For many centuries, homosexual behavior has been viewed differently by many cultures. The Greeks and Romans practiced homosexuality openly while other cultures, such as our own, condemn the practice because of religious and moral beliefs. The decision of Lawrence v. Texas has had a hefty impact on homosexual rights because it was the first instance in which the Supreme Court recognized the rights of same-sex partners to be intimate. This thesis will explore the new rights given (although not expressly) to same· sex couples in Lawrence, the decriminalization of intimate homosexual behavior, and how these rights relate to the possible future rights of same-sex marriages or civil unions.

Euthanasia, known in its active form as assisted suicide, is rapidly becoming one of the most heatedly debated moral, ethical, social, and legal issues to face the American public in some time. Because of its complexity, there are many arguments for and against euthanasia, and until all aspects of this highly controversial topic are explored and understood, this practice will continue to cause misunderstanding and suffering for those who both oppose and support it. It seems as if everyone has an opinion about euthanasia even though it affects a minute percentage of the U.S. population directly. All of us deal with death in one form or another, should it be the death of a loved one, friend, pet, or of one's own impending demise. Death as a reality is not remotely controversial as with the aspects of murder and suicide. Euthanasia touch on both areas. Is euthanasia just another term for murder, and a politically excusable one at that, or is euthanasia a way to assist the terminally ill out of their cocoon of pain?

This thesis contains a historical overview of Florida's education program with an examination of legislation, policy development, and case law. Legal disputes result in policy and code changes in Florida school districts. The purpose of this study is to ascertain the dominant weak link leading to the circumstances upon which Florida schools are compelled to litigate. The roles of administrators, faculty, staff, parents, students, and those who are contracted to provide services are examined, as well as policy issues. The methodology consists of relevant literature review of statutes, cases, and articles within the past ten years and a survey circulated to school board attorneys requesting key information about the five most recent cases that have either settled or been adjudicated. Documentation reviewed reflects that the legislature, in cooperation with the Florida Department of Education, has' built an infrastructure creating better communication with school communities in order to identify and make necessary changes for school improvement. The data collected from this study is aimed at assisting administrators and school board attorneys, as well as other interested parties, to identify major issues commonly litigated against Florida K-12 public schools, determine the problematic circumstances causing the litigation, and formulate suggestions for resolution.

No description available.

Based on ethnographic research in Bhutan and among Bhutanese living in Nepal, this thesis examines the reach of law in everyday life in contemporary Bhutan. Drawing on inter-linked themes of social values drawn from Buddhist teachings and the importance of morality, power and legitimacy, I examine popular discourse of and about law. It contributes to current arguments in socio-legal studies and anthropology concerning the reach of law in contemporary societies and its significance in everyday life. Furthermore, my thesis represents the first ethnographic account of law and society in Bhutan. It makes a valuable contribution not only to our understanding of Bhutan, but also provides an ideal opportunity to examine everyday conceptions of law as the Bhutanese State promotes legal change that draw on non-indigenous models. The thesis considers the impact of the creation of a modem, independent judiciary and recent changes in legal education and the increasing amount of legislation and secondary regulations. However, the everyday construction of law, as well as the meanings and uses to which law are put, raises problems. Therefore, I turn to examine how ordinary people create and develop a sense of the law by focussing on the development of legal consciousness. To do this, I look less at the formal legal processes of the law than at the narratives about law from a number of Bhutanese. These narratives focus on the importance of community values and notions of morality and legitimacy, which simultaneously draw on a prevalent authoritative public discourse concerning social behaviour and individual re-interpretations and resistance within the broad framework of the discourse. I examine the interrelationship between these various features, which evoke, on an individual level, a sense of "legal consciousness" and I develop how this informs daily life. This interrelationship highlights the dynamism of the process and the fluidity of ideas and adaptability to changing needs and relationships of power. This approach allows for an examination of law situated within, rather than separate from, everyday life in order to analyse the fragmentary and often inconsistent use made by individuals of the legal orders and forums available to them.

Drug courts are a recent, but apparently compelling, addition to the criminal justice system, designed to positively influence the drug-crime nexus. They operate as a specialised criminal court, involving cooperation between the courts and drug treatment professionals, by streamlining drug-related cases away from traditional processing and punishment into an intensive drug treatment program. The very proliferation of drug courts renders them deserving of study. While there are surveys of individual Australian courts, there has, to date, been no comparative study across the various Australian jurisdictions. This thesis fulfils this need. Although there is increasing debate in the United States about the theoretical basis of drug courts, this debate is largely taking place after their creation. Australian drug courts have largely been implemented without reference to any philosophical underpinnings. This thesis places the drug court phenomenon within its political, social, and philosophical environment, and provides an explanation of the legal contexts within which the drug court process operates. There are many untested assumptions about drug courts, most importantly claims that they are successful. If drug courts are going to continue to operate and become more widely accepted, it is necessary to recognise their underlying rationale and to identify the link between the social, political, and theoretical bases and the actual outcomes. The indicia for success within the drug court context have never been definitively articulated, and by identifying key elements of success, and then categorising the relationships of those elements to contexts and processes, this thesis will go some of the way towards defining drug court success. In other words this thesis attempts to provide answers to the questions – do drug courts work? And if so, what makes them workable?

This study explores the nature and significance of consumer dispute processes in China. It examines access to consumer justice issues, with particular reference to both consumer experience and the roles that the state, legal professionals and other social actors play in the consumer dispute processes. It focuses on one local area (Shenzhen, China) and uses an in-depth ethnographic approach to offer a realistic picture of consumer dispute resolution in China's socialist market economy. The principal question addressed is: how are consumer disputes resolved in this part of China today? The study analyses consumer dispute resolution practices in terms of various channels, including the handling of cases in the Consumer Council, the regulator's reporting system, the courts, the media, and online platforms. It determines that mediation or tiaojie in Chinese (by whatever provider) continues to be the dominant type of consumer dispute process. However, the style of mediation used - often differs from the approach to mediation in the common law world - is conducted by staff in public bodies and is a didactic process used largely to contain the impact of the dispute. The study also explores 'professional' consumers, who may well see themselves as ordinary consumers or mere citizens, but who develop expertise through repeat asserting of consumer rights in various consumer dispute processes. These professionals are regarded in this study as a modest form of 'consumer citizen' in China, and their activities do encourage reforms, despite sometimes hostile official attitudes. The present work contributes to our understanding of consumer protection and legal developments in China, and through its analysis of the China case offers contributions to the more general literature on dispute resolution, consumers' access to justice, and consumer protection.

LL.D. / Please refer to full text to view abstract

No description available.

Feminist activism in the digital age leverages technology to raise awareness of, and to mobilize support for, important issues and causes. Human trafficking is one such cause, and preventing it is included as a United Nations Sustainable Development Goal to achieve gender equality and empower women and girls. This study sought to understand the digital activism strategies of one women's civic leadership organization, the Junior League, for human trafficking awareness. In addition, this project analyzed how those digital activism strategies did or did not align with social justice approaches to human trafficking and how those digital activism strategies did or did not translate to offline action. To address these research questions, a three-pronged, feminist approach to data collection and analysis examined textual documents and included a qualitative survey and follow-up semi-structured interviews. Analysis revealed the overall disconnect between the mission of this women's civic leadership organization, its human trafficking awareness work, and its offline actions. Recommendations offered for this organization and for any nonprofit working in the anti-trafficking space include messaging and campaign goals for digital activism; connecting online efforts with offline action; developing organizational partnerships that consider multiple perspectives versus only a law-and-order angle; and including survivor voices and experiences into all anti-trafficking work.