State and Local Government Law Commons^™

The Politics Of Reorganizing Connecticut State Government: Altering Administrative Structures In The Land Of Steady Habits, Lesley A. Denardis

Political Science & Global Affairs Faculty Publications

Despite numerous attempts to reorganize state government aimed at streamlining, reducing, and creating greater efficiencies, the size and scope of Connecticut’s administrative apparatus has grown considerably over a fifty year period. This study will trace the political history of previous reorganization efforts with a particular emphasis on more recent attempts such as the Gengras (1970), Filer (1976), Thomas (1991), and Hull and Harper Commissions (1992). Observed trends follow national patterns: 1) reorganization commissions are cyclical in nature more likely to be undertaken in the wake of similar efforts at the federal level and 2) they are more likely to be …

Professional Responsibility For The Pro Se Attorney., Margaret Raymond

St. Mary's Journal on Legal Malpractice & Ethics

This Article considers how pro se lawyers should be treated under the law of professional responsibility. While courts have addressed whether various aspects of the law of lawyering should be applied to lawyers acting pro se, they have not done so systematically. The Article first demonstrates that the law is not consistent in its treatment of pro se lawyers. It then argues that a purpose-based approach to the issue provides a consistent, rational, and reproducible way to analyze the question. It concludes that whether a particular rule of professional responsibility should apply to a pro se lawyer should be driven …

Municipal Predatory Lending Regulation In Ohio: The Disproportionate Impact Of Preemption In Ohio's Cities, Brett Altier

Cleveland State Law Review

Whether in the case of predatory lending or other issues that will differ from location to location, municipalities should continue to protect their cities by exercising their power under the Home Rule Amendment to enforce regulations not in direct conflict with Ohio law. Even though the Framers of the Home Rule Amendment intended to protect municipal power by ensuring that only those ordinances in actual conflict would be voided, Ohio courts have denied municipalities their Home Rule police power by applying a conflict by implication test, contributing to the housing crisis still plaguing Ohio's cities. While Ohio courts have made …

Expanding Regional Renewable Governance, Hannah J. Wiseman

Scholarly Publications

Energy drives economies and quality of life, yet accessible traditional fuels are increasingly scarce. Federal, state, and local governments have thus determined that renewable energy development is essential and have passed substantial requirements for its use. These lofty goals will fail, however, if policymakers rely upon existing institutions to govern renewable development. Renewable fuels are fugitive resources, and ideal property for renewable technology is defined by the strength of the sunlight or wind that flows over it. When a potential site for a utility-scale development is identified, a new piece of property, which I call a “renewable parcel,” is superimposed …

Juvenile Life Without Parole: Unconstitutional In Michigan?, Kimberly A. Thomas

Articles

Last term, in Graham v Florida,1 the United States Supreme Court found unconstitutional the sentence of life without parole for a juvenile who committed a non-homicide offense. This attention to the sentencing of juvenile offenders is a continuation of the Court's decision in Roper v Simmons,2 in which the Court held that juvenile offenders could not constitutionally receive the death penalty. This scrutiny should be a signal to Michigan to examine its own jurisprudence on juveniles receiving sentences of life without parole. Michigan has the second-highest number of persons serving sentences of life without parole for offenses committed when they …

The Unavoidable Ecclesiastical Collision In Virginia, Isaac A. Mcbeth, Jennifer R. Sykes

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

Section 5 7-9(A) of the Code of Virginia is a statute that purports to resolve church property disputes. There is, however, a significant amount of controversy as to whether the statute encroaches on the free exercise rights of hierarchical churches located in Virginia and enmeshes Virginia courts in the ecclesiastical thicket. Given the debate surrounding Section 57-9(A) and the controversial shift of several mainstream denominations in matters of substantive church doctrine, Virginia is a fertile breeding ground for church property disputes. Accordingly, the Commonwealth is in the midst of an ecclesiastical crisis. The impact of the crisis is evidenced by …

Health Care Reform In Virginia: Lessons Learned Before, During, And After The 2011 Virginia General Assembly, Hunter W. Jamerson

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

This article surveys Virginia's initial foray into health care reform. This process began with the Virginia Health Reform Initiative, which had a significant presence in the Virginia 2011 General Assembly session. While the nascent health care reform efforts this session reflect only incremental steps, they are indicative of Virginia's direction and commitment to change. Such change, however, will carry great political and professional strife. This article highlights some examples of the challenges faced on the road to health care reform and discusses possible directions of future legislation in the Virginia General Assembly.

Legislative Control Of The Menhaden Fishery, Nicole M. Rovner, Matthew G. Curtis

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

This year, six menhaden- related bills were introduced in the Virginia General Assembly. Delegate John Cosgrove (RChesapeake) introduced legislation in the House of Delegates that was identical to Senate Bill 765, a bill that proposed to shift oversight of the menhaden fishery to the VMRC. This article aims to highlight the unique stance taken by Virginia's legislature and explain why this management is better left to the commission responsible for managing every other fishery in the Commonwealth. While there may not be a conclusive link between reduction industry practices and a decline in water quality, Virginia's legislators should recognize the …

The Constitutionality Of Collateral Post-Conviction Claims Of Actual Innocence Comment., Craig M. Jacobs

St. Mary's Law Journal

The notion that the state can punish innocent people disrupts public confidence in the usefulness of the criminal justice system. If, by legislative design, the criminal justice system is not concerned with or is accepting of situations where innocent people are punished by the state, should courts take immediate action? Once criminal defendants exhaust the appellate process, Supreme Court Justices have stated, federal courts should not hear claims of actual innocence. Such statements are supported by the federal habeas corpus statute as amended by the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 (AEDPA). AEDPA requires federal habeas courts to …

Respecting The Concept And Limited Liability Of A Series Llc In Texas Comment., Bernie R. Kray

St. Mary's Law Journal

The primary advantage of a limited liability company (LLC) is to shield owners from personal liability for the contract and tort obligations of their business entities. To further protect business assets, practitioners often advised clients to form multiple LLCs, each containing single assets. Yet, business owners managing multiple assets and LLCs often found this approach ineffective and cost-prohibitive. Allowing for a single “master” LLC to compartmentalize different series of properties without the need for a distinct holding company, the “series” LLC was the next step. The series LLC permits companies to partition assets and liabilities among various cells or “series,” …

With Great Technology Comes Great Responsibility: Virginia's Legislative Approach To Combating Cyberbullying, Kelsey Farbotko

Richmond Journal of Law and the Public Interest

This comment will examine Virginia's statutory response to the growing problem of cyberbullying, focusing particularly on the bills introduced in the most recent Virginia General Assembly ses- sion. Section II will define cyberbullying and other cybercrimes, as well as discuss the effects of this form of harassment and the impor- tance of regulating speech in this manner. Section III will describe current statutes that regulate cyberbullying, as well as the three bills that came before the Virginia General Assembly in its 2011 session. Particularly important is House Bill 2059, which differs from the oth- er two bills not only because …

State Constitutional Design And Education Reform: Process Specification In Louisiana, Scott R. Bauries

Law Faculty Scholarly Articles

As to education, the Louisiana Constitution contains the familiar general mandate for the establishment of a public school system, now ubiquitous among state constitutions. But unlike the founding documents of any of the other states, Louisiana's constitution also provides for a very specific process-based allocation of the responsibilities for determining appropriations levels in education from year to year.

It is well-known that state constitutions often treat numerous—sometimes trivial—subjects, or contain provisions that seem hyper-specific and statutory, rather than foundational and constitutional, and state constitutions have been roundly criticized (and sometimes defended) for these features. In this Article, I argue that …

Property In Law: Government Rights In Legal Innovations, Stephen Clowney

Law Faculty Scholarly Articles

One of the most enduring themes in American political thought is that competition between states encourages legal innovation. Despite the prominence of this story in the national ideology, there is growing anxiety that state and local governments innovate at a socially suboptimal rate. Academics have recently expressed alarm that the pace of legal experimentation has become "extraordinarily slow," "inefficient," and "less than ideal." Ordinary citizens, too, seem concerned that government has been leeched of imagination and the dynamic spirit of experimentation; both talk radio programs and newspapers remain jammed with complaints about legislative gridlock and do-nothing politicians who cannot, or …

State Constitutions And Individual Rights: Conceptual Convergence In School Finance Litigation, Scott R. Bauries

Law Faculty Scholarly Articles

This Article begins by reviewing Wesley Newcomb Hohfeld's “fundamental conceptions” and expanding his theory to the arena of state constitutional rights, building on recent work by other scholars. From this foundation, it moves to a discussion of the sources of rights to education. The Article then examines the text of relevant state constitutional provisions, as well as the ever-changing landscape of school finance litigation, the principal vehicle through which litigants assert constitutional claims based on ostensible education rights. Next, it systematically analyzes the population of reported cases from the highest state courts to identify Hohfeldian conceptions of education rights held …

Connecticut's Fourth Congressional District: History, Politics, And The Maverick Tradition, Gary L. Rose

Sacred Heart University Press Books

Connecticut's Fourth Congressional District: History, Politics, and the Maverick Tradition is a case study of one of the most unique congressional districts in the United States. Located in Fairfield County, the fourth district is a bedroom community close to New York City. The district's close proximity to Wall Street, the tendency of the district's constituents to elect free-thinking congresspersons, and the wealth and celebrity status of many district residents have resulted in a setting which can be described as an anomaly in the larger context of congressional politics. Contents: Introduction -- Connecticut's Fourth Congressional District: geography and demographics -- A …

Introduction, The Constitution Of The State Of Connecticut, Gary L. Rose

Political Science & Global Affairs Faculty Publications

Gary Rose has written the introduction to The Constitution of the State of Connecticut, published by Sacred Heart University Press in 2011. This introduction outlines the history of the document drafted in "The Constitution State". The constitutional tradition can be traced to the Fundamental Orders of 1639, drafted by representatives from three Connecticut River towns. In 1662 the Fundamental Orders were replaced by a Royal Charter, formally recognizing Connecticut's system of self-government. Later, the Constitution of 1818 proved to be very effective and served the people of Connecticut until 1965, when a new constitution was again drafted and adopted. …

Can Allocation By Sortition Resolve The Connecticut Education-Financing Impasse?, A. E. Rodriguez, Lesley Denardis

Political Science & Global Affairs Faculty Publications

It has been over 40 years since Connecticut amended its Constitution to ensure citizens a right to a free public education. Despite the constitutionally prescribed right, dramatic inequities in educational conditions continued to characterize the state's K-12 educational system, especially between suburban/rural white and urban minority school districts. In the 1970s plaintiffs challenged the prevailing mechanism for allocating education funds with a host of court cases that tackled the thorny question of how much financial responsibility the state should assume to equalize the spending disparities between school districts. Prodded by court decisions, many formulas and approaches have been proposed by …

Celebrating 600 Volumes Of The Pennsylvania State Reports: The Official Reports Of The Supreme Court Of Pennsylvania (1845-2009), Joel Fishman

Law Faculty Publications

During the first week of November 2009, Volume 600 of the Pennsylvania State Reports was published, 165 years following the publication of the first volume in 1845.

Should I Stay Or Should I Go: Why Immigrant Reunification Decisions Should Be Based On The Best Interest Of The Child, Marcia A. Yablon-Zug

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Incentivizing Economic Development: An Empirical Examination Of The Use Of Grants And Loans, Robert T. Greenbaum, Daniele Bondonio

South Carolina Journal of International Law and Business

No abstract provided.