Legislation Commons^™

Cooper V. Commissioner: Give The Inventor A (Learned) Hand, Rebecca R. Dulik

Maine Law Review

Among the Internal Revenue Code’s many rules are some taxpayer-friendly provisions that grant tax benefits. Section 1235 is one such provision, providing to an inventor preferential tax treatment for income from the sale or exchange of a patent. In Cooper v. Commissioner, although the taxpayer inventor satisfied § 1235’s requirements, the Ninth Circuit affirmed the Tax Court’s decision to deny the taxpayer § 1235’s benefits. This Note compares Cooper to other § 1235 cases and argues that Cooper was decided wrongly because of the application of the substance over form doctrine. The substance over form doctrine is overapplied in general …

Bail Reform And Intimate Partner Violence In Maine, Mac Walton

Maine Law Review

The bail reform movement is leading to pretrial practice changes across the country, largely aimed at reducing pretrial detention rates or uncoupling pretrial detention from money. These reforms often include expanding or formalizing the role of actuarial risk assessment tools in bail determinations. Maine has not enacted bail reforms to expressly reduce pretrial detention, but since 2015, Maine courts have been using a risk assessment tool in bail decisions in intimate partner violence cases. Analysis of risk assessment practices in Kentucky and New Jersey, in comparison with the particular considerations in IPV cases, can inform Maine’s current bail system and …

Felon Jurors In Vacationland, James M. Binnall

Maine Law Review

Maine is the only jurisdiction in the United States that places no limitations on a convicted felon’s juror eligibility. Instead, Maine screens prospective felon-jurors using their normal jury selection procedures. In recent years, scholars have suggested that meaningful community engagement can help facilitate former offenders’ reintegration and criminal desistance. From that theoretical posture, a number of empirical studies have explored the connection between participation in the electorate and the reentry of former offenders. Those studies suggest that voting has the potential to prompt pro-social changes among former offenders. Still, to date, no research has focused on jury service as a …

Rediscovering The Journal Clause: The Lost History Of Legislative Constitutional Interpretation, Nicholas Handler

Faculty Scholarship

Article I, Section 5 of the United States Constitution requires that each house of Congress keep a Journal of its proceedings. Contemporary observers have largely ignored this provision, treating it as a vestigial record-keeping requirement with little significance for modern law. This dismissive attitude is misguided. Historically, legislative Journals were one of the primary mechanisms by which Parliament, and later Congress, made and interpreted constitutional law. Journals are the official histories of legislatures’ activity. They record what legislatures do as institutions—what powers they exercise, what procedures they use, and what actions by the coordinate branches they protest or resist. In …

Due Process, Private Nondelegation Doctrine, And The Regulation Of Sports Betting, Ryan M. Rodenberg

UNLV Gaming Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Does My Vote Count? Analyzing The Motivations Of American Voters And The Obstacles They Face, Kalika Mahato

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

One of the most indispensable rights Americans are promised is the opportunity to vote at the polls. After the women’s suffrage and civil rights movements, all American citizens above 18 and who haven’t committed a felony have the right to vote. The election process in America is viewed by many as egalitarian. However, upon a rudimentary examination into the election process, it becomes clear that this equality that America promotes is consistently at battle with classism and hierarchy. Every election, thousands of eligible voters do not vote because of inadequate information and support, barriers in the process, and other forms …

Beyond The Ethical Boundaries Of Solidarity: Increasing Vaccination Rates Through Mandatory Education To Solidarity, Nili Karako- Eyal Dr.

Texas A&M Law Review

Mandatory vaccination laws require children to be vaccinated against certain communicable diseases to attend school. These laws also provide exemptions to school vaccination requirements.1 All states exempt children from vaccination requirements for medical reasons, and most states also provide an exemption for religious and/or other personal reasons.2 Seven states include an educational component in their religious or philosophical exemption process, requiring that parents receive information regarding the benefits of vaccination and the risks of not being vaccinated.3 Of these seven states, five require that information regarding the social benefits of vaccination will be provided to parents.4

This type of legislation …

You Gotta Fight For Your Right To Repair: The Digital Millennium Copyright Act’S Effect On Right-To-Repair Legislation, Daniel Moore

Texas A&M Law Review

Consumers are keeping their electronic devices longer today than in the past because the prices of the devices have increased. Increased prices have culminated in more consumers needing their devices repaired. In turn, manufacturers use the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, a federal law, and digital rights management to force consumers to get their devices repaired by either the device manufacturer or one of its authorized repairers. In response, states have considered right-to-repair laws which require manufacturers to make repair tools, equipment, and software available to device owners and independent repair shops. While almost half of the country’s state legislatures have …

The Workers' Constitution, Luke Norris

Fordham Law Review

This Article argues that the National Labor Relations Act of 1935, Social Security Act of 1935, and Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 should be understood as a “workers’ constitution.” The Article tells the history of how a connected wave of social movements responded to the insecurity that wage earners faced after the Industrial Revolution and Great Depression by working with government officials to bring about federal collective bargaining rights, wage and hour legislation, and social security legislation. It argues that the statutes are tied together as a set of “small c” constitutional commitments in both their histories and theory. …

Expert Commentary On Sports Betting Post-Paspa From Becky Harris, Unlv Gaming Law Journal, University Of Nevada, Las Vegas -- William S. Boyd School Of Law

UNLV Gaming Law Journal

Becky Harris, appointed by former Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval (2011-2019), served as the first female Chair of the Nevada Gaming Control Board from January 2018 to January 2019. Harris was the first Chair to propose regulations addressing workplace sexual harassment. Prior to serving as Chair, Harris served in the Nevada Legislature for the 2015 and 2017 legislative sessions.

A New Strategy For Regulating Arbitration, Sarath Sanga

Northwestern University Law Review

Confidential arbitration is a standard precondition to employment. But confidential arbitration prevents a state from ensuring or even knowing whether employees’ economic, civil, and due process rights are respected. Further, employers regularly require employees to waive rights to class proceedings (thereby foreclosing small claims) and to arbitrate under the laws of another jurisdiction (thereby evading mandatory state law). In response, states have tried to regulate arbitration provisions, arbitral awards, and arbitral processes. But these efforts have all failed because the Supreme Court says they are preempted by the Federal Arbitration Act.

In this Article, I argue that states can and …

Given Today's New Wave Of Protectionsim, Is Antitrust Law The Last Hope For Preserving A Free Global Economy Or Another Nail In Free Trade's Coffin?, Allison Murray

Loyola of Los Angeles International and Comparative Law Review

No abstract provided.

In Memoriam: M. Cherif Bassiouni, Leonard Cavise

DePaul Journal for Social Justice

No abstract provided.

The The: The Definit(Iv)E Article On Idea, Mark C. Weber

DePaul Journal for Social Justice

No abstract provided.

The Holy See's Compliance With The United Nations Convention On The Rights Of The Child, Kaleigh Mcmanus

DePaul Journal for Social Justice

In recent years, the Holy See has been called upon to address the systematic and epidemic clerical child sexual abuse that has affected children worldwide. However, in spite of the egregious human rights violations that have occurred under the auspices of the Vatican, the Holy See continues to prioritize protection of church’s reputation and impunity of the perpetrators. Policies such as priest shifting and interference with civil investigations have allowed sexual abuse of children to continue. Thus, the Holy See is not in compliance with its legal obligations under the Convention on the Rights of the Child to act in …

The Color Of Power: How Local Control Over The Siting Of Affordable Housing Shapes America, Kate Walz, Patricia Fron

DePaul Journal for Social Justice

Some cities, such as Chicago, have power structures that allow hyperlocal control over the siting of affordable housing—and maintain racial segregation of residential housing as a result. Advocates can push for structural changes that can curb this power and reduce racial segregation. These changes include citywide comprehensive planning, racial equity impact assessments, an overhaul of the zoning process grounded in racial equity, and a comprehensive education campaign to address the city’s long history of segregation and the city’s duty to proactively address it.

Enough Is Enough: Congressional Solutions To Curb Gun Violence In America's K-12 Schools, Michael V. Mcquiller

DePaul Journal for Social Justice

Almost two decades after the massacre at Columbine High School, shootings at our nation’s K-12 schools have become the new normal. More than 350 incidents of gunfire on school campuses have occurred in just the past five years. These have occurred with two federal laws on the books aimed to keep guns away from school campuses. This Article analyzes the Constitution’s Article I provisions, as well as Bill of Rights limitations, that allow Congress to pursue solutions to this epidemic of violence. It also proposes three proactive solutions that could reduce the likelihood of and limit the damage inflicted by …

Table Of Contents

DePaul Journal for Social Justice

No abstract provided.

"The Song Is Ended But The Melody Lingers On": Protecting The Cultural History Of The Great American Songbook In The Face Of The Public Domain, Mollie Galchus

St. John's Law Review

(Excerpt)

Part I of this Note discusses the history of American popular song from the late nineteenth century to the mid-twentieth century, showing how the music of the Great American Songbook is particularly monumental in that its sophistication and conglomeration of different musical influences created a unique American musical framework. Part II discusses the framework of music copyright law, including theories of music copyright law, the evolution of the length of music copyright terms in the United States, and the history of the CTEA. Part III argues that Congress should not extend the duration of music copyright now that the …

Free Speech, Public Safety, & Controversial Speakers: Balancing Universities' Dual Roles After Charlottesville, Elisabeth E. Constantino

St. John's Law Review

(Excerpt)

This Note seeks to develop an approach to hateful and controversial speech that protects First Amendment values and students alike. Part I discusses the legal backdrop and First Amendment tradition that underlies a permissive view of hateful speech on university campuses. Part I also discusses the roots of time, place, and manner regulations and the public forum doctrine, both of which recent legislation invokes. Part II provides a timeline of events that have highlighted the tension between free speech and public safety on campuses. Part II also discusses the eruption of legislation that these events inspired. Finally, Part III …