Articles, Essays, & Tributes
States as Shields
By LINDSAY F. WILEY. Full Text. State laws that aim to shield providers of reproductive health and gender-affirming care from the punitive actions of out-of-state officials raise thorny questions. Can the federal courts, Congress, or the Trump Administration require New York officials to enforce a Texas ban on abortion or gender-affirming care against a New…
AI Companions and the Lessons of Family Law
By CLARE HUNTINGTON. Full Text. Virtual friends and lovers powered by artificial intelligence are rapidly moving to the center of our emotional and social lives. Millions of people turn to AI companions every day for conversation, romance, sexual intimacy, therapy, and education. AI companionship holds promise, potentially reducing loneliness, supporting people without access to mental…
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: A Comparative Constitutional Analysis of Whistleblowing Speech, the Government’s Managerial Domain, and the Imperatives of Democratic Self-Government
By RONALD J. KROTOSZYNSKI, JR. Full Text. Since issuing its 1968 landmark decision in Pickering, which first recognized that the First Amendment protects government employees’ speech about matters of public concern, the U.S. Supreme Court has proceeded to whittle away First Amendment protections for government employees. The Justices have done so by adopting a series…
Securitizing the University
By MARYAM JAMSHIDI. Full Text. Since October 7, 2023, public and private actors have doubled down on efforts to securitize the American university. In large part, these initiatives aim to quash a vocal pro-Palestine movement that has become highly visible across U.S. campuses since October 7th. In targeting this group, these efforts have variously treated…
Notes
Bare Analysis: Prison Visitor Strip and Body-Cavity Searches and Federal Courts’ Insufficient Fourth Amendment Analysis
By TRISTEN LINDELL. Full Text. Strip and body-cavity searches are among the most egregious invasions of personal privacy that the government can impose. The Fourth Amendment, as interpreted by the Supreme Court, demands that courts thoroughly analyze these searches. Courts must consider not only the suspicion that warranted the search, but the way the search…
“Pollution Does Not [sic] Discriminate”: Louisiana v. EPA, Disparate Impact, and the Fight for Environmental Justice in a Hostile Climate
By NAOMI BRIM. Full Text. Human-induced climate change hurts people. Environmental burdens impact a person’s ability to live freely, in good health, and with loved ones. And in the United States, people in positions of political authority and decision-making—who are predominantly white and high-income—use the legal system to push environmental harms disproportionately onto low-income, Black,…
The Penalty Is Declined: The NFL’s Exclusive Streaming Agreements and the Limits of Antitrust Law
By WILLIAM HOLT. Full Text. The National Football League’s (NFL) decision to grant NBCUniversal’s Peacock streaming service exclusive rights to carry the 2023–24 wild-card matchup between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Miami Dolphins signaled a major shift in the league’s media distribution strategy. Football fans that had long depended on free, over-the-air broadcasts for…
Headnotes
Commodification, Precarity, and Identity: A Review of Professor Bridget Crawford’s Taxing Sugar Babies
By TESSA DAVIS. Full text.
The Liminality of Transactional Relationships
By VICTORIA J. HANEMAN. Full Text.
Tax Talk and Taxing Sugar Babies
By BLAINE G. SAITO. Full Text.
John Roberts’ Supreme Court: The Triumph of Partisanship and Ideology Over Precedent
By DAVID SCHULTZ & JACOB BOURGAULT. Full Text.
Critical Curriculum Design: Teaching Law in an Age of Rising Authoritarianism
By RACHEL LÓPEZ. Full Text.
A Great American Gun Myth: Race and the Naming of the “Saturday Night Special”
By Jennifer L. Behrens and Joseph Blocher. Full Text. At a time when Second Amendment doctrine has taken a strongly historical turn and gun rights advocates have increasingly argued that gun regulation itself is historically racist, it is especially important that historical claims about race…
Refining the Dangerousness Standard in Felon Disarmament
By Jamie G. McWilliam. Full Text. To some, 18 U.S.C. 922(g) is a necessary safeguard that keeps guns out of the hands of dangerous persons. To others, it strips classes of non-violent people of their natural and constitutional rights. This statute makes it a crime…
“Proven” Safety Regulations: Massachusetts 1805 Proving Law As Historical Analogue for Modern Gun Safety Laws
By Billy Clark. Full Text. Concerned by the public health threats posed by certain firearms, the Massachusetts legislature enacts a law to set safety standards for firearms in the Commonwealth. Firearm dealers across the State, including some of the leading manufacturers of the day, not…
Curbing Gun Violence Under PLCAA and Bruen: State Attorney General–Driven Solutions to the Surging Epidemic
By David Lamb. Full Text. At the same time that the deadly toll of gun violence continues to grow in the U.S., now taking nearly 50,000 lives per year, federal lawmakers and courts have increasingly constrained government authorities’ tools for fighting the epidemic. Pursuant to…
De Novo Blog
Patent Apocalypse
PATENT APOCALYPSE: WILL OIL STATES RESURRECT THE VICTIMIZED PATENT RIGHTS OF IPR? By: Clint Maynard, Volume 102 Staff Member Where does a patent go to die? Some patent holders might say the Patent Trials and Appeals Board (PTAB). Since the enactment of the Leahy-Smith America…
“Uber” Uncertainty
“UBER” UNCERTAINTY: WHY COURTS ARE ILL-EQUIPPED TO DETERMINE COMPENSABILITY IN A GIG ECONOMY By: Joshua Greenberg, Volume 102 Staff Member In an increasingly digital world, people are finding new ways to earn a living. Specifically, the “gig economy,” also known as “on-demand employment,” continues to…
Alabama Prisoners’ Cry for Help
A COURT HEARS ALABAMA PRISONERS’ CRY FOR HELP By: J.D. Davis, Volume 102 Staff Member In June of 2017, Judge Myron Thompson issued his second major opinion in a three-part class action lawsuit.[1] This 302-page ruling came out of a massive 2014 lawsuit filed by…
The Algorithm Made Me Do It and Other Bad Excuses
THE ALGORITHM MADE ME DO IT AND OTHER BAD EXCUSES: UPHOLDING TRADITIONAL LIABILITY PRINCIPLES FOR ALGORITHM-CAUSED HARM By: Rebecca J. Krystosek, Volume 101 Staff Member As the outputs of algorithms increasingly pervade our everyday lives—from wayfinding apps and search engine autofill results to investment advice…
All (Privacy) Is Not Lost
ALL (PRIVACY) IS NOT LOST: ATTORNEYS GENERAL AND PRIVACY PROTECTION By: Mitchell Noordyke, Volume 101 Staff Member In March, the House and Senate voted to prevent portions of the FCC Privacy Rule from going into effect.[1] This rule would have required more demanding protocol from…
Pot, Printz, and Preemption
POT, PRINTZ, AND PREEMPTION: WHY STATES CAN “JUST SAY NO” TO JEFF SESSIONS AND THE CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES ACT By: Franklin R. Guenthner, Volume 101 Staff Member Attorney General Jeff Sessions is not a fan of marijuana. Before assuming his role at the Department of Justice,…
Keefe v. Adams
KEEFE V. ADAMS: OVERREGULATING OFF-CAMPUS SPEECH UNDER PROFESSIONAL CODES OF CONDUCT By: Maximilian Hall, Volume 101 Staff Member The Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit recently held that a student’s off-campus speech, which violated the American Nursing Association Code of Ethics, could be regulated…
Protecting Senior Citizens from Their Mail
Protecting Senior Citizens from Their Mail: The Growing Threat of Direct Mail Solicitation at Senior Living Communities By: Mike Sikora, Volume 101 Staff Member Many of us hear stories of scammers targeting the elderly: fake grandsons trapped in jail, fake nieces stranded at airports, and…
Much Ado About Nothing
MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING: ELIMINATING CHEVRON DEFERENCE WOULD LIKELY HAVE A MINIMAL IMPACT ON SUPREME COURT JURISPRUDENCE By: Jessica Sharpe, Volume 101 Staff Member Neil Gorsuch’s nomination to the Supreme Court was confirmed by the Senate in recent weeks.[1] Throughout his confirmation hearings, his views…
Educational Privileges
EDUCATIONAL PRIVILEGES: A PERPSECTIVE ON U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION REGULATIONS BANNING PRE-DISPUTE, MANDATORY ARBITRATION IN UNIVERSITIES By: Kate Kelzenberg, Volume 101 Staff Member During the Senate confirmation hearing of Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch, Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) questioned the nominee on his opinions about…
