Britney Spears’s recent battle for control over her life and finances has shed light on conservatorships and their widespread abuse in the U.S. This article details the legal mechanism behind guardianships and how some of them are abused. The increased attention on guardianships caused by the “Free Britney” movement has also inspired legislation designed to reform the conservatorship system.

Thousands of American companies have sued their government since it escalated its tariffs on Chinese imports in 2018 and 2019. This article shows why these lawsuits will ultimately be appealed to the Supreme Court by the U.S. Court of International Trade. Although its power in the geopolitical conflict may be hidden, the Supreme Court will decide the future of the U.S. China trade war. Its consequential ruling may force the Biden administration to amend its policy, setting the precedent for the executive branch's trade authority.

The U.S. government's response to the Klu Klux Klan's abhorrent violence has been limited, in part, due to the government's federalized structure, allowing the KKK to resurge in waves throughout history. In my piece, I explain the court system's undeniable influence over Klan activity, arguing the courts must adopt a "living Constitution" style of interpretation so that the First Amendment no longer protects the organization's members. Finally, the KKK's lingering presence would be squashed, and it would no longer be able to get away with murder.

Costlier drugs have made it more difficult for the ill and low-income to receive quality healthcare, in addition to making it more expensive for taxpayers who have to finance Medicare more. Despite this, lobbying laws and protections are at the forefront of enabling and, in many ways, encouraging such behavior, often in the spirit of free speech. While free speech is a basic tenet of American democracy, strict adherence to it has allowed rampant, corrupt, corporate lobbying that has undermined American democracy by overpowering public interest.

Lawmakers and scholars on both sides of the aisle have publicly expressed their opinions on President Biden’s April 6, 2021 creation of the Presidential Commission on the Supreme Court of the United States to examine the merits of reforming the nation’s highest court. Reactions between and within parties have been mixed: some Democrats view reforms as a means of “taking back the court” from “conservative” Justices, while a few Republicans have accused progressives of trying to “pack the court.” This is the first attempt to reform the Supreme Court in nearly a century, leaving many scholars and lawmakers skeptical of the President’s true motivation. On April 15, a group of Democrats introduced legislation to add four justices to the Supreme Court, signaling progressives’ desire to move forward with reform. However, the proposed law and new commission are unlikely to result in any real change.

On March 25, 2021, Georgia Republicans passed the controversial bill SB 202, which intends to revise state election law, creating a resurgence of tension between Republicans and Democrats following the 2020 Presidential election. The full text of Georgia’s voting law indicates that the voting bill was passed in reaction to a lack of confidence in Georgia’s election systems due to charges of voter suppression, alleged voter fraud, and controversy over signature-matching requirements. Democrats and civil-rights groups deemed the voting bill a measure to restrict voting in future elections, but Republicans insist the bill will improve voter processes and confidence in Georgia.

This piece serves as a reflection and push for progress as Brianna explores the rise in media coverage of the Black Lives Matter Movement and the past year she has spent as a research assistant for a project on “Stand Your Ground” Laws. With a focus on the origins of SYG in Florida, Brianna hopes to uncover the history behind the controversial law and look to efforts to combat its strong impact on the undue deaths of Black Americans.

This blog post discusses the recent revival of the century-old Equal Rights Amendment, with the recent passage of a U.S. House resolution to remove the amendment’s ratification deadline. The ERA has encountered many roadblocks over the course of the last century, beginning with the mobilization of anti-feminists who believed that the amendment would strip women of their traditional ‘real rights’ to stay in the home as a wife and mother. In contemporary society, criticism of the amendment persists through arguments that the ERA would result in a more severe impact on societal structures than is necessary. Given the pervasive economic and social inequality based on gender in the United States, supporters of the Equal Rights Amendment believe that the explicit inclusion of women in the Constitution is vital to the protection of women’s rights.

The sexual assault allegations surrounding Governor Andrew Cuomo are the source of national debate and outrage, with many critics calling for his resignation. The power dynamics at play symbolize a larger problem with legislators who do not obey their own laws and indicate the need for publicly elected officials to take accountability in the post-#MeToo era.

This article explores the ways COVID-19 has impacted the process of jury trials, particularly as it relates to jury selection and witness testimony. Without a national standard, there is a great risk that convictions will be appealed or even overturned due to Constitutional Violations. While this is certainly an unprecedented time, action needs to be taken to ensure Sixth and Eighth Amendment rights of defendants are met while at the same time ensuring public safety for potential jurors.

On October 28 2020, Poland tightened its abortion laws that were already one of the strictest in the European Union. Under the new law, Polish women are only legally permitted to have abortions in cases of rape or incest, or if the life of the mother is endangered. Poland's constitutional court ruled that abortion due to fetal defects was unconstitutional. Until now, on estimate 98% of legal abortions were carried out due to fetal birth defects, meaning that the ruling effectively places a total ban on abortions. This article examines this development in the context of the broader tensions between the EU and its member states.

On November 26, 2020, a new European Union human rights sanctions regime, the so-called Magnitsky Act, was agreed upon by foreign policy experts from the 27 EU member states and will be formally approved by ministers on December 7, 2020, or by written procedure on December 10, 2020. This would add an important tool for the EU to sanction human rights abuses and help the union become more cohesive in tackling human rights issues.

In 2019, the Supreme Court ruled that, in certain cases, inmates who develop dementia and other forms of cognitive dysfunction since their trials and sentencing can prevent death row inmates from being executed. Although this upholds a prior precedent, it raises questions about the Eighth Amendment’s application to incarcerated individuals that develop dementia while serving their sentence: is prison a cruel and unusual punishment if an individual does not understand or remember why they are incarcerated? What does this mean for the ever-aging prison population in the United States, especially as life expectancy increases and “life without parole” sentences become longer?

On Saturday, November 7th, a nation erupted with cheers, dancing, and tears (both of joy and sadness) as numerous news outlets projected that Vice President Joe Biden had become the 46th President-Elect and Kamala Harris would soon become the first woman, black person, South Asian person, and biracial person to be Vice President of the United States. My roommates and I, too, joined in the celebration, hugging each other and calling our families while Van Jones flowed tears of relief on the television screen. Many thoughts bubbled up and fleeted in people’s heads that day, but I am still anxiously wondering: what does this mean for the Supreme Court?

On October 5, 2020, the European Court of Justice ruled that Hungary’s law on foreign universities operating within Hungary breaches EU law. The 2017 law is designed to specifically target the Central European University (CEU), founded by the Hungarian-American philanthropist and investor George Soros. CEU has now moved most of its courses to Vienna, Austria, due to the legal challenges. The law is seen as a direct attack from the country’s nationalist government and Prime Minister Viktor Orban on George Soros, who does not comply with Hungary’s anti-migration views.

On June 15, 2020, the Supreme Court reached an affirmative opinion that discrimination based on gender identity is a violation of sex discrimination under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. Three cases comprised this decision, colloquially known as Bostock, however, I will focus on R.G. & G.R. Harris Funeral Homes Inc. v. Equal Employment and Opportunity Commission as the other two cases deal with sexual orientation, not gender identity. In R.G. & G.R. Harris Funeral Homes Inc. v. Equal Employment and Opportunity Commission, Aimee Stephens, funeral director for R.G. & G.R. Harris Funeral Homes, was fired from her job after informing her employer of her intention to transition from man to woman and begin wearing more traditionally feminine clothes.

This article examines the implications of the Supreme Court’s recent decision that upholds a Kansas law barring one of the generally accepted applications of the so-called Insanity Defense. After a brief historical overview, it looks toward the potential impact mentally ill defendants may face, not only in the state of Kansas, but across the country