While a publicity-seeking lawprof has been stirring the pot, it’s by no means clear that any actual Catholic U. students consider it intolerably irksome to pray in a room with a cross. [PJ Media "Tatler", earlier]
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Posts tagged as:
colleges and universities
With some help from Cato colleagues:
- As bailouts go, Fannie/Freddie’s is on track to cost more than TARP [Mark Calabria; related, Arnold Kling] “Engineering the Financial Crisis: Systemic Risk and the Failure of Regulation” [Cato forum this past Thursday]
- Just like Valley Forge out there in the snow? Are you sure? [Ann Althouse]
- Student loans have become more burdensome, especially given inability to discharge in bankruptcy. Who if anyone deserves blame? [Kenneth Anderson, Kling, Mystal/Above the Law] President’s proposed student loan revamp “won’t cost taxpayers” (and if you believe that one…) [Neal McCluskey]
- NY police union rep: we’ll sue protesters if they hurt us [USA Today]
- No new graphic ideas since, what, 1893? New Yorker envisions top-hatted capitalists in whiskers [David Boaz] Some demographics behind income inequality [Mark Perry, more, yet more, Will Wilkinson (PDF), Reihan Salam, Political Calculations]
- Unions rally some protesters to intimidate businesspeople at their homes; nothing new about that except the label [CNN, Business Insider, earlier]
Welcome Prof. Bainbridge readers: The Washington, D.C. Office of Human Rights is investigating Catholic U. for, among other alleged offenses, “not providing [some Muslim students] rooms without Christian symbols for their daily prayers.” Like a legal complaint against the same institution for reinstating single-sex dormitories, this one has been advanced by inveterate publicity hound and George Washington U. lawprof John Banzhaf, whose antics we have discussed often in the past (though not much recently, since he actually seems to like the attention); a few highlights here, here, and here.
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- “Convicted King of Class Actions Builds Aviary, Regrets Nothing” [Lerach, Bloomberg profile]
- Teva/Baxter suits: Latest Nevada you-made-the-vials-too-big propofol verdict makes no more sense than first [Glenn Lammi, Forbes; Ted at PoL]
- EPA malicious prosecution in Hubert Vidrine case won’t be “isolated” unless we change our thinking [Ken at Popehat]
- Title IX coordinator training: “How federal regulations are making college ‘risk management’ lawyers rich” [Robert Shibley, Daily Caller] A lawyer spots more problems with Department of Education regulations on campus sexual assault [Robert Smith, RCP]
- Time to admit: on consequences of protecting big banks from capitalism, “Occupy” has a point [Nicole Gelinas, City Journal]
- Lawsuits accuse Boeing of engine-air-in-cabin “fume events” [MSNBC]
- About those “Topeka decriminalizes domestic violence” stories [Lowering the Bar]
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- ABA, NFIB protest NLRB “persuader” disclosure regulations [ABA Journal, Schwartz, earlier] Might regs place replacement workers’ home addresses in hands of unions? [Labor Union Report, Boyle, Daily Caller]
- Swiss animal welfare law is catalyst for founding of guinea pig matchmaking service [Spiegel/Cowen]
- “Jail time for overdue library books” [Lowering the Bar]
- Busybody lawprof (at a different law school) continues to sue Catholic U. demanding coed dorms [WSJ Law Blog, Mystal/AtL]
- So does air pollution cause childhood asthma, as the American Lung Association claims in its ads? [Hayward] “Obama’s Smog Standard Capitulation Enrages Environmentalists” [AW]
- A look inside the Shell Nigeria Alien Tort cases [Goldhaber, AmLaw]
- In the mail: Garner’s Dictionary of Legal Usage (Bryan Garner)
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The WSJ editors wonder to what extent the feds, who have been pursuing a campaign lately to bring the colleges to heel, are coordinating with the private False Claims Act bar. Meanwhile, Rogier at Nobody’s Business spots some ironies in the Justice Department’s suit against Education Management Corp.: “pushing low- to medium-value degrees is something that law schools — including some of the best in the country — do habitually, every day. All of higher education does, with no exceptions I’m aware of.”
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- “He coulda been a credenza”: actor’s estate sues over unauthorized “Brando” furniture line [The Daily via Balko] “Motorcycle Gang Sues Over ‘My Boyfriend’s A Hell’s Angel’ T-Shirt” [CBS-LA]
- EEOC decries employer discrimination on the basis of applicants’ criminal records, recommends curbing background checks [WSJ Law Blog, FastCasual, Hyman, Greenfield] Bill in San Francisco would make felons a protected class in jobs, housing [Fox]
- Why are Obama officials intent on reducing due process protections for those accused of campus sexual misconduct? [Silverglate, WSJ; Philadelphia Magazine, Samantha Harris/NY Post, Ciamarella, Daily Caller (AAUP objects to plan); links at SAVE] A contrasting view [Roderick Hills, Prawfsblawg]
- 9th Circuit rejects Bluetooth class action settlement to which Ted Frank’s CCAF objected [Fisher, NLJ, Frank]
- Lawyer who represents jogger in product liability suit expects to file more actions claiming Skechers sneakers responsible for falls [BLT]
- Part of a balanced breakfast: “Why the lawsuit against Nutella is bunk” [Nadia Arumugam, Slate] Update: Judge denies motion to dismiss [Russell Jackson]
- Experts agree it’s OK to nominate Overlawyered for an ABA “100 Best Legal Blogs” slot here.
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Fired after allegations of being abusive toward staff, Frank “Stephenson said the university should have provided ‘reasonable accommodations’ for his handicap of alcoholism, which the suit says his supervisors were aware of. State law prohibits discriminating against a person with a handicap.” [Orlando Sentinel; background; & welcome Above the Law readers]
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- Law profs (some of them, anyway) bristle at “impractical scholarship” critique from Chief Justice Roberts [Ifill, ConcurOp; Adler; Chiang, Prawfs; Markel]
- Noisy exit by University of Baltimore law dean calls attention to law schools’ role as cash cows for universities [Caron]
- There’ll always be a legal academia: redefining banks as public nuisances [Lind via CL&P] “Disability as a Social Construct” [Areheart, Yale Law and Policy Review] North Dakota’s fiscal health? Nothing to do with shale boom or budget prudence, it’s that they’ve got a state-owned bank [Pasquale/Canova]
- “Why Does Pedigree Drive Law Faculty Hiring?” [Paul Caron] Using the accreditation process to mandate more tenure for lawprofs? [same] “ABA to Continue as Law School Accrediter, Despite Noncompliance With 17 Regs” [same]
- “Have Law Schools Violated Consumer Protection Laws?” [Jeff Sovern, CL&P] Villanova keeps mum after embarrassing revelations [Inquirer]
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- “Electronic Arts Has Right to Refer to John Dillinger in Its Video Games” [Volokh]
- Fans of “Civil Gideon” (constitutional entitlement to publicly funded lawyers in civil cases) glum that SCOTUS didn’t give idea much of a boost in Turner v. Rogers case last week [Concurring Opinions symposium, ABA Journal]
- Feds (in particular, the FTC) go after Google [AW, Manne & Wright/TotM, Stoll]
- “The Dept of Education, Yale, and the New Threat to Free Speech on Campus” [Greg Lukianoff/HuffPo] “In Making Campuses Safe for Women, a Travesty of Justice for Men” [Christina Sommers, Chron Higher Ed] Feds crack down on campus flirting and sex jokes [Michael Barone, D.C. Examiner] Heather Mac Donald on Yale hostile-environment complaint [City Journal, earlier] “Why Cross-Examination Rights Matter in Campus Sexual Harassment Cases” [Hans Bader]
- Trial lawyer propaganda coup? HBO airs plaintiff’s-side “Hot Coffee” documentary [Abnormal Use, Ted Frank/PoL, Schwartz/NYT, more, yet more]
- Financial institutions abroad will be pleased to be roped into U.S. regulatory schemes. Won’t they? [Dan Mitchell, Cato at Liberty]
- Proposal for judge-guided negotiations in NY med-mal cases leaves Ted Frank underwhelmed [PoL]
- “Virginia inmate sues after gruesome tries at sex change” [AP]
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- “Law Prof Threatens Suit over University’s Plan to Reinstitute Single-Sex Dorms” [ABA Journal, WSJ Law Blog; John Banzhaf vs. Catholic U. in Washington, D.C.]
- Mississippi: Dickie Scruggs files motion to vacate conviction in Scruggs II (DeLaughter case) [Freeland, YallPolitics] Before defending Paul Minor’s conduct in cash-for-judges scandal, review the evidence [Lange, YallPolitics and more]
- Woman who filmed cop from own yard charged with obstructing his administration of governmen [BoingBoing]
- East St. Louis, Ill. jury awards $95 million in sexual harassment, assault case against Aaron’s rental chain [ABA Journal]
- Connecticut unions demand investigation of conservative Yankee Institute think tank [Public Sector Inc.]
- “Court Upends $1.75M Award, Finding Plaintiff Lawyer’s Remarks Prejudicial” [NJLJ]
- Hold it! San Francisco debates bathroom rights for schoolkids [C.W. Nevius, SF Chronicle]
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NPR “Marketplace” via James Taranto:
AMY SCOTT: The lawsuit began after Towson University started offering an MBA — a degree students could already get a short drive away at historically Black Morgan State University. Attorney Michael Jones represents the coalition suing the state. He says federal law prohibits states from starting new programs that are already established at a nearby Historically Black College or University, or HBCU.
MICHAEL JONES: Once these programs were duplicated elsewhere, it affected the abilities of the HBCUs to be competitive in terms of attracting students regardless of race.
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- Law firm settles with employee who said required high heels led to back injury [ABA Journal]
- Stock listings fleeing U.S. for overseas, legal environment a factor [Ribstein, TotM]
- Partial solution to above? Ted Frank places a stock bet on the Wal-Mart case [PoL, more]
- Wider press coverage of hospital drug shortage [AP, Reuters, my March post]
- Trial judge up north supports certifying as class action unusual suit blaming Newfoundland for moose collisions [Canadian Press via Karlsgodt, earlier here and here]
- Academic revolt against copyright overreach [Chron of Higher Ed]
- Sues deceased grandmother over trampoline injury [Madison County Record]
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My Cato colleague Ilya Shapiro on the Obama Education Department’s unsettling insistence that colleges and universities, on pain of losing federal dollars, pare back the due process accorded to those accused of sexual misconduct. [Cato at Liberty]
Plus: earlier on Yale’s submissive reaction to Title IX complaint and suspension of a fraternity. More: “hostile environment” Title IX complaints leveled against other schools as well; Cathy Young on campus sexual assault numbers.
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Federal regulators and private complainants step up pressure for tougher university disciplinary action against offensive males — and speech-related offenses will be very much under scrutiny. [Greg Lukianoff/Daily Caller, Harvey Silverglate and Kyle Smeallie/Minding the Campus, Caroline May/Daily Caller]
More: The Yale Alumni Magazine notes that DKE (Delta Kappa Epsilon) brought the University “bad publicity.” And Dave Zincavage has been blogging critically about the affair. Further: Scott Greenfield.
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- Interview with brewmaster of “Collaboration Not Litigation Ale” [Abnormal Use]
- New “public trust” theory emerges in climate change litigation [Sean Wajert, Jim Huffman]
- Who did the fact-checking? Questions over award to Harper’s journalist Scott Horton [Stimson, Heritage "Foundry", my '08 take]
- “Nightmare scenario for higher education”: copyright case against Georgia State seeks sweeping injunction [Duke University Libraries]
- “Vast wasteland” broadcast regulator: “Glenn Garvin scales and guts Newton Minow” [Miami Herald via @jackshafer]
- Teacher in suburban DC still devastated by false abuse charges [WaPo, Lanny Davis, David Bernstein]
- Sweetness and light: “Rising tide of litigation lifts [law] firms” [WSJ Law Blog]
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A fraternity has already apologized for its role in loutish public expressions, but that isn’t nearly enough for some complainants who’ve initiated an investigation by the Education Department’s Office of Civil Rights that puts Yale at risk of losing its $500 million in federal funding if it isn’t sufficiently cooperative. Peter Berkowitz in the Wall Street Journal:
That Yale finds itself under pressure from the government, in the face of stupid frat-boy initiation rituals obviously designed to humiliate the pledges themselves, dramatizes how far government and higher education have drifted from the principles of freedom. … What is really at stake in the current investigation of Yale is the proper mission of the university. The complainants, not a few university administrators and faculty, and powerful forces at work in the Department of Education seem to think that one of a university’s top priorities is policing students’ opinions and utterances to ensure that they adopt government-approved ideas about sexual relations. That priority can’t be reconciled with the imperatives of a liberal education.
If a letter just sent to alumni by Yale President Richard Levin is any indication, the university may not intend to put up much of a public stand on behalf of its autonomy of governance, the toleration granted even some offensive utterances in a community of unbridled expression, or the importance of due process for students accused of wrongdoing. Indeed, Levin’s letter does not make even the tamest and most tentative attempt to argue that anything about the OCR complaint is legally erroneous or worth resisting. The full text of the letter follows: [click to continue…]
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