South Texas College of Law Annotations (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 41, No. 2, Ed. 1, December, 2008 Page: 7 of 8
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ANNOTATIONS
Page 7
in
Because they often repeatedly relive
the tragedies of war and their trauma
through no fault of their own, these
veterans find a sort of healing solace
in having new goals and experiences
unrelated to war on which to guide
the focus of their attention.
According to the Veteran's
Administration, there are more than
24 million veterans in the United
States, with more injured veterans
returning from war every day.
Providing the disabled veterans with
assistance in becoming productive
citizens is of a growing concern to
lawmakers and disability advocates
nationwide. From 1998 - 2006, over
79,000 disabled vets were helped
in finding and keeping gainful
employment. Hopefully, this number
will increase as outreach programs
within the military and disability
awareness organizations nationwide
are working hard to help soldiers
and sailors find new opportunities.
Our country, seeing and recognizing
the value of disabled veterans, will
enable more and more veterans to
find the road to increased dignity and
a fulfilling post-war/trauma life.
For more information on
the Vocational Rehabilitation and
Employment Program, please visit
http://www.vba.va.gov or call 1-800-
827-1000. «
Vjsjjs SJC£ eeuv<r's> involved
with the DRC, Mr. Hall offered the
uncertified students a chance to sit in
and observe mediations in their spare
time. Observing gives students the
chance to see real mediators in action
and find what may seem to work and
what seems to not work in mediating
disputes. After receiving their
certification from the Frank Evans
Center for Conflict Resolution, these
students will have the opportunity
to work with the DRC, gaining
experience and sharpening their
new skill. One student, Ms. Bates-
Wilson responded by saying, "I
plan on taking Mr. Hall up on his
offer to sit in on a mediation at the
Dispute Resolution Center. As law
students, we become programmed
to think like advocates, but, with the
time and expense of litigation, it can
be advantageous to both parties to
settle."
Dean Alfini's students
were engaged by their guest speaker,
and seemed to be thrilled at the idea
of having an avenue down which
to travel with their new skills. Mr.
Hall provided a window out of
the classroom into the world of
mediations that take place here in
Harris County. All in all, he seemed
optimistic and excited about the
prospect of receiving and working
with new volunteer mediators in the
near future. For more information
about the Dispute Resolution Center
of Harris County, contact the DRC at
713-755-8274. #
&&a. 3ms Owns 33SUZ3 ecwtfv So, while the legality of such a transaction is questionable, the legend itself
also has more than a few loopholes. According to Athenian historians, the story of die Tree that Owns Itself is more
than likely false. Indeed, W.H. Jackson did own the property near where the tree stood, however, he did not own
the actual tree or the land underneath the tree. In fact, Athens records hold that in 1832, a Dr. Matthus Ward owned
the land and the tree - the year that the lost W.H. Jackson will deeding the tree to itself was supposedly drafted.
In addition to disputes of ownership, it is also confirmed that Jackson's childhood was actually spent in Jefferson
County, not in Athens, making it unlikely that he had ever even spent his childhood climbing the big oak tree's
branches.
Of course, a person creating a will that deeds a favorite tree to itself is a bit farfetched, but can the same be
said of a person leaving all of their property to a favorite pet? According tot Rensberger, a similar issue has arisen
fairly frequently regarding pets. "People have tried to leave their property to their pets. Usually this is held to be
invalid, again, for lack of capacity. Sometimes the court will construe the will as creating a trust, so that a human
being owns the property, but is to use the trust assets to care for the animal. Cases are split as to whether this is valid
or void," comments Rensberger. (.For additional information regarding the legal validity of wills leaving property
to pets, please see 40 Santa Clara LR 617)
So, is there anything that an environmentalist or pet lover can do to protect their favorite animals and trees beyond
the grave?
Explains Rensberger, "Justice Douglas once said that trees (and other environmental artifacts like rivers) should
have standing to challenge government actions that threaten their existence.
"The critical question of 'standing' would be simplified and also put neatly in focus if
we fashioned a federal rule that allowed environmental issues to be litigated before federal
agencies or federal courts in the name of the inanimate object about to be despoiled, defaced,
or invaded by roads and bulldozers and where injury is the subject of public outrage.
Contemporary public concern for protecting nature's ecological equilibrium should lead to
the conferral of standing upon environmental objects to sue for their own preservation." See
Sierra Club v. Morton, 405 U.S. 727,741 "
"But," says Rensberger, "He was both a great Justice and something of a whack. However, Douglas does give a
whole new meaning to the phrase "standing timber."
(NOTE: The original oak fell in 1942, because of poor weather condition. Within days of its collapse, a local
community organization decided to replace the fallen tree with a "son " grown from one of its acorns. This tree is
considered to be the full heir of the original tree. As such, it is sometimes referred to as the Son of The Tree That
Owns Itself ) #
Law Review vs. The Internet
In the Age of the Internet, Have Traditional, Published Law Reviews Become Obsolete?
By Dorothy Araujo
Assistant Editor
It is no secret that the internet has changed the world as we knew ft. All types of information are available to
anyone with an internet connection. In fact, one no longer even needs a computer to use the internet because smart
phones and shiny gadgets offer avenues to get online anywhere without having to drag around a laptop. Because
the internet is essentially everywhere, most business models have changed to include some form of an online
presence. The business of law is no exception. Many professors, lawyers and law students deliver up-to-the-minute
commentaries about the state of the law and new legal developments through daily, weekly, and monthly blogs. This
new way of discussing current legal events has many legal scholars wondering if the age of the traditional, published
Law Review has come to an end.
A law review is a scholarly journal focused on legal issues. The University of Pennsylvania Law Review
has been published since 1852 and has earned the honor of being the oldest law review. Almost every American law
school publishes at least one "flagship" law review while most publish several specialty journals that focus on one
particular area of the law.
Law review articles are considered persuasive authority because they provide extensive legal research of
the topic being discussed. In fact, many articles have been extremely influential in shaping the development of the
law.
Still, however persuasive they may be, law review articles are also routinely criticized for being difficult to
read, complicated, devoid of clarity, boring, lengthy, predictably structured, bogged down in minutia, formulaic,
and pompous in tone. Some scholars have suggested that publishing law reviews online will alleviate some of these
issues.
"Blogging pushes [people] to write clearly and simply; the format rewards clarity of expression more than
traditional law review articles do," suggests Orin Kerr of the Volokh Conspiracy legal blog.
"Blogging sharpens our taste in writing. It makes legal writers impatient with circumlocution and
pretentiousness. It makes us [legal writers] see pithy ideas in every sentence," explains Ann Althouse, law professor
and popular legal blogger.
Besides a change in tone, many scholars believe that replacing the traditional, published law review with
online law reviews will help keep the information fresh and current. Many law review journals publish quarterly.
Given the fast pace of the internet and the frequent changes in legal interpretation, those advocating change have
argued that producing articles online will allow law reviews to keep up with the twists and turns of the law.
Says Gregory S. McNeal, legal blogger, "If law reviews developed an innovative electronic distribution
system, they could publish articles when they are completed and open their submission window based on editorial
availability.. ..The transition to such a system would require work on the part of law review editors to modify their
processes", but if done properly, McNeal notes, those law reviews that adopt an electronic approach "may very
likely increase their efficiency, timeliness and perhaps quality of published authors."
Even if published law reviews are not obsolete, perhaps there is still room for both a traditional law review
and an online presence. Many law schools have allowed students and faculty to blog about current trends in the law
on school sponsored "law review" web sites. The online articles are published as they are edited and approved and
more tightly written with less footnotes and less "legalese" so that the public and other interested parties can read
them. Of course, the school's traditional flagship law review and specialty journals operate in much the same manner
as they always have. Only time will enlighten us to what our new technologies have in store for the development of
this noble profession. #
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Poronsky, Bradley L. South Texas College of Law Annotations (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 41, No. 2, Ed. 1, December, 2008, newspaper, December 2008; Houston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth144586/m1/7/: accessed June 22, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting South Texas College of Law.