Public Law and Legal Theory Commons^™

Outcome Prediction In The Practice Of Law, Mark K. Osbeck, Michael Gilliland

Articles

Business forecasters typically use time-series models to predict future demands, the forecasts informing management decision making and guiding organizational planning. But this type of forecasting is merely a subset of the broader field of predictive analytics, models used by data scientists in all manner of applications, including credit approvals, fraud detection, product-purchase and music-listening recommendations, and even the real-time decisions made by self-driving vehicles. The practice of law requires decisions that must be based on predictions of future legal outcomes, and data scientists are now developing forecasting methods to support the process. In this article, Mark Osbeck and Mike Gilliland …

Why Is It Wrong To Punish Thought?, Gabriel S. Mendlow

Articles

It’s a venerable maxim of criminal jurisprudence that the state must never punish people for their mere thoughts—for their beliefs, desires, fantasies, and unexecuted intentions. This maxim is all but unquestioned, yet its true justification is something of a mystery. In this Essay, I argue that each of the prevailing justifications is deficient, and I conclude by proposing a novel one. The proposed justification captures the widely shared intuition that punishing a person for her mere thoughts isn’t simply disfavored by the balance of reasons but is morally wrongful in itself, an intrinsic (i.e., consequence-independent) injustice to the person punished. …

Main Tendencies Of The Development Of Law In The Present Day, M.A. Ahmedshaeva

Review of law sciences

The article analyzes the place and role of law in the life of modern society and the tendencies in its development from the point of view of the module of the Theory of State and Law. On the basis of today’s realities, the principle and contents of such basic trends in the development of law as the rule of law, the priority of international norms, the provision of human rights, the increase in the role and significance of law in the system of sources of law are revealed. Also, tendencies of development of law in Uzbekistan are revealed in the …

Interaction Of State Structures And Society As The Main Factor For The Effective Functioning Of Civil Society, A. Xudaiberdieva

Review of law sciences

The article is focused on the interaction of civil society institutions within government organizations. Effective forms of interaction of civil society institutions with government organizations are examined through the prism of public control, mass media and citizens' appeals. Increasing the effectiveness of civil society leads to simultaneous increase in the efficiency of the state. The government focuses its efforts on performing strategically important functions such as defense, state security and citizens' security, foreign policy, formation of the stable financial and fiscal policy.

Lawmaking Expert Support: National And Foreign Experience, X. Xayitov

Review of law sciences

The article studies the importance of organizational and legal issues of expertise of draft laws in our country and foreign countries. At the same time, the peculiarities of examinations, subjects, as well as proposals for improving the organizational and legal mechanisms for the implementation of expertise have been developed

A (Re)Adoption Story: What Is Driving Adoptive Parents To Rehome Their Children And What Can Texas Do About It, Emma Martin

Texas A&M Law Review

Ava was adopted from Africa when she was four years old. She became the baby sister to two older brothers and the daughter to two loving, experienced parents. A year or two after Ava moved to America, she and her “forever family” attended a Colorado summer camp. All was seemingly well until the camp staff and the other families at camp started to notice something strange about the way Ava’s parents treated her compared to her brothers. After an activity, the parents greeted the brothers with an excited “did you have fun?” or “what did you learn?,” while the parents …

Things Invisible To See: State Action & Private Property, Joseph William Singer, Isaac Saidel-Goley

Texas A&M Law Review

This Article revisits the state action doctrine, a judicial invention that shields “private” or “non-governmental” discrimination from constitutional scrutiny. Traditionally, this doctrine has applied to discrimination even in places of public accommodation, like restaurants, hotels, and grocery stores. Born of overt racial discrimination, the doctrine has inflicted substantial injustice throughout its inglorious history, and courts have continuously struggled in vain to coherently apply the doctrine. Yet, the United States Supreme Court has not fully insulated “private” or “horizontal” relations among persons from constitutional scrutiny. The cases in which it has applied constitutional norms to non-governmental actors should be celebrated rather …

The Race Is On! Regulating Self-Driving Vehicles Before They Hit The Streets, Jack Liechtung

Brooklyn Journal of Corporate, Financial & Commercial Law

As the world braces itself for the unveiling of autonomous vehicles, the idea of regulation and oversight has gone largely undetected. Though some states have already begun enacting legislation ahead of the technology’s wide release, the regulatory landscape across the country is in disarray. It is imperative that both manufacturers and consumers be given some sort of uniform understanding as to how the automation is overseen throughout the manufacturing process and how liability will be levied in the case of inevitable mistakes on our nation’s roadways. This Note proposes that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration be responsible for providing …

Fourth Amendment Fairness, Richard M. Re

Michigan Law Review

Fourth Amendment doctrine is attentive to a wide range of interests, including security, informational privacy, and dignity. How should courts reconcile these competing concerns when deciding which searches and seizures are “unreasonable”? Current doctrine typically answers this question by pointing to interest aggregation: the various interests at stake are added up, placed on figurative scales, and compared, with the goal of promoting overall social welfare. But interest aggregation is disconnected from many settled doctrinal rules and leads to results that are unfair for individuals. The main alternative is originalism; but historical sources themselves suggest that the Fourth Amendment calls for …

A Lesson From Goodfellas: Why Current Illinois Consideration Based Pension Reform Proposals Still Fail, Lari A. Dierks

Northwestern Journal of Law & Social Policy

No abstract provided.

Legal Ethics And The Political Activity Of Government Lawyers, Andrew Martin

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

The ability to engage in political activity is an essential feature of a democratic society. However, the ability of government lawyers to do so is unclear. While most governments have passed legislation identifying permissible political activity of their employees, it is unclear how the professional obligations of lawyers apply in this context and how these professional obligations interact with this legislation. This article answers these questions. The duty of loyalty to the client requires most government lawyers to refrain from all political activity at the same level of government. The special professional obligations of Crown prosecutors require these lawyers to …

An Argument To The State Of Maine, The Town Of Wells, And Other Maine Towns Similarly Situated: Buy The Foreshore - Now, Orlando E. Delogu

Maine Law Review

This paper has its roots in the finality of what have come to be called the Moody Beach decisions. In the last of these two cases, Maine's Supreme Judicial Court, sitting as the Law Court, held that the public's right to use the intertidal zone was limited to those uses and activities spelled out in the Colonial Ordinance of 16411647: “We agree with the Superior Court's declaration of the state of the legal title to Moody Beach. Long and firmly established rules of property law dictate that the plaintiff oceanfront owners at Moody Beach hold title in fee to the …

Nomination And Confirmation Of Supreme Court Justices: Some Personal Observations, Joseph L. Rauth Jr.

Maine Law Review

The following remarks were delivered on October 13, 1992, on the occasion of the first Frank M. Coffin Lecture on Law and Public Service, henceforth to be an annual event at the University of Maine School of Law. The speech was written by the late Joseph L. Rauh, Jr., who died a few weeks before the speech was to be given. The speech was presented by his widow, Olie Rauh, and their son, Michael Rauh.

A Review Of Various Actions By The Federal Bureau Of Investigation And Department Of Justice In Advance Of The 2016 Election, Office Of The Inspector General, U.S. Department Of Justice

United States Department of Justice: Publications

The Department of Justice (Department) Office of the Inspector General (OIG) undertook this review of various actions by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Department in connection with the investigation into the use of a private email server by former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Clinton served as Secretary of State from January 21, 2009, until February 1, 2013, and during that time used private email servers hosting the @clintonemail.com domain to conduct official Department of State (State Department) business. In 2014, in response to a request from the State Department to Clinton for “copies of any Federal records …

Private Enforcement In The Public Sphere - Towards A New Model Of Residential Monitoring Of Local Governments, Omer Kimhi

Nevada Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Fiction In The Code: Reading Legislation As Literature, Thomas J. Mcsweeney

Georgia State University Law Review

One of the major branches of the field of law and literature is often described as “law as literature.” Scholars of law as literature examine the law using the tools of literary analysis. The scholarship in this subfield is dominated by the discussion of narrative texts: confessions, victim-impact statements, and, above all, the judicial opinion. This article will argue that we can use some of the same tools to help us understand non-narrative texts, such as law codes and statutes.

Genres create expectations. We do not expect a law code to be literary. Indeed, we tend to dissociate the law …

Restraining Forced Marriage, Lisa V. Martin

Nevada Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Exploring Creative Problem Solving In Public Policy, Jade A. Costello

Creativity and Change Leadership Graduate Student Master's Projects

This project explores the connection between creativity and public policy-making through guided facilitation. In this exploration, there are several products that have been developed. The first is an index that provides definitions, charts, and process explanations for creativity, facilitation and public policy. The second is a completed facilitation plan that incorporates both the FourSight model for group facilitation (Miller, Vehar, Firestein, Thurber & Nielsen, 2011a) and Marvin Weisbord’s (1992) exploration of creative strategies for discovering common ground through policy conferences. The third product is an evaluation matrix, which would be used post-facilitation to understand the strengths and weaknesses from the …

Entering The Trump Ice Age: Contextualizing The New Immigration Enforcement Regime, Bill Ong Hing

Texas A&M Law Review

During the early stages of the Trump ICE age, America seemed to be witnessing and experiencing an unparalleled era of immigration enforcement. But is it unparalleled? Did we not label Barack Obama the “deporter-inchief?” Was it not George W. Bush who used the authority of the Patriot Act to round up nonimmigrants from Muslim and Arab countries, and did his ICE not commonly engage in armed raids at factories and other worksites? Are there not strong parallels that can be drawn between Trump enforcement plans and actions and those of other eras? What about the fear and hysteria that seems …

Plaintiff Cities, Sarah L. Swan

Vanderbilt Law Review

When cities are involved in litigation, it is most often as defendants. However, in the last few decades, cities have emerged as aggressive plaintiffs, bringing forward hundreds of mass-tort style claims. From suing gun manufacturers for the scourge of gun violence, to bringing actions against banks for the consequences of the subprime mortgage crisis, to initiating claims against pharmaceutical companies for opioid-related deaths and injuries, plaintiff cities are using litigation to pursue the perpetrators of the social harms that have devastated their constituents and their communities. Many courts and commentators have criticized these plaintiff city claims on numerous grounds. They …

Multiculturalism And The Bill Of Rights, Arthur Schlesinger Jr.

Maine Law Review

The Second Annual Frank M. Coffin Lecture on Law and Public Service was held on October 7, 1993. Professor Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr. presented "Multiculturalism and the Bill of Rights."

A Study In Sovereignty: Federalism, Political Culture, And The Future Of Conservatism, Clint Hamilton

Senior Honors Theses

This thesis confronts symptoms of an issue which is eroding at the principles of conservative advocacy, specifically those dealing with federalism. It contrasts modern definitions of federalism with those which existed in the late 1700s, and then attempts to determine the cause of the change. Concluding that the change was caused by a shift in American political identity, the author argues that the conservative movement must begin a conversation on how best to adapt to the change to prevent further drifting away from conservative principles.

They Say Emotional Support Dog, We Say Service Dog: Why The Americans With Disabilities Act Should Recognize Emotional Support Dogs As Service Animals, Chelsea Hernandez-Silk

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

This article explores the laws surrounding emotional support animals. Specifically, the author analyzes the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Fair Housing Act, and the Air Carrier Access Act. This article proposes that emotional support animals should be recognized under federal legislation because they perform specific tasks. Further, the author contends that greater awareness of the benefits of emotional support animals will alleviate public health and safety concerns.

Bargaining Towards Equality: The Effects Of Implicit Bias Training On Plea-Bargaining, John Dunnigan

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

This comment focuses on the racial discrimination that currently exists in the process of plea-bargaining. The author suggests an approach aimed to mend the widespread racial discrimination. Particularly, the author details why mandatory implicit bias trainings for prosecutors would benefit defendants. Implicit bias trainings would benefit the criminal justice system as a whole because they would bring awareness to the issue and give prosecutors the knowledge they need to act justly in the plea-bargaining process.

The Nature Of The Judicial Process: A Complex Systems Analysis Of Checks & Balances & Separation Of Powers In The Present Political Context, Marvin L. Astrada

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

Justice Cardozo’ s prescient inquiry in The Nature of the Judicial Process nearly a century ago merits revisiting and analysis in light of the present political climate. Under the new administration, the Executive Branch has characterized a judicial opinion from the U.S. District Court of Hawaii’ s as emanating from “an island in the Pacific,” suggested the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals should be fragmented, and subjected judges who disagree with the constitutionality of the administration’ s immigration policies to ridicule, vilification, or disparagement. When contemplating the nature of the judicial process, it is time to reassess the courts' systemic …

Table Of Contents

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

No abstract provided.

Letter From The Editor, Alexandra Ellmauer

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Fiery Furnace, Civil Disobedience, And The Civil Rights Movement: A Biblical Exegesis On Daniel 3 And Letter From Birmingham Jail, Jonathan C. Augustine

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

This essay was written in observance of the 50th anniversary of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s untimely assassination in April 1968. It highlights some of King’ s most important work during the American Civil Rights Movement in terms of its contemporary influence. As a focal thesis, this essay argues that King’ s famed Letter From Birmingham Jail—written during his April 1963 incarceration in Birmingham, Alabama, for deliberately refusing to follow what he morally deemed to be an “unjust law”—was predicated on the biblical foundation of civil disobedience exemplified in the famed story of Shadrack, Meshack, and Abednego, the …

Fostering Futures In Virginia: Why Is It Needed And What Does It Add To Existing Programs?, Karen E. Dottore

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

This article addresses the large population of foster children over the age of 13 who have the same need for stable outcomes as younger foster children. Older foster children face a greater challenge in achieving a stable outcome because of their age. With this challenge comes a greater likelihood of homelessness and involvement in the criminal justice system. This article examines the various programs in Virginia designed to address the challenges faced by older foster children, and particularly, a new program called Fostering Futures, which provides greater support specifically to older foster children.

Giles, The Confrontation Clause, And Inferred Intent: Do Abusers Forfeit Their Confrontation Rights By Engaging In Domestic Violence?, Evan Stastny

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

This Prosecuting those accused of domestic violence presents an array of challenges for prosecutors. These crimes are frequently a he-said, she-said situation with minimal physical evidence. This puts a heavy weight on victim testimony in order to obtain a conviction. Unfortunately, many victims refuse to testify at the outset, agree to testify then change their minds, or do not show up for the court date. Without that testimony, prosecutors will often drop the charges against an accused, possibly putting the victim at risk of another episode of violence.

Justice Scalia opened the door to the possibility of a prosecutor being …