Our Online Journal features original pieces written and edited by our Online staff at Columbia. They are not representative of any views held by the Columbia Undergraduate Law Review Editorial Board.
In June 2020, the Supreme Court delivered a victory for LGBTQ+ rights in Bostock v. Clayton County. In this case, the Court ruled that firing an employee for being gay or transgender violates the prohibition on discrimination “because of … sex” in Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. While many Americans rejoiced over this victory, others were concerned about the ruling’s implications for religious liberty.
Read MoreLawsuits are expensive. For those who wish to bring suit but cannot afford the costs, access to the legal system is barred by a hefty entry fee. Fortunately, a practice known as litigation funding makes the legal system more accessible to individuals who cannot afford to bring suit on their own. In effect, a third party firm provides the means for a plaintiff to sue in return for a share of the financial returns if the lawsuit proves successful. Litigation funding provides firms with the option to profit from successful suits, giving them a natural incentive to aid plaintiffs—especially those with meritorious claims.
Read MoreOn July 3, 2020, Republic Act No. 11479, commonly known as the Anti-Terrorism Act of 2020, was passed into law in the Philippines. This new legislation effectively repealed Republic Act No. 9372, also known as the Human Security Act of 2007 (HSA), and aimed to prevent and prohibit terrorism. Due to the broad definition of terrorism and the acts included therein, critics believe that the Anti-Terrorism Act was signed with the ulterior motive of deterring government criticism, raising questions about the act’s legality.
Read MoreFour years ago, in an ostensibly more inclusive climate, students at CUNY Guttman College reexamined New York gallery diversity. They found that white people, who account for just 64 percent of the population, netted 80 percent of the gallery representation in the city. The statistics suggest that the exclusionary culture Pindell identified decades ago persists into the present. In fact, it appears that today’s art market not only excludes but also exploits artists of color; Pindell’s own experience illustrates this dynamic.
Read MoreThe complicated relations between Native Americans and the United States took an interesting turn on July 9, 2020, when the U.S. Supreme Court released its ruling in McGirt v Oklahoma (2020). The respondent, Jimcy McGirt, was convicted of raping his wife’s four-year-old grandchild and sentenced to one thousand years in addition to life in prison by an Oklahoma state court. However, McGirt later claimed that because his crimes were committed on Creek Reservation Land secured by an 1832 treaty between the U.S. Government and the Creek (Muscogee) Nation, Oklahoma could not prosecute him.
Read MoreIt may seem like a sensible choice to mandate that all signage in America be in English. After all, English is the most spoken language in the country, and all signage should be accessible to the majority. Upon further examination, however, it is clear that forcing minority-owned businesses to offer English signage blurs the boundary between helping the majority and unconstitutionally sanctioning forced assimilation.
Read MoreThe COVID-19 pandemic is a global challenge that requires multilateralism, cooperation among states, for the health of people of all nations. The United States' escalation of a near total economic blockade on Iran is incompatible with the goals of multilateralism. As the sanctions impede Iran's ability to fight COVID-19, the United States is breaching international law under the banner of national security.
Read MoreAccording to an early projection by Richard Hasen, an election law expert at the University of California, Irvine, “2020 [was set to] see a record level of election-related litigation.” That prediction was made long before the COVID-19 crisis left the nation scrambling to adapt to the realities of election season in the midst of a pandemic. In the recent weeks, a flurry of legal battles have erupted across the nation—in Nevada, Oklahoma, Arizona, Virginia, Florida, and various other states—over voting rights, absentee ballot requirements, and vote-by-mail protocol.
Read MoreMrs. Torres filed a civil rights claim in federal court, claiming that the police officers had used excessive force and had violated her Fourth Amendment protection against unlawful seizures. The district court ruled—and the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed—that the Fourth Amendment’s protection against unlawful seizure was not applicable because, as Torres was ultimately able to escape and wasn’t apprehended by law enforcement until later, she wasn’t technically “seized.” This ruling might seem sound at first glance, but it contradicts existing Supreme Court jurisprudence on the matter.
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