Hong Kong\u27s Discriminatory Air Time: Family Viewing Hours and the Case of \u3ci\u3eCho Man Kit v. Broadcasting Authority\u3c/i\u3e

Hong Kong’s long standing commitment to media and press freedom came under question when the Broadcasting Authority issued a ruling against a television show about same-sex couples. In deciding Cho Man Kit v. Broadcasting Authority, the Court of First Instance affirmed that sexual orientation must be afforded freedom of expression in public broadcasting. However, the Court found that the Broadcasting Authority had lawfully ruled that the show be excluded from family viewing hours. Though the opinion was in many ways a legal victory for homosexuals in Hong Kong, this Comment argues that the family viewing hours ruling undermines the cornerstone principle of equality in Hong Kong society. In its analysis, the Court misconstrued the “sex and nudity” provision of the Broadcasting Authority Code of Practice in a discriminatory manner such that homosexuality was hypersexualized. In addition, the Court used a legally insufficient proportionality test to analyze the family viewing hours provision in defiance of both legal precedent and Hong Kong public policy. For this reason, the second half of the Court’s opinion is infused with the very discrimination the Court sought to prevent

The Benefits of Integrating Statutory Construction and Analysis in a First-Year Legal Writing Course

Teaching statutory analysis to first-year law school students not only reinforces important principles of legal analysis and writing (from gaining a better understanding of the hierarchy of legal authorities to continuing to practice IRAC/CRAC methods of organization), but it also prepares students better for the actual practice of law

Using Therapeutic Principles in the Legal Writing Classroom

Research for over 50 years on the experience of students and teachers supports the use of therapeutic principles to promote a classroom space that fosters cooperation, interaction, diversity, and responsibility. By understanding communication, social interactions, and cognition principles, teachers teach more effectively and students learn more easily. The converse is true, however. Poor communication, assumptions, lack of mindfulness, or fixed mindsets all lead to lack of motivation, poor teaching, and poor learning. Unlike school teachers, most law professors do not have any training with these psychological principles. Thus, legal teaching can be rigid, competitive, harsh, and ill-suited to students facing an increasingly complex and painful world

The Price of Sovereignty in the Era of Climate Change: The Role of Climate Finance in Guiding Adaptation Choices for Small Island Developing States

Climate change poses an existential threat to small island developing states that are at risk of losing their territories to sea-level rise and severe weather events.  These nations must make decisions about how to preserve their sovereignty and create a meaningful future in the face of imminent territorial loss.  Territorial loss creates a risk of displacement and statelessness, and the world has yet to confront the possibility of a permanently deterritorialized island nation.  Against this backdrop, small island developing states must choose, design, and finance adaptation options to preserve their status as sovereigns and enable them to design a self-determined future, be it on their existing islands, artificial islands, or a resettlement elsewhere.  Adaptation measures, however, are beyond the financial means of most small island communities. This Article explores adaptation options for small island developing states and the financial mechanisms available to support these choices.  It describes the potential adaptation responses these states can pursue, including territorial solutions, such as building up existing islands and designing artificial islands, and nonterritorial options, such as proactive resettlement elsewhere.  Global adaptation finance exists for short-term measures to preserve habitability, but longterm adaptation measures—like elevating existing islands, building artificial ones, or planned resettlement—are critically underfunded.  This Article therefore exposes the inadequacy of existing climate finance sources to meet the longterm adaptation needs of small island nations.  In light of this gap, it suggests these nations pursue multiple paths for survival by continuing to invest in short-term projects to preserve island habitability, take steps to attract financing for longterm adaptation measures, and advocate to secure political and legal rights through existing or new international agreements

Re: Emails

Writing an email that isn’t a burden for its recipient can be difficult. Writing one that’s enjoyable is even harder. Effective email communication should help, not frustrate, your intended audience. The following practice tips are designed to help attorneys (or anyone) write a good email. Or at least one that isn’t annoying

Words of a Feather: Poetry as a Tool for Legal Writing

Poems—expressions of inner life that had at first seemed purely fanciful to me—have become foundational to how I teach legal writing. Poems are built with similar conventions to those used to write a legal brief, and reading and writing poetry can help lawyers develop thoughtful prose, perspective, and style. Poems implicitly ask a reader to pay attention with a heightened awareness of language. They use imagery to convey ideas, inspire empathy in a reader, and communicate a theme, and they rely on structure and variety to shape a reader’s experience. Legal writing has more practical ends than poetry—generally to advise or persuade a reader—but it is agile, too, and begins where all writing begins—with the search for a word

The Importance of Being Earnest: Writing an Effective Supplemental Authorities Letter

On its face, Rule 28(j) does not ask a lot of practitioners: merely that they identify “pertinent and significant” authorities and “promptly” advise the court of the supplemental authorities’ relevance to the case in “350 words.” But it also doesn’t give a lot of guidance. What is “pertinent and significant”? When is “promptly”? And what can you say in a mere 350 words? Effective appellate advocates consider these questions and walk a careful line to follow the letter and the spirit of the rule. To ensure your letters help your case, here are a few practice tips for crafting effective one