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.
image credits: https://www.nature.com/collections/ceiajcdbeb Sam JungSam Jung is a first-year student in the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania. He plans to major in Computer Science & Political Science.
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By Alexandra Kanan
Alexandra Kanan is a first-year student in the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania. She plans to major in Politics, Philosophy, and Economics with a career goal of becoming an immigration lawyer. The junior high classroom: the start of self-discovery, academic stress, teenage relationships, and for one Ohio teenager, the start of his very own empire. This story of this self-declared “independent state” begins with thirteen-year-old Brayden Hickerson, or as his subjects call him, Lord Brayden Michael Hickerson I, decided in 2015 to take his extracurriculars to another level, by starting his own state in Perrysburg Ohio. He declared himself Kaiser and over the next 11 months of his reign, accumulated 34 Hickersonian citizens [1]. By Hannah Agarwal
Hannah Agarwal is a first-year student in the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania. She plans to major in psychology and minor in American Public Policy. On October 4th, the Supreme Court once again heard arguments challenging the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which prohibits discriminatory voting practices [1]. Merrill v. Milligan is one of the latest cases to be brought before the conservative-leaning Supreme Court, but the Act’s power has diminished over the past decade as multiple sections have either been reinterpreted or rendered unconstitutional [1]. By Shahana Banerjee
Shahana Banerjee is a sophomore in the College of Arts of Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania studying Health and Societies. After two grueling years of the COVID-19 pandemic, Moderna, Inc. announced on August 26th, 2022, that the pharmaceutical giant would be suing its rival drugmakers Pfizer and BioNTech. The lawsuit filed by the company in the U.S. and Germany alleges that the latter two companies used Moderna’s patented mRNA technology to develop their joint COVID-19 vaccine Comirnaty®, infringing patents that Moderna had filed between 2010 and 2016. By Alicia Augustin
Alicia Augustin is a first-year student at the University of Pennsylvania’s College of Arts and Sciences who plans to study Political Science and Urban Education. The practice of redlining in the United States has added another dimension to the division of the country in a systematic way. This system not only creates this idea of desirable vs. undesirable areas to live in, but it also actively aids in perpetuating the inequalities that exist within these divisions. The roots of redlining can be traced back to the Great Depression and how government officials responded to it. By Vishwajeet Deshmukh
Vishwajeet Deshmukh is an undergraduate law student at Government Law College, Mumbai, India. In February 2022, female students were banned from entering a college in Udipi, Karnataka, India because the students wore “hijabs” [1]. A hijab is a veil worn by Muslim women, covering the head and chest [2]. The ban on hijabs has resulted in large-scale protests across India and sparked controversy over religious liberty. By Oulai 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. The filibuster, which refers to prolonged debate in the Senate, is perhaps one of the most discussed domestic political issues today. Though the filibuster is often seen as a tool which upholds the Senate’s tradition of unlimited debate, it actually originated from a simplification of Senate procedures in 1807. This included the deletion of a rule that would have allowed a simple majority to cut off debate on a bill. [1] Thus, from then onward, Senators could technically extend debate indefinitely to prevent the passage of a bill. However, there were few filibusters prior to the twentieth century, since Senators largely operated on a presumed majority rule. [2] Sophie Lovering is a senior in the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania majoring in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics (PPE) and minoring in American Sign Language and Deaf Studies.
On Thursday, March 24, the Senate concluded four days of hearings regarding Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson’s nomination for the Supreme Court of the United States [1]. Nominated by President Biden, Jackson shares many characteristics of the justices that have come before her: attended an Ivy league law school, served as Supreme Court clerk, and worked as a federal appeals judge [1]. Despite her similarities to past justices, should Jackson fill the present Supreme Court vacancy, she would make history as the first public defender and the first Black woman to serve [2]. By Rachel Bina
Rachel Bina is a freshman in the Huntsman Program studying Business and International Studies with a focus on Russia. She is interested in global affairs, foreign languages, international law, as well as experimenting with international cuisines in her free time. As we have heard time and time again since the COVID-19 pandemic began, we are living in unprecedented times. These unprecedented times have resulted in unprecedented measures like various state and federal mandates, which have, in turn, led to new legal challenges and precedents. In the United States, the Biden administration’s push for vaccinations has led them to mandate vaccinations for federal workers. In addition to this, they announced on November 4, that January 4, 2022, will be the deadline for companies with 100 or more employees to mandate coronavirus vaccinations for their employees [1]. By Kanishka Bhukya
Kanishka Bhukya is a 2nd year B.A./LL.B student at the National Law School of India University Since Hugo Chavez’s election as Venezuela's president, the transatlantic coalition—comprising the United States (US), the United Kingdom (UK), and the European Union (EU)—has pursued an aggressive campaign of subversion directed towards the Venezuelan government. The same tactic has been applied to Nicolas Maduro’s regime, in which the coalition has been explicit in their desire to replace the elected regime with one more accepting of the capitalist economic model. To that end, they have recognised self-proclaimed president Juan Guiadó as Venezuela's de jure president, rejecting the country's democratically-elected president, Maduro. |
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