Religion Law Commons^™

The Public Square In A Private-Property Obsessed Country: What New York City’S Pops Regulations Get Right And Why Other Cities Should (Mostly) Copy Them, Carson Mcgregor

Seattle University Law Review

When New York City (NYC) was first becoming the metropolitan monolith it is today, it had a problem: the city streets were chock full of skyscrapers, and sunlight, air, and usable open space were at a premium. In response, the City promulgated its first Privately Owned Public Spaces (POPS) regulations, which allowed developers to build skyward in exchange for providing public space on the street level. Unfortunately, in July of 2023, the New York Times (NYT) discovered that New Yorkers received only a fraction of what they were promised. Building owners received billions of dollars’ worth of added floor space, …

The Race To Erase: Destruction Of Government Documents Undermines Freedom-Of-Information Laws, Frank D. Lomonte

Seattle University Law Review

In August 2019, reporters with Chattanooga’s daily newspaper, the Times Free Press, filed what seemed to be a routine request for access to emails and other public records held by their local county government. The seemingly unremarkable request set the newspaper’s staff on a months-long journey of unpleasant surprises. The first was a demand to pay the county $717 in advance before being allowed to inspect the documents. The second was that—during prolonged haggling over the fee assessment— the county attorney’s office simply destroyed almost all of the disputed records. Third, and most glaringly, the journalists discovered that Tennessee law …

Table Of Contents, Seattle University Law Review

Seattle University Law Review

Table of Contents

Volume 48 Masthead, Seattle University Law Review

Seattle University Law Review

Volume 48 Masthead

Caution: Potholes In E-Scooter Data Collection, Dakota Rakestraw

Seattle University Law Review

Lime scooters keep ending up in major waterways in Washington state metro areas, a testament to the ubiquity of e-scooters in the metropolitan landscape. How they get there is unclear. Why they get there is even murkier. Perhaps the answer lies in the implications of modern geolocation data collection through e-scooters and gaps in current data collection regulation curbing individual liberties.

Since September 2020, electric scooters have run Seattle’s streets and have dramatically overtaken ridesharing bike trips. For example, from September 2020 to September 2021, there were about 1.4 million scooter and bike trips with September 2021 seeing 300,000 scooter …

Machinists Preemption In The New Administrative Law, Andrew J. Ziaja

Seattle University Law Review

This Article assesses Machinists preemption—a labor-specific form of implied field preemption—while freshly considering implications both for and of new developments in administrative law. The radical transformation of administrative law in the Supreme Court, particularly its newfound emphasis on clear-statement rules, provides opportunities to reconsider the Machinists rationale. Aligning with scholars who have called to question the doctrine’s “ossifying” influence on labor and employment policy, it argues that the modern-day version of Machinists preemption clashes with the Supreme Court’s newly constrained view of delegated power and its differing conceptions of the major questions doctrine.

On the other hand, Machinists preemption might …

Clark Memorandum: Spring 2025, J. Reuben Clark Law School, Byu Law School Alumni Association, J. Reuben Clark Law Society

The Clark Memorandum

• Primary and Professional Identity
• Never Only Two Sides
• In Defense of Zion and Her People
• The Pursuit of Happiness

I Demand The Right To Destroy My Church! The Relationship Between The Religious Land Use And Institutionalized Persons Act And The Religious Right To Demolish Historic Churches, Mikayla D. Kelz

Northern Illinois University Law Review

Prohibitions and restrictions on land use by Historic Preservation Committees via landmark laws are common and hinder an owner’s right to control the land. Religious institutions possess an important piece of federal legislation to combat landmark laws, known as the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA). Even with this advantage in their pocket, churches continue to face local opposition on the ability to renovate and demolish their churches due to the overly regulatory nature of landmark laws. Federal courts vary on the criteria in determining whether a landmark designation can withstand the right to religious exercise via land …

A Crust Of Bread: Religious Resistance And The Fourteenth Amendment, Kurt T. Lash, Stephanie Hall Barclay -- Professor Of Law

Vanderbilt Law Review

In Employment Division v. Smith, the U.S. Supreme Court denied heightened constitutional protection to religiously motivated exercise burdened by neutral and generally applicable laws. The history presented in this Article suggests that the Smith approach conflicts with the original understanding of the Fourteenth Amendment. Out of the crucible of religious abolitionist resistance to the Fugitive Slave Act emerged a substantive theory of constitutional religious freedom: American citizens should have the right to obey the Biblical command to care for the needy and provide the hungry a “crust of bread,” even if doing so was contrary to neutral and generally applicable …

Procreation After Passing: Balancing Interests In Levirate Marriage And Posthumous Reproduction, Alice Aronov Tepler

Journal of Catholic Legal Studies

(Excerpt)

After the heart-wrenching death of a partner, a child, or a family member, it is difficult for those left behind to imagine how to bring their loved one with them into the future. Memories fade, people move on with their lives, and it seems almost inevitable that the dead will be left behind, static. For some, especially those whose loved one died early in life, posthumous reproduction can seem like a way to keep the deceased alive. With relatively new technology and a myriad of associated ethical concerns, however, society, courts, and individuals struggle to determine who should have …

First-Century Roman Approaches To Religious Minorities And The Security Of The Empire, Ilias Bantekas

Journal of Catholic Legal Studies

(Excerpt)

Much of what we know about the relations of first-century AD “Christians” and the authorities of the Roman Empire, as well as the relationship between Jews of this time, is derived from the writings of Paul the Apostle through his various Letters. Moreover, historical research has uncovered a significant amount of information on this subject; yet, so-called Pauline scholarship is central to our understanding of these intricate relationships. Paul occupies a special place in the history and shaping of the Church for numerous reasons. He is loved and hated with equal vigor and he is certainly responsible more than …

Creating Peaceful Coexistence Through Virtue: A Theological Approach To Institutional Religious Freedom, Equality, And The First Amendment, Alex Deagon

Journal of Catholic Legal Studies

(Excerpt)

In the current era of fraught tension between religious freedom and equality, scholars from across the spectrum of perspectives have called for generosity, empathy, and compromise from both sides. Drawing from chapters in my book A Principled Framework for the Autonomy of Religious Communities: Reconciling Freedom and Discrimination, in this Article I propose to give substantive content and criteria to such exhortations by adopting a theological perspective which aims to create peaceful coexistence through cultivating and applying Christian virtues such as love, grace, forgiveness, humility, and patience. Together, these virtues recognise the inherent worth of all humans as …

Re-Evaluating Fulton V. City Of Philadelphia: A “Narrow” “Wisp” Of A Decision Or Free Exercise “Bedrock?”, Mark Rienzi

Catholic University Law Review

In Fulton v. City of Philadelphia (2021), a unanimous Supreme Court held that Philadelphia violated the Free Exercise Clause by excluding Catholic Social Services from participating in its foster program because CSS would not certify same-sex couples. Both supporters and critics of the Court’s decision publicly characterized the decision as “narrow” and noted that Philadelphia (and other governments) can easily sidestep Fulton and continue excluding religious providers from foster and adoption programs.

Four years later, the evidence shows that Fulton is anything but narrow. In Philadelphia and in other jurisdictions, Fulton has played a strong role in ending litigation against …

The Relevance Of Catholic Social Thought For Law, Russell Powell

Seattle Journal for Social Justice

No abstract provided.

Oklahoma Statewide Charter School Board V. Drummond, Et Al.: Brief Of Amici Curiae Constitutional And Education Law Scholars In Support Of Respondent, Elise Davis Boddie

Appellate Briefs

As Amici Curiae, the Constitutional and Education Law Scholars listed in the Appendix submit this brief in support of Respondent. Amici are immersed in the study of constitutional and education law through their scholarship and teaching and believe in upholding core constitutional rights in the provision of public education. Amici are acutely aware of the role public education has historically played in preserving and making possible our democratic system of government. Amici seek to assist this Court by explaining how state laws have created charter schools as a means of discharging states’ core constitutional obligations to provide public education …

Lessons For The Trump Administration From The Biden U.S. National Strategy To Counter Antisemitism, Lili Levi

Articles

In May 2023, the Biden Administration issued the first-ever U.S. National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism [hereinafter National Strategy] with a goal of hindering further normalization of antisemitism by increasing public awareness of antisemitism and highlighting positive Jewish contributions to America. Recent events, however-particularly the social and political upheaval over protests of the war in Gaza-have led to public contestation over Israel, increased instances of antisemitism, and the partisan politicization of Jewish issues. Now, the Trump Administration explicitly purports to fight antisemitism by widespread attacks on universities over antisemitism on campus. Does this mean that the National Strategy has become anachronistic, …

Keynote Address: The Movement To Protect Kids From Addictive Technologies, Gaia Bernstein

Seattle University Law Review

In this keynote address, I describe my personal journey starting with a school outreach program I created in 2017 to address technology overuse among kids. While I initially advocated for self-help methods, I grew to recognize that the tech industry bore responsibility. This realization led me to write Unwired: Gaining Control over Addictive Technologies, which focused on collective action to pressure the tech industry to redesign its addictive products.

I then describe the movement to control addictive technologies and protect kids, which has gained momentum since the end of the pandemic. This movement combines grassroots parent activism with legal-political action. …

Moral Panic Or Public Health Crisis? Lessons From Drugs And Gambling For “Addictive” Design, Matthew B. Lawrence, Haomin (Kevin) Yan

Seattle University Law Review

Alcohol, automobiles, guns, lottery, loot boxes, meat, music, opioid painkillers, processed foods, prop bets, slot machines, television, tobacco, violent video games. Over the last century each of these has been subject to concerns—some might even say “moral panics”—from parents and policymakers about avoidable harms to kids and adults. In some cases we look back with the benefit of hindsight and dismiss those concerns as naïve or moralistic. In others we look back at them as justified or as having come too late to check an expanding industry before it did unfathomable harm while growing so powerful that it became all …

The Ai Doppelgänger Dilemma: Cloned Voices In The Music Industry, Elizabeth Shields

Seattle University Law Review

With the rise of generative artificial intelligence (AI), there has been an influx of “voice clones”—deep-learning algorithms that create synthetic speech to realistically mimic human voices. Celebrities and, in particular, music artists, have been subjected to the proliferation of AI voice clones on social media platforms like TikTok and streaming platforms such as Spotify. Despite music utilizing AI voice clones having amassed much popularity, this technology can be harmful and highly invasive to musicians whose livelihoods often depend on their distinct voices. While legal scholars have attempted to articulate various rights that could protect a person’s voice, individuals are largely …

Re-Imagining Tomorrow: A Technology, Innovation Law, And Ethics Symposium On Addictive Technology And Children, Margaret Chon

Seattle University Law Review

In this Foreword, Professor Margaret Chon introduces Seattle University's Technology, Innovation Law, and Ethics (TILE) program, the 2024 TILE Symposium, and Dr. Gaia Bernstein’s Unwired: Gaining Control Over Addictive Technologies.