Religious Freedom and the Interscholastic Athlete

This article delineates the religious rights of interscholastic athletes under the First Amendment Free Exercise Clause. Part I provides a comprehensive overview of contemporary free exercise doctrine, followed by a brief summary of other laws that may govern religion-related conflicts arising in the context of interscholastic athletics. Part II then surveys the types of controversies that can arise in this context and will examine their resolution in light of the governing laws. Part II also offers guidelines to coaches and administrators for the prevention and resolution of such conflicts, including steps that can be taken to avoid First Amendment violations and, thus, legal liability

Book Review: Religion in Public Life: A Dilemma for Democracy. Ronald F. Thiemann.

Book review: Religion in Public Life: A Dilemma for Democracy. Ronald F. Thiemann. Washington, D.C.: Georgetown University Press. 1996. Pp. xiii, 186. Reviewed by: Scott C. Idleman

The Emergence of Jurisdictional Resequencing in the Federal Courts

This article addresses a 1999 Supreme Court decision holding that federal courts may address personal jurisdiction, and dismiss a lawsuit for its absence, without first or ever verifying their subject-matter jurisdiction. Examined are the genealogy, components, legitimacy, and future application of this emerging doctrine of resequencing, as well as the extent to which it accords with the Court\u27s professedly restrained approach to federal power. Based on this examination, the article contends that the doctrine represents an unsettling departure from both precedent and jurisdictional theory and that its elements and scope are neither carefully delineated nor grounded in a coherent theory of judicial power, a reality that has already spawned several lower court conflicts. Notwithstanding these difficulties, the article attempts to assess the potential resequencibility of various threshold issues, most notably personal jurisdiction, Eleventh Amendment immunity, and federal sovereign immunity