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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.

Protecting Senior Citizens from Their Mail

Protecting Senior Citizens from Their Mail: The Growing Threat of Direct Mail Solicitation at Senior Living Communities By: Mike Sikora, Volume 101 Staff Member Many of us hear stories of scammers targeting the elderly: fake grandsons trapped in jail, fake nieces stranded at airports, and fake friends offering a chance to make a quick buck.…

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Much Ado About Nothing

MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING: ELIMINATING CHEVRON DEFERENCE WOULD LIKELY HAVE A MINIMAL IMPACT ON SUPREME COURT JURISPRUDENCE By: Jessica Sharpe, Volume 101 Staff Member Neil Gorsuch’s nomination to the Supreme Court was confirmed by the Senate in recent weeks.[1] Throughout his confirmation hearings, his views on Chevron deference[2] sparked controversy.[3] This Post argues that the…

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Educational Privileges

EDUCATIONAL PRIVILEGES: A PERPSECTIVE ON U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION REGULATIONS BANNING PRE-DISPUTE, MANDATORY ARBITRATION IN UNIVERSITIES By: Kate Kelzenberg, Volume 101 Staff Member During the Senate confirmation hearing of Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch, Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) questioned the nominee on his opinions about arbitration as a form of dispute resolution.[1] Gorsuch conceded that,…

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Inaction of Mercy

INACTION OF MERCY: MINNESOTA’S PARDON PROBLEM By: Devin Driscoll, Volume 101 Staff Member The pardon power of the President[1]—called the “benign prerogative” by Hamilton[2]—has long attracted scholarly attention.[3] The granting of executive commutations and pardons at the federal level had been in steep decline: President Carter granted 563 in his single term; the senior President…

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Looking Back at the FCC’s Privacy Rules

LOOKING BACK AT THE FCC’S PRIVACY RULES By: Ronald Waclawski, Volume 101 Staff Member On October 27, 2016, the Federal Communication Commission (FCC) adopted a rule designed to protect consumer information by requiring telecommunication carriers to protect the confidentiality of customer information.[1] On March 23, 2017, the Senate voted 50-48 to prevent the entirety of…

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Placing Religion Above All Else

PLACING RELIGION ABOVE ALL ELSE: RFRA AND THE LEAKED DRAFT OF PRESIDENT TRUMP’S PROPOSED EXECUTIVE ORDER ON RELIGIOUS FREEDOM By: Kristen Mishler, Volume 101 Staff Member In January of this year, The Nation and Reveal obtained copies of a draft proposed executive order under consideration by President Trump.[1] Although several of President Trump’s executive orders…

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Obama Cared

OBAMA CARED: THE IMPORTANCE OF ESSENTIAL HEALTH BENEFITS IN THE AFFORDABLE CARE ACT By: Jesse Goldfarb, Volume 101 Staff Member A key provision in the Affordable Care Act (ACA) mandates that certain types of benefits be included in any healthcare insurance plan on the state and federal exchanges.[1] While there are no specific benefits required,…

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Cats and Dogs and the Takings Clause

CATS AND DOGS AND THE TAKINGS CLAUSE: BALANCING THE REGULATORY TAKINGS DOCTRINE AND INNOVATION IN THE SEVENTH CIRCUIT By: Austin J. Spillane, Volume 101 Staff Member We are currently living through an intriguing period of time that is marked by the digitization of many facets of the traditionally non-digital economy—a period dubbed by one commentator as “the…

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The Future of Class Actions

THE FUTURE OF CLASS ACTIONS By: Caroline Bressman, Volume 101 Staff Member Far from being the exception to individual adversarial suits in modern U.S. litigation,[1] an early prototype of class action litigation was common in medieval England.[2] During a period shaped by strong group cultures, judges largely did not question group litigation.[3] The early U.S.…

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Running from the Law Doesn’t Mean You Broke It

RUNNING FROM THE LAW DOESN’T MEAN YOU BROKE IT: COMMONWEALTH V. WARREN CONSIDERS RACE WHEN DETERMINING REASONABLE SUSPICION By: Vanessa R. Colletti, Volume 101 Staff Member Jimmy Warren is probably just grateful to be free; however, his case presents a greater opportunity for freedom for people of color everywhere. Commonwealth v. Warren[1] is a notable…

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