Law and Gender Commons^™

Domestic Violence And Mediation: Responding To The Challenges Of Crafting Effective Screens, Jane C. Murphy, Robert Rubinson

All Faculty Scholarship

Over the last two decades, mediation of family law cases has become well-established in American courts. As mediation has grown, experts have recognized that power imbalances between couples may interfere with mediation. This imbalance is particularly evident where one partner has been abusive to the other. Widespread consensus has developed that decisions about whether mediation is appropriate are particularly crucial and delicate when domestic violence is present. Despite this consensus, there is evidence that courts are still ordering couples who have experienced domestic violence to mediate their family law disputes with little or not particularized examination of the couples' circumstances. …

Legal Images Of Fatherhood: Welfare Reform, Child Support Enforcement, And Fatherless Children, Jane C. Murphy

All Faculty Scholarship

This Article analyzes the issue of paternity disestablishment, an issue courts and legislatures have been struggling with over the last several years. For a variety of reasons explored in this Article, an increasing number of fathers have filed requests to set aside paternity orders seeking to be relieved of the legal obligations of fatherhood. As a result families have been destabilized and children are becoming fatherless. The implications for the future of the family are profound. Although some scholars have examined this phenomenon, none have addressed the link between paternity disestablishment and welfare reform.

This Article explores the law's evolving …

An Experiment In Integrating Critical Theory And Clinical Education, Margaret E. Johnson

All Faculty Scholarship

Critical theory is important in live-client clinical teaching as a means to achieve the pedagogical goals of clinical education. Feminist legal theory, critical race theory, and poverty law theory serve as useful frameworks to enable students to deconstruct assumptions they, persons within institutions, and broader society make about the students' clients and their lives. Critical theory highlights the importance of looking for both the "obvious and non-obvious relationships of domination." Thus, critical theory informs students of the presence and importance of alternative voices that challenge the dominant discourse. When student attorneys ignore or are unaware of such voices, other voices …

Gender And Globalization, Christine M. Chinkin

Book Chapters

Christine Chinkin examines the impact of globalization on the public/private dichotomy and the status of women. She begins by tracing how traditional power structures, organized around the public/private division, lead to the subordination of women. The weakening of the nation-state at the end of the twentieth century offers a potential challenge to this gender hierarchy, but the emergence of economic forces associated with globalization and the transition to free market economies in the countries of the former Soviet bloc threaten women's struggle for equality.

Using Postmodern Feminist Legal Theory To Interrupt The Reinscription Of Sex Stereotypes Through The Institution Of Marriage, Jessica Knouse

UC Law SF Journal on Gender and Justice

The institution of marriage has long been an engine of the subordination of women, the normalization of relationships and the repression of individual desires. This Article suggests that the time has come to dismantle the institution and end its deleterious impact upon society. The Article begins by defining "sex" and "sex stereotypes" and by examining, from various feminist perspectives, the influence of sex stereotypes upon individual identity creation. The Article proceeds to review the historical development of marriage, illustrating that marriage inevitably reinscribes sex stereotypes, and arguing that the institution and the stereotypes are presently so intertwined that disaggregation is …

Asking Adolescents: Does A Mature Minor Have A Right To Participate In Health Care Decisions, Cara D. Watts

UC Law SF Journal on Gender and Justice

Many children approaching the age of majority struggle with severe and sometimes terminal illnesses. Does such a minor possess a Fourteenth Amendment Due Process right to participate in medical decisions concerning her care, or is her fate left solely in the hands of her parents and the State? This Note examines the health care rights of minors and attempts to give a voice to children, a vast, silent population in this country, in the medical care context. After examining such fundamental cases as Belotti v. Baird, this Note finds numerous exceptions, crafted by the courts over several decades in a …

Criminal Prosecution And Civil Remedies For Victims Of Sexual Offenses: Amendment Of The Rape Shield Law, Carol E. Jordan, Elizabeth S. Hughes, Mary Jo Gleason

Office for Policy Studies on Violence Against Women Publications

In 2003, the Kentucky Supreme Court adopted the amended KRS 412, effectively making the language of KRE 412 consistent with the analogous Federal Rule of Evidence 412. Now, as in federal court, the provisions of the Rape Shield Law apply in both criminal and civil cases to govern when and how evidence of a victim's alleged sexual behavior or sexual predisposition may be introduced. The article describes the intent of the original Rape Shield Law and the implications of its amended version in both civil and criminal cases.

An Implied Warranty Of Freedom From Sexual Harassment: The Solution For Harassed Tenants Where The Fair Housing Act Has Failed, Theresa Keeley

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

Although sexual harassment in the workplace is recognized as a problem, sexual harassment in housing has largely been ignored. When confronting sexual harassment in housing, courts have borrowed standards for sexual harassment in the workplace. Criticism of this practice exists; however this Article examines the real source of the problem: bringing sexual harassment claims under the Fair Housing Act. Specifically, this Article shows how and why the Fair Housing Act fails to address the problem of sexual harassment in housing. To remedy this failure, this Article proposes an "implied warranty of freedom from sexual harassment" that both restores the tenant's …

Women In Science: Biological Factors Should Not Be Ignored, Kingsley R. Browne

Cardozo Journal of Equal Rights & Social Justice

The article argues that biological and psychological differences between sexes contribute to the underrepresentation of women in certain fields, challenging the assumption that equal representation is always the appropriate goal. It critiques the notion that disparities necessarily indicate systemic flaws, emphasizing that freedom of choice should allow for different occupational outcomes without implying discrimination.

A Woman Of Property: From Being It To Controlling It - A Bicentennial Perspective On Women And Ohio Property Law, 1803 To 2003, Sarah Miller Little

UC Law SF Journal on Gender and Justice

This Article reviews the development of women's legal rights, by tracing the right of a married woman to own and control real property from after the American Revolution to the present. Early feminist leaders were much of the impetus for change in women's real property laws. The Article examines the early feminist movement in Ohio, and the profound effects of the many, courageous feminist leaders on Ohio property law.

Instructions In Inequality: Development, Human Rights, Capabilities, And Gender Violence In School, Erika George

Michigan Journal of International Law

This Article argues that the international community's gender equality targets will not be realized by 2015 because the problems associated with sexual violence against girls in schools are situated at an intersection of contested conceptual divides between human rights (civil and political liberties) and development aims (social and economic needs). Cracks in the conceptual foundations of both the liberal and utilitarian theories of justice and equality, which support traditional human rights advocacy and economic development plans, respectively render each approach inadequate to fully identify and address the grave danger sexual violence and harassment in schools pose to educational equality. In …

Two Ways To End A Marriage: Divorce Or Death, Laura A. Rosenbury

UF Law Faculty Publications

Default rules governing property distribution at divorce and death are often identified as one of the primary benefits of marriage. This Article examines these default rules in all fifty states, exposing the ways property distribution differs depending on whether the marriage ends by divorce or death. The result is often counter-intuitive: in most states, a spouse is likely to receive more property if her marriage ends by divorce than if the marriage lasts until "death do us part." This difference can be explained in part by the choices of feminist activists over the past thirty-five years: feminists played a large …

Law Is Not Enough, Berta E. Hernández-Truyol

UF Law Faculty Publications

In 1995, the United Nations reported “in no society today do women enjoy the same opportunities as men.” The condition and status of women worldwide was one of social, political, educational, legal, and economic inequality. Ten years later, women's economic disparities persist. In Gender Injustice: An International Comparative Analysis of Equality in Employment, Dr. Anne-Marie Mooney Cotter focuses on women's global inequality in employment. The book's in-depth examination of women's second-class, subordinated status in the workplace around the world provides invaluable insights into the complexities of gender inequality.

Raza Womyn Engaged In Love And Revolution: Chicana/Latina Student Activists Creating Safe Spaces Within The University, Anita Tuerina Revilla

Cleveland State Law Review

My own and other research shows that Queer/Chicana/Latina college students who come from disadvantaged backgrounds or marginalized communities to the university often engage in a process of resistance to oppressive practices and environments within those institutions, even while continuing their education. While a higher education can be a form of liberation for many of these women, it can simultaneously be oppressive to some. As women learn how to negotiate both privilege and oppression in the college setting, they develop tools for understanding their conditions. One of these tools is political and social consciousness, which is often internalized and acted upon …

Changes In Gender Ideology Among Professional Women And Men In Cuba Today, Marta Nunez Sarmiento

Cleveland State Law Review

This presentation summarizes the reflections of what it means to be women and men in Cuba today, among a group of Havana professionals. I asked them to emphasize the influence in this process of women's employment and decision making among women, two citizen rights which have been strongly promoted in Cuba in the last forty years. I also asked them to think about the socialization processes, which took place in Cuba and which contributed to these changes. Therefore, this paper is divided into two main topics: First, changes in gender ideology among Cuban professional men and women under the influence …

How The Contentious Nature Of Federal Judicial Appointments Affects "Diversity" On The Bench, Theresa M. Beiner

Law Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Female Judging, Theresa M. Beiner

Law Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Judicial Deference Or Bad Law? Why Massachusetts Courts Will Not Impose Municipal Liability For Failure To Enforce Restraining Orders, Carolyn Grose

Faculty Scholarship

The authors take up the challenge that was thrown down by the Ford v. Town of Grafton court. The first part of this Article examines the somewhat tortured and fascinating history of the Massachusetts Tort Claims Act. It then describes the arguments Catherine Ford made, how the court responded, and why it responded as it did. In Part II, Massachusetts' strong commitment to protecting and assisting victims of domestic violence is examined. A variety of legislative, executive and judicial initiatives that demonstrate commitment are described, but the Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 209A, the restraining order statute, is emphasized. The article …

Navigating Diverse Identities: Building Coalitions Through Redistribution Of Academic Capital--An Exercise In Praxis, Aya Gruber

Publications

No abstract provided.

Dealing With Hate In The Feminist Classroom, Kathryn M. Stanchi

Scholarly Works

The goals of this essay are two-fold. First, by describing the experience I had in Law and Feminism, the essay will show how hateful and harassing speech in a seminar devoted to issues of gender, race and sexuality can rob students of important educational experiences. The story of my class is meant to remind legal educators and administrators of the concrete harm, both personal and educational, of hate speech. Too often the hate speech debate focuses on the theoretical and the abstract; participants forget that the principles at stake have demonstrable consequences for real people.

Second, while this essay does …

Discrimination In Our Midst: Law School's Potential Liability For Employment Practices, Ann C. Mcginley

Scholarly Works

Studies and articles examining tenured, tenure-track and contract faculty in law schools have exposed the inequalities that women face when compared with their male counterparts. This article asks the legal academic community to consider these conditions in light of established Title VII doctrine which forbids discrimination because of sex. This article offers a hypothetical about the fictitious National Law School, whose labor relationships mimic those of many real law schools in a number of ways. Based on the facts in this hypothetical, the article explores different possible causes of action, either systemic or individual, that employees could reasonably win against …

Book Review, Walking A Gantlet: Nielsen’S License To Harass, Lynne Henderson

Scholarly Works

No abstract provided.

Check Only One: M/F/Other, Julie Shapiro

Faculty Articles

In this extremely brief essay, the author questions Lawrence Summers' generalizations about women in science. We live in a world of uncertainty about the boundaries of gender. Transgendered and intersexed individuals challenge us to step away from strict categories of men and women.

The Lengthening Shadow Of Androcentrism, Bryan K. Fair

Cardozo Journal of Equal Rights & Social Justice

The article critiques Harvard President Lawrence H. Summers' hypotheses on the underrepresentation of women in high-end science and engineering jobs, arguing that his views are based on stereotypes and overlook historical and systemic factors. The author contests Summers' points, emphasizing that gender disparities stem from deeply entrenched male privilege and legal structures rather than women's choices or aptitude. The analysis highlights the role of historical discrimination and legal cases in perpetuating gender caste.

Female Circumcision In Africa: Procedures, Rationales, Solutions, And The Road To Recovery, Shayla Mcgee

Washington and Lee Journal of Civil Rights and Social Justice

No abstract provided.

Refocusing On Women: A New Direction For Policy And Research On Intimate Partner Violence, Lisa A. Goodman, Deborah Epstein

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

A key question facing researchers of intimate partner violence is how the real-life contexts of victims’ lives should affect state policy. The bulk of recently adopted and much touted criminal justice reforms have taken the form of relatively inflexible, one-size-fits-all mandatory responses focused on counseling, restraining, and punishing batterers. Even the protection order system relies far more heavily on batterer treatment programs than on victim support to prevent future violence. Together, these reforms have largely sacrificed the contextualized, woman-centered focus from which the anti-domestic violence movement originated. Recently, however, a small body of research has emerged indicating that responding flexibly …

The Ictr And Justice For Rwandan Women, Mark A. Drumbl

Scholarly Articles

In this article, I hope to spring from the discussion of the ICTR's gender jurisprudence to a broader conversation that touches on the relationship between this jurisprudence and life for Rwandan women today. In particular, I'd like to consider three questions: What do both the gender jurisprudence and the jurisprudence at large of the ICTR mean to women, individually and collectively, in Rwanda? How do other modalities of accountability that operate in postgenocide Rwanda respond to gender violence and promote gender equality? What is the situation of Rwandan women today?

The Causation Equation: Summers On Science, Owen D. Jones

Cardozo Journal of Equal Rights & Social Justice

No abstract provided.

Annotated Legal Bibliography On Gender

Cardozo Journal of Equal Rights & Social Justice

No abstract provided.

The Political Science Of Hormone Folklore, Rebecca M. Young

Cardozo Journal of Equal Rights & Social Justice

No abstract provided.