Archive for March, 2008
March 20th, 2008
The latest Lewis & Clark Law School Legal Studies Research Paper Series has now been posted. The series, part of the SSRN Legal Scholarship Network, presents papers accepted for publication and working papers of the Lewis & Clark Law School faculty.
Volume 2, Number 2 of the Lewis & Clark Law School Legal Studies Research Paper Series contains these articles. Follow the links to view abstracts and download the full-text articles:
Subscribe to receive announcements of all new papers in the Lewis & Clark Law School Legal Studies Research Paper Series.
New L&C Law Scholarship is a regular feature of BoleyBlogs! Here we announce new content from the Law Reviews of Lewis & Clark Law School, along with the latest publishing ventures of our own faculty, students and staff.
March 18th, 2008
The latest issue of Lewis & Clark Law School’s Animal Law is now out.
Here are the articles published in Volume 14, Number 1 of Animal Law, complete with links to the abstracts and full-text articles:
Articles
New L&C Law Scholarship is a regular feature of BoleyBlogs! Here we announce new content from the Law Reviews of Lewis & Clark Law School, along with the latest publishing ventures of our own faculty, students and staff.
March 18th, 2008
Julie Hilden, A Contractarian View of Animal Rights: Insuring Against the Possibility of Being A Non-Human Animal, 14 Animal Law 5 (2007)
Contemporary research results regarding non-human animals’ intelligence, emotional life, and capacity for reciprocity strongly suggest the need for a sweeping re-evaluation of their legal status as mere property. In this essay, the author will contend that the contractarian theory of philosopher John Rawls provides an ideal basis for this re-evaluation. Rawls’ theory holds that the just rules for a given real-world society are those that would rationally be chosen behind an imaginary “veil of ignorance,” where the deciding parties are placed in an “original position” in which they have no idea of their personal qualities or the positions they will ultimately occupy in a real-world society. In the “original position,” Rawls contends, parties will metaphorically “insure against” contingencies such as being poor or disabled, by arranging society to offer a social safety-net for persons in those situations. However, what about the contingency of being a non-human animal? The author will argue that though Rawls intentionally left this contingency out, it should be included — and comments on the profound changes to current law that would result if rules devised behind Rawls’ veil of ignorance took into account the contingency that, in real-life society, parties would be not humans, but non-human animals.
(abstract from Animal Law)
March 18th, 2008
Arthur Birmingham LaFrance, Animal Experimentation: Lessons From Human Experimentation, 14 Animal Law 29 (2007)
Conventional wisdom tells us that animal experimentation is a relevant precursor to human experimentation. The failings of human experimentation to be more reliable, however, casts substantial doubt on the necessity and appropriateness of experimentation on animals. The federal government and medical community, since World War II, has used the Nuremberg Code and the “common rule” to determine how to ethically conduct human experimentation. Due to political, economic, or simply unethical decisions, government entities, doctors, and pharmaceutical companies have continued to conduct human experimentation without the informed consent of their subjects. These human experiments have mirrored the form of animal experiments and have often achieved meaningless–or worse–devastating results. Because of the danger and unreliability of human experimentation, the federal and local governments, in conjunction animal advocacy organizations, should take a series of concrete steps to eliminate an experimenter’s ability to cause pain, suffering, and unnecessary death to animals.
(abstract from Animal Law)
March 18th, 2008
Kim McCoy, Subverting Justice: An Indictment of the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act, 14 Animal Law 53 (2007)
The Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act (AETA) creates yet another obstacle for the animal advocacy movement. This article explores the reasons behind the AETA’s enactment and its implications for those who advocate on behalf of animals. The author notes the AETA targets individuals based solely on their political ideology and can deter these individuals from exercising their right to free speech due to the threat of being permanently branded as a terrorist. It is this infringement on First Amendment rights, coupled with the AETA’s overbreadth and vagueness, that lead the author to conclude the AETA is unconstitutional. The author also notes the many social policy flaws within the AETA and finds that the AETA is unnecessary, as existing laws cover every crime encompassed in its language. These defects lead the author to call for the AETA’s repeal and to suggest that individuals look to the judiciary for change.
(abstract from Animal Law)
March 18th, 2008
Megan McNabb, Pets in the Eye of the Storm: Hurricane Katrina Floods the Courts With Pet Custody Disputes, 14 Animal Law 71 (2007)
The story of King Solomon includes the often-told tale of two women, both claiming ownership of one baby, who come before the king’s court in order to resolve their quarrel as to which of them is the true mother. This article recounts a modern-day King Solomon story: the “baby” is the animals left behind during Hurricane Katrina; the two mothers claiming ownership of the “baby” are the original owners of the animals and those who adopted the animals after the hurricane; and the role of King Solomon is played by judges in the custody dispute cases that arose after the storm. This article provides a summary of those custody disputes while examining the question of whether those who left their pets behind during Hurricane Katrina have the right to reclaim them from the animals’ new adoptive family. The animals of Hurricane Katrina became trapped in the middle of an unfortunate and complicated situation largely because of defects in our national policies and laws regarding animals and disasters. Therefore, this article also reviews legislative changes that have and should occur in laws concerning pets and disasters, pet adoption, and animals as property.
(abstract from Animal Law)
March 18th, 2008
Rob Roy Smith, At A Complex Crossroads: Animal Law In Indian Country, 14 Animal Law 109 (2007)
Animals play an especially important role in Indian history and culture. The value of animals to the tribes is reflected in every aspect of their culture, from song and dance to land use and treaty terms. Tribes today are still dependent on fish and wildlife for ceremonies and everyday living. The tribes have translated their value for animals into creative ways to protect domestic animals and manage animal populations, including working with state and federal governments to co-manage fish and wildlife populations. This article begins with a discussion of criminal and civil jurisdiction within Indian Country. The article provides a brief survey of the legal issues found at the intersection between Indian law and animal law, including both domestic animal issues and fish and wildlife issues. The article presents a working understanding of animal advocacy in Indian Country today and concludes that Indian Country may provide a valuable opportunity to craft model animal protection schemes.
(abstract from Animal Law)
March 17th, 2008
Decisions of the Interior Board of Indian Appeals
Decisions of the Interior Board of Indian Appeals return to the free web for the first time in years. The decisions have been under a judicially-enforced absence following the shut down of much of the Bureau of Indian Affairs website during the Cobell Indian Trust Fund litigation. (Find out more about the continuing – 11 years so far – Cobell v. Kempthorne class action.)
Though not yet back on the DOI website, thanks to the efforts of the late Administrative Judge Anita Vogt http://www.ibiadecisions.com has been set up at to provide public access to as many of the Decisions of the Interior Board of Indian Appeals as possible.
Currently the site provides:
The site also includes surveys of IBIA decisions on three subjects: Land Acquisition (Updated version, April 1, 2004), Probate (August 22, 2000), and Tribal Government (July 13, 1998).
Source: govdoc-l discussion list
March 7th, 2008
An excellent resource from, and about, the wetter part of our backyard is well described this week by the Scout Report:
From the earliest European explorers to the time of modern engineers and hydrologists, the vast reserves of water within the Western United States have been the cause of both great excitement and concern. This compelling digital library brings together a wide range of documents (including legal transcripts, water project records, and personal papers) that document the Columbia, Colorado, Platte, and Rio Grande river basins. The project was completed with support from the Institute of Museum and Library Services and twelve university libraries in eight western states.
On the homepage, visitors can perform advanced searches, or just elect to browse through the available materials. Browsing is a good option actually, as all of the materials are contained with one of four sections: subject, people, places, and signature collections. The signature collections are a real find, and visitors can look over troves that include “Native American Water Rights in Arizona”, “The Platte River Basin in Nebraska”, and “Las Vegas: Water in the West”.
Another signature collection of interest to folks in the BoleyBlogs! vicinity is the The Columbia River Basin in Oregon. Provided by the University of Oregon, this collection of historical and contemporary resources contains over 214 texts, images, maps, and aerial photos (and shortly audio and video) pertaining to the Columbia River Basin.
Source: ER-news, Scout Report
March 7th, 2008
Utah law professor Paul Cassell, who recently retired from the federal bench, is now contributing to the estimable The Volokh Conspiracy blog.
Today Judge Cassell posts a few quick thoughts on what federal judges look for when hiring clerks. In short, federal judges are looking for clerks with these attributes:
- Ability to write
- Good judgment
- Good ‘fit’
He also recommends getting to know a professor or two well. Ideology? Not such a big deal. Read all the details at Judge Cassell’s post.
Judge Cassell visited our campus this past fall as part of the LC Law School Federalist Society Speaker Series. He generously allowed us to record his talk and add it to the Lewis & Clark Law School Podcasts. In the videocast Judge Cassell provides an overview of the state of victims’ rights today.
Source: How Appealing
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