To our Juris writers and readers and to our fellow Duquesne University School of Law classmates, professors, and colleagues: Like all of you, we are perturbed and deeply saddened by the death of George Floyd. It is incredibly disheartening to see the horrors of police brutality and systemic racism so […]
Posts
Intimate Partner Terrorism Amid the COVID-19 Crisis
Photo provided courtesy of Pixabay.com By Elizabeth Fitch, Staff Writer Across the globe, victims of domestic violence are trapped at home with their abusers amid the COVID-19 crisis. They are in more danger than ever, as places continuously shut down due to the pandemic.[1] “Court resources are being stretched extraordinarily […]
Wisconsin Holds In-person Voting in the Midst of COVID-19
Photo provided courtesy of Unsplash.com By Margaret Potter, Blog Editor Imagine your state is holding an election, and you are seeking to exert your constitutional right to vote. But wait – the past month has been filled with turmoil regarding a global pandemic that has resulted in thousands of deaths […]
Health Insurers Sue Government Over Massive Obamacare Losses
Photo provided courtesy of Unsplash.com By David McPeak, Staff Writer Absent an express appropriation, just exactly when does Congress commit taxpayers to a financial obligation? The old adage “if something seems too good to be true, it probably is”— speaks to insurance companies’ theory of relief in Maine Community […]
Juris Magazine Summer 2020
Letter from the Editor In January, when the e-board settled on “The Environment” as a theme for the Summer 2020 issue of Juris, none of us could have predicted the challenge that nature would present to us this year. Environmental law is often treated peripherally in the United States. The […]
Trump Administration Enacts Largest Rollback of the Clean Water Act
By: Margaret Potter, Blog Editor Enacted in 1972, the Clean Water Act (the “CWA”) has provided for the federal protection of the “waters of the United States” for over forty years.[1] Under the CWA, the federal government can regulate water quality standards and implement pollution control to protect the integrity […]
Rules of Human Mobility: Crossing a Submerging Border
By Samantha Cook, Editor-in-Chief Research from Cornell University predicts that by the year 2100, 2 billion people may be refugees due to the rising sea levels and high numbers of people who live along the world’s coastlines.[1] Two of the most hotly contested political and legal topics, immigration and climate […]
Can Big Oil Companies be Held Liable for Damages Related to Climate Change? Substantive and Procedural Issues
By John Paul Abda, Feature Editor Climate change has created a stark divide worldwide. Many individuals in the United States feel as though climate change should be a leading federal priority, while others place the issue relatively low on their list of causes.[1] As the issue gains more attention, the […]
Trump Administration Proposes to Loosen NEPA
By Giulia Schaub, Blog Editor President Donald Trump and the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) released their proposal on January 10, 2020 to modify the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), with the ultimate goals of bringing an end to the slow federal approval processes of new projects and […]
Mining Laws May Be Designed to Protect the Environment, But Do They?
By: Rachel Pressdee, Feature Editor There are thousands of abandoned mines in the United States alone.[1] Abandoned mines can pollute adjacent streams, lakes, and groundwater by contaminating the water “with high volumes of toxic waste.”[2] This pollution damages marine ecosystems, poisons drinking water, and poses serious health risks to local […]