The Roundtable
Welcome to the Roundtable, a forum for incisive commentary and analysis
on cases and developments in law and the legal system.
on cases and developments in law and the legal system.
 By Kanishka Bhukya
Kanishka Bhukya is a 2nd year B.A./LL.B student at the National Law School of India University. As the Covid-19 pandemic unfolded, a major concern that emerged was the negative impact of intellectual property barriers on the global supply of critical medical components, including vaccines and personal protective equipment. For example, early on in the pandemic, Gilead Sciences set a negative precedent by patenting antiviral medication Remdesivir, used to treat Covid-19. [1] As a result, various interest groups have lobbied governments to waive Gilead's Remdesivir patent in order to make it more affordable, but they have been unsuccessful.
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 By Vishwajeet Deshmukh
Vishwajeet Deshmukh is an undergraduate law student at Government Law College, Mumbai. Gen Suzuki, a 46-year-old Japanese transgender man, has filed a court motion to have his legal gender recognized as male without undergoing sterilization surgery, as the Japanese national law requires [1]. As prescribed by the Gender Identity Disorder (GID) Special Cases Act of 2003, applicants must undergo a psychological assessment and be surgically sterilized to legally change their “gender” on documentation. Additionally, they should also be single and have no children under the age of twenty [2].  By Hailie Goldsmith
Hailie is a junior in the College of Arts and Sciences; majoring in Philosophy, Politics and Economics and minoring in Hispanic Studies Each year, the omnipresence of the effects of climate change become harder and harder to ignore. For instance, rising temperatures worsen the day-to-day living experiences of urban residents located in urban spaces subjected to the Urban Heat Island effect—extreme heat conditions that can be attributed to an extensive amount of heat-retaining surfaces, such as roofs and streets, as well as limited green spaces [1]. Other types of extreme weather conditions leave communities devastated and looking for ways to protect their homes and health from disasters wrought by climate change. Besides the toll on human lives, extreme weather events burden U.S. taxpayers with approximately $99 billion due to damage annually [2]. In 2020 alone, 22 separate billion-dollar weather and climate-related disasters struck the United States, ranging from severe storms to wildfires [3]. On November 15th, Biden’s administration signed a $1 trillion infrastructure law, H.R. 3684, which was first introduced to the U.S. House of Representatives on November 5th [2].  By: Dhilan Lavu
Dhilan Lavu is a freshman (C’25) in the College of Arts and Sciences from Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. He plans to major in Politics, Philosophy, and Economics with minors in History and Data Analytics. While Democrats may have unified control of government, the ability of Republicans to filibuster legislation in the Senate means that most of the sweeping reforms Joe Biden promised on the campaign trail will have to be achieved through reconciliation. This is a process through which a simple Senate majority can bypass the filibuster and agree to laws which will affect either government revenues or spending. Since almost all legislation affects the government’s budget in some way, the 1985 Byrd Rule constrains the use of reconciliation by stipulating that the law’s fiscal impact must be significant and cannot be “incidental [1].”  By Hailie Goldsmith
Hailie is a junior in the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania majoring in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics with a minor in Hispanic Studies More than 400. In the last five years, more than 400 unarmed motorists have been killed by police officers after being pulled over for a traffic violation [1]. The types of traffic violations range from broken taillights to the illegal installation of tinted windows [2]. In these 400 instances, how many of the officers were convicted? Five. Just five officers have been convicted in the aftermath of these killings. The imbalance in justice can be attributed to the more than $125 million paid by local governments to close and excuse 40 wrongful-death lawsuits [1]. All 400 people lost their lives as a result of a traffic stop gone horribly wrong. Police body cam footage and headlines announcing fatalities resulting from traffic stops dominate the news and media. Traffic stops that begin with a seemingly mundane purpose and spiral into a violent and deadly clash between civilian and police officer incite a strong reaction among viewers, consuming the media. These sickening incidents have fueled nationwide outrage in response to the overextended power of policing and its dangerous, deeply intertwined relationship with racism in the United States [2]. In Newburgh Heights, Ohio Black residents comprise just 22% of the town’s population, yet 76% of traffic citations and 63% of speeding cases belong to Black motorists [2]. While deeply embedded racism explains why traffic stops have the potential to become dangerous and life-threatening for many BIPOC individuals, the reason for so many ticketed traffic violations in the first place can be attributed to financial and legal systems that award authoritative traffic enforcement powers to police officers and spur a high volume of traffic stops.  By: Audrey Pan
Oulai "Audrey" Pan is a first-year student at the University of Pennsylvania's College of Arts and Sciences who plans to study political science and economics. There are few who would deny that America is experiencing one of its most polarized periods yet. Common-sense public health measures such as mask-wearing have become widely debated amid a pandemic. Online interest in conspiracy theories soared by 651 percent just last year. Most disturbingly, a third of voters believe that the results of the most recent presidential election were fraudulent despite having no evidence. How did America arrive at such a polarized state? And how does polarization affect America’s governing apparatus beyond its day-to-day socioeconomic penetration?  By: Ally Kalishman
Ally Kalishman is a freshman in the College of Arts and Sciences studying Philosophy, Politics, and Economics As Taylor Swift’s enthusiastic fanbase received the release of her rerecorded “Red” album, a question has once again resurfaced among skeptics: why is she doing it? To an outsider, it seems futile for an artist to spend the extensive time and money recording music she has already released. However, the answer to this question involves more than Swift herself. Swift’s rerecording journey shows the struggles of artists to maintain creative license over their work in a world that sometimes tries to take advantage of them.  By: David Katz David Katz is a freshman in the College of Arts and Sciences with an undeclared major If asked what rights come with being an American, what would you say?
 By: Jack Burgess
Jack Burgess is a first-year in the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania who plans to study International Relations, with minors in International Development and Legal Studies and History. The sudden emergence of the Coronavirus pandemic in January of 2020 caught leaders and citizens off guard. Many governments acted rashly in response to this pandemic. With limited knowledge and context, they attempted to quell the spread of the pandemic by employing cutting edge technologies. Eighty-three of such governments challenged freedom of speech by justifying its restriction as COVID-19 safety measures [2]. Authorities in various nations around the world have attempted to restrict the dissemination of information via social media and prevent peaceful protests. They have attacked protestors and detained and prosecuted those who chose to exercise their freedom of expression and association [2]. Vague laws have been established across nations coming from federal bodies such as the Turkish Radio and Television Supreme Court and the Egyptian Supreme Court for Media Regulation [8]. This article will address the legality of these actions orchestrated by governments censoring social media, mitigating misinformation, and more in the name of public health. It will analyze how governments’ actions have challenged the United States’ first amendment or international law. Particularly, it will address both the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and S. 2248, the Health Misinformation Act. It will discuss the nation's adherence to this Covenant and the constitutionality of S. 2248., uncovering the fine line between public health measures and freedom of speech which was blurred during the panic of the COVID-19 pandemic.  By: Jessica "Lulu" Lipman
Jessica “Lulu” Lipman is a junior at the University of Pennsylvania studying English. On March 30, 1981, John Hinkley JR. attempted to assassinate President Ronald Reagan. Although he failed in his attempt, Hinkley wounded four people, including the President. Hinckley was infatuated with the movie Taxi Driver, which centers around an assassination of a presidential hopeful. During his trial, Hinkley's defense argued that he was not culpable for his actions because he had schizophrenia and was in the midst of a major depressive episode. Ultimately, the jury in Washington D.C. determined that Hinckley was not guilty by reason of insanity, a decision that sparked debate amongst the American people [1]. |
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