Author: Matthew Stanford

The pandemic exposes the need to fix the federalism debate

The pandemic exposes the need to fix the federalism debate

Overview During the 2008 financial crisis, President-elect Obama’s Chief of Staff, Rahm Emanuel, famously said, “You never want a serious crisis to go to waste.”[1] The present pandemic is no exception. Examples of political and economic opportunities abound: the debates over the appropriate legislative response to the pandemic,[2] schemes to defraud frightened consumers and merchants,[3] the emergence of a “coronavirus economy,”[4] and even the mad dashes to hoard ordinary goods like toilet paper,[5] groceries,[6] and personal protective equipment.[7] And given the human propensity to forget our vulnerabilities between crises, the more negative of these examples will likely repeat themselves. Yet...

Emergency diploma privileges are not the solution to coronavirus-caused bar exam delays

Emergency diploma privileges are not the solution to coronavirus-caused bar exam delays

As the number of states electing to delay the July bar exam in response to the coronavirus pandemic increases, so too have the calls for state bar associations to waive the exam requirement altogether.[1] Such an “emergency diploma privilege” would allow new graduates to practice law without first passing a state-administered bar examination. As the explanation goes, allowing a law degree to substitute for a bar exam this year would not only resolve current uncertainty over when bar exams can be safely administered (especially in harder-hit states like California and New York), but also allow these new attorneys to offer...

California SB 1300: What to Make of the Legislative Intent Provision

California SB 1300: What to Make of the Legislative Intent Provision

In September 2018, the California Legislature passed—and Governor Brown signed into law—SB 1300. That bill, which took effect on January 1 of this year, amended the Fair Employment and Housing Act to expand the scope of employer liability for nonemployee harassment, prohibit employers from using employment or raises to suppress legally damning information, and limit the circumstances for awarding defendants’ fees and costs. This article takes a closer look at the bill’s addition of section 12923, which elaborates the Legislature’s intent concerning FEHA’s anti-harassment provisions. Section 12923 contains five subsections: Subsection (a) provides that hostile work environment claims do not...