book Deregulatory Takings and the Regulatory Contract (Cambridge University Press 1997). Sidak and Spulber argue that deregulation of the electric utility and local telephony industries can constitute an unconstitutional taking to the extent the state does not provide compensation for the investment-backed expectations of firms in the industry. In addition, they argue that economic efficiency requires this result. This review takes Sidak and Spulber to task for their reading of the case law. In addition, the review criticizes their argument for giving …

Promulgating Requirements For Admission To Prosecute Patent Applications, Michelle J. Burke, Thomas G. Field Jr

Law Faculty Scholarship

Among federal agencies, the U. S. Patent and Trademark Office is unique in its ability to require attorneys to submit to special requirements, such as passing a six hour examination, before being permitted to practice before it in patent cases. Indeed, the Supreme Court has held that an individual so admitted to practice before the PTO need not comply with state requirements otherwise applicable to those practicing law.

The first part of this article discusses how this requirement came to be. It then discusses how the PTO determines whether an individual is fit to sit for the patent examination, focusing …

Waivers, Flexibility, And Reviewability, Jim Rossi

Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications

In this Comment, I shall explore the issue of reviewability, as discussed by Krent, in the context of one flexible approach to regulation-- express agency waiver of regulations. Part I of this Comment addresses the increased need for flexible solutions in the administrative context, such as waiver of rules, and provides some examples. Part II argues that, especially in the context of flexible regulatory approaches, Heckler v. Chaney, a key case for determining whether courts will review agency decisions, should not be given a reading that precludes review of agency inaction. It should be read to value consistency with program …

Law Revision Commission Nears Completion Of New Apa, Michael Asimow

California Regulatory Law Reporter

No abstract provided.

Agency Action, Finality And Geographical Nexus: Judicial Review Of Agency Compliance With Nepa's Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement Requirement After Lujan V. National Wildlife Federation, Matthew C. Porterfield

University of Richmond Law Review

In recent years, there has been an increasing recognition of the need to address the complex and interrelated impacts that result from human interaction with the environment. One of the most effective tools for evaluating these impacts has been the preparation of programmatic environmental impact statements (EISs) pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA). The status of programmatic EISs, however, has been called into question by the Supreme Court's decision in Lujan v. National Wildlife Federation, which has been interpreted by numerous commentators as heralding the end of "programmatic" environmental lawsuits. Even more significantly, Lujan has been …

Expanding The Judicial Power Of The Administrative Law Judge To Establish Efficiency And Fairness In Administrative Adjudication, C. Stuart Greer

University of Richmond Law Review

How is an administrative law judge ("ALJ") to know his role in the modern bureaucracy? On the one hand, the law requires the ALJ to adjudicate legal disputes between the government agency and the individual, and on the other hand, a black-robed member of the judicial branch in- structs him that he is out of his jurisdiction. Who wins in this decades-long battle for turf?

Reflections Upon The Federal Administrative Judiciary, Paul R. Verkuil

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Authority And Responsibility: The Jurisprudence Of Deference, Joseph Vining

Articles

he connection between authority and responsibility is such that the one cannot be thought of without the other. In legal method, close reading and rereading of a text marks it as an authoritative text; the presupposition of mind which is necessary to close reading is presupposition of a responsible mind. In the working of institutions that embody authority, the disposition to follow the decisions and statements of a person responsible for a matter inevitably rests upon a presupposition that the decisions and statements followed are those of the responsible person. As that presupposition fades with bureaucratization of decision and writing, …

On The Constitutional Status Of The Administrative Agencies, Harold H. Bruff

Publications

No abstract provided.

Annual Survey Of Virginia Law: Administrative Procedure, John Paul Jones

University of Richmond Law Review

After three years of working major changes to the Virginia Administrative Process Act (VAPA), the General Assembly paid scant attention to the Commonwealth's fundamental law of administrative procedure in 1987. During its most recent session, the legislature produced only three amendments to VAPA, inserting a regulation severability provision, modifying VAPA's impact on Voluntary Formulary changes, and narrowing the exemption enjoyed by the Virginia Marine Resources Commission. In two other statutory changes affecting administrative procedure, the General Assembly expressly provided for agency subdelegation and specified the method for computing time for a rule of court. While severability has evolved into an …

Effective Regulatory Reform Hinges On Motivating The "Street Level" Bureaucrats, Charles H. Koch Jr.

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

A New Approach To Review Of Nepa Findings Of No Significant Impact, Geoffrey Garver

Michigan Law Review

This Note examines the confused array of judicial approaches for reviewing agency findings of no significant environmental impact and proposes a standardized, comprehensive approach that ensures compliance with both the procedural and substantive aspects of NEPA. Part I reviews agency procedures mandated by NEPA which ensure that agencies develop a detailed record for judicial scrutiny and constitute the legal basis against which to check agency threshold decisions. Part II examines the conflicting approaches of the lower courts, emphasizing their reliance on Supreme Court decisions, their characterization of the threshold decision as legal or factual, and the burden of proof each …

Protection Of Waters Within And Without Park Boundaries To Support National Parks And Other Units Of The National Park System, A. Dan Tarlock

External Development Affecting the National Parks: Preserving "The Best Idea We Ever Had" (September 14-16)

8 pages.

Interstate Commerce Commission V. American Trucking Associations, Inc.

Touro Law Review

No abstract provided.

Protecting The Independence Of Administrative Law Judges: A Model Administrative Law Judge Corps Statute, Karen Y. Kauper

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

This Note concludes that the federal government should adopt some form of central panel system to protect both the independence of the ALJs and the public interest. Part I of this Note presents several alternatives to the central panel systems that have been proposed in past years and discusses their inadequacies. Part II summarizes the arguments concerning the central panel system of administrative adjudication. Part III discusses several of the integral elements of a central panel system and analyzes the state statutes and the proposed federal legislation in light of these elements. Finally, Part IV proposes a model statute for …

Section 558( C ) Of The Administrative Procedure Act: Provision For Informal Agency Hearings Prior To License Revocation Or Suspension, Joan P. Snyder

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

This Note argues that section 558(c) should be interpreted to require an agency to provide a hearing prior to license suspension or revocation. Part I argues that all courts that have adjudicated whether section 558(c) requires a hearing have misconstrued the statute by failing to consider the general policies served by the APA. Part II examines section 558(c) in light of the major policies of the APA, uniformity and fairness in administrative procedure. It argues that these policies are best served by an interpretation that requires a hearing prior to suspension or revocation of any federal license. It does, however, …

A Fresh Look At Agency "Discretion", John M. Rogers

Law Faculty Scholarly Articles

Lawyers who represent or litigate against government agencies must wrestle so frequently with the concept of agency "discretion" that they may be forgiven for believing that the term is devoid of intrinsic meaning—a chameleon deriving substance only from its particular context. For instance, mandamus will lie only for ministerial acts, as opposed to "discretionary" ones. Agency acts that are "by law committed to agency discretion" are not reviewable in court under the federal Administrative Procedure Act (APA). However, agency actions are reviewed for "abuse of discretion." On the other hand, tort suits against the government will not be allowed for …

Judicial Review And The President's Statutory Powers, Harold H. Bruff

Publications

No abstract provided.

The Zone Of Interests Component Of The Federal Standing Rules: Alive And Well After All, Robert H. Marquis

University of Arkansas at Little Rock Law Review

No abstract provided.

Counter Revolution In The Federal Courts Of Appeal - The Aftermath Of Vermont Yankee, Jon A. Mueller

University of Richmond Law Review

In recent years, there has been growing judicial concern about the fairness of action by administrative agencies and the ability of courts to effectively review this action. This concern stems from the increased use of informal procedures by agencies promulgating rules or orders, to accomplish the congressional objectives set out in their substantive statutes. In response, certain federal courts of appeal have begun to impose upon these agencies more procedural safeguards than are required by either the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) or substantive statutes. These judicially imposed safeguards are more commonly known as hybrid procedures.

A Model For Determining The Publication Requirements Of Section 552(A)(1) Of The Administrative Procedure Act, Michael J. Kump

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

This article addresses the question of when the publication rule requires an agency to publish its results in the Federal Register, particularly "interepretations of general applicability" and "statements of general policy." The vast number of recent cases involving violations of the publication rule provide ample· impetus for settling this controversy. Of striking significance is the broad spectrum across which these cases stretch: food stamp cases, prison matters, and immigration disputes. The list is as broad as the range of administrative practice.

Ex Parte Communication In Informal Rulemaking: Judicial Intervention In Administrative Procedures, Michael E. Ornoff

University of Richmond Law Review

Over the past several years, a controversy has arisen, particularly among different panels of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, regarding the use of ex parte communications in informal administrative rulemaking. Numerous theories for extending such a prohibition beyond the express language of the Administrative Procedures Act have been advanced in recent judicial opinions.

1977 Amendments To The Administrative Procedure Act, George Sheldon

Florida State University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Understanding Judicial Review Of Federal Agency Action: Kafkaesque And Langdellian, Gary C. Leedes

University of Richmond Law Review

This article identifies the key factors that are taken into consideration by federal judges empowered to apply and give doctrinal content to the rules governing judicial review. The original inspiration was more modest. The article, as conceived, was to be simply an attempt to clarify the concept of reviewability. After some thinking about the topic, the close relationship between the concept of reviewability and other concepts of judicial review became clearer to me, and I decided that a useful antidote to the customary analysis, which emphasizes distinctions among these various concepts, is to emphasize their similarities.

Congressional Control Of Administrative Regulation: A Study Of Legislative Vetoes, Harold H. Bruff, Ernest Gellhorn

Publications

Several administrative programs contain provisions allowing Congress to veto agency rules, and there is now a bill before Congress to extend this veto power to all agency rulemaking. In this Article, Professor Bruff and Dean Gellhorn analyze the histories of five federal programs subject to the legislative veto to determine the effect of the veto on the rulemaking process and on the relationships between the branches of government. Extrapolating from this practical experience, they suggest that a general legislative veto is unlikely to increase the overall efficiency of the administrative process, may impede the achievement of reasoned decisionmaking based on …

Administrative Law: Due Process Requirements Of Notice And Hearing Apply To Native Claims Under Administrative Procedure Act; Civil Rights: Challenging Tribal Membership Ordinance; Criminal Law: Nor Prejudice To Indian Defendant Sentenced Under State Due To Additional Or Alternative Fina Authorized By Federal Statute; Due Process: Tribal Elections And The Indian Civil Rights Act; Environment: Standing Of Non-Indians To Challenge Validity Of Coal Leases On Indian Land; Evidence: Indian Concept Of "Toka" As Concerning Issues Of Provocation And Justification; Indian Civil Rights Act: Residency Requirements For Tribal Political Office Upheld; Indian Lands: Quiet Title Action By Indian Allottees Against Railroad Holding Easement In The Nature Of A Limited Fee; Jurisdiction: Adoption Where All Parties Are Residents Of An Indian Reservation; Jurisdiction: New Mexico State Constitution As Affecting Adjudication Of Indian Water Rights; Taxation: State Right Of Taxation On Reservations When Commerce Effectuated Between Indians And Non-Indians

American Indian Law Review

No abstract provided.

Recent Developments, James D. Holland

Vanderbilt Law Review

The power to parole prisoners derives from the legislative power to define crimes and set penalties for offenses, and has been delegated by Congress and state legislatures to the federal and state parole boards.' Recent litigation of inmates' post-conviction rights in federal and state correctional systems has focused increasingly on the broad discretionary power that parole boards exercise by performing their statutory mandate... The recent development of a flexible concept of due process,' however, has permitted a finer balancing of governmental and individual interests than the prior requirement of a "full panoply" of procedural safeguards, or none at all, and …

Indian Wills: Tooahnippah V. Hickle--Administrative And Judicial Review, Randall Elliott

American Indian Law Review

No abstract provided.