Are Courts Insulated From Politics?

Students learn in high school Civics classes that the courts are insulated from the affects of politics.  This issue has already been mentioned in this blog. But as states all over the country deal with serious budget issues, all aspects of state government, including courts, have been affected. Reporting on Budget cuts in the New Hampshire court system, the New York Times reports:

While most state agencies are feeling a squeeze, legislatures squeeze courts at the risk of violating the access to the courts guaranteed in criminal and civil matters by the Constitution, said Steven Zack, a former president of the American Bar Association.

The video embedded below reports on similar issues in Iowa.

Part of being college educated is being able to see through the mask of "Civics class" platitudes and maxims and to see the Legal Environment with all its warts and imperfections.

Law Lessong - Administrative Runaround

The next installment in the “Law Lessong” series is Administrative Runaround.  This simple video and song from a Power Point presentation helps students consider aspects of Administrative Law, including rulemaking, enforcement and adjudication.  Please excuse the "Dylan-esque" harmonica playing.
Learn more about Law Lessongs from the post found here.  More videos may be found at my youtube channel. Please feel free to use them in the classroom or as assignments or in any way that they work for you as an educational resource.

Mandated Reporting

In my experience with college students the legal requirements of mandated reporting of suspicion of child abuse and neglect is mostly unknown. One positive outcome from the recent events at Penn State is to bring public recognition to both the legal requirements and the moral obligations of all persons to protect children from abuse. Many legislatures are reviewing the mandated reporting statutes to determine their efficacy in light of these recent revelations.

The video below is a good basic introduction to the issue of mandated reporting.

Featured Website: LawInfo.com YouTube Channel

The Law Info You Tube channel has a plethora of short (around 1:00) videos that are great for introducing legal topics or defining terms. I find that students can zone out on my voice.  Sure, I can define a promissory note or briefly introduce the concept of employment discrimination, but having another face/voice do it gives an opportunity to have students close laptops to look up at a video and lends credibility to what I have to say (since the video lawyer agrees).  Below are some examples:

Click on the image below to see a video on Promissory Notes:



Click on the image below to see a video on Commercial Speech:

Contemplating The True Nature of Law

Is "Law" a set of universally recognized truths about right and wrong? Or, is "Law" nothing more than the policy decision of law-makers designed to shape society in particular ways or to satisfy an electoral impulse? Or, is it a combination of both?

This video from newt Gingrich speaking at Harvard may be a good discussion starter.

Songs of the Supreme Court

This is Thanksgiving Week and there are no classes at UConn. I thought it would be a good week to make a fun post and leave it up until classes resume next week.

This post is made up of songs realted to U.S. Supreme Court cases. I found songs on a few cases, but I am sure that there are more out there that readers will be able to share.  Please us the comment section at the end of the post to add your favorites and suggestions.

1. Brown v. Board of Education
The song Black and White written by David Arkin (Alan Arkin's father) and Earl Robinson.was inspired by the Brown case. The most famous recording of the song was by Three Dog Night in the 1970's.  However, that version inexplicably removed all the poignant references to the court. The version below is from Pete Seeger.



2. Loving v. Virginia
Singer/songwriter Nanci Griffith wrote and recorded this song to commemorate the 50th anniversary of this landmark decision.



3. United States v. US District Court
The song John Sinclair was written by John Lennon prior to this Supreme Court decision. Sinclair was one of the defendants whose case made up the subject of  the Supreme Court case.  Lennon famously performed the song at the "John Sinclair Freedom Rally" in Ann Arbor, MI in 1971.



4. Snyder v. Phelps (Westboro Baptist Church)
There are a large number of songs available on-line in response to the Westboro Baptist Church protests that were upheld by this decision. Many of them cannot be shared in polite company. I chose the one embedded below because I thought it best exemplified Justice Holmes' "marketplace of ideas" (although the phrase was coined by Justice Brennan).



If you have a song related to a Supreme Court case that you would like to share, please feel free to send it to me for a future post at mark.deangelis@uconn.edu.  I look forward you  to your comments and suggestions.

Law Music Video - Renegade

This week's installment in the "Law Music Videos" series is Renegade by Styx. I recommend maximum volume - especially just before your 8:00 AM class starts. No "drowsyheads" after this.

Law music videos played before your class starts will positively contribute to learning.