Family Law Commons^™

The Calculus Of Accommodation: Contraception, Abortion, Same-Sex Marriage, And Other Clashes Between Religion And The State, Robin F. Wilson

Scholarly Articles

This Article considers a burning issue in society today— whether, and under what circumstances, religious groups and individuals should be exempted from the dictates of civil law. The “political maelstrom” over the Obama administration’s sterilization and contraceptive coverage mandate is just one of many clashes between religion and the state. Religious groups and individuals have also sought religious exemptions to the duty to assist with abortions or facilitate samesex marriages. In all these contexts, religious objectors claim a special right of entitlement to follow their religious tenets, in the face of equally compelling claims that religious accommodations threaten access and …

Not All Defined Value Clauses Are Equal, Wendy G. Gerzog

All Faculty Scholarship

Defined value clauses used to value nonmarketable family limited partnership (FLP) interests create valuation distortions and other public policy issues. This paper describes these abuses and proposes the employment of restrictions similar to those applied to pecuniary formula marital deduction clauses.

The article explains how pecuniary formula marital deduction provisions created valuation distortions by allowing for undervaluation of the marital share that were remedied by the IRS’s Rev. Proc. 64-19 and the enactment of section 2056(b)(10). The article analyzes recent case law expanding the use of defined value clauses into the FLP area and criticizes the courts for not applying …

’Til Death Do Us Part? What Every Legal Practitioner Should Know About Premarital Agreements: A Law Student’S Perspective, Lauren Ludvigsen

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Student Publications

It is rare that a couple will enter into a marriage expecting to divorce each other. It may be the romance or the excitement of the impending nuptials, but couples do not include an expiration date on their marriage certificate. However, not all marriages last until “death do us part.” The United States Census Bureau conducted its first survey into marriages, divorces, and widowhood in America in 2009, finding that 9.2 of every 1,000 men and 9.7 of every 1,000 women over the age of fifteen reported being divorced. Despite these rates, research suggests that only one-fourth of Americans believe …

Family Law's Challenge To Religious Liberty, Raymond C. O'Brien

University of Arkansas at Little Rock Law Review

Over time, the definition of family has shifted from being premised upon kinship to legal status. In modern times, family structure is based more upon function than form, seeking to derive its status as a family from the subjective intent of its members to act as a family. Many early settlers in the colonial territories came to America to escape religious persecution and practice their own religion.

For that reason, biblical language and religious doctrine formed the basis for common law, statutes, and practice. Today, there remains the notion among many Americans that the law represents a divine plan and …

Family Law—Egg Donation And Stem Cell Research—Eggs For Sale: The Scrambled State Of Legislation In The Human Egg Market, Kitty L. Cone

University of Arkansas at Little Rock Law Review

Rapid expansion of technology in medicine over the last few decades has both enhanced our lives and complicated our laws. For example, thanks to advances in science and medicine, couples who were previously unable to reproduce are now able to do so with the help of donors, medical personnel, and a host of other middlemen facilitating the process. The growth of medical technology has also lead to the advent of using human eggs for medical research. However, despite competing for eggs from a small pool of willing donors, there is a disparity in the law between the treatment of human …

Making Sex The Same: Ending The Unfair Treatment Of Males In Family Law, Myrisha S. Lewis

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Can Wrongful Death Damages Recovered By A Married Person Be Separate Property Under California Law? , William A. Reppy Jr.

Pepperdine Law Review

No abstract provided.

Summary Of In Re Parental Rights As To J.D.N., 128 Nev. Adv. Op. 44, Timothy A. Wiseman

Nevada Supreme Court Summaries

The Court considered whether an objection to the admission of an entire set of documents as hearsay preserved the issue for appeal. Second, the Court considered what burden of proof should be used to rebut the parental-fault and child’s-best-interest presumptions found in NEV. REV. STAT. § 128.109. Finally, the Court considered if substantial evidence supported the decision to terminate parental rights and if the district court had considered all required factors.

Jack The Ripper Lives On… The Need To Recognize Prostitutes As Domestic Violence Victims, Luisa Johnson

Buffalo Journal of Gender, Law & Social Policy

No abstract provided.

The Federal Fortress Surrounding Police Liability For Failure To Enforce Protection Orders, Stephanie Smiertka

Buffalo Journal of Gender, Law & Social Policy

No abstract provided.

Socio-Economic Status And Legal Factors Affecting African American Fathers, Herbert Fain, Kimberly Fain

Buffalo Journal of Gender, Law & Social Policy

No abstract provided.

Ten Questions Every Cohabitant Should Think About Before Moving In, Robin F. Wilson

Scholarly Articles

None available.

Charting The Success Of Same-Sex Marriage Legislation, Robin F. Wilson

Scholarly Articles

None available.

Nature, Culture, And Social Engineering: Reflections On Evolution And Equality, Linda C. Mcclain

Faculty Scholarship

This book chapter explores evolution and morality by considering the appeal to nature, and in particular to how evolution has shaped female and male brains differently, to explain evident sex differences and the persistence of sex inequality. It uses as illustrative the popularizing accounts of male and female brains found in Louann Brizendine, The Female Brain and The Male Brain, and the portrayal in such accounts of fundamental male and female differences in human mate selection and parenting. Drawing on the work of scientist and philosophers, the chapter critiques these accounts for engaging in an increasingly popular “neurosexism.” Such neurosexism …

Putting Buck V. Bell In Scientific And Historical Context: A Response To Victoria Nourse , Edward J. Larson

Pepperdine Law Review

In this article written for a law-review symposium in response to a presentation on the infamous 1927 U.S. Supreme Court opinion in Buck v. Bell, Edward J. Larson argues that, at the time that the case was decided, eugenics was on the incline, not the decline. In the 1920s, the American scientific and medical community broadly backed eugenic remedies for various forms of mental illness and retardation. Legislatures, lawyers, and jurists took their cue from this scientific and medical consensus. Absent any question that the statute at issue in Buck v. Bell was validly passed by the Virginia legislature or …

Buck V. Bell: A Constitutional Tragedy From A Lost World, Victoria Nourse

Pepperdine Law Review

The article focuses on the U.S. Supreme Court case Buck v. Bell, which dealt with the forced sterilization of people deemed unfit, such as intellectually disabled or mentally retarded individuals. Topics include the enforceability of unconstitutional judicial decisions, eugenic sterilization, and the application of substantive due process.

The Relationship Between Legal And Extra-Legal Factors: How Judges Come To Make Their Decisions In Domestic Violence Cases, Ioulia Koublitskaia

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this research is to understand how Trial Court Judges in state and city courts make decisions in domestic violence cases. The researcher examined the relationship between legal (e.g., evidence) and extra-legal factors (e.g., preconceived biases and behaviors related to judicial decision-making) using a qualitative research design. A case study of multiple locations in Orleans and Jefferson Parishes was used whereby a purposive sample of 17 current civil, municipal, and criminal court judges were interviewed. Judicial decision-making strategies were studied via face-to-face interviews, courtroom observations, and content analysis of courtroom communications (e.g., speech, written text, interviews, images, etc.). …

Juvenile Delinquency: An Investigation Of Risk Factors And Solutions., Lauren Cardoso

Pell Scholars and Senior Theses

This article proposes that educational and community based programs can help juveniles stay away from crime and prevent recidivism. A presentation of federal and state statistics, along with an analysis of the risk factors for delinquency, will be provided in order to illustrate the important areas that should be addressed in successful programs. Testimonies, including personal interviews with those who have experience working at the RI Training School, DCYF, Boys' Town, Child and Family Services will be shared as evidence of the research found. Finally, recommendations based on the findings will be proposed.

2012 Maine Child Support Guidelines: Review And Recommendations, Sally Ward Mppm, Janice Daley Msw, Barbara Fraumeni Phd, George Shaler Mph, Eileen Griffin Jd, Melanie Knox Ba, Laurie Hallett, Louis Mandeville Ms

Children, Youth, & Families

This report summarizes the quadrennial review of Maine's child support guidelines conducted by the USM Muskie School , which complies with federal law requiring each state's child support guidelines be reviewed at least once every four years. Principle findings of the extensive review by the Muskie School show that many aspects of Maine's child support system work well. Maine's low deviation rate reflects a reasonably high level of consistency in apply the guidelines, and in large part, protect the needs and interests of the children. The report provides background and overview of child support modes and the Maine guidelines, and …

A Group Home Exclusively For Married Couples With Developmental Disabilities: A Natural Next-Step, Marissa Debellis

Touro Law Review

No abstract provided.