Feb 13, 2008 | Case Comments, Number 2, Print Edition, Volume 41
First Circuit Review 2008 The Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA) protects the religious freedom of individuals confined to government institutions. Enacted in 2000, RLUIPA prohibits mental and correctional facilities from imposing...
Feb 13, 2008 | Case Comments, Number 2, Print Edition, Volume 41
First Circuit Review 2008 Under Massachusetts law, a holder in due course takes a negotiable instrument free from the claims of others; however, when the taker obtains the instrument with notice of another’s claim to the instrument, notice will negate the taker’s...
Feb 13, 2008 | Case Comments, Number 2, Print Edition, Volume 41
First Circuit Review 2008 The Armed Career Criminal Act (ACCA) is a recidivist statute that punishes repeated criminal behavior. Specifically, the ACCA enhances the minimum penalty for those who unlawfully possess firearms and have a history of prior felony...
Feb 13, 2008 | Case Comments, Number 2, Print Edition, Volume 41
First Circuit Review 2008 Pursuant to congressional mandate, individuals convicted of certain predicate offenses must submit to mandatory deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) extraction. Such an intrusion on personal autonomy implicates the Fourth Amendment, which affords all...
Feb 13, 2008 | Case Comments, Number 2, Print Edition, Volume 41
First Circuit Review 2008 The Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) was enacted in 1974 to protect the millions of Americans affected by employer-funded pension plans. The denial of pension and disability benefits to employees by plan administrators has...
Feb 13, 2008 | Case Comments, Number 2, Print Edition, Volume 41
First Circuit Review 2008 In 1993, Congress passed the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). The law permits eligible employees to take up to twelve weeks leave for specific medical or family reasons. In Rucker v. Lee Holding Co., the United States Court of Appeals for...