De Novo Archive
De Novo is the newest addition to the Minnesota Law Review family. The blog serves as a forum through which the staff, editors, and alumni of the Minnesota Law Review can contribute to legal thought and academic debate.
HARD LUXURY: MATERIAL ADVERSE EFFECT IN THE LVMH AND TIFFANY MERGER
By: Rachel Wynn, Business Law Clinic Student Director & Emily Buchholz, Executive Director of the Corporate Institute Since the COVID-19 pandemic, material adverse effect claims have increased in Delaware courts. A material adverse effect (“MAE”) is a change in circumstances that is reasonably expected to significantly diminish the value of a company. MAE clauses are…
Continue ReadingSTEALING FROM YOUR STUDENTS: THE HIDDEN KEY IN THE HIGHER EDUCATION ACT TO HOLD LEADERS OF FOR-PROFIT COLLEGES PERSONALLY LIABLE FOR FRAUD
By: Kylee Evans, Volume 106 Staff Member Student debt in the United States has hit a historic high.[1] The estimated total student loan debt as of March 2022 is $1.749 trillion.[2] Of that, the federal government owns about $1.61 trillion.[3] Legal scholars have long compared this debt to the mortgage bubble that led to the…
Continue ReadingMEANINGFUL BUT NOT PERFECT REVIEW: IMPLIED PRECLUSION OF FEDERAL JURISDICTION AND AXON ENTERPRISE, INC. V. FTC
By: Jason Gutierrez, Vol. 106 Staff Member I. BACKGROUND, DOCTRINE, AND AXON’S ARGUMENT May a party arguing that the structure of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) violates the constitution bypass the FTC’s administrative review process and bring suit in federal court? Last summer, Axon Enterprise, Inc. presented this question to the United States Supreme Court…
Continue ReadingCOPPER-NICKEL MINING AND THE MINNESOTA DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES’ DUAL MANDATE: HOW TO ENSURE ENVIRONMENTAL CONSEQUENCES IN THE INDUSTRY CAN BE ALLEVIATED
By: Ben Gleekel, Vol. 106 Staff Member Northeast Minnesota may soon host an industrialized corridor of copper-nickel mining operations. The region is the home of the Duluth Complex—a geological formation containing an estimated 4.4 billion tons of copper, nickel, and other precious metals,[1] making it one of the largest untapped copper deposits in the world.[2]…
Continue ReadingSCOTUS TAKES ON WOTUS: PREVIEWING SACKETT V. EPA AND ITS CONSEQUENCES FOR THE CLEAN WATER ACT
By: Sean Downey, Volume 106 Staff Member With its grant of certiorari in Sackett v. EPA, the Supreme Court will take its fourth try at resolving a question that has vexed courts, agencies, lawyers, and landowners: what are “Waters of the United States (WOTUS)?”[1] The Clean Water Act (CWA) prohibits the discharge of pollutants into…
Continue ReadingA $9 BILLION SURPLUS, YET “KIDS CAN’T READ”: MINNESOTA TEACHER STRIKES MAY VIOLATE STUDENTS’ RIGHTS UNDER THE STATE CONSTITUTION AND THE LEGISLATURE HAS A DUTY TO FIX IT
By: Joshua Gutzmann, Volume 106 Staff Member After almost a full week of no school for over 31,000 students,[1] because teachers are on strike in Minneapolis,[2] the Minneapolis Federation of Teachers President declared that they were “ready to go for as long as it takes.”[3] The strikes—authorized by a vote of over 97% in favor[4]—are…
Continue ReadingREMEDYING DECADES OF DISPARITIES IN DRUG SENTENCING: HOW CONCEPCION v. UNITED STATES OPENS THE DOOR FOR BROADER RELIEF IN FIRST STEP ACT RESENTENCING PROCEEDINGS
By: Rhianna Torgerud, Volume 106 Staff Member From 1986 to 2010, one gram of crack cocaine was treated as equivalent to 100 grams of powder cocaine when setting federal statutory minimum and maximum sentences.[1] This 100-to-1 sentencing disparity was widely criticized as discriminatory against African Americans, and other minorities, who are more likely to be…
Continue ReadingTHE UNITED STATES WANTED TO HAVE ITS CAKE, EAT IT, AND AVOID ITS CLEANUP COSTS, TOO
By: Olivia Carroll, Volume 106 Staff Member In 2017, the Territory of Guam brought suit against the United States under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (“CERCLA”), seeking to recover costs spent on the cleanup of a contaminated site that had been previously used for hazardous waste disposal by the U.S.…
Continue ReadingWAR POWERS UNDER ATTACK
By: Jesse Noltimier, Volume 106 Staff Member On March 29, 2022, the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in Torres v. Texas Department of Public Safety.[1] The Court will decide whether a veteran can sue the state of Texas, his former employer, for discrimination. Beyond this employment discrimination claim, Torres raises important questions concerning Congress’…
Continue ReadingTHE SUPREME COURT DILUTES MINORITY VOTER RIGHTS: THE FATE OF THE VOTER RIGHTS ACT FOLLOWING MERRILL V. MILLIGAN
By: Justin Oakland, Volume 106 Staff Member Following the 2020 census, a Republican-majority Alabama state legislature voted to redraw congressional districts to functionally dilute the voting power of Black residents.[1] Despite Black voters making up 26.8 percent of Alabama’s population, the redrawn districts only grant Black voters one district of significant representation with the remaining…
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