Category Archives: Feminism and Law

Immigration Court Ethics, Or Lack Thereof

Per this post at the Legal Ethics Forum: Judge Posner recently issued a scathing critique of the immigration court system. He criticized the competence of immigration judges and lamented the dearth of qualified lawyers to handle immigration matters. For more … Continue reading

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Pregnancy Discrimination At Law Firms

Posts at Law and Letters, Concurring Opinions and at Workplace Prof Blog all discuss different aspects of a purported departure memo written by an associate at the San Francisco office of Paul, Hastings. The memo was initially posted at Above … Continue reading

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Outlawing Divorce

The story of the proposed “marriage” amendment to the Pennsylvania constitution gets even stranger, as a state senator from Philadelphia is attempting to add a provision to the bill containing the proposed constitutional amendment that would outlaw most divorces in … Continue reading

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Blawg Review #158 -“Midwives and the Law”

Here at the Mommy Blawg.

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Mildred Loving Has Died.

In an article that (oddly, in my view) refers to Loving as “the Matriarch of Interracial Marriage,” Yahoo News reports: Mildred Loving, a black woman whose challenge to Virginia’s ban on interracial marriage led to a landmark Supreme Court ruling … Continue reading

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11th Circuit reverses a lower court’s summary judgment dismissing a gender-based employment discrimination claim by analogizing to race.

From The Blog of Legal Times: … In the case, the plaintiff, Ingrid Reeves, worked as the only female transportation sales representative in the Transportation Sales Section of C. H. Robinson Worldwide’s Birmingham, Alabama branch office. Reeves alleged in her … Continue reading

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Upcoming Conference at Brown: “Beyond Borders: Innovative Approaches to Combat Human Trafficking in the United States and Abroad”

May 24, 2008, 11:00 a.m. List Art Center Auditorium, 64 College Street, Providence According to the United Nations, over 12 million people worldwide are trafficked for forced labor or sexual exploitation every year. In the United States, an estimated 17,500 … Continue reading

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Intentional Sex Torts

Since 2005, four states have finally recognized that fraudulent inducement of sex is rape. Not just immoral, not just “boys being boys” behavior, but misappropriation of a woman’s personal right to choose who invades her body. Perhaps surprisingly, the first … Continue reading

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“Challenging Men’s Demand For Prostitution In Scotland”

Full report here (PDF). The research reflects a collaboration between the Women’s Support Project in Glasgow and Prostitute Research and Education in the U.S.. Links to press coverage of the report here. Via The Burning Times.

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Conference: “Prosecuting Sexual and Gender-Based Crimes in the ICC: Translating Promises into Reality” on October 14, 2008 at Washington College of Law, American University, Washington, D.C.

Prosecuting Sexual and Gender-Based Crimes in the ICC: Translating Promises Into Reality Date: 10/14/08 Times: 09:30AM – 04:00PM Description: Prior to the passage of the Rome Statute in 1998, women’s human rights activists engaged in a campaign to demand prosecution … Continue reading

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COUNCIL ON CONTEMPORARY FAMILIES

I’m just back from the annual conference of the Council on Contemporary Families  and I’m wondering why I was the only law professor there!   This is the group most dedicated to fighting the simplistic message of the right-wing marriage … Continue reading

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Does A Recent Article In The Yale Law Journal Pocket Part Deceptively Conflate Record Keeping And Censorship Intentionally?

A recent article in the Yale Law Journal Pocket Part does an insidious job of conflating a law requiring record keeping with government censorship in the context of pornography. Is the falsity intentional? The analysis certainly seems driven by a … Continue reading

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“Data show extent of sexism in physics”

Experiment at Fermilab gave women fewer opportunities to present at conferences. Women are poorly represented in physics, making up just 10% of faculty in the United States, for example, but the reasons for this have proved contentious. Now a particle … Continue reading

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Nuxoll v. Indian Prairie School District: “”Be Happy, Not Gay” T-Shirt Protected By First Amendment

Seventh Circuit opinion, authored by Posner, here. Below, some excerpts: “The plaintiff is one of the students who disapprove of homosexuality. Some of them participate in a”Day of Truth”(see www.dayoftruth.org (visited Apr. 5, 2008)) held on the first school day … Continue reading

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Voting by Sex

No, this is not a post about Obama/Clinton and gendered support patterns. Rather, this is a post about something else related to sex difference and voting that some, if not all, Pennsylvanians are facing today. When I voted this morning, … Continue reading

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Marc Poirier, “The Cultural Property Claim within the Same Sex Marriage Controversy”

The abstract: This article argues that traditionalist opposition to same sex marriage can be understood as a cultural property claim – the sort of claim that is often made by Native American tribes and other indigenous or subordinated cultural groups … Continue reading

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Support the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act

Equal Pay Day Fact Sheet Text of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act List of the bill’s current co-sponsors Fact Sheet on the Supreme Court ruling and the Fair Pay Restoration Act, by the National Women’s Law Center

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Blog for Fair Pay on Friday!

Sign up here. Women in the United States are still paid only 77 cents for every dollar paid to their white male counterparts. And for women of color, the numbers are even worse. African-American women earn 63 cents and Latinas … Continue reading

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“Women Lawyers—Back on Track”

Nicole Black’s blog by this name is fantastic. Rather than cherry picking a few links, let me just recommend you go there and browse. –Ann Bartow

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Webcasts from “CAN YOU HEAR US NOW?” (a Feminist Legal Theory & Feminisms Conference) are now available.

Here! This wonderful event was held at the U. of Baltimore School of Law on March 7, 2008.

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“Marilyn Monroe sex film to be kept private”

Good. She probably didn’t know she was being filmed.

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“Rape Still Widespread in Darfur”

From the Feminist Daily News: Human Rights Watch (HRW) reported on Monday that sexual violence in Darfur continues to be a constant threat for women and girls. According to HRW, the Sudanese government repeatedly denies the fact that sexual violence … Continue reading

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“Sacrificed to the Surge”

That would be the women of Iraq. From Newsweek: … At the national level, some women are still fighting to open up Iraqi society. Women’s Affairs Minister Narmin Othman, for instance, is waging a campaign against “honor killings.” If a … Continue reading

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University of South Carolina School of Law Sued By The Christian Legal Society

Their Complaint is here. The letter the organization says it sent to the University President is here. (NB: both links are to CLS sites). Application card credit online secured Instant fleet 0 apr credit card application Set up a VPN … Continue reading

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Yesterday, by more than a 2-1 margin, Columbia SC voters approved a proposal to allow sales of beer and wine : but not liquor : on Sundays.

Story here. Hope this doesn’t lead to dancing! Slowly but surely McGowan v. Maryland, in which the Supreme Court held that state “blue laws” which prohibited specific activities on Sundays or limited them to certain hours, places or conditions did … Continue reading

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Newsweek/Surrogacy II

Yesterday I noted the current Newsweek cover story on surrogacy. Here’s a bit more to think about in that regard. I’m prepared to assume that the practice of surrogacy is useful. (Even if I weren’t, I’d have to acknowledge it … Continue reading

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Surrogacy on the Cover of Newsweek

In yet another sign that there’s a resurgence of interest in this topic, surrogacy is the cover story in this week’s Newsweek magazine. Interestingly, the focus is on the women who are surrogates. I think this consistent with recent press … Continue reading

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Civil Unions and State Taxes

A story in the Hartford Courant last week highlights the burdens faced by same-sex couples in states that legally recognize same-sex relationships when they go to file their state tax returns. But, first, a little background: Because many states use … Continue reading

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“Nipple Rings, Respect and the Undertreatment of Women’s Pain”

Really interesting post by this name by Jennifer Bard at the Women’s Bioethics Project blog.

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District Court Rules State “Right of Publicity” and “False Designation of Origin” claims are NOT barred by Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act

This decision provides a mechanism for the victim of social networking bad actors to pursue a claim for damages against the site hosting the damaging material. A media account of the suit, captioned Jane Doe v. Friendfinder Network, Inc., explains: … Continue reading

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“The pop star also held the 3-month-old daughter of a 22-year-old woman who was sold by her father to a brothel and is now HIV-positive. The woman broke down in tears as she urged Martin to keep fighting against human trafficking.”

That’s an excerpt from this article.

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Live Blog Report: Law, Culture and Humanities

I am at the Law, Culture, and the Humanities conference this weekend. The conference is being co-sponsored by UC-Berkeley and San Francisco State University, and it is being held at Boalt Hall (i.e., what is now being referred to as … Continue reading

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Michael J. Higdon, “Queer Teens and Legislative Bullies: The Cruel and Invidious Discrimination Behind Heterosexist Statutory Rape Laws”

Abstract: Most states make an exception to their statutory rape laws for sexual acts involving an adolescent victim, who is below the age of consent, when the defendant is close in age to the victim (i.e., generally no older than … Continue reading

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5th Annual Symposium on IP/Gender: Mapping the Connections, in DC on April 4th

On April 4, 2008, American University Washington College of Law will host its 5th Annual symposium on IP/Gender: Mapping the Connections. The symposium will take place at the WCL campus, 4801 Massachusetts Ave NW , room 528, 10am-4pm. Lunch will … Continue reading

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Verna L. Williams and Kristin Kalsem, “Social Justice Feminism”

Abstract: For the past three years, women leaders from national groups, grassroots organizations, academia and beyond have gathered to address dissonance in the women’s movement, particularly dissatisfaction with the movement’s emphasis on women privileged on account of their race, class, … Continue reading

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The Cucumber Incident.

Watch this and see what you think. Just so you know what you are in for before you click the link, the title of the post is “Grandma Rapes Granddaughter’s Abuser With A Gourd”

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AutoAdmit Suit Update

From the WSJ.com Law Blog: Things are beginning to heat up in the case brought by two female Yale Law students against anonymous writers for defamation, infliction of emotional distress and other wrongdoings they allegedly committed while posting comments about … Continue reading

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“What You Should Know About Clinical Trials”

Interesting, link filled post at Our Bodies, Our Blog.

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June Carbone, “From Partners to Parents Revisited: How Will Ideas of Partnership Influence the Emerging Definition of California Parenthood?”

Abstract: This article considers the role of the partners’ relationship to each other in the context of the new California parentage cases. These rulings, which expand recognition of functional parents without marriage, domestic partnership registration, biology or adoption, attempt to … Continue reading

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Guest Post: Wal-Mart Watch

I’m a blogger over at Wal-Mart Watch. I’m writing to pass along a video we’ve put together from footage of a 1995 Wal-Mart managers meeting. As you’ll see in the video, someone decided it would be a great idea to … Continue reading

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New York Magazine incorrectly argues that what Spitzer did was worse than Clinton

The article blithely ignores that prostitution in many ways involves more consent on the part of the prostitute than even a “consensual” relationship between an employer and an employee. Regardless of whether Monica desired Bill Clinton, she couldn’t have refused … Continue reading

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Forget What Misogyny Toward Feminist Law Profs Looks Like?

Timely reminders in the comments here if for some reason you are feeling inadequately hated on today. –Ann Bartow Update: Althouse is live blogging so there is plenty of fresh misogyny in her comments, and no doubt will be more … Continue reading

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“Right of Publicity” Law Exam Question of the Damnably Damned

Seriously creepy stuff.

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“A man accused of using a camera to take pictures under the skirt of an unsuspecting 16-year-old girl at a Tulsa store did not commit a crime, a state appeals court has ruled.”

That’s the first sentence of an article from Fox News (yes, I know, sorry) entitled “Court Drops Case of ‘Peeping Tom’ in Target; Says Victim Was Not in Private Place”, here’s the rest: The state Court of Criminal Appeals voted … Continue reading

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Melissa Farley and Victor Malarek, “The Myth of the Victimless Crime”

NYT Op-Ed, accessible here.

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Law Firm Produces Sexual Harassment “Emergency Reaction” Flash Card.

Somehow it makes me want to Heimlich.

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“Eliot Spitzer – Tied to Prostitution? The Boys Versus The Girls”

According to the Associated Press, New York State Governor Eliot Spitzer is reported to be or have been a client of a”high-end prostitution ring called Emperors Club VIP.” This morning, Governor Spitzer publicly apologized to his family and the public,”but … Continue reading

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June Carbone, “Age Matters: Class, Family Formation, and Inequality,” forthcoming in the Santa Clara Law Review

Abstract: Age matters. It matters legally – in giving consent for a contract, a marriage or enlistment in the armed forces. It matters practically – for renting a car, securing favorable insurance rates, choosing a date. It certainly matters biologically … Continue reading

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News in Brief–Global Surrogacy Round-up

Bits and pieces from around the globe. From the NYT a rather long story that is a recap/expansion of the outsourced surrogacy stories I’ve noted for last month or so. Lots of detail about how it works, who it serves … Continue reading

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PA Senate Vote on Marriage Amendment

As I mentioned in a recent post, the Pennsylvania legislature is currently considering an amendment to the state constitution that purports to do no more than limit marriage to different-sex couples. The amendment would be bad enough if it did … Continue reading

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