An essay reviewing the inaugural Justice Antonin Scalia Lecture, titled “Interpreting the Unwritten Constitution,” presented at Harvard Law School by Judge Frank H. Easterbrook on November 14, 2014.
Amending the Ancient Documents Hearsay Exception
This Essay critically assesses a pending, proposed amendment to the Federal Rules of Evidence—slated to take effect in December 2017—that would abrogate Federal Rule of Evidence 803(16), the hearsay exception for ancient documents. The proposed amendment was motivated largely by a fear that large quantities of potentially unreliable, stockpiled, electronically stored information (ESI) are ap...
Attack of the Shorting Bass: Does the Inter Partes Review Process Enable Petitioners to Earn Abnormal Returns?
The Patent Trial and Appeal Board recently instituted a review process called inter partes review that provides a faster review of patent validity than previous methods. The inter partes review has less restrictive rules about which entities can file a petition challenging a patent. Investment firms have taken advantage of these changes. We test whether the patent challenges made by one...
Vaccines, School Mandates, and California’s Right to Education
California recently enacted Senate Bill 277, which abolishes the personal beliefs exemption to school immunization requirements. One possible challenge to the law’s constitutionality is that it impermissibly limits the right to education. This Essay rebuts such a position. California’s jurisprudence regarding access to education applies to protected categories; it does not limit the ability of...
Colonial Exploitation: The Canadian State and the Trafficking of Indigenous Women and Girls in Canada
This Article argues that because of its historical and ongoing investments in settler colonialism, the Canadian state has long been complicit and continues to be complicit in the human trafficking of indigenous women and girls in Canada. In addition to providing indigenous bodies for labour and sexual exploitation, Canada’s trafficking of indigenous people has been essential not only to securing...
Giving as Governance? Philanthrocapitalism and Modern-Day Slavery Abolitionism
This Essay examines the potential influence of a new breed of actor in the global antitrafficking arena: the venture philanthropist, or “philanthrocapitalist.” Philanthrocapitalists have already helped rebrand “trafficking” as “modern-day slavery,” and have expressed their ambitions to lead global efforts to eradicate the problem. With their deep financial resources and access to powerful...
Beyond Coercion
Many immigrants’ rights advocates and scholars have recognized the undocumented worker exploitation that takes place when immigration restrictions enter the workplace, which create incentives for employer misconduct and increase the vulnerability of workers without status. However, little has been discussed about the broader implications of the currently expansive immigration enforcement regime...
(E)racing Childhood: Examining the Racialized Construction of Childhood and Innocence in the Treatment of Sexually Exploited Minors
Over the last twenty years, domestic sexual trafficking of children has received increased attention from state and national policymakers and advocates. Indeed, states across the country have enacted laws establishing harsh new penalties for individuals convicted of domestic sexual trafficking. At the same time, arrest and conviction rates for Black girls within the juvenile justice system are...