Law and Society Commons^™

Resource Parity For Defense Counsel And The Struggle Between Public Choice And Public Ideals, Ronald F. Wright

ExpressO

The quality of criminal defense counsel desperately needs improving. The strategy this article explores is not a change in the legal standard governing ineffective assistance of counsel claims, or a change in the Supreme Court's reasoning, but something far more fundamental: money. I ask whether it is feasible to link the funding available for defense lawyers to the money that the government spends on prosecution lawyers - in other words, parity of resources.

For reasons described in this article, resource parity will probably not come from the courts, at least not if they act alone. Major funding changes like this …

Our Supermajoritarian Constitution, John O. Mcginnis, Michael B. Rappaport

Articles

No abstract provided.

3rd Annual Open Government Summit: Access To Public Records Act & Open Meetings Act, 2001, Department Of The Attorney General, State Of Rhode Island

School of Law Conferences, Lectures & Events

No abstract provided.

Heci V. Neel: Application Of The Discovery Rule To Damages Arising Out Of Oil And Gas Leases., L. Melanie Martin

St. Mary's Law Journal

Texas landowners face a heavy burden in bringing claims for damages arising out of inherently undiscoverable damages to mineral estates because the statute of limitations starts at the time of injury rather than the time of discovery. Previously, courts adopted the discovery rule as an exception to the statute of limitations, effectively stalling the starting point of the statute of limitations. A two-pronged threshold inquiry is held before the application of the discovery rule. First, the court must determine if the injury is inherently undiscoverable or not detected despite the use of due diligence. Secondly, there must be objectively verifiable …

Still A Solution: In Further Support Of Spending Supermajority Rules, John O. Mcginnis, Michael B. Rappaport

Articles

No abstract provided.

Supermajority Rules As A Constitutional Solution, John O. Mcginnis, Michael B. Rappaport

Articles

No abstract provided.

The Lautenberg Amendment: Congress Hit The Mark By Banning Firearms From Domestic Violence Offenders Comment., Polly Mccann Pruneda

St. Mary's Law Journal

Immediate action is critical to preserve the goals of the Lautenberg Amendment to protect victims of domestic violence from future abuse and their abusers. Incidents of gun-related domestic violence are not uncommon in the United States. Statistics show that domestic violence takes one life every three days and the combination of guns and domestic violence cause more deaths than incidents which are not associated with guns. In 1996, Congress attempted to find a solution to this problem. The Lautenberg Amendment, enacted pursuant to Congress’ Commerce Clause power, seeks to protect individuals from gun related injury or death occurring within domestic …

Bowers V. Hardwick, Romer V. Evans, And The Meaning Of Anti-Discrimination Legislation, Marc A. Fajer

Articles

No abstract provided.

Presidential Interpretation Of The Constitution, David A. Strauss

Cardozo Law Review

May the executive branch disagree with the Supreme Court's interpretation of the Constitution, and act in accordance with its own view? We tend to associate this question with a few great constitutional crises. Disputes between President Jackson and the Supreme Court over the Bank of the United States; between President Lincoln and the Court over slavery; and between President Franklin Roosevelt and the Court over New Deal legislation, all produced memorable statements by presidents claiming a broad power to act independently from the Court's decisions. The school desegregation controversy was between the Court and some state governments, not the President, …

In Appreciation Of Jack Burns, Frank J. Macchiarola

Cardozo Law Review

Jacob Burns was a good and gentle man. He did many fine and generous things in his lifetime, but the qualities that best describe him are the personal ones-good and gentle. The gentleness did not mean that he was unable to handle difficult matters or to exert the kind of strength that gave others solace. It meant that through these situations there was a contentment that always reassured the rest of us. The gentleness came from his concern for others and in the way he approached people. It was always thrilling for me to see Jack Burns in the company …

Defendants' Brief In The School Finance Case: Mcduffy V. Robertson: An Excerpt And A Summary, Douglas H. Wilkins, Robert H. Blumenthal, Mary Connaughton

Faculty Scholarship

The wisdom of promoting public education in the Commonwealth was recognized by the earliest settlers, the framers of the Constitution, and many subsequent legislatures, officials, educators and citizens. The opinions of the Department, the Secretary of Education, the Governor and various educators, contained in the stipulation, demonstrate that a policy of supporting public education is as important today as ever.²

The implementation of this policy goal by the Legislature and municipalities involves choices that are at the heart of representative government: how much public money to raise, how best to allocate the money among education and the many other …

Capital Punishment: A Critique Of The Political And Philosophical Thought Supporting The Justices' Positions., Samuel J.M. Donnelly

St. Mary's Law Journal

Since Gregg v. Georgia, the Supreme Court has developed what could be described as a subparadigm for capital punishment. This subparadigm is now at a point of crisis for two enduring and mutually supporting reasons. The dissents by Justice Brennan and Justice Marshall represent the convergence of the better modern thought in regard to capital punishment. Even with the retirement of both Justices, the criticism found in their dissenting opinions presents a continuing challenge to the plurality’s position. Those using the plurality’s rhetoric are now split into two groups. Justices Blackmun and Stevens regularly vote against capital punishment, while focusing …

Hazardous Chemicals In The Workplace: The Employer's Obligation To Inform Employees And The Community., Nelson A. Clare

St. Mary's Law Journal

Significant changes have recently occurred in reporting requirements for employers who have hazardous chemicals in their workplaces. The amended Federal Hazard Communication Standard requires private employers, engaged in a business using hazardous chemicals, to communicate to employees the potential hazards. The Standard requires employers to use: 1) a Hazard Communication Program, 2) labels and other forms of warning, 3) material safety data sheets, and 4) information and training about hazardous chemicals. Local and state governments must compare and reconcile the various and complex provisions relating to the Standard to ensure compliance with all requirements of the respective laws. The Texas …

Take-Or-Pay Provisions: Major Problems For The Natural Gas Industry Comment., David L. Roland

St. Mary's Law Journal

A prompt solution to the take-or-pay problem is vital to the survival of the natural gas industry. Due to the increasingly turbulent and unpredictable natural gas market, most natural gas producers include a take-or-pay provision in their gas purchase contracts. Take-or-pay provisions require a pipeline company to either take an amount of natural gas from the producer or the company must pay for the specified amount. The market, however, has changed and the demand for natural gas declined. The demand can be partly attributed to the energy crisis of a decade ago. As a result of the crisis, consumers are …

Judicial Protection Of Minorities, Terrance Sandalow

Articles

In United States v. Carolene Products Co., Justice Stone suggested by indirection that there "may be narrower scope for operation of the presumption of constitutionality" when courts are called upon to determine the validity "of statutes directed at particular religious . . . or national . . . or racial minorities."' In such cases, he explained, "prejudice against discrete and insular minorities may be a special condition, which tends seriously to curtail the operation of those political processes ordinarily to be relied upon to protect minorities, and which may call for a correspondingly more searching judicial inquiry."' Forty years later, …

Legislation And The Environment: Individual Rights And Government Accountability, Richard L. Ottinger

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

Recent public concern with the pollution threat has generated a rash of suggested solutions. Within the past year councils, agencies, advisory commissions, and billion-dollar programs have been urged upon us. Reorganizations and reorderings of priorities have been called for. The question remains, however, whether this welter of proposals squarely attacks the real problem-the fact that all of our institutions are rooted in the notions of inexhaustible supply and limitless ability to repair. The answer can be found only by examining specific conflicts between technology and environment and analyzing the way our institutions attempt to resolve them.

The Balance Sheet Of Law And Religion, Frank E. Horack Jr.

Articles by Maurer Faculty

No abstract provided.