Redefining En Banc Review in the Federal Courts of Appeals

Every circuit has the ability to review cases en banc. Hearing cases en banc allows the full circuit court to overturn a decision reached by a three–judge panel. Due to the decreasing probability of U.S. Supreme Court intervention, the circuit court is often the court of last resort in the ordinary life of a case, thereby amplifying the importance of en banc review. Despite its significance, many critics contend that en banc review is inefficient and rarely granted. Each circuit has enacted its own rules governing en banc procedure. These rules have both slight and significant differences from one another and from Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 35, which governs all of the circuits’ en banc review procedures. Because of the lack of uniformity across the circuits, the proper application of Rule 35 is unclear. This Note proposes to change the current en banc landscape by altering the method in which a court will make the decision to sit en banc. This Note suggests that petitions for en banc review should only be raised by judges sua sponte, and the decision of whether to sit en banc should be affirmatively voted on by a lower number of active–duty judges than is now required under the simple majority rule

How Do Predatory Lending Laws Influence Mortgage Lending in Urban Areas? A Tale of Two Cities

This paper examines the effects of predatory lending laws in the cities of Chicago and Philadelphia. The level of mortgage activity in each of the cities is compared during the pre- and post-legislative periods relative to other parts of the state to assess the impact of localized legislation. In Chicago, where the predatory lending law focused on banks, a subprime origination in the city was found to be more likely to be made by a nonbank after the passage of the law. In Philadelphia, however, where the predatory legislation was aimed at all financial service providers, a decline was observed in the likelihood of a subprime loan being originated in the city during the post-legislation period, with the minority and low-income market segments experiencing the largest reduction.

Report on a Boston University Conference December 7-8, 2012 on 'How Can the History and Philosophy of Science Contribute to Contemporary U.S. Science Teaching?'

This is an editorial report on the outcomes of an international conference sponsored by a grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) (REESE-1205273) to the School of Education at Boston University and the Center for Philosophy and History of Science at Boston University for a conference titled: How Can the History and Philosophy of Science Contribute to Contemporary U.S. Science Teaching? The presentations of the conference speakers and the reports of the working groups are reviewed. Multiple themes emerged for K-16 education from the perspective of the history and philosophy of science. Key ones were that: students need to understand that central to science is argumentation, criticism, and analysis; students should be educated to appreciate science as part of our culture; students should be educated to be science literate; what is meant by the nature of science as discussed in much of the science education literature must be broadened to accommodate a science literacy that includes preparation for socioscientific issues; teaching for science literacy requires the development of new assessment tools; and, it is difficult to change what science teachers do in their classrooms. The principal conclusions drawn by the editors are that: to prepare students to be citizens in a participatory democracy, science education must be embedded in a liberal arts education; science teachers alone cannot be expected to prepare students to be scientifically literate; and, to educate students for scientific literacy will require a new curriculum that is coordinated across the humanities, history/social studies, and science classrooms.Comment: Conference funded by NSF grant REESE-1205273. 31 page

Policy and Practice Brief: Medicaid and Persons with Disabilities; A Focus on Eligibility, Covered Services, and Program Structure

This brief provides the reader with a practical guide to understanding the Medicaid program. It reviews services typically covered; eligibility criteria—how to establish and retain eligibility; typical program structure; and, the appeals system

Jury Challenges, Capital Punishment, and Labat v. Bennett: A Reconciliation

Reasoning that one who opposes the death penalty may deny the state an impartial trial, most American jurisdictions sustain a challenge for cause to a prospective juror with such scruples. Recent decisions, attempting to ensure that the jury truly represents a cross-section of the community, have, however, suggested that due process may be denied when an identifiable class of the community is summarily excluded from the jury cross-section. The legitimacy of this theory may well be tested in the Supreme Court this term, as two cases raise the question whether capital punishment objectors are such a class. This comment seeks to assess the validity of the due process approach in the context of traditional justifications for the challenge to the capital punishment objector

Jury Challenges, Capital Punishment, and Labat v. Bennett: A Reconciliation

Reasoning that one who opposes the death penalty may deny the state an impartial trial, most American jurisdictions sustain a challenge for cause to a prospective juror with such scruples. Recent decisions, attempting to ensure that the jury truly represents a cross-section of the community, have, however, suggested that due process may be denied when an identifiable class of the community is summarily excluded from the jury cross-section. The legitimacy of this theory may well be tested in the Supreme Court this term, as two cases raise the question whether capital punishment objectors are such a class. This comment seeks to assess the validity of the due process approach in the context of traditional justifications for the challenge to the capital punishment objector