Credibility by Proxy
Julia Simon-Kerr 85 Geo. Wash. L. Rev. 152 Evidence jurisprudence assumes that impeachment rules are intended to help determine the truth of the matter by identifying liars. For example, a witness’s credibility can be impeached with evidence that she has a fraud conviction because in theory that conviction suggests she is deceitful and is therefore... Read More
“Substantial” Burdens: How Courts May (and Why They Must) Judge Burdens on Religion Under RFRA
Frederick Mark Gedicks 85 Geo. Wash. L. Rev. 94 The Religious Freedom Restoration Act (“RFRA”) excuses believers from federal laws that “substantially burden” their religious exercise, unless the government shows that the law furthers a compelling interest in the least restrictive manner. Who decides if a burden is “substantial”? RFRA claimants argue that they do.... Read More
The Inefficient Evolution of Merger Agreements
Robert Anderson and Jeffrey Manns 85 Geo. Wash. L. Rev. 57 Transactional law is one of the most economically significant areas of legal practice and accounts for a large percentage of the profits and staffing at most elite law firms. But in spite of its economic importance, there has been little empirical work on the... Read More
Making Preemption Less Palatable: State Poison Pill Legislation
Robert A. Mikos 85 Geo. Wash. L. Rev. 1 Congressional preemption constitutes perhaps the single greatest threat to state power and to the values served thereby. Given the structural incentives now in place, there is little to deter Congress from preempting state law, even when the state interests Congress displaces far exceed its own. The... Read More
On the Docket’s Preview of January Supreme Court Arguments
The New Year may finally bring some excitement to Court-watchers dissatisfied with the Eight-Justice Supreme Court’s perceived recent avoidance of hot-button controversies. Though the ever-present specter of potential deadlock remains, the Court in January will hear arguments in several high-profile cases that are sure to garner passionate responses from individuals of all political stripes. In some... Read More
The Dangers of Misinterpreting Recently Amended FRE 801(d)(1)(B)
Professor Laird C. Kirkpatrick and Professor Christopher B. Mueller · December 2016 84 Geo. Wash. L. Rev. Arguendo 193 A recent amendment to Federal Rule of Evidence 801(D)(1)(B) expands the situations in which prior consistent statements by testifying witnesses can be used as substantive evidence, and not merely as rehabilitating evidence. In this piece, the... Read More
Salman v. United States: Stock Tips Make Bad Holiday Gifts
Salman v. United States, 580 U.S. ___ (2016) (Alito, J.). Response by Professor Randall D. Eliason Geo. Wash. L. Rev. On the Docket (Oct. Term 2016) Slip Opinion | New York Times DealBook | SCOTUSblog Stock Tips Make Bad Holiday Gifts Insider trading is a particularly murky area of criminal law. Because no statute defines the... Read More
When a Picture Is Not Worth a Thousand Words
Andreas Kuersten · November 2016 84 Geo. Wash. L. Rev. Arguendo 179 It is frequently put forth that the admission of neuroimaging evidence at criminal trials introduces the substantial risk of these sophisticated and visual presentations unduly influencing factfinders. As such, this Essay analyzes how brain image evidence might have this effect. Particularly, it focuses... Read More
On the Docket’s Preview of December Supreme Court Arguments
As the Supreme Court nears double digit months without a ninth Justice, the end may be in sight. Now that the election is over and President-elect Trump is beginning to fill his soon-to-be cabinet positions, judicial nomination buzz is warming up, and attention will be turning from the Senate’s blockage of Judge Merrick Garland’s nomination... Read More
Panel 4: Consumer Contract Law
Panel 4: Consumer Contract Law Our final panel assessed the future of consumer contract law in the United States, the United Kingdom, and the European Union. The Honorable Carlos Lucero, Judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit moderated the discussion featuring Professors Geraint Howells, City University of Hong Kong, and James... Read More