By Rafael Santa Maria (PO ’20) A pending Supreme Court case, County of Maui v. Hawaii Wildlife Fund, could determine the future of the Clean Water Act of 1972 (CWA), a federal law that regulates pollution and quality standards for surface waters in the US. In particular, a potential loophole in the CWA’s guidelines could allow public and private sector organizations to evade regulation and...
Conducted by Rafael Santa Maria (PO ’20) It may come as a surprise to advocates and allies of the LGBTQ+ community that this question has not been resolved yet. Despite the considerable progress made in the continuing battle for equality over the last few decades, it seems hard to believe that sexual orientation remains unrecognized as a protected class at the federal level. As an unprotected...
Conducted by Rafael Santa Maria (PO ’20). Maria Leonor “Leni” Gerona Robredo has served as the 14th Vice President of the Philippines since June 2016. As per the Constitution of the Philippines, she ran for the Office of the Vice President separately from the main presidential election and therefore did not run with now-President Rodrigo Duterte. In defeating Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos, Jr., the...
By Rafael Santa Maria (PO ’20) On April 11, Spanish police detained an 18-year-old Italian man accused of sexually assaulting a 17-year-old British national on a Mediterranean cruise ship. However, the suspect was promptly released by a Spanish judge who claimed that Spain had no jurisdiction over the case. Specifically, the judge argued that Spain could not prosecute the suspect because...
By Rafael Santa Maria (PO ’20) Last week, the Supreme Court implemented official rule changes that reduce the word limits in court briefs and identify potential conflicts of interest. Originally proposed last November, these changes intend to reduce the Court’s caseload and make it clear when justices must recuse themselves from certain cases. These new rules go into effect on July first...
By Rafael Santa Maria (PO ’20) Last Friday, the Department of Defense began implementing a new policy that effectively prevents transgender individuals from joining the military. Although the policy was announced in a Defense Department memorandum last month, enforcement began on April 12. This development follows efforts to curtail transgender military service by the Trump administration dating...
By Rafael Santa Maria (PO ’20) The Philippines officially left the International Criminal Court (ICC) two weeks ago, on March 17, thus ending the country’s participation in the Netherlands-based international tribunal. This comes a year after the Philippine government filed a notice of withdrawal to the UN, and it makes the island nation only the second country to leave, following Burundi’s exit...
By Rafael Santa Maria (PO ’20) Most petitions to the Supreme Court never receive a writ of certiorari, and thus are never adjudicated by the nation’s highest legal authority. With thousands of cases to consider, the Court must exercise extreme selectivity. However, when a petition is backed by amicus briefs from critically-acclaimed rappers and think tanks alike, the Court may just take notice...
By Rafael Santa Maria (PO ’20) A Texas court ruling might end the Military Selective System’s male-only draft policy. In a potentially groundbreaking decision, Judge Gray H. Miller of the federal court for the Southern District of Texas ruled that the military draft’s exclusive targeting of men is unconstitutional. In his opinion, Judge Miller notes that, “Congress obliquely relied on assumptions...
By Rafael Santa Maria (PO ’20) Rodrigo Duterte, the current President of the Philippines, regularly garners controversy for his profane speech and uncompromising policies. From instigating a violent war on drugs to spurning the U.S. in favor of closer diplomatic ties with China, Duterte challenges the legal and political status quo of the Philippines with questionable justifications and a gung-ho...
