Category: Uncategorized
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Imagination: The Lawyer’s Indispensable Tool
Isaac Rillo* Law is a practical profession. Lawyers deal with concrete, particular problems in the real world. Nonetheless, one might say that the lawyer’s most essential tool is abstract: their imagination. Students who had Professor Gordon for lawyering skills will recall an adage reflecting this idea: “legal imagination is more important than legal knowledge.” The…
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St. Isidore Catholic Virtual School v. Drummond: Potential Implications for Minnesota Charter Schools
Corey Kibbel* Background St. Isidore of Seville Virtual Catholic School (St. Isidore) is a virtual charter school operating in Oklahoma which received approval from the Oklahoma Statewide Virtual Charter School Board. In Oklahoma, charter schools are “public schools established by contract” with a sponsoring institution, which can be public or private. These charter schools receive…
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My Damages Are What?! Potential Damages Exposure for Copyright Infringement
*Mason Rademacher Let’s begin with a few brief illustrations. Visualize a small business that operates in a downtown area. A beautiful mural was recently painted on a brick wall outside of your business, paid for by the city and painted by a local artist. The small business owner sees dozens of people every day taking…
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Third-Party Litigation Funding: Opportunities and Challenges
Hayden Cole* Third-Party Litigation Funding or Financing (TPLF) is an emerging tool in today’s legal landscape, offering financial support to litigants but raising ethical and practical issues as well. TPLF is an arrangement where a third party funds a litigant’s, usually a plaintiff’s, litigation costs in exchange for a share of any settlement or judgment.…
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Are you Liable for Hitting a House with a Golf Ball?
By Joe Maney* If you’re reading this on your phone while sitting in a golf cart with a broken window to your right and a Pro V1 in someone’s living room, you should probably put your phone down and read this another day. If you’re just curious what would happen if you sliced your drive…
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Zach Bryan and NDAs: How Enforceable Are They?
Stokli Ashcraft* In November 2024, Zach Bryan broke the internet when it was revealed that he offered his ex-girlfriend, Brianna “Chickenfry” LaPaglia, $12 million in exchange for her signature on a nondisclosure agreement. LaPaglia revealed that Bryan asked her to “sign all of [her] experiences… away,” ultimately barring her from ever being able to speak…
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Breaking Down President Trump’s Executive Orders
Grace Sjoberg* During his campaign, President Donald J. Trump pledged to implement significant federal government reforms, many of which were to be pursued through executive orders. His campaign rhetoric centered on reversing Biden-era policies, particularly on issues such as immigration, environmental regulations, and energy production, while championing the “America First” agenda. He also emphasized reducing…
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Rethinking the Billable Hour – Is It Time for a Change?
Maizie Lawrence* If time is money, then lawyers are basically walking price tags. But I can’t help but ask: at what cost? Every six-minute increment of work is tracked. Every task is assigned a dollar value. Every second is more valuable than the last. But again: at what cost? Inefficiency? Exhaustion? Burnout? It’s no wonder…
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Out of Step: Why State High Courts Should Interpret State Constitutions to Provide Greater Protections Against Police Searches
Tom Burnett* State high courts should not seek uniformity with federal law and other states concerning the rules for police searches. Instead, state courts should interpret their own constitutions and, when appropriate, find greater protections under their constitutional provisions than those afforded by the Fourth Amendment. By not lockstepping with the US Constitution, state high…
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The Use of Artificial Intelligence in Job Recruiting and its Legal Risks
Elizabeth Edinger* The use of artificial intelligence (AI) is inevitable, especially for those in the legal profession. It has been stated that AI has the potential to automate routine tasks and boost productivity for lawyers, saving lawyers up to four hours per week and generating $100,000 in new billable time per lawyer each year. Recently,…
University of St. Thomas Law Journal 