Gender and Race Bias against Lawyers: A Classroom Response

In reviewing other clinicians\u27 approaches to teaching about bias, I identified problems that eventually led me to design a two-hour class session on bias against lawyers. The following is a review of a few other teaching methods and a description of my own approach, detailing its own strengths and weaknesses. This is not an exhaustive review of all possible approaches to bias. It is offered to promote classroom discussion of bias against lawyers and to invite the development of innovative alternatives to my approach

Natural Resources Journal & New Mexico Law Review, Annual Reports 2005 - 2006

The annual report for the University of New Mexico School of Law Natural Resources Journal & New Mexico Law Review for the period July 1, 2005 through June 30, 2006. Relevant information pulled from full School of Law Annual Report

Responding to Gender Bias in the Courts: Progress without Accountability

On December 19, 1989, we received the final report of the Michigan Supreme Court Task Force on Gender Issues (task force report). The task force made 91 recommendations, plus an additional 18 joint recommendations with the Task Force on Racial/Ethnic Issues in the Courts. The Michigan Supreme Court, the State Bar of Michigan and other individuals and organizations have made much progress in responding to the recommendations, with one glaring omission-Although jointly recommended by both task forces as essential to the realization of the goals envisioned in the goals envisioned in the reports, the Supreme Court has failed to appoint a standing committee on Racial/Ethnic and Gender Issues in the Courts. Without this committee, no one is ultimately accountable for the successful implementation of the recommendations of the task force

An Interdisciplinary Seminar in Child Abuse and Neglect with a Focus on Child Protection Practice

Given the myriad of professionals involved in protecting children from abuse and neglect, legal practice in the field of child protection requires an understanding of the various disciplines these professionals represent. Professor Scarnecchia argues that such an understanding is necessary in order for the attorney to serve as a zealous advocate for her client. In hopes of creating this understanding in students at the University of Michigan, an interdisciplinary seminar in child abuse and neglect has been created. Professor Scarnecchia details the substantive content of the seminar, discussing specific issues that arise in protecting children. She explains that by using actual cases to illustrate how these issues appear in child protection cases, and how they are addressed by the various disciplines, the seminar has been able to maintain an emphasis on practice and practical skills. Choices of class materials, assignments, enrollment, and faculty are also detailed to encourage the development of such a program at other institutions

A Child\u27s Right to Physical Integrity

As we wring our hands over increasing reports of severe child abuse and how violent many of our children have become, it might be time to reassess policies that give parents and others the license to use even the most mild forms of violence against our children

Child Protection Law

The Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution protect a parent\u27s custodial rights. However, such rights are not absolute and may be terminated. There is no substantive due-process right to live together as a family. Doe v Oettle, 97 Mich App 183, 293 NW2d 760 (1980). Parents are not held to ideal standards in the care of their children but to minimum statutory standards. Fritts v Krugh, 354 Mich 97, 92 NW2d 604 (1958)

The Congo crisis, the United Nations, and Zimbabwean nationalism, 1960–1963

The United Nations (UN) peacekeeping mission in the Congo in 1960–63 is a major chapter in African and Cold War history. The political consequences of the peacekeeping mission, particularly the use of UN troops against Moise Tshombe’s secessionist Katanga Province, reverberated in neighbouring African States as well. The contours of the UN’s role in the Congo crisis are well known, but this article will consider how UN intervention created a framework for the conflict between white minority rule and African nationalists in Southern Rhodesia. This article suggests that the intersection of Cold War politics and Southern African racial politics helped to create a situation in Southern Rhodesia in which white politicians felt threatened by the UN’s intervention, while Zimbabwean nationalists viewed cautiously the role of the UN as pan-African nationalism in the Congo became consumed by Cold War imperatives. The Katanga secession also demonstrated to both white politicians and Zimbabwean nationalists how intransigence and a small fighting force could challenge much more powerful nations in Cold War Africa

A Child\u27s Right to Protection from Transfer Trauma in a Contested Adoption Case

On August 2, 1993, I arrived at the home of Jan, Robby, and Jessica DeBoer\u27 a few hours before the transfer. At 2:00 P.M. I would carry Jessica out of her home and deliver her to the parents who had won the case,2 her biological mother and father. This task probably would have been easier had I not spent eight days in the trial court listening to the experts explain that this transfer from one set of parents to another would harm Jessica.3 It would have been easier had I not recently obtained affidavits from other experts to persuade the United States Supreme Court to delay the transfer until the Court could consider the case.\u27 The experts confirmed what I felt in my heart and what I saw in the faces and heard in the voices of thousands who protested the transfer-losing the parents she loved as her own would hurt Jessica. It would hurt her deeply now, and it might hurt her in various ways as she matured5 Yet, I carried her outside that day, as she screamed for her mommy and daddy, and I delivered her to the people she would need to learn to love as her new parents. This introduction and the accompanying brief describe my argument that a child like Jessica has a right to due process protections when she is likely to suffer transfer trauma caused by a change of custody. Jessica was not protected by the legal system. This is an argument meant to benefit other children facing the loss of their established families

Public Comments from July 26, 2006

After the taskforce adjourned on July 26, 2006, a group of people arrived to participate in the public comment portion of the meeting. The following is a summary of those comments and recommendations