Civil Rights and Discrimination Commons^™

Walking A Thin Blue Line: Balancing The Citizen's Right To Record Police Officers Against Officer Privacy, Rebecca G. Van Tassell

BYU Law Review

No abstract provided.

Brief Of Amici Curiae Professors Nan D. Hunter, Et Al., Addressing The Merits In Support Of Respondents, Nan D. Hunter, Suzanne B. Goldberg

U.S. Supreme Court Briefs

In this amicus brief filed in United States v. Windsor, pending before the Supreme Court, amici constitutional law professors argue that all classifications that carry the indicia of invidiousness should trigger a more searching inquiry than the traditional rational basis test under the Equal Protection Clause would suggest. Classifications that already receive heightened scrutiny, such as race or sex, fit easily into this approach. But the Court’s equal protection jurisprudence has become muddied in a series of cases in which it says rational basis review, but appears to do a more rigorous review. Sexual orientation classifications seemingly were analyzed …

Religions As Sovereigns: Why Religion Is "Special", Elizabeth Clark

Faculty Scholarship

Commentators increasingly challenge religion’s privileged legal status, arguing that it is not “special” or distinct from other associations or philosophical or conscientious claims. I propose that religion is “special” because it functions metaphorically as a legal sovereign, asserting supreme authority over a realm of human life. Under a religion-as-sovereign theory, religious freedom can be understood as at least partial deference to a religious sovereign in a system of shared or overlapping sovereignty. This Article suggests that federalism, which also involves shared sovereignty, can provide a useful heuristic device for examining religious freedom. Specifically, the Article examines a range of federalism …

Richard Ortega, Plaintiff-Appellant, V. United States Immigration And Customs Enforcement, Et Al., Defendants-Appellants: Brief Of Appellant, Patricia E. Roberts, Tillman J. Breckenridge, Alison R.W. Toepp

Appellate and Supreme Court Clinic

No abstract provided.

Shearson V. United States Department Of Homeland Security: The Sixth Circuit Exempts National Security From The Privacy Act, Douglas A. Behrens

Legislation and Policy Brief

“ARMED AND DANGEROUS.” Imagine those words flashing on a Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”) agent’s computer screen as you attempt to reenter your country of birth from a relaxing vacation. Reacting to the computerized warning, the CBP agents detain and question you for several hours before you are released from custody—without an explanation—and allowed to continue on your trip home as if nothing had happened.

This hypothetical scenario became very real for Julia Shearson and her four-year old daughter in January 2006, and marked the beginning of her quest for answers. Why was she flagged as “ARMED AND DANGEROUS?” What …

Playing God: The Legality Of Plans Denying Scarce Resources To People With Disabilities In Public Health Emergencies, Wendy F. Hensel, Leslie E. Wolf

Florida Law Review

Public health emergencies can arise in a number of different ways. They can follow a natural disaster, such as Hurricane Katrina, the 2004 tsunami, and the recent earthquakes in Haiti and Chile. They may be man-made, such as the September 11 attacks and the anthrax scare. They may also be infectious. While no pandemic flu has yet reached the severity of the 1918 flu, there have been several scares, including avian flu and most recently H1N1.

Few questions are more ethically or legally loaded than determining who will receive scarce medical resources in the event of a widespread public health …

The White Interest In School Integration, Robert A. Garda Jr.

Florida Law Review

Discussions concerning desegregation, affirmative action, and voluntary integration focus primarily, if not exclusively, on whether such policies harm or benefit minorities. Scant attention is paid to the benefits whites receive in multiracial schools, despite white interests underpinning more than thirty years of Supreme Court integration jurisprudence. In this Article, I explore the academic and social benefits whites receive in multiracial schools, and I do so from a white parent’s perspective. The Article begins by describing the interest-convergence theory and how white interests explain the course and content of the Supreme Court’s desegregation and affirmative action jurisprudence. Multiracial schools will not …

Flawed But Noble: Desegregation Litigation And Its Implications For The Modern Class Action, David Marcus

Florida Law Review

In this Article, I excavate the historical answer to the Rule 23 puzzle, one that suggests that the rule’s structure has little to do with theoretical distinctions between types of remedies. Far more important was the particular moment in American history during which the Federal Civil Rules Advisory Committee (the “1966 authors”) undertook the revision of Rule 23. To capture this moment, I reconstruct a neglected chapter in procedural history that stretches from 1938, when the first Rule 23 went into force, to the early 1960s, when the 1966 authors labored. I pay particular attention to Rule 23′s experience in …

The Age Discrimination In Employment Act Amendments Of 1978: A Legal And Economic Analysis, Scott W. Hansen

Pepperdine Law Review

No abstract provided.

Harris V. Mcrae: Whatever Happened To The Roe V. Wade Abortion Right?, Laura Crocker

Pepperdine Law Review

The controversial Roe v. Wade decision purportedly removed the abortion controversy from the political arena and set constitutional standards by which questions on the issue could be resolved. The enactment of the Hyde Amendment, a bill which generally forbids the use of Medicaid funds for abortions, was a recent political response to the abortion controversy. However, in the recent case of Harris v. McRae, the Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the Hyde Amendment and thus injected the abortion controversy back into the political arena. The author exhaustively examines the abortion controversy from the time of the Roe decision up …

Bundy V. Jackson: Eliminating The Need To Prove Tangible Economic Job Loss In Sexual Harassment Claims Brought Under Title Vii, Terence J. Bouressa

Pepperdine Law Review

In the case of Bundy v. Jackson, the federal appellate court eliminated the need to prove tangible job loss in claims under Title VII relating to sexual harassment. The holding in Bundy thus promotes the viability of sexual harassment claims under Title VII and deters employers from engaging in subtle sexual harassment as "part of the job." The decision provides a model for the nation to follow in the pursuit of the worthy goal of eliminating sexual harassment in the workplace.

A Positive Response To Growth Control Plans: The Orange County Inclusionary Housing Program, Linda J. Bozung

Pepperdine Law Review

Affordable housing programs have been enacted throughout the state in response to the current critical housing shortage. They serve an essential function as an element of community growth control plans. This article focuses on the success of the Orange County affordable housing program. By utilizing a variety of means, such as density bonus plans, flexible regulations, and deed restrictions, the County has developed a plan which is not only successful but may also serve as a model for other local governments.

Wengler V. Druggists' Mutual Insurance Company: No More Skirting The Issue Of Sex Discrimination In Workers' Compensation Dependency Statutes, Teresa A. Saggese, Lawson A. Cox Ii

Pepperdine Law Review

No abstract provided.

Rostker V. Goldberg: A Step Backward In Equal Protection, Or A Justifiable Affirmation Of Congressional Power?, Gilbert L. Purcell, Janet Rappaport

Pepperdine Law Review

The Supreme Court in Rostker v. Goldberg upheld a Congressional decision which excluded women from registration for service in the Armed Forces of the United States. Although the case was brought based upon equal protection grounds, the majority took a separation of powers stance and based its decision upon the fact that the Court has traditionally granted deference to the decisions of Congress in the area of military affairs. The minority opinions disagreed with the majority's analysis and claimed that the central issue in Rostker was not military in nature, but was that Congress' plan to register males only, promoted …

Justice Stevens And The Emerging Law Of Sex Discrimination , John P. Wagner

Pepperdine Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Supreme Court Continues Its Journey Down The Ever Narrowing Paths Of Section 1983 And The Due Process Clause: An Analysis Of Parratt V. Taylor, Robert E. Palmer

Pepperdine Law Review

After nearly a century of quiet slumber, the Supreme Court awoke the sleeping giant. In the past two decades, 42 U.S.C. §1983 has evolved into a judicial Frankenstein monster. Unable to control the beast, the Court has attempted to restrict the creature's movements by unnecessarily limiting its constitutional source. If followed to its logical conclusion, the Court's narrow reading of the Constitution may ultimately demote all due process violations to state tort remedies. This note traces the legislative and judicial evolution of section 1983 as well as the statute's present interaction with the due process clause. The vehicle for this …

Religion And First Amendment Prosecutions: An Analysis Of Justice Black's Constitutional Interpretation, Constance Mauney

Pepperdine Law Review

Justice Hugo L. Black served on the United States Supreme Court over a period of thirty-four years, encompassing Supreme Court terms from 1937 to 1971. During this period, the subject of the constitutional limitations of the freedom of religion was increasingly subjected to intense social pressures. Justice Black figured prominently in the development of constitutional law as the Supreme Court attempted to give meaning to the establishment and free exercise clause of the first amendment. He wrote the majority opinions which dealt with the establishment clause in the Everson, McCulloin, Engel and Torcaso cases. Yet, on later occasions, Justice Black …

Mary D. Branch, Plaintiff-Appellant, V. Officer Timothy Gorman, Et Al., Defandants-Appellants: Reply Brief Of Appellant, Patricia E. Roberts, Pamela Palmer, Alexa Roggenkamp, Tillman J. Breckenridge, Robert M. Luck Iii

Appellate and Supreme Court Clinic

No abstract provided.

Newport News Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Company V. Eeoc: Expanding The Scope Of Title Vii , Mark D. Klein

Pepperdine Law Review

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 as amended by the Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978 prohibits sex discrimination on the basis of pregnancy. In Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Co. v. EEOC, the United States Supreme Court extended the scope of the Act to include not only female employees, but also female dependents of male employees. The author examines the Supreme Court's analysis of and the legislative intent behind the Pregnancy Discrimination Act and explores the future impact of the decision.

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission V. Wyoming: Appomattox Courthouse Revisited , Richard M. Stephens

Pepperdine Law Review

A highly divided Court again addressed the relatively new doctrine in constitutional law: state exemption from federal regulations due to the concept of federalism. Although the Court applied the tests from National League of Cities v. Usury and its progeny, the Court reached a different result which, without expressly overruling that controversial case, severely limited National League of Cities to its facts. The hope of modern states' rights advocates proved to be short lived.

50 Years After Gideon V. Wainwright: County Plan Would End Nonprofit Defender Program, Robert C. Boruchowitz

Fred T. Korematsu Center for Law and Equality

50 Years after Gideon v. Wainwright: County Plan Would End Nonprofit Defender Program

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

Scholarly Works

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.

Closing The Floodgates: Defining A Class Of Third-Party Plaintiffs For Title Vii Retaliation Claims, Laura Blair Naquin

Louisiana Law Review

The article offers information on the law related to retaliation claims made under Title VII of the U.S. Civil Rights Act of 1964. It mentions the third-party plaintiffs' class which is eligible to file retaliation claims. It expresses the need to set standards for third party retaliation claims. It informs that a third party plaintiff who files a claim should have pretext, direct retaliation evidence, and a proof that retaliation is the only cause for an employer's action.

Up Or Out And Into The Supreme Court: A Forecast For Hishon V. King And Spalding , Linda Randlett Kollar

Pepperdine Law Review

The author presents an extensive analysis of Title VII in an effort to forecast the forthcoming Supreme Court decision of Hishon v. King and Spalding. Included are the issues presented to the Court, the legislative history of Title VII, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals' decision, and a historical inquiry of the applicable decisions of the Burger Court. Although the outcome of the case has yet to be decided, the author's informed prediction will guide commentaries in the future.

Reinforcement Of Middle Level Review Regarding Gender Classifications: Mississippi University For Women V. Hogan , Mary Ellen Shull

Pepperdine Law Review

In Mississippi University for Women v. Hogan, the United States Supreme Court was presented with an equal protection challenge initiated by a male who was denied admission to a state-supported all-female school of nursing. After a review of relevant decisions in this area, the author examines the Supreme Court's intermediate level of scrutiny analysis and argues that application of a higher level of scrutiny to gender-based classifications is a prerequisite to true equality between the sexes.

Civil Rights, Charter Schools, And Lessons To Be Learned, Derek W. Black

Florida Law Review

Two major structural shifts have occurred in education reform in the past two decades: the decline of civil rights reforms and the rise of charter schools. Courts and policy makers have relegated traditional civil rights reforms that address segregation, poverty, disability, and language barriers to near irrelevance, while charter schools and policies supporting their creation and expansion have rapidly increased and now dominate federal policy. Advocates of traditional civil rights reforms interpret the success of charter schools as a threat to their cause, and, consequently, have fought the expansion of charter schools. This Article argues that the civil rights community …

United States V. Kozminski: On The Threshold Of Involuntary Servitude , Kenneth T. Koonce Jr.

Pepperdine Law Review

No abstract provided.

Saint Francis College V. Al-Khazraji: Cosmetic Surgery Or A Fresh Breadth For Section 1981? , Barbara A. Bayliss

Pepperdine Law Review

No abstract provided.

Mandatory Drug Testing Of College Athletes: Are Athletes Being Denied Their Constitutional Rights? , Allison Rose

Pepperdine Law Review

No abstract provided.

Thornburgh V. Abbott: Slamming The Prison Gates On Constitutional Rights, Megan M. Mcdonald

Pepperdine Law Review

No abstract provided.