JENNIFER HICKS SAGARDUY—Section 102(a) of the Copyright Act of 1976 provides for copyright protection “in original works of authorship fixed in any tangible medium of expression.” When one thinks of copyrightable works, software programs, sculptures, paintings, musical compositions, or one’s favorite novel may come to mind. However, due to the increasing popularity of tattooing coupled […]
BENJAMIN LONGNECKER—The recent passage of the First Step Act retroactively applies the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010, addressing a politically and legally-charged topic in criminal justice reform: the disparate sentencing of nonviolent drug offenders who use powder and crack cocaine. After Congress passed the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1986, a person had to possess 100 […]
ALLI KATZEN—Although recognized as a crisis by the American Bar Association for over 30 years, the issue of overburdened and overworked public defenders is yet to be resolved. In fact, as budget cuts deepen, pay disparities intensify, and over-criminalization continues, the problem is worsening. Last month, the New York Times highlighted the potential constitutional violation—ineffective […]
SOPHIA RUB—On December 6, 2018, the Supreme Court of the United States heard oral arguments for Gamble v. United States. The defendant, Gamble, called for the Court to revisit the constitutionality of the dual-sovereignty doctrine as a valid exception to the Double Jeopardy Clause of the Fifth Amendment. Embed from Getty Images The Fifth Amendment’s […]
STEPHANIE ROSNER—On January 1, 2019, the Court of Arbitration for Art (CAfA) began accepting art-related disputes for review. This step marks the latest development in the formation of the long-anticipated art law tribunal, which formally launched on June 7, 2018 during the Authentication in Art 2018 Congress. Although the CAfA is based in the Hague, […]
