Faculty News
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Prof. Richard Frase Quoted in the Star Tribune Regarding MN Court of Appeals Ruling on Derek Chauvin Trial
March 6, 2021Professor Richard Frase, faculty director of the Robina Institute of Criminal Law and Criminal Justice, was quoted in the Star Tribune regarding a Minnesota Court of Appeals ruling that a trial judge was wrong to deny prosecutors’ request to reinstate a third-degree murder charge against ex-Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin. Referring to the repeated back and forth between the trial court and the Court of Appeals shortly before the start of the trial, Frase said, “My head is spinning. I’ve been a lawyer for 50 years and a Minnesota lawyer for 44 years and I’ve never seen a situation like this,” He continued, ”Everybody wants to get this right.” He also explained that reinstating the charge could serve as a bargaining chip in plea negotiations.
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Prof. Hasday Testifies Before Minnesota House Committee
March 2, 2021Professor Jill Hasday testified before the Minnesota House Committee on Labor, Industry, Veterans and Military Affairs Finance and Policy in support of a bill that would ban employers from asking job applicants about their pay history.
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Prof. Klass quoted in Houston Chronicle on Texas Electric Grid Disaster
February 28, 2021The Houston Chronicle quoted from Professor Klass’s article in Lawfare on how the failure to energy and community infrastructure led to the Texas electric grid disaster.
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Prof. Rozenshtein interviews Prof. Klass on The Lawfare Podcast on Texas Electric Grid Disaster
February 23, 2021Professor Alan Rozenshtein interviews Professor Alexandra Klass on The Lawfare Podcast to talk about the causes of the Texas electric grid diaster and what we can learn from it.
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Prof. Soper Discusses Mike Lindell Bankruptcy Case in Minnesota Reformer
February 23, 2021Professor Soper discussed Mike Lindell’s 2004 Minnesota bankruptcy case. Lindell characterizes the bankruptcy as a “fake bankruptcy” in his 2019 book. Soper explains the fraudulent transactions Lindell undertook surrouding the bankruptcy, and why those fraudulent transactions didn’t lead to criminal liability.
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Prof. Klass writes in Lawfare on Texas Grid Diaster
February 22, 2021Professor Klass writes in Lawfare on the causes of the Texas electric grid disaster and actions to take to avoid similar outcomes in the future.
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Prof. Dan Schwarcz Quoted in Wall Street Journal Story on Insurance Claims Over Texas Storm Damage
February 18, 2021In a Feb. 17 article in the Wall Street Journal on some Texas homeowners’ growing frustrations over dealing with insurance claims related to the recent winter storm, Dan Schwarcz discussed the lack of standardization among homeowners’ policies.
Policies are more varied than they were a decade or two ago, Schwarcz said. While some differences might work to homeowners’ advantage, a substantial majority could hurt them, he added.
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Prof. Klass quoted in Energywire on ways for the Biden Administration to help build new electric transmission lines to spur renewable electricity growth
February 11, 2021Professor Klass discussed existing federal authority for the Department of Energy and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to overcome existing legal and political roadblocks to building the long-distance electric transmission lines needed to connect wind and other renewable energy resources to U.S. population centers.
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Professor Fionnuala Ní Aoláin urges 57 countries to repatriate women and children in Syrian camps
February 11, 2021Human Rights Center Faculty Director and UN Special Rapporteur, Professor Fionnuala Ní Aoláin is urging 57 countries to repatriate nationals that are being held in camps in Northern Syria. Joined by other UN human rights experts, Professor Ní Aoláin has issued a statement expressing serious concerns at the inhumane treatment and squalid conditions within the camps. According to the report, Al Hol and Roj camps in northeast Syria are home to over 64,000 people, mostly women and children. The UN human rights experts say they have issued official letters to 57 governments who are believed to have nationals in the camps.
Professor Ní Aoláin’s statements have been featured in an article by the UN regarding the state of the camps in Northeast Syria, and the story has been picked up by several other major media outlets, including: Voice of America, Sveriges Television, Le Journal de Montréal, Euronews, Republika Online, Adresseavisen, and El Periodista.
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Star Tribune Quotes Prof. Cotter on Senator Klobuchar's Antitrust Bill
February 5, 2021A February 4, 2021 Minneapolis Star-Tribune article titled Klobuchar Proposal Would Toughen Up Antitrust Laws discusses a bill proposed by U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) that would amend the Clayton Antitrust Act by, among other things, shifting the burden, under certain circumstances, to the parties to a proposed merger, to prove that the combination would not “create an appreciable risk of materially lessening competition.” The article quotes Professor Tom Cotter as stating that the proposal “would be a ‘sea change’ in how the law views mergers and acquisitions,” but that “for the last 20 to 30 years, merger enforcement has not been as good as it should have been.”