Disaster Law Commons^™

After The Storm: Understanding And Improving U.S. And Texas Disaster Recovery And Hazard Mitigation Policies, Augustus L. Campbell

Texas A&M Journal of Property Law

Even as the number and effects of major disasters have steadily in- creased, government has played an increasingly large and central role in the response and recovery efforts after major disasters. Hurricane Harvey alone caused approximately $125 billion in economic losses. The federal government allocated over $136 billion in assistance for 2017 major disasters. Without adaptation and mitigation measures, researchers project that annual economic losses from storm, flood, and subsidence damage in the world’s coastal cities will average over $1 trillion per year by 2050. Even with adaptation and mitigation, annual losses in 2050 are still likely to exceed $60 …

"Hurricane" Sandy: A Case Study Of The Eastern District Of New York's Effort To Address Mass Litigation Resulting From The Effects Of Climate Change, Cheryl L. Pollak, Ramon E. Reyes Jr., Robyn Weinstein

Texas A&M Journal of Property Law

On the evening of October 29, 2012, “Hurricane” Sandy made land- fall on the New York coastline, battering the land with strong winds, torrential rain, and record-breaking storm surges. Homes and commercial structures were destroyed; roads and tunnels were flooded; and more than 23,000 people sought refuge in temporary shelters, with many others facing weeks without power and electricity. At the time, Sandy was heralded as one of the costliest hurricanes in the his- tory of the United States; the second costliest hurricane only to Katrina, which hit New Orleans in 2005. Unfortunately, recent experience with Hurricanes Florence, Maria, Harvey, …

Alternative Options For Resolution Of Property And Casualty Claims Arising Out Of Natural Disasters, Kimberly Taylor

Texas A&M Journal of Property Law

At the time of this Article, at least twelve large wildfires are burn- ing in California across more than 1,000 square miles, having damaged or destroyed over 2,000 structures, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE). At least eight people have lost their lives. The Kilauea volcano continues to erupt in Hawaii, having destroyed 600 homes. The 2018 hurricane season is in full swing, and while there have been no catastrophic events to date, residents in Houston, Florida, Puerto Rico, and elsewhere are still recovering from the devastating winds and rains wrought by Har- vey, …

Preparing For The Apocalypse: A Multi-Prong Proposal To Develop Countermeasures For Chemical, Biological, Radiological, And Nuclear Threats, Constance E. Bagley, Anat Alon-Beck

Cardozo Law Review

The false alarm of a Hawaiian nuclear attack in January 2018 is an example of the lack of U.S. preparedness for attacks using nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction. To address such threats, this Article proposes the establishment of a nationwide integrated defense of health countermeasures initiative (DHCI). DHCI is a multi-prong program to create a defensive triad comprising government, private industry, and academia to develop countermeasures for health threats posed by chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) attacks. Key elements of our proposal include the use of the government's Other Transaction Authority to simplify procurement arrangements, the establishment …

11th Marine Law Symposium: Legal Strategies For Climate Adaptation In Coastal New England 2018, Roger Williams University School Of Law

Marine Affairs Institute Conferences, Lectures, and Events

No abstract provided.

Law School News: Marine Law Symposium At Rwu Law To Focus On Legal Strategies For Climate Adaptation 11/08/2018, Edward Fitzpatrick

Life of the Law School (1993- )

No abstract provided.

Safety From Flawed Forensic Sciences Evidence, Boaz Sangero

Georgia State University Law Review

This article addresses the way to safety in the context of forensic sciences evidence. After presenting the current lack of safety, which I term “unsafety,” I raise some possible safety measures to contend with this. My suggestions are grounded on two bases: first, the specific analysis of each type of evidence in line with the most recent research on the subject; and second, modern safety theory and its application to the criminal justice system. It is important to stress that my proposals represent only some of the conceivable safety measures. Developing a comprehensive safety theory for the criminal justice system …

Taking Away The Tightrope: Fixing The National Flood Insurance Program Circus Via Eminent Domain, Alexander S. Mendelson

Brooklyn Law Review

As Harvey, Irma, Maria and other major 2017 storms washed upon the shores of the United States, millions of people across the nation in major cities and rural areas alike found their possessions, their homes, and sadly in many cases their lives, washed away with the storms. The destructive hurricane season came just as Congress began to consider the reauthorization of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), a federal system of subsidized flood insurance created to fill a void left by private insurers in the 1960s. Extreme weather events such as these illustrate the need for such a program and …

Judge Merhige's Environmental Decisions: Expert Handling Of Groundbreaking Environmental Rulings And Complex Federal Jurisdictional Questions, Jim Vines

University of Richmond Law Review

It is a special privilege for me to contribute to this edition of the University of Richmond Law Review honoring Judge Robert R. Merhige, Jr. Here, I seek to highlight his contributions to United States environmental law. In 1988 and 1989, I was one of two recent law school graduates who clerked for Judge Merhige (“please call me by my first name; it’s ‘Judge’”). The Judge was a larger than life figure. As a federal trial judge, historically important and intellectually challenging cases seemed to find their way into his court in a volume not matched in many other federal …

Spring Break In Puerto Rico: Helping Hurricane Victims 3-7-2018, Michael M. Bowden

Life of the Law School (1993- )

No abstract provided.

The Preparedness Piñata: Knocking Out The Problems In Texas's Emergency Management Legal Framework To Enhance Performance At The Local Level, William S. Gribble

Student Scholarship

Texas has a very comprehensive emergency management program that should be the envy of every state in the union. However, the manner in which we as a profession have achieved this may have inadvertently circumvented the proper administrative law procedures required in Texas. This has likely caused Texas to accidently engage in ad hoc rulemaking that--if left as is--could set the conditions to create a damaging friction between the state and municipal governments. That friction would erode the interoperability necessary to protect property and to save lives during a disaster. This Article provides: (1) a brief history of the development …

Restoring Power: A Law School’S Response To A Superstorm, Melissa H. Luckman, Patricia R. Sturm

Journal of Experiential Learning

No abstract provided.

Election Emergencies: Voting In The Wake Of Natural Disasters And Terrorist Attacks, Michael T. Morley

Scholarly Publications

Our electoral system is vulnerable to terrorist attacks, natural disasters, and other calamities that can render polling places inaccessible, trigger mass evacuations, or disrupt governmental operations to the point that conducting an election becomes impracticable. Many states lack “election emergency” laws that empower officials to adequately respond to these crises. As a result, courts are frequently called upon to adjudicate the consequences of election emergencies as a matter of constitutional law, often applying vague, subjective, ad hoc standards in rushed, politically charged proceedings. This Article examines the legal steps various government actors took in response to terrorist attacks and natural …

Vulnerability, Canadian Disaster Law And The Beast, Jocelyn Stacey

All Faculty Publications

This article is the first step in a major research project on Canadian disaster law. As such, the article's first objective is to map the terrain of the law in Canada that governs disasters. To provide context for this exercise in mapping, the article focuses on the circumstances surrounding the 2016 Fort McMurray wildfire ('the Beast'). Focusing on the 'the Beast' also gives rise to the article's second objective: a critical examination of the ways in which Canadian disaster law fails to reflect foundational social science research on disaster harm. The article argues that the current framework of Canadian law …

The Development Of Emergency Planning For People With Disabilities Through Ada Litigation, 51 J. Marshall L. Rev. 819 (2018), Barry Taylor

UIC Law Review

No abstract provided.

Sink Or Sell: Using Real Estate Purchase Options To Facilitate Coastal Retreat, Richard T. Henderson

Vanderbilt Law Review

Despite the political contention surrounding climate change, scientists almost universally agree that sea levels are rising and will continue to do so. In light of this inevitability, commentators and policymakers have begun to recognize that retreat-the withdrawal of people and development from coastal areas will become necessary, at least in certain areas. Even so, many still question the viability of retreat given the exorbitant economic, political, and legal costs it generally faces. In particular, hardline opposition to retreat runs strong among many coastal landowners. This Note introduces a device for implementing retreat with the potential to overcome these obstacles: real …

Alternative Spring Break 2018 Report, Roger Williams University School Of Law

School of Law Conferences, Lectures & Events

No abstract provided.

Saving Grace: The Role Of Religious Organizations In Disaster Recovery And The Constitutionality Of Federal Funding To Rebuild Them, Cheslea Till

SMU Law Review

Natural disasters are on the rise and religious organizations, the same organizations that came to victims’ rescue in the wake of the last natural disaster, are often left in the path of destruction. Under President Trump’s administration, FEMA recently amended its disaster assistance program to provide funding for religious organizations. Opponents argue this amendment is a violation of the Establishment Clause, while proponents argue the amended plan finally gives religious organizations the fair treatment they deserve. This new aid program needs to be modified and restricted. Though there is clear precedent to support providing some Public Assistance funding to religious …

Comment: The Flint Water Crisis: A National Warning Of Failing Infrastructure

Marquette Benefits and Social Welfare Law Review

I look at the Flint, Michigan Water Crisis from a combined perspective that broadens the scope of one of the worst manmade environmental disasters in the history of the United States. The goal of this examination is to bring attention to preventable environmental catastrophes, and put a spotlight on the policies and governing philosophies, which aggregated into neglect to the health of the people of Flint. I briefly analyze Michigan’s emergency manager law’s role in fostering the poor oversight that allowed the crisis to spiral out of control. I then pivot to the nation’s water infrastructure and regulatory environment at …

Is The "Act Of God" Dead?, Clifford J. Villa

Faculty Scholarship

In more than twenty years with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) before joining the legal academy, I saw many communities affected by fires, floods, hurricanes, earthquakes, and other natural disasters. However, I never saw a case where the act of God defense prevailed against environmental liability. Confirming this personal experience, I later learned that the number of reported cases where the act of God defense had prevailed against environmental liability, under all statutes and all federal circuits, was also exactly zero.

This raises two obvious questions: (1) why does the act of God defense so often fail? and (2) …