Jurisdiction Commons^™

The Use Of Federal Habeas Corpus In Child Custody Disputes, Maine Law Review

Maine Law Review

Inability to enforce child custody decrees on a nationwide basis has created an unfortunate and well-publicized anomaly in the law. A parent disappointed with one state's award of custody may remove the child to another jurisdiction, gambling that the second state's courts will decline to enforce the original decree. Of the several remedies that have been suggested to relieve this situation, federal habeas corpus remains among the least explored. The use of federal habeas corpus in child custody disputes raises two questions central to every federal jurisdictional controversy: Do the federal courts have power to entertain the action? If the …

The Role Of Foreseeability In Jurisdictional Inquiry: Tyson V. Whittaker & Son, Inc., Philip M. Coffin Iii

Maine Law Review

When defining the extent of their jurisdiction over nonresident defendants, state courts must be ever mindful of the principle that "all assertions of state-court jurisdiction must be evaluated according to the standards set forth in International Shoe and its progeny. In deciding jurisdictional issues against this background of Supreme Court decisions, many courts have had considerable difficulty in ascertaining the precise extent of the amorphous and discretionary standards set forth in International Shoe and subsequent cases. In the recent decision of Tyson v. Whitaker & Son, Inc., the Maine Supreme Judicial Court was put to this task in deciding whether …

Put Me In, Coach: Constitutional Concerns Of Judicial Activism And Legislating From The Bench, Jacob M. Elliott

Senior Honors Theses

Unrestrained judicial activism and legislating from the bench at the Supreme Court level place federalism and freedom in jeopardy. By ignoring crucial doctrines like jurisdiction, deference, and independence, the Supreme Court has demonstrated a tendency toward reinterpreting existing Constitutional precedent as they see fit, basing judgments on extra-legal influences, and supplanting Constitutional principles with their own personal policy preferences.

Numerous cases demonstrate the looming threat of judicial overreach; these cases are often considered some of the most damaging and injurious decisions in the history of the American federal judiciary. One potential solution is to appoint justices who will operate …

Table Of Contents, Seattle University Law Review

Seattle University Law Review

Table of Contents

Re-Imagining Tomorrow: A Technology, Innovation Law, And Ethics Symposium On Addictive Technology And Children, Margaret Chon

Seattle University Law Review

In this Foreword, Professor Margaret Chon introduces Seattle University's Technology, Innovation Law, and Ethics (TILE) program, the 2024 TILE Symposium, and Dr. Gaia Bernstein’s Unwired: Gaining Control Over Addictive Technologies.

Keynote Address: The Movement To Protect Kids From Addictive Technologies, Gaia Bernstein

Seattle University Law Review

In this keynote address, I describe my personal journey starting with a school outreach program I created in 2017 to address technology overuse among kids. While I initially advocated for self-help methods, I grew to recognize that the tech industry bore responsibility. This realization led me to write Unwired: Gaining Control over Addictive Technologies, which focused on collective action to pressure the tech industry to redesign its addictive products.

I then describe the movement to control addictive technologies and protect kids, which has gained momentum since the end of the pandemic. This movement combines grassroots parent activism with legal-political action. …

Moral Panic Or Public Health Crisis? Lessons From Drugs And Gambling For “Addictive” Design, Matthew B. Lawrence, Haomin (Kevin) Yan

Seattle University Law Review

Alcohol, automobiles, guns, lottery, loot boxes, meat, music, opioid painkillers, processed foods, prop bets, slot machines, television, tobacco, violent video games. Over the last century each of these has been subject to concerns—some might even say “moral panics”—from parents and policymakers about avoidable harms to kids and adults. In some cases we look back with the benefit of hindsight and dismiss those concerns as naïve or moralistic. In others we look back at them as justified or as having come too late to check an expanding industry before it did unfathomable harm while growing so powerful that it became all …

Responding To Digital Addiction, Ned Snow

Seattle University Law Review

In Unwired: Gaining Control over Addictive Technologies, Professor Gaia Bernstein calls our attention to the growing problem of digital addiction. Digital addiction may sound like something out of a science-fiction novel or something that does not raise the same sort of real-life practical concerns as are present in a physical health crisis or an economic decline. But as Bernstein presents the evidence, we learn that the consequences of digital addiction can be just as harmful as a serious disease or a financial depression. Cognitive development disorders, anxiety, emotional depression, social isolation, and other mental health ills can be debilitating—as much …

The Ai Doppelgänger Dilemma: Cloned Voices In The Music Industry, Elizabeth Shields

Seattle University Law Review

With the rise of generative artificial intelligence (AI), there has been an influx of “voice clones”—deep-learning algorithms that create synthetic speech to realistically mimic human voices. Celebrities and, in particular, music artists, have been subjected to the proliferation of AI voice clones on social media platforms like TikTok and streaming platforms such as Spotify. Despite music utilizing AI voice clones having amassed much popularity, this technology can be harmful and highly invasive to musicians whose livelihoods often depend on their distinct voices. While legal scholars have attempted to articulate various rights that could protect a person’s voice, individuals are largely …

Let The Sunshine In: Crafting Constitutional Transparency Regulations For Content Moderation, Caitlin Ring Carlson

Seattle University Law Review

In response to public concern about the impact of social media, legislators in some U.S. states have developed laws to regulate the process of content moderation. Many include mandatory transparency and disclosure requirements, some of which courts have already deemed an unconstitutional infringement on social media platforms’ right to free expression. This article explores the parameters for crafting constitutional social media transparency regulations using existing U.S. media policy and insights from recent legal challenges. The resulting analysis identifies content neutral transparency requirements that mandate the disclosure of purely factual, non-controversial information as those most likely to withstand judicial scrutiny. Specifically, …

This Is Not A Game: The Addictive Allure Of Digital Companions, Nizan Geslevich Packin, Karni Chagal-Feferkorn

Seattle University Law Review

Artificial Intelligence (AI) agents have become an inescapable part of modern childhood, reshaping education, leisure activities, entertainment, and social interaction. From AI-powered tutors that adapt to individual learning styles to emotionally responsive chatbots that simulate human companionship, these systems promise unprecedented personalization, cognitive stimulation, and social support. However, these benefits mask significant risks that remain unregulated and inadequately addressed.

Although adults are also susceptible to forming deep emotional bonds with AI companions—often trusting them as if they possessed genuine understanding and empathy—children are particularly vulnerable. Their misplaced trust can more severely distort social development, weaken critical thinking, and foster unhealthy …

Gaps In Accountability For Submarine Cable Protection: Inadequacies In The Current Legal Framework, Martin Kwan

Ocean and Coastal Law Journal

Submarine cable protection has become a hotly discussed topic as the risk of damage has dramatically increased amidst wars and geopolitical tensions. This Article critically analyzes six gaps in accountability for cable protection. First, there is no civil accountability for non-territorial damage. The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) allows no residual jurisdiction, and the English case of Virgin Media Ltd. v. Joseph Whelan reasoned that the absence of exclusive jurisdiction to lay cables in those waters means no civil jurisdiction by the coastal state. But this Article argues that it is an exclusive right, taking …

Detention Of Foreign Seafarers And Vessels: Pollution Prevention Or Piracy?, Edward Maccoll, Marshall Tinkle

Ocean and Coastal Law Journal

The purpose of this Article is to interrogate the legal basis for holding foreign crewmembers against their will in connection with APPS prosecutions. Part I examines the underlying justification for prosecuting foreign vessel owners for foreign conduct under APPS. It first discusses the international anti-pollution regimen from which APPS emerged. Next, the Article explores the handful of cases in which APPS prosecutions have been challenged and for the most part sustained, and then offers a critique of the rationale for such prosecutions. Part II explores the lawfulness of the techniques to detain foreign crewmembers and press those crewmembers into the …

Constraining The Executive Branch: Delegation, Agency Independence, And Congressional Design Of Judicial Review, Jennifer L. Selin, Pamela J. Clouser Mccann

Northwestern University Law Review

While scholarship examining the relationship between Congress, federal agencies, and the judiciary reveals variation in the statutory details that affects administrative and judicial decision-making, few studies explore the extent to which congressional delegation decisions balance both the substantive and procedural independence of agencies against the possibility of the federal judiciary’s review of administrative action.

This Article enhances scholarly understanding of delegation by providing a qualitative, theoretical, and empirical account of the circumstances under which Congress manipulates federal agency exposure to the federal judiciary. Ironically, combined with statutory provisions dictating agency independence, increasing an agency’s exposure to unelected federal judges can …

Statutes And Special Interests, Kirsten Matoy Carlson

Northwestern University Law Review

Who really decides what statutes say? Most Americans think that special interests play an outsized role in our lawmaking processes. Yet empirical studies have produced little evidence that special interests get everything, or even most of, what they ask for from Congress. This Article takes an innovative new approach to tackling the difficult question of how advocates influence legislation. It presents the first comprehensive empirical study of how advocates influence the law through amendments in the legislative process. The Article analyzes an original dataset of 2,137 witnesses and their testimony at referral hearings on 108 Indian-related bills in the 97th …

Keep The Home Fires Burning: The Enduring Embers Of Pennsylvania Fire, Jack B. Harrison

Texas A&M Law Review

Prior to the Supreme Court’s decision in Ford Motor Co. in 2021, what characterized the Court’s personal jurisdiction jurisprudence was a desire to restrict access to the courts for plaintiffs seeking redress for injuries and to protect large corporate defendants by limiting the available jurisdictions in which they could be sued. For example, in Daimler, the Court rejected the traditional understanding of general jurisdiction based on a defendant corporation’s activities within the forum state and, in so doing, turned years of lower court decisions developing the understanding of general jurisdiction on its head.

However, more recently, the Court has …

Calling On Congress: Use The Spending Clause To Keep Juveniles In Juvenile Court, Erin Fitzgerald

Pepperdine Law Review

Recently, juvenile justice reformers have had great success in expanding the reach of the juvenile court. Over the last two decades, many states have raised their age of majority, bringing older teens and young adults under the jurisdictional umbrella of the juvenile court. Likewise, many states have amended their transfer statutes, making transferring juveniles from juvenile court to adult criminal court more difficult. The success of these reforms is largely due to the relentless work of dedicated juvenile justice advocates and scholars. The “raise-the-age” movement and work to limit juvenile transfers has undoubtedly helped to retain more youthful offenders within …

Legislative Reforms To End Lawfare By State And Local Prosecutors, Elizabeth Beske

Legislative Testimony & Comments

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution and Limited Government will hold a hearing on Tuesday, March 4, 2025, at 2:00 p.m. ET. The hearing, "Legislative Reforms to End Lawfare by State and Local Prosecutors," will examine the use of lawfare tactics by the Biden-Harris Administration to weaponize the rule of law against political opponents. It will further highlight legislative reforms to end politically motivated state and local prosecutions.

There’S No Place Like Essentially At Home: General Jurisdiction Over Individuals Apart From Domicile And Presence, Jeffrey L. Rensberger

Arkansas Law Review

In personal jurisdiction, an intellectual siloing has prevented some courts from using a basis of jurisdiction over individuals that is available for corporations. This Article explores this question. Jurisdiction in such a case turns on whether general jurisdiction based on a large number of unrelated contacts--contacts-based general jurisdiction--applies to individuals as well as to corporations. The short answer is that despite hesitancy in the cases, such jurisdiction has historically been invoked and this is a correct result as a matter of due process doctrine. One aim of this Article is to dispel the doubt on this point that unnecessarily persists. …

Washington's Implementation Of Legalized Cannabis: A Model For Other States And The Federal Government, Bruce Turcott, Daniel Shortt

Washington Law Review

This Article examines the process and outcomes of cannabis legalization in Washington State, offering insights for other states and potential federal legalization schemes. It begins with an overview of the campaign that led to the passage of Initiative 502 (I-502), detailing the initiative’s structure, which draws from liquor licensing laws. The Article then explores the establishment of a recreational cannabis market from scratch, focusing on agency structure, federal responses such as the Cole Memorandum, and the state’s regulatory framework aimed at preventing adverse outcomes.

Additionally, this Article highlights Washington’s efforts to promote social equity, emphasizing that I-502 was framed as …

Delivery Drivers Deserve The Whole Package: Package Delivery Drivers And The Transportation Worker Exemption Of The Federal Arbitration Act, Evan Kelly

Catholic University Law Review

Package delivery is a ubiquitous part of modern American life, and package delivery driving is a fast-growing occupation in the United States. These drivers work long hours in a fast-paced, highly regimented environment, and because of arbitration agreements they are made to sign, they often cannot go to court to settle disputes with their employers. Under the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA), these arbitration agreements are generally “valid, irrevocable, and enforceable.” However, the FAA includes an exemption (known as the “Transportation Worker exemption”) that excludes arbitration agreements in “contracts of employment for seamen, railroad employees, or any other class of worker …

Pleading With Particularity: Decoding When Computer Fraud And Abuse Act Claims Must Comply With Rule 9(B), Brooke R. Newman

Pepperdine Law Review

The primary tool for litigating cybercrimes is the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA), which Congress enacted in 1984 following increased computer misuse. Since its debut, the CFAA has undergone a series of amendments. The most noteworthy of which for civil litigators came in 1994 when Congress enacted a civil penalty for cybercrimes. Part of this penalty includes 18 U.S.C. § 1030(a)(4), which prohibits fraudulent conduct in connection with computer usage. In recent years, litigators have weaponized § 1030(a)(4) to challenge a variety of conduct, most of which has nothing to do with cybercrimes. These filings have split district courts …

Is Snap Removal Unconstitutional?, Ryan H. Nelson

Pepperdine Law Review

In snap removal, an individual removes a civil action to federal district court from the courts of a state where one or more putative defendants are a citizen before any such putative defendant has been served with process. By removing before any forum-state defendants are served, the removal arguably eludes the forum-defendant rule, which prohibits removal based solely on the diversity or alienage jurisdiction statute if “any of the parties in interest properly . . . served as defendants is a citizen of the State in which such action is brought.” For years, federal judges and legal academics have disputed …

Why Did The Lawyer Cross The Road? The Aba's Proposal To Overhaul Model Rule 5.5 And Permit Cross-Border Practice, Paula Frederick

Akron Law Review

The American Bar Association (ABA) is considering a proposal to amend Model Rule 5.5, which would allow lawyers licensed in any U.S. jurisdiction to practice law across state lines under specific conditions. This "driver's license" model aims to address current regulatory barriers by permitting lawyers to provide legal services nationwide, provided they disclose their home jurisdiction, comply with local rules, and meet certain ethical standards. Motivated by the pandemic, technological changes, and the uniform bar exam, the proposal seeks to improve access to legal services, reduce regulatory burdens, and offer clients greater choice of counsel, though it faces potential challenges …

Fixing Double Patenting, Mark A. Lemley, Lisa Ouellette

American University Law Review

The U.S. patent doctrine of "double patenting" allows an inventor to obtain many patents on obvious variants of the same invention as long as they file a "terminal disclaimer" agreeing that all of these patents will expire simultaneously. Two recent limitations on double patenting practice have led

to vigorous protest from the patent bar. First, the Federal Circuit held in In re Cellect that patents tied by double patenting must expire on the same day, even if one of the patents has received a patent term adjustment giving it a more-than-twenty-year term. Second, the USPTO proposed a rule (since withdrawn) …

Remote Work's Complication Of Companies' Personal Jurisdiction Standings: Morphing The Historical Analysis To Fit Modern Remote Work Characteristics, Lindarose Piccolo

American University Business Law Review

Personal jurisdiction ensures that the proper forum adjudicates civil disputes to prevent burdening a defendant with litigating in inconvenient forums. International Shoe Co. v. Washington established that defendants must have minimum contacts with the forum state such that exercise of jurisdiction comports with fair play and substantial justice. Following International Shoe, many cases have provided examples of the minimum contacts that would establish personal jurisdiction.

However, the ability for employees to work remotely from their homes using technological devices and software has exponentially increased over the past five years. Because of the increased ability to work remotely from anywhere in …

Through A Glass Darkly: How Securities Disclosures Give A Distorted View Of The Economy, Gerald F. Davis

Seattle University Law Review

Our understanding of the American economy often relies on stylized facts derived from mandatory disclosures by listed corporations. Data vendors like Standard & Poor’s vacuum up 10Ks and proxy statements into databases, and scholars distill these into tentative maps. This may have been adequate for a postwar economy centered on asset-heavy manufacturers, but it is increasingly out of step with an information-based economy. Companies listed on the stock market are fewer in number and less representative than they were, light in tangible assets and people, and heavy on IP. Basic facts such as what industry they are in are increasingly …

The Great Writ Of Popular Sovereignty, William M.M. Kamin

Scholarly Articles

American habeas corpus, long conventionally known as the Great Writ of Liberty, is more properly understood as the Great Writ of Popular Sovereignty—a tool for We the People to insist that when our agents in government exercise our delegated penal powers, they remain faithful to our sovereign will. Once we grasp this conceptual shift, the implications for the law of habeas are profound.

In the past fifteen years, novel archival research has shown the Great Writ of Liberty’s founding myth to be ahistorical—that ideas about sovereignty, rather than individual liberty, drove the common-law writ’s development in the centuries of English …

Table Of Contents, Seattle University Law Review

Seattle University Law Review

Table of Contents

Corporate Scenarios: Drawing Lessons From History, Madison Condon

Seattle University Law Review

As corporations are increasingly pressed to reveal information about their exposure to climate-related risks, they are often asked to undertake and disclose the outcome of “scenario analysis.” In this exercise, corporations, including financial institutions, examine how their business would fare under different pathways the future may take. One oft-used scenario, for example, is the International Energy Agency’s “Net-Zero by 2050: A Roadmap for the Energy Sector.” This Essay presents a history of the use of scenarios as a corporate planning tool, particularly in the oil industry, arguing that it is key for understanding our present moment and the role of …