I have mentioned before that my father is a Holocaust survivor, and in this post I wanted to recognize some outstanding pro bono legal work performed on my father’s behalf in applying for and obtaining pension benefits from the German government. In particular, I want to recognize two lawyers for their tireless efforts: Phyllis Brochstein […]
Archive | October, 2009
My Findlaw Column on Alvarez v. Smith – A Key Property Rights Case Argued Before the Supreme Court Today
By Ilya Somin on October 14, 2009 3:12 pm in Due Process Clause Property Rights, Property Rights, Supreme Court
Findlaw has just posted a column I wrote on Alvarez v. Smith, an important Fourteenth Amendment Due Process Clause property rights case that was heard by the Supreme Court today: Today, the Supreme Court hears Alvarez v. Smith, an important case that will affect the constitutional property rights of many people around the country but […]
Treasury Inc.: Is the Government a Controlling Shareholder?
In my last post I opened a discussion about my new paper, Treasury Inc.: How the Bailout Reshapes Corporate Theory and Practice, which you can download here. My thesis is that corporate law and theory goes haywire when the government, while enjoying sovereign immunity protection from corporate and securities law, takes control of a company […]
Is Justice Sotomayor Concerned about the Cost of Class-Actions?
Yesterday, with little fanfare, Justice Kennedy filed an statement respecting the denial of the petition for a write of certiorari in DTD Enterprises v. Wells. It reads: This case began with a contract action brought by DTD Enterprises, Inc. (hereinafter petitioner), a commercial dating-referral service, against respondent, one of peti-tioner’s customers. The suit alleged that […]
Do the New FTC Regs Cover Blog Comments?
More from Walter Olson on the potential scope of the FTC’s new regulations governing bloggers and other social media users. It’s been much asserted of late that it’s no particular burden to disclose when mentioning a newly published book or quoting from a newsworthy speech that the publisher sent you a review copy or the […]
The Rise and Fall of Supply-Side Economics
Bruce Bartlett explains his new new book, The New American Economy, and why he thinks supply-side economics should declare victory and go away before it causes any more problems. The supply-siders are to a large extent responsible for this mess, myself included. We opened Pandora’s Box when we got the Republican Party to abandon the […]
Pitfalls of Paternalism
By Ilya Somin on October 14, 2009 12:43 am in Libertarian Paternalism, Paternalism, Political Ignorance
In recent years, advocates of paternalistic policies, such as economist Richard Thaler, argue that government-appointed experts should limit the choices available to consumers in order to prevent them from making poor decisions because of ignorance or cognitive bias. After all, they claim, experts are likely to know better than ordinary consumers which products are too […]
Facial Recognition Software and DMV Records
The AP has an interesting story about an FBI project in North Carolina that uses facial recognition software to comb through DMV records in search of possible matches for known suspects.
Is Gov. Perry Covering Up the Execution of an Innocent Man? (continued)
A few weeks back, I asked whether Texas Governor Rick Perry was seeking to obstruct an inquiry into whether Texas executed an innocent man. There is reason to question the forensic evidence upon which the conviction and subsequent execution of Cameron Todd Willingham was based, and Gov. Perry replaced members of the state’s Forensic Science […]
Are Smartphone Apps That Record Police Speed Traps “Radar Detectors”?
The New York Times Wheels blog asks whether smartphone apps that are used to learn of speed traps count as radar detectors in states (such as Virginia) that prohibit the use of radar detectors. The smartphone apps allow a driver who spots a police car to press a button on his phone that relays his […]
Treasury Incorporated
As a longtime fan of The Volokh Conspiracy, it’s a particular honor to join you today. I admit spending much class time in law school surfing Volokh rather than taking notes, and it was often a wiser investment (not true for my students of course). The financial crisis has made it an exciting time to […]
Soylent Green … Is Bunnies!
No, wait, that would be OK. Actually, heating is bunnies. Isn’t that somehow ickier? (Not wrong, just icky.) Thanks to InstaPundit for the pointer.
Careful With That Pronoun
From The Guardian (UK) (emphasis added): The existence of a previously secret injunction against the media by oil traders Trafigura can now be revealed. Within the past hour Trafigura’s legal firm, Carter-Ruck, has withdrawn its opposition to the Guardian reporting proceedings in parliament that revealed its existence. UPDATE: Some commenters pointed out that “its” isn’t […]
Too fat to be Governor?
The seven deadly sins are lust, gluttony, greed, sloth, wrath, envy, and pride. Numbers one and three have felled many politicans in recent memory. But in the New Jersey governor’s race, #2 appears to be affecting the race. A recent ad by incumbent Democratic Governor Jon Corzine accuses Republican challenger Chris Christie of “throwing his weight around” […]
Police Department Psychological Consulting Contract Terminated Because of CEO’s Anti-Homosexuality Political Activity:
A very interesting and, as best I can tell, almost entirely unnoticed court case, Campion, Barrow & Assocs. of Ill. v. City of Minneapolis (decided Aug. 11, though I just saw the first reference to it a few days ago). Some excerpts: [Facts:] Since it was founded in the 1970s, CBA [Campion, Barrow & Assocs.] […]