Photo provided courtesy of Pixabay.com. By David W. Thomas, Class of 1990. I am now retired but formerly served in an in-house counsel role in the health insurance and insurance services industries after a stint in private practice. The opinions expressed in the article are my own and not attributable […]
Juris Features
A Message From Our Editors
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 […]
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 […]
A Neurosurgeon, a Cruise Liner, and a Stolen Port: The Helms-Burton Act Offers Redemption While Raising Questions of Extraterritoriality
By Samantha Cook, Editor-in-Chief Javier Garcia-Bengochea is a Cuban-American neurosurgeon who was 15 months old when his family fled Cuba.[1] He claims his family was an owner of a valuable piece of property confiscated by Castro’s regime.[2] Garcia-Bengochea, like many other certified claimants, considers himself and his family to have […]
The Radium Girls: A Tale of Workplace Safety
By Rachel Pressdee, Feature Editor Once upon a time, there was no expectation that employers needed to care about the well-being of their workers. However, throughout American history, women have fought on the front lines of labor reform movements by fighting for better wages, equal rights, and safer working conditions. […]
A Heartbeat Bill Has Been Detected in Pennsylvania
By Giulia Schaub, Blog Editor As of November 2019, all of the proposed “heartbeat bills,” the nickname given to pro-life legislation that places severe limitations on a woman’s right to have an abortion, have been blocked by federal judges in the seven states in which they have been passed.[1] Despite […]