Author and former counsel to the president John W. Dean discusses the Fox News Presidential Debates of August 6, 2015—the first major political event of the 2016 presidential election cycle.
Cardozo law professor Marci Hamilton explains how politicians have intentionally conflated constitutional religious liberty—which comes from the First Amendment of the Constitution—and statutory religious liberty—which originated in the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993—for political gain. Hamilton describes the many differences between these two types of religious liberty and calls upon politicians and journalists to disambiguate the term.
Cornell University law professor Sherry Colb draws upon the outrage many people felt in response to a video allegedly showing Planned Parenthood officials discussing the sale of fetal body parts and tissue from abortions (video that was subsequently revealed to be edited so as to be intentionally misleading) in order to discuss a different area in which tissue and parts are bought and sold without evoking such broad outrage.
Hofstra University law professor Joanna Grossman discusses a recent decision by a New York court that a couple’s failure to obtain a marriage license (and lack of evidence of any intent to marry) meant that they were not legally married.
Chapman University law professor Ronald Rotunda critiques the trend in institutions of higher education to instruct professors and students to avoid “microaggressions” and to give “trigger warnings.”
Law professor and dean designate of the University of Illinois College of Law Vikram David Amar provides an update on the so-called National Popular Vote (NPV) interstate compact plan in light of the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision in Arizona Legislature v. Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission.
In this second of a two-part series of columns, George Washington law professor and economist Neil Buchanan explains how the German-led policy regime is likely to hurt not just Greece’s people but also people elsewhere in the world. Buchanan also describes how the arguments from German policymakers amounts to blaming the victims of the very policies they imposed upon the Greeks.
Cornell University law professor Michael Dorf considers to what extent defamation law provides a remedy for people who appear in deliberately misleading audiovisual recordings, as in the recently released videos ostensibly showing senior officials of Planned Parenthood stating prices for selling fetal body parts.
In this first of a two-part series of columns, George Washington law professor and economist Neil Buchanan explains why the situation in Greece is economically simple but politically nasty.
Cornell University law professor Joseph Margulies laments the discourse currently surrounding the presidential candidates, particularly Donald Trump, and argues that we should be more focused on the candidates’ answers to important questions about inequality, the criminal justice system, climate change, and global insecurity.
Former counsel to the president John W. Dean discusses Republican presidential hopeful Donald Trump and the authoritarian leader personality type. Dean argues that while Trump may be the early leader in the polls, he will ultimately not win presidency of the United States.
Cardozo law professor Marci Hamilton discusses the federal First Amendment Defense Act—a bill that she argues is actually itself unconstitutional.
Hofstra University law professor Joanna Grossman comments on a recent ruling by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) that sexual orientation discrimination constitutes sex discrimination for the purposes of Title VII.
Chapman University law professor Ronald Rotunda discusses a recent decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit with respect to the disqualification of a lawyer from representing a client due to a conflict of interest. Rotunda cautions that the decision, if read broadly, could signal major risks for patent firms, but he argues that the decision need not be read so broadly.
Law professor and dean designate of the University of Illinois College of Law Vikram David Amar offers a few thoughts about how much conservatives lost in the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2014–15 term.
Cornell University law professor Sherry Colb discusses a proposal by Adam Benforado, author of Unfair: The New Science of Criminal Justice, that one way to improve the criminal justice system would be to conduct and record trials outside of the jury’s presence, then to show edited versions of the recordings to juries after all of the evidence has been presented. Colb explains how this proposal could potentially improve the system and addresses some potential obstacles to its implementation.
Cornell University law professor Michael Dorf discusses a recent decision by the U.S. Supreme Court that provides a window into how the Roberts Court understands its role with respect to economic regulation.
Cornell University law professor Joseph Margulies describes the abysmal conditions under which Tariq Ba Odah is suffering at Guantanamo, despite being cleared by every national security agency.
Former counsel to the president John W. Dean laments the willingness—even enthusiasm—of Bill Cosby’s legal defense team to engage in ethically questionable tactics with respect to Cosby’s victims, including using the media to defame the victims.
Cardozo law professor Marci Hamilton comments on the latest revelations about Bill Cosby arising out of a deposition from a civil lawsuit from ten years ago. Hamilton explains why there are so many secrets about sexual assault, including short statutes of limitations and sealed admissions in civil cases, and calls for greater transparency and publicity.