The opinion piece discusses a recent Indiana appeals court ruling that granted religious exemptions to the state's restrictive abortion law based on Indiana's Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA). The author argues that this ruling could have broader implications, potentially providing a basis in federal constitutional law to challenge abortion restrictions nationwide on the grounds of religious discrimination.
SMU Dedman School of Law professor Joanna L. Grossman comments on a case in which an Indiana man unsuccessfully sought to disavow paternity of a child born to his wife. Grossman provides a brief explanation of the history of paternity laws and their growing as American families become more diverse.
Cornell University law professor Sherry Colb comments on a recent decision by the Court of Appeals of Indiana, holding that police violated their suspect’s Fourth Amendment rights by acquiring, without a warrant, the suspect’s cell site information from his cell phone provider. Colb explains the Indiana court’s reasoning and discusses the evolving law regarding people’s privacy expectations in information their cell phones store and transmit.
Cornell University law professor Sherry Colb comments on the Indiana abortion law that Donald Trump’s chosen running mate, Mike Pence, signed into law as governor of that state. Colb explains the different reasons that women have for terminating their pregnancies and argues that while some of the reasons women actually choose abortion might be repugnant to some of us, that should not undermine their right to make that choice.
Cardozo law professor Marci Hamilton a recent proposal by the Indiana legislature to update that state’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act (“RFRA”) and extend that law’s legal standard to other rights. Hamilton explains why this proposed change is based on an overly simplistic view of constitutional rights and is a bad idea.