University of Minnesota Law School scholars to observe U.S. Constitution Day with program

MINNEAPOLIS / ST. PAUL ( 9/8/2006 ) --The University of Minnesota Law School, on behalf of the entire University of Minnesota system, will present a program commemorating the U.S. Constitution on September 19, 2006, from 12:15 to 2:15 p.m. in Mondale Hall (Law School), 229 19th Ave. S., Minneapolis.

The program will take place at the Law School in Rooms 170, 180, 30, and 50.  To view the webcast, visit http://www.law.umn.edu/constitutionallaw/conday2006agenda.html

“The University of Minnesota’s Constitution Day program assembles one of America’s finest teams of talent on constitutional law. The members of our community, across the university’s campuses in the Twin Cities, Crookston, Duluth, Morris, and Rochester, can find no better source of wisdom on current constitutional issues than the team that will be gathered here Sept. 19,” said Jim Chen, associate dean at the Law School.

Topics will include:

• First Person Plural, http://papers.ssrn.com/abstract=916018, an examination of the first three words of the Constitution, “We the People,” by Jim Chen.

• An examination of First Amendment Law and  the Rumsfeld v. Fair case by Law School Professor Dale Carpenter. That case involved a coalition of university law schools named Forum for Academic and Institutional Rights (FAIR) objecting to the U.S. military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy, which bans openly gay and lesbian individuals from serving in the armed forces. The Solomon Amendment denies federal funds to colleges and universities that discriminate against military recruiters by denying them equal access to campuses. The U.S. Supreme Court earlier this year ruled that educational institutions that receive millions of federal dollars cannot bar U.S. military recruiters from their campuses.

• An examination of the military and First Amendment Law by Law School Professor Mike Paulsen. This will focus on the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Hamdan v. Rumsfeld, striking down regulations authorizing use of military commissions to try unlawful combatants for crimes against the law of war.

• An examination of Article III standing and statutory interpretation by Law School Professors Kristin Hickman and Alexandra Klass involving Massachusetts v. U.S. EPA. The case involves a dispute over whether the Environmental Protection Agency has the power to regulate emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases that scientists say contribute to global warming.

• An examination of Freedom of Speech by Law School Professor Heidi Kitrosser.

• An examination of state taxation and the Dormant Commerce Clause by Law School Professor Morgan Holcomb.

• An examination of criminal procedure with the focus on the Hudson v. Michigan by Law School Professor Ted Sampsell-Jones. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in the case that use of evidence against a defendant obtained through search warrants in situations where police failed to knock-and-announce does not violate the Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution.

A Webcast will connect the East Bank, the St. Paul campus, and the university’s campuses in Crookston, Duluth, Morris and Rochester with this event. In addition, students, alumni, employees and friends of the University of Minnesota system will be able to view the presentation on their own computers. Remote participants who are unable to join the discussion in person will be able to submit questions.

The Law School has applied for 2.0 continuing legal education credits, including 1.0 “elimination of bias” credit. If approved, those credits will be available to attendees as well as remote viewers.

To view the full Constitution Day agenda, click [here]
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