2018
The Dark Side of the VRBO Industry
By Kimberlee Gee – December 10, 2018
With no legal decisions made on cases of discrimination in the vacation rental by owner and peer-to-peer rental industry, only time will tell if these lodgings fully fall under “public accommodation” laws.
Employee Email and Social Media: What Is Protected Concerted Activity under the Law?
By Jennifer Holly – December 3, 2018
Employers must be careful before they discipline employees for comments they post on social media or through email streams, even when those comments contain vulgar and shocking language.
Statistics in Class Actions: Is the Computer Algorithm Era upon Us? (Part II)
By Paul G. Karlsgodt, Patrick T. Lewis, and Bonnie McNee – August 14, 2018
A discussion of the practical implications of using statistical methods in litigation.
A Guide to Implicit Bias and Explicit Views of Lawyers' Race and Gender
By Cynthia Cohen – July 31, 2018
Read this original study to test mock jurors' views of lawyers.
Legal Protections for Immigrant Youth under Threat
By Martin Gauto – June 18, 2018
The current administration has found another way to undercut the important legal protections created to ensure the fair and humane treatment of immigrant youth by our immigration system.
Revenge Porn: How Tech Lawyers Are Helping Women
By Nova I. Levant – May 2, 2018
While the effects of revenge porn vary, the majority of victims experience extremely negative consequences. Learn how litigators in the tech industry are helping fight back.
20 Years of Advocating for LGBTQ Youth in Out-of-Home Care
By M. Currey Cook and Cathren Cohen – April 17, 2018
Change has come for many of these unofficial exceptions of youth services, but full inclusion still eludes far too many.
How Much Racial Bias Is Enough to Show Racism in a Jury Verdict?
By Mark A. Flores – March 7, 2018
The Supreme Court ruled that racism could not play a role in a juror's decision to send a criminal defendant to jail or to his death.
Pay Equity Laws: Banning Salary History Questions
By Amber Rogers – February 21, 2018
By encouraging employers to determine salary based on factors other than an applicant’s past compensation, new laws across the country are targeting the gender pay gap.
Competing State and Federal Proceedings
By Cassandra Robertson – February 27, 2018
A dispute over Tennessee’s abortion law escalates to the Sixth Circuit.
Rethinking Qualified Immunity
By Lynda G. Dodd – February 7, 2018
Almost all the Roberts Court’s recent qualified-immunity opinions have protected police officers when the lower courts denied qualified immunity.
20 Years of Policy Advocacy Against Zero Tolerance: A Critical Review
By Rosa K. Hirji – January 16, 2018
Policy solutions are short-lived; instead, advocates need to respond to the attacks on the very nature of public education and the reversal of federal structures that protect civil rights.
2017
What Employers Should Know Regarding Trump's Termination of DACA
By David Gevertz – November 13, 2017
Any employer contemplating what the end of DACA means for its work force would be wise not to act too hastily.
The Department of Justice’s “Legal U-Turns”
By Cassandra Robertson – October 27, 2017
How the department has reversed its positions on appeal.
How Implicit Bias Impacts Our Children in Education
By Nicole Scialabba – October 2, 2017
More than 60 years after Brown v. Board of Education, there is still much work to be done to achieve equality.
RLUIPA and Islamic Society of Basking Ridge v. Township of Bernards: Defining and Protecting the Intersection of Property Law and Religious Freedom for All Faiths
By Steven W. Dimitt, Esq., Michael L. Knapek, Esq., and Maggie Burreson – July 31, 2017
Under RLUIPA, when a planning board interprets "church" as "Christian church" for the purposes of onsite parking requirements, strict liability applies.
How to Use Litigation to Improve Mental Health Care for Children
By Lisa Freeman – July 12, 2017
Class action litigation may be the most effective tool to force government actors to address the mental health needs of children in the child welfare and juvenile justice systems.
Closed Doors and Dead Ends: Ensuring Access to School for All Children
By Justin Deabler, Diane Lucas, and Ajay Saini – July 12, 2017
The New York State Office of the Attorney General’s school enrollment initiative serves as a model that state and local officials across the United States can use to protect immigrants’ rights.
A Constitutional Challenge to Modern Stand Your Ground Laws?
By Marvin Lim – June 6, 2017
Stand Your Ground laws could be challenged on substantive due process grounds under the Constitution.
Racial Bias and the No-Impeachment Rule
By Mark A. Flores – May 25, 2017
The Supreme Court’s uniform belief that racial bias against a criminal defendant in the jury room can inflict significant harm to the system cannot be ignored.
To Kill (Or Imprison for Life) a Juvenile: The Proper Exercise of Judicial Discretion for Sentencing a Juvenile Offender
By André M. Board – May 15, 2017
The implications of the decision in United States v. Under Seal solidifying the constitutional protections against “cruel and unusual punishments.”
Limiting Access to Emergency Contraception May Violate Constitutional Rights
By Renée Dudek – April 26, 2017
Correctional institutions should adopt legally sound and medically appropriate policies on emergency contraception, and ensure compliance with such policies.
Round Peg in a Square Hole: Implicit Bias Research and Employment Law
By Jeff Barnes and Ehsan Tabesh – April 24, 2017
Implicit bias is a fascinating social-science topic, but may have limited application to employment-discrimination law.
Arbitration and Prison Communications: The Difficulty of Challenging Excessive Fees
By Cassandra Burke Robertson – April 18, 2017
Access to affordable telecommunications services in prison is an ongoing challenge.
What Educational Benefit Must a School Provide to a Student with a Disability?
By Jamie Schulte – March 30, 2017
The Supreme Court is considering whether a merely more than de minimis educational benefit satisfies a school’s obligation to provide a free appropriate public education to students with disabilities.
What Rights Do Students Have in the Charter School Era?
By Jessica Schneider – March 30, 2017
Though charter schools are exempt from certain state laws and regulations, charter school students are entitled to the same federal protections as traditional public school students.
Why the History of Section 1983 Helps to Understand "Black Lives Matter"
By Sarah E. Ricks – March 20, 2017
The violence in American history, and its political context, gives insight into the contemporary feelings of vulnerability of young black people growing up in the United States today.
Loving v. Commonwealth: A Powerful Lesson Turns 50
By Mark A. Flores – March 6, 2017
A review of the opinions that resulted in love prevailing over bigotry is as important today as it was the day that the Supreme Court announced the Loving decision.
Stand Your Ground: Should Its Coverage Be Broadened or Is It Too Broad Already?
By David Schoen – February 21, 2017
Courts are wrestling with the application of the law.
Wilson v. Lynch: Do Medical Marijuana Users Lose Their Second Amendment Rights?
By John Pierce – February 9, 2017
According to the Ninth Circuit, the answer is yes.
LGBT Cases to Watch Out for in 2017
By Nancy C. Marcus – February 3, 2017
A number of cases with historic and legal import addressing LGBT rights are working their way through the federal courts.