Volume 48 Masthead,
2025
Seattle University School of Law
Keynote Address: Community Over Constitution,
2025
Seattle University School of Law
Keynote Address: Community Over Constitution, Riddhi Mukhopadhyay
Seattle University Law Review
In this keynote address, Riddhi Mukhopadhyay challenges the veneration of the U.S. Constitution by highlighting its origins in exclusion and its continued failure to protect marginalized communities. Drawing from her experience in civil legal aid and gender justice, she argues that the Constitution was drafted to consolidate power among white, wealthy men and continues to reflect that legacy through racial, gender, and class-based inequities. While acknowledging the significance of constitutional amendments and landmark cases, Mukhopadhyay emphasizes that meaningful change has always come from community-led action, not top-down reform. Additionally, Mukhopadhyay calls on lawyers and legal advocates to center community, practice …
The Lost Child: A Critique On Transracial Adoption Rhetoric,
2025
Seattle University School of Law
The Lost Child: A Critique On Transracial Adoption Rhetoric, Hallie Conyers-Tucker
Seattle University Law Review
Transracial adoption in the United States reflects a deeply rooted history of colonialism, cultural assimilation, and racial hierarchy, masked by rhetoric focused on the “best interest of the child.” The author critiques that rhetoric and traces how adoption practices and policies, both domestic and international, have evolved to reinforce systemic inequities. Through historical analysis of the forced adoption of Native American, Black, and Asian children, it reveals how the best interest standard has been wielded not to protect children but to uphold political and racial ideologies. The author argues that the prevailing adoption framework relies on child-saving and color-blind narratives …
A Global Reconstruction: Black Internationalism And The Human Rights Regime,
2025
Seattle University School of Law
A Global Reconstruction: Black Internationalism And The Human Rights Regime, Britta Redwood
Seattle University Law Review
Black American advocates for civil, political, and economic rights have long taken an internationalist approach and fostered connections with international organizations and transnational movements. This engagement has also been a generative force and played role in shaping international law. Beginning in the early years of the twentieth century, Black intellectuals and leaders, spearheaded by the NAACP and the UNIA, focused on human rights as a means for addressing and repairing the harms wrought by slavery, Jim Crow, and racism. From the Paris Peace Conference of 1919 through the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Genocide Convention, and the drafting of …
The Gap: Addressing The Missing Piece In HawaiʻI’S Anti-Discrimination Laws On Credit And Lending,
2025
Seattle University School of Law
The Gap: Addressing The Missing Piece In HawaiʻI’S Anti-Discrimination Laws On Credit And Lending, Wendy Mun
Seattle University Law Review
This author addresses the significant gap in Hawaiʻi’s anti-discrimination laws, specifically the lack of explicit protections for LGBTQ+ individuals against credit and lending discrimination. Although federal laws like the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) and recent interpretations by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) extend some protections, they remain vulnerable to shifting federal priorities and interpretations. The author explores how other states, particularly California and Washington, have enacted robust statutory protections that clearly prohibit credit discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. They argue that Hawaiʻi, despite its large LGBTQ+ population, must amend its credit protection laws to reflect …
The U.S. Drug Policy Hamster Wheel: A Critical Discourse Analysis Of Seattle’S New Drug Ordinance,
2025
Seattle University School of Law
The U.S. Drug Policy Hamster Wheel: A Critical Discourse Analysis Of Seattle’S New Drug Ordinance, Hallie Conyers-Tucker
Seattle University Law Review
The author critically examines Seattle’s new drug ordinance using Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) to reveal how legislative language influences the policy's actual effect. Although the ordinance claims to prioritize diversion and community health, the use of permissive language such as “may” and “shall” grants broad discretionary power to law enforcement and undermines the stated intent. The author situates the ordinance within a broader historical context, highlighting how drug policy in the United States has consistently been shaped by racialized and stigmatizing narratives. Additionally, the author argues that meaningful reform requires reframing the discourse around substance use to support public health …
Something Concrete: How Labor Advocates Can Best Respond To The Ambiguity Of Glacier Northwest,
2025
Seattle University School of Law
Something Concrete: How Labor Advocates Can Best Respond To The Ambiguity Of Glacier Northwest, Ateş Serifsoy
Seattle University Law Review
The Supreme Court’s much-anticipated decision in Glacier North-west, Inc. v. International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local No. 174 (Glacier) marked a critical moment for workers’ rights under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) and the longstanding practice of Garmon preemption. Yet, initial fears of a significant rollback of workers’ rights, driven by sensational headlines, were met with an unexpectedly narrow Court opinion. This Comment examines Glacier’s implications for Gar-mon preemption and the right to strike. It offers the historical background of the doctrine of labor law preemption before Glacier; presents a detailed analysis of Glacier itself, including its …
Table Of Contents,
2025
Seattle University School of Law
Can The Law Protect My Craft? How Gaps In Copyright Of Knitting Patterns Symbolize A Greater Struggle For Protecting Traditionally Feminine Forms Of Intellectual Property,
2025
Seattle University School of Law
Can The Law Protect My Craft? How Gaps In Copyright Of Knitting Patterns Symbolize A Greater Struggle For Protecting Traditionally Feminine Forms Of Intellectual Property, Kysa Walzer
Seattle University Law Review
The purpose of this article is to demonstrate the application of intel-lectual property rights within the context of copyright protection of knit-ting patterns. The article will discuss the underutilization of copyright pro-tection for knitters and crafters and its larger impact upon craft and indus-try traditionally comprised of women. Part I introduces knitting patterns and a short history of copyright protections. Part II discusses the specific areas within knitting patterns and the knitting community which give rise to legal grey areas for copyright protection. Part III discusses the larger implications of copyright and intellectual property in spaces where women traditionally make …
A New Exclusionary Rule To Protect Bodily Integrity And Discourage Pretext Stops,
2025
Seattle University School of Law
A New Exclusionary Rule To Protect Bodily Integrity And Discourage Pretext Stops, Josephine Ross
Seattle University Law Review
The author proposes a novel state-level exclusionary rule to reduce racial profiling and protect bodily autonomy during police encounters. The current Fourth Amendment jurisprudence fails to deter pretextual stops and frisks because the exclusionary rule often turns on officer fault and "good faith," allowing racially motivated practices to go unchecked. As federal rollbacks on diversity and data collection hinder efforts to track racial bias, the author argues for a statutory evidentiary rule that automatically excludes drug evidence found during (1) traffic stops, (2) pat-downs for weapons, and (3) consent searches, regardless of an officer’s intent or the legality of the …
Navahine V. HawaiʻI Dept. Of Transportation: The Keiki Will Lead Us,
2025
Seattle University School of Law
Navahine V. HawaiʻI Dept. Of Transportation: The Keiki Will Lead Us, Catherine Smith
Seattle University Law Review
The author analyzes the landmark case Navahine v. Hawaiʻi Department of Transportation, which culminated in the world’s first constitutional climate settlement. Catherine Smith, serving as an expert for the youth plaintiffs, situates the case within Hawaiʻi’s legal tradition of prioritizing children’s rights and intergenerational equity. She explores the evolution of children’s constitutional protections, contrasting Hawaiʻi’s progressive jurisprudence with the dominant adult-centric legal framework on the mainland. She critiques four recurring analytical missteps in U.S. courts that marginalize children’s interests and highlights Hawaiʻi’s public trust doctrine and cultural values, such as the Aloha Spirit, as models for addressing climate-related harms. …
Constitutional Futurism As Pedagogy,
2025
Seattle University School of Law
Constitutional Futurism As Pedagogy, Jeremiah Chin
Seattle University Law Review
Constitutional Law has transformed from a course on history to a discussion of current events. Cases like Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard College, Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, and Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo reveal that the study of constitutional law is not a static, or even linear, discussion of constitutional text and history. Law is a shifting, changing enterprise that reflects social constructions of power, authority, and identity. How do we teach, learn, and understand constitutional law that is so laden with history, riddled with theories of consistency and adherence to precedent, but ultimately subject …
For Every Right A Remedy: Providing A Private Right Of Action Under The Church Amendments,
2025
Brigham Young University Law School
For Every Right A Remedy: Providing A Private Right Of Action Under The Church Amendments, Brad Grisenti
BYU Law Review
In 1973, Congress responded to the U.S. Supreme Court’s Roe v. Wade decision by passing legislation known as the “Church Amendments.” The Church Amendments were designed to protect healthcare workers from being compelled by their employers to perform or participate in abortion or sterilization procedures that conflict with their moral and religious beliefs. However, the Church Amendments suffer from an enforcement problem, largely due to Congress’s failure to explicitly provide a private right of action in the text of the statute. And thus far, courts have consistently refrained from interpreting it as containing an implied private right of action. Without …
Exploring Due Process Rights And Litigation Strategies For Homeless Youth Under Federal Law,
2025
National Homelessness Law Center
Exploring Due Process Rights And Litigation Strategies For Homeless Youth Under Federal Law, John A. Salois, Liz Harding Chao
Maine Law Review
Over fifty years after the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act, this Article explores the due process rights youth have in shelter and other transitional housing covered under the Act. Further, this Article explores whether youth have a property interest under the Act’s recent reauthorization under the Reconnecting Homeless Youth Act of 2008. This Article also discusses the Homeless Emergency Assistance and Rapid Transition to Housing (HEARTH) Act and the due process rights youth have in shelter and other housing options covered under the HEARTH Act’s extensive funding of homeless programs. Additionally, this Article explores litigation strategies that youth and advocates …
Pay-To-Play: Maine’S Unconstitutional Requirement For Indigent Defendants To Pay To Appeal Eviction Judgments,
2025
Pine Tree Legal Assistance
Pay-To-Play: Maine’S Unconstitutional Requirement For Indigent Defendants To Pay To Appeal Eviction Judgments, Shianne Bowlin, Fred Kerrigan, Alice Neal
Maine Law Review
Maine’s eviction appeal process imposes financial barriers that effectively condition appellate review on a tenant’s ability to pay. Under Maine law, tenants must pay rent or arrears—often in dispute—before filing an appeal. This “pay-to-play” requirement disproportionately harms low-income tenants, particularly those receiving public assistance, and violates constitutional due process and equal protection guarantees. Despite federal and state precedent rejecting financial barriers to appeals, Maine’s eviction appeal system continues to restrict access to justice for indigent tenants. This Article examines the legal and constitutional implications of these requirements, comparing Maine’s approach to eviction appeals with those of other states. It explores …
A Seventh Amendment Remedy For Housing Instability,
2025
University of Maine School of Law
A Seventh Amendment Remedy For Housing Instability, Gregory M. Zlotnick
Maine Law Review
After the 2023–2024 Supreme Court term, housing advocates despaired over the expected, yet still unwelcome, decision in City of Grants Pass v. Johnson. While focusing on this case is understandable, this Article suggests that scholars, policymakers, and advocates should train their focus on another, perhaps less-expected case from the previous Supreme Court term: SEC v. Jarkesy. In Jarkesy, the Court affirmed a defendant’s constitutional right to a jury trial in an administrative proceeding that sought to enforce a right similar to one found at common law. The Court’s capacious interpretation of the Seventh Amendment in Jarkesy has implications for state-law …
An Argument For Housing Reparations,
2025
University of Maine School of Law
An Argument For Housing Reparations, Lisa Lucile Owens
Maine Law Review
This Article explores recent applications and framing of municipal reparatory housing policies and assesses equal protection challenges, including specific discussion of an emerging case in Evanston, Illinois. Because of recent changes to the Supreme Court’s approach to applying strict scrutiny in equal protection challenges of race-conscious policies as reflected in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard, race-based applications of reparations have been criticized as dead on arrival. However, this Article finds that housing-related reparatory policies are dissimilar from affirmative action admissions policies in several ways relevant to the Court’s application of strict scrutiny. Housing reparations policies are more in line …
Equitable Housing Policy,
2025
University of Maine School of Law
Evicted From The Outside,
2025
University of Maine School of Law
Evicted From The Outside, Colleen Cosgriff
Maine Law Review
In recent years, Maine has seen an increase in the number of people experiencing homelessness who are living outdoors. People living in these circumstances often shelter together in groups of tents or other temporary structures commonly referred to as “encampments.”As municipalities across Maine struggled with how best to respond to the increase in encampments across the state, the United States Supreme Court decided City of Grants Pass v. Johnson, a case originating in Grants Pass, Oregon. Grants Pass wanted to issue civil and criminal fines to people for sleeping outdoors, even when no alternative shelter was available. The city ultimately …
Georgia Has A New Habitability Protection For Tenants, But What Does It Mean?,
2025
University of Georgia School of Law
Georgia Has A New Habitability Protection For Tenants, But What Does It Mean?, Elizabeth Grant, Gordon Wayne
Scholarly Works
Georgia’s Safe at Home Act became law on July 1, 2024, and established the standard that residential premises be “fit for human habitation.” The Act strengthens tenant protections by targeting severe housing issues affecting 15% of Georgia households, particularly Black and rural communities. It adds cooling as an essential utility, caps security deposits, and mandates a three-day notice to pay before eviction filings. However, the undefined “fit for human habitation” term awaits judicial interpretation, complicated by limited legal access and rare appellate precedent. Though a key step forward, this brief Comment suggests that additional measures are needed to secure tenants’ …
