State and Local Government Law Commons^™

A Whole Sale Or Wholesaling: Regulating The Wild West Of Real Estate Purchase Contract Resale, Rebecca Braun-Harrison

Oklahoma Law Review

No abstract provided.

Solving The Procedural Puzzles Of The Texas Heartbeat Act And Its Imitators: The Limits And Opportunities Of Offensive Litigation, Howard M. Wasserman, Charles W. Rhodes

American University Law Review

The Texas Heartbeat Act, enacted in 2021 as Senate Bill 8 (S.B. 8), prohibits abortions following detection of a fetal heartbeat, a constitutionally invalid ban under current Supreme Court precedent. But the method of enforcement in the Texas law is unique—it prohibits enforcement by government officials in favor of private civil actions brought by “any person,” regardless of injury. Texas sought to burden reproductive-health providers and rights advocates with costly litigation and potentially crippling liability.

In a series of articles, we explore how S.B. 8's reliance on exclusive private enforcement at the expense of public enforcement creates procedural and jurisdictional …

Butler V. Gavek, 245 A.3d 750 (R.I. 2021), David Braga

Roger Williams University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Stopping The Spin: Reforming The Rhode Island State Ethics Commission And The Revolving Door Statute, Samuel Weathers

Roger Williams University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Is The Shipwreck I Found In Lake Michigan Mine? Great Lakes Shipwreck Legal Research Basics And Sources, Kincaid C. Brown

Law Librarian Scholarship

There have been approximately 6,000 shipwrecks claiming an estimated 30,000 lives in the Great Lakes and new shipwrecks continue to be located, such as the recently discovered Atlanta. There are many opportunities for divers, boaters, and other users of the Great Lakes to come across found and new shipwrecks. This article discusses the basic framework of federal, state, and other law governing these shipwrecks.

Requiring Majority Winners For Congressional Elections: Harnessing Federalism To Combat Extremism, Edward B. Foley

Lewis & Clark Law Review

Congress should enact a law requiring a candidate for a seat in Congress to receive a majority of votes in order to win the election. Congress should let states determine what particular procedure to use to determine whether a candidate wins a majority, as there are significantly different methods of identifying a majority winner. While this simple piece of legislation might seem inconsequential—many Americans assume, erroneously, that elections already require majority winners—it in fact would cause states to undertake a form of experimentation in the details of electoral system design that would have the effect of counteracting the threat that …

One Step Further For Protection: Why Oregon Should Adopt Additional Requirements For The Appointment Of Counsel To Youths Accused Of Crime, Ivy-Rose Kramer

Lewis & Clark Law Review

Current procedures for interrogating and investigating youths accused of crime do not provide sufficient protection for youths and their rights. Oregon should follow the example of other states that have adopted greater protections for youths—beyond what the Constitution currently requires. Specifically, Oregon should enact legislation that would provide counsel to youths who are (1) detained and being investigated based on probable cause of criminal activity; (2) undergoing custodial interrogation; and (3) in possession of property law enforcement wishes to search. This consultation with counsel should not be waivable. Such a law would counteract the harmful effects of disparate treatment and …

Sex, Money, And Free Speech: The Many Harms Of Fosta/Sesta, Desmond Mantle

CMC Senior Theses

This thesis tracks the development of the Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act/Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act, or FOSTA/SESTA, which became federal law in 2018. The law's passage followed as a natural consequence of popular concerns about human trafficking. Congress passed the legislation by large margins in both houses given bipartisan opposition to sex trafficking. This thesis identifies plausible reasons for the only two Senate votes against the bill: those of Senators Rand Paul and Ron Wyden. Though these senators came from opposite sides of the aisle, they shared concerns about the future of free speech online and the potential failure …

Disabled Litigants’ Standing Issue: Ensuring Rhode Island’S Standing Doctrine Is Accessible To Ada Tester Litigants, Colten H. Erickson

Roger Williams University Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Ret. Bd. Of The Emples. Ret. Sys. Of R.I. V. Randall, 249 A.3d 629 (R.I. 2021), Yee Yee Myint

Roger Williams University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Rhode Island And Sports Law, Adam Epstein

Roger Williams University Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Future Of Electronic Wills In Rhode Island After Covid-19, Crystal L. Collins.

Roger Williams University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Interest-Based Incorporation: Statutory Realism Exploring Federalism, Delegation, And Democratic Design, Sheldon Evans

Faculty Publications

Statutory interpretation is a unique legal field that appreciates fiction as much as fact. For years, judges and scholars have acknowledged that canons of interpretation are often based on erudite assumptions of how Congress drafts federal statutes. But a recent surge in legal realism has shown just how erroneous many of these assumptions are. Scholars have created a robust study of congressional practices that challenge many formalist canons of interpretation that are divorced from how Congress thinks about, drafts, and enacts federal statutes. This conversation, however, has yet to confront statutory incorporation, which describes when Congress incorporates state law into …

Table Of Contents, Seattle University Law Review

Seattle University Law Review

Table of Contents

A Cost To Bear—Environmental Contamination And Eminent Domain, Evan C. Heaney

Seattle University Law Review

This Note advocates for Washington courts to adopt a system that universally allows evidence of environmental contamination on the private property taken in eminent domain proceedings. Part I of this Note discusses the history and progression of eminent domain and the broader constitutional roots of the Takings Clause. Part II explores Washington’s environmental remediation statute. Part III details the various approaches jurisdictions around the county have formulated to deal with this issue. Part IV argues Washington courts should adopt the inclusionary approach, which allows the introduction of environmental evidence in eminent domain proceedings.

Table Of Contents

Seattle University Law Review

Table of Contents

Madison 2.0—Applying The Constitution’S Taxing And Spending Clause To Revitalize American Federalism, Mohamed Akram Faizer

Seattle University Law Review

This article introduces the proposal entitled Madison 2.0 which calls for an enlightened federal government to enact legislation—using its broad ability to tax and spend for the general welfare—to revitalize, as opposed to undermine, American federalism. Part I discusses American Federalism today and the need for an updated approach. Part II explores the government's dysfunctional response to the Covid-19 pandemic. Part III proposes how to revitalize American federalism through the Spending Clause. Part IV discusses how to claw back funds in situations of state recalcitrance and replacing funds with a basic income. Lastly, this article concludes by explaining why the …

First Comes Love. Then Comes Marriage. Then Comes A Baby In A Baby Carriage: An Application Of Protective Surrogacy Laws To The Tarheel State, Justin Lo

Seattle University Law Review

Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) and determining parentage have a common feature: each is governed by state law or the lack of such laws. This lack of statutory regulations presents significant legal challenges to gay men who wish to start a family. Because same-sex male couples seeking to become fathers through ART and surrogacy are the most likely demographic to be impacted when determining parentage, laws that influence the direction of surrogacy will undeniably facilitate whether both males will be deemed a father. To provide same-sex male couples with a pathway to parenthood, North Carolina should (1) develop robust, protective surrogacy …

The Wild West Of Data Privacy: Why Rhode Island Needs To Enact Comprehensive Legislation To Protect Consumers’ Data, Candace Quinn

Roger Williams University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Changemakers: Master Of Studies In Law: 'Radical Imagination, Radical Listening', Roger Williams University School Of Law

Life of the Law School (1993- )

No abstract provided.

Complicated Mercy: Compensating The Wrongfully Convicted In Georgia, Elizabeth O'Roark

Georgia Law Review

An exoneree’s story does not end when they walk out of prison and back into society. After spending years in prison for a crime they did not commit, the exoneree must rebuild a life with years of lost income, little credit, and no retirement. Georgia is one of the few states that does not have a statute setting out how to fairly and efficiently compensate its exonerees. Exonerees must instead ask state representatives to present a resolution to the General Assembly. If the resolution passes through both chambers of the legislature, then the exoneree can receive some compensation for the …

Creating Oases Throughout America’S Food Deserts, Hannah M. Dahle

BYU Law Review

No abstract provided.

Dead Men Tell No Tales: Arkansas’S Grave Failure To Honor Its Constituents’ Postmortem Quasi-Property Right, Mckenna Moore

Arkansas Law Review

It is doubtful that Hulon Rupert Austin woke up on the day of March 7, 1986 and expected it to be his last. March 7 was a typical day—a workday—that started with a simple drive to a job site with his co-worker. A day that began so unremarkably ended with his co-worker looking up from where he was working to see “Austin lying on the ground.”

The Roberts Court, State Courts, And State Constitutions: Judicial Role Shopping, Ariel L. Bendor, Joshua Segev

Journal of Law and Policy

In this Article we reveal a dual dilemma, both material and institutional, that the Supreme Court in its current composition faces when reviewing liberal state court decisions based on the state constitution. The Article further describes substantive and procedural tactics that the Court adopts to address this dilemma, and illustrates the arguments by analyzing a number of recent Supreme Court decisions. The two dilemmas, the combination of which serve as a “power multiplier,” of sorts, have arisen following the last three appointments to the Supreme Court, which resulted in a solid majority of conservative Justices nominated by Republican presidents. One …

Big Dreams And Pyramid Schemes: The Ftc’S Path To Improving Multi-Level Marketing Consumer Protections In Light Of Amg Capital Management And The 2016 Herbalife Settlement, Camille H. Mangiaratti

Journal of Law and Policy

Multi-level marketing, also known as “MLM,” is a type of sales business that relies on both sales to consumers and recruitment of sellers into the company’s tiered commission structure. MLMs are wildly and enduringly popular, especially because they claim to be a flexible and easy source of income for people who need it most. However, almost everyone who joins an MLM will lose money, and many MLMs are illegal pyramid schemes. Millions of Americans are harmed by MLMs every year. Despite this, the government does very little to punish MLMs who lie to prospective participants about their odds of success. …

A Guide To The 87th Texas Legislative Session, José Menéndez, Pearl D. Cruz

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

Challenges and potential solutions during the 87th Texas Legislative session.

The Euclid Proviso, Ezra Rosser

Washington Law Review

This Article argues that the Euclid Proviso, which allows regional concerns to trump local zoning when required by the general welfare, should play a larger role in zoning’s second century. Traditional zoning operates to severely limit the construction of additional housing. This locks in the advantages of homeowners but at tremendous cost, primarily in the form of unaffordable housing, to those who would like to join the community. State preemption of local zoning defies traditional categorization; it is at once both radically destabilizing and market responsive. But, given the ways in which zoning is a foundational part of the racial …

"Send Freedom House!": A Study In Police Abolition, Tiffany Yang

Washington Law Review

Sparked by the police killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, the 2020 uprisings accelerated a momentum of abolitionist organizing that demands the defunding and dismantling of policing infrastructures. Although a growing body of legal scholarship recognizes abolitionist frameworks when examining conventional proposals for reform, critics mistakenly continue to disregard police abolition as an unrealistic solution. This Essay helps dispel this myth of “impracticality” and illustrates the pragmatism of abolition by identifying a community-driven effort that achieved a meaningful reduction in policing we now take for granted. I detail the history of the Freedom House Ambulance Service, a Black civilian …

Standing By To Protect Child Abuse Victims: Utilizing Standby Counsel In Lieu Of Personal Cross-Examination, Claire Murtha

Dickinson Law Review (2017-Present)

Child abuse is a pervasive problem in the United States. Often, the abused child’s word is the only evidence to prove the abuse in court. For this reason, the child’s testimony is critical. Testifying can pose a challenge for the abused child who must face her abuser in the courtroom, especially if that abuser personally questions her.

The United States Supreme Court has recognized the legitimate and strong interest the state has in protecting the psychological and physical well-being of children. When a child will face significant trauma and cannot reasonably communicate in the courtroom, the child can be questioned …

Removing Roadblocks: Alternatives To Lawful Status And Social Security Number Requirements For Pennsylvania Driver’S Licenses, Miranda Sasinovic

Dickinson Law Review (2017-Present)

As part of their traditional state police powers, states determine the eligibility requirements for their driver’s licenses. Standard eligibility requirements include proof of age, residency, identity, and knowledge. In the 1990s, some states amended their vehicle codes to require proof of lawful status, effectively barring undocumented immigrants from obtaining driver’s licenses.

In response to inconsistent issuance and verification standards, Congress passed the REAL ID Act of 2005. The Act prohibits federal agencies from accepting state driver’s licenses for official purposes unless states comply with minimum issuance and verification standards. These standards include requirements to verify Social Security numbers and lawful …