JURIST - Commentary - Professional

Professional Commentary

Horne v. Department of Agriculture: California Raisin Farmers Strike Blows for Property Rights and Limited Government

Brian T. Hodges

July 5, 2015 11:06:14 am

JURIST Guest Columnists Brian Hodges and Christopher Kieser discuss the recent ruling by the Supreme Court in Horne v. Department of Agriculture...On June 22 2015, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled in favor of Fresno-area raisin farmers...

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Commentary

Iraq’s New Commercial Courts

Adam Al-Sarraf

June 30, 2015 06:48:48 pm

JURIST Guest Columnist Adam Al-Sarraf, International Program Specialist at the United States Department of Commerce, discusses Iraq's new commercial court... Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of,...

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Commentary

Secured Transactions Regime in Palestine: Expectations and Challenges

Ibrahim Fares

June 2, 2015 12:19:43 pm

JURIST Guest Columnist Ibrahim Fares discusses the challenges surrounding the adoption of the Secured Transaction Draft Law in Palestine...Recently the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a part of World Bank Group, finished the final draft of the Secured Transaction Draft Law...

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Commentary

The Legal Justice For Servicemembers Act

Raymond J. Toney

May 11, 2015 11:45:44 am

JURIST Guest Columnist Raymond J. Toney discusses the proposed changes to the boards of correction of military records...Senators Boxer, Wyden and Markey have introduced much-needed legislation, the “Legal Justice For Servicemembers Act,” to overhaul protections for military whistleblowers, including...

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Commentary

The US Sentencing Commission Votes for Fundamental Fixes to the Sentencing Guidelines

Alan Ellis

May 8, 2015 03:06:43 pm

JURIST Guest Columnists Alan Ellis and Mark H. Allenbaugh, discuss the US Sentencing Commission votes for fundamental fixes to the US Sentencing Guidelines ... On April 9, 2015, the US Sentencing Commission voted to fundamentally fix some portions of the...

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Commentary

Everyone Benefits From Religious Liberty Protections

Jordan Lorence

May 7, 2015 04:20:01 pm

JURIST Guest Columnist Jordan Lorence of Alliance Defending Freedom discusses the benefits of religious freedom to liberty protections ... Listening carefully to objections to state religious freedom laws, two assumptions emerge that are demonstratively false. Those who assert them...

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Commentary

Lujan Eliminates Plaintiffs’ Standing In New Marijuana Cases

Roxane Peyser

March 30, 2015 04:56:04 pm

JURIST Guest Columnist Roxane Peyser of the Law Office of Roxane Peyser in Lyons, Colorado discusses the issues in question concerning challenges to Colorado's legalization of marijuana...The requirement that a plaintiff have standing is derived from Article III of the...

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Commentary

Haselwander v. McHugh: DC Circuit Restores Fairness to Its Review of the Boards for the Correction of Military Records

Raymond J. Toney

February 6, 2015 01:08:51 pm

JURIST Guest Columnist Raymond J. Toney of the Law Offices of Raymond J. Toney discusses recent changes to the US military's records review process ...Since the 1989 decision of the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit...

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Commentary

West Virginia Legislature Proposes Substantial Changes to Deliberate Intent Statute

Christopher Edwards

February 5, 2015 12:00:00 pm

JURIST Guest Columnist Christopher Edwards, of Bowles Rice, LLP in Charleston, WV, discusses the proposed legislative changes to West Virginia's workers' compensation scheme ... Workers' Compensation programs provide important benefits to both employees and employers. If an employee is injured...

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Commentary

Yemen: A False Choice on Justice

Belkis Wille

February 4, 2015 05:00:00 pm

JURIST Guest Columnist Belkis Wille, Yemen researcher at Human Rights Watch, discusses the current dilemma in Yemen...The present global turmoil has intensified the debate over whether pursuing justice in fragile and transitional countries leads to instability. Yet Yemen has been...

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Phillip III of Spain expels Muslim converts to Christianity

Phillip III of Spain began the expulsion of the country's "Morisco" (Muslims who converted to Christianity and their descendants) population on April 9, 1609, based on the Crown's fears that the Morisco population retained Muslim beliefs. Hundreds of thousands of Moriscos would be expelled from the country from 1609-1614. The expulsions took place just over 100 years after Spain's Jewish population was expelled in 1492. Learn more about the expulsion of the Moriscos.

Senate approves purchase of Alaska

On April 9, 1867, the U.S. Senate voted to ratify the Treaty with Russia for the Purchase of Alaska and thereby approve the purchase of the territory from Russia for $7.2 million. Initially, the purchase was made to keep Alaska away from the British. It was politically unpopular with many Americans who denounced it is "Seward's Folly", after U.S. Secretary of State William Seward, who had lobbied for the purchase. Seward was later vindicated by the discovery of gold and oil in Alaska.

Learn more about the Alaska Purchase from the U.S. State Department.

Last beheading in England

On April 9, 1747, Simon Fraser, Lord Lovat, became the last man to be beheaded in England when he was executed on Tower Hill for his part in the Jacobite rising of 1745. Learn more about the legal history and practice of beheading.