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Showing papers in "Golden Gate University Law Review in 2012"




Journal Article
TL;DR: In this paper, Smith et al. argue that a state-bankruptcy chapter is necessary to avoid a massive federal bailout, because states are too big to fail and the grim logic of bailouts applies to the states because they are significantly interconnected with the financial markets.
Abstract: During February 2011 the prospect of creating a state-bankruptcy chapter burst into the national conversation. This debate largely centered on the necessity of state bankruptcy as a means of averting state bailouts, and leading commentators emphasized the need to tread gingerly on state prerogatives under the Tenth Amendment. The constitutionality of bankruptcy for states demands closer scrutiny, given that the Supreme Court’s recent Tenth Amendment jurisprudence has evolved toward protecting state sovereignty. The principles handed down from a pair of cases in the 1930s involving the constitutionality of municipal bankruptcy would likely support upholding a state-bankruptcy chapter that is carefully drawn to respect state sovereignty. Though highly relevant, these cases are not * J.D. 2011, Tulane University Law School; B.A. 2008, cum laude, Bucknell University. Special thanks to Professor Adam Feibelman for his helpful advice and suggestions. Thanks also to my friends and family for all their support, and especially to Danielle Solan for her insightful comments. 1 ADAM SMITH, AN INQUIRY INTO THE NATURE AND CAUSES OF THE WEALTH OF NATIONS 435 (Edwin Cannan ed., The Univ. of Chi. Press 1976) (6th ed. 1793). 1 Solan: State Bankruptcy Published by Digital Commons: The Legal Scholarship Repository @ Golden Gate University School of Law, 2012 218 GOLDEN GATE UNIVERSITY LAW REVIEW [Vol. 42 dispositive, however, because the legal landscape has changed a great deal since the 1930s. Even a broad state-bankruptcy chapter would be constitutional, because recent Tenth Amendment jurisprudence does not preserve traditional state functions. The Court has already upheld many similar infringements on state sovereignty, such as the interference with state contractual obligations. Assuming a state-bankruptcy chapter is constitutional, is it a good idea? The main justification expressed for the creation of a statebankruptcy chapter is that it is necessary to avoid a massive federal bailout, because states are too big to fail. This justification concludes that the grim logic of bailouts applies to the states because they are significantly interconnected with the financial markets.

3 citations





Journal Article
TL;DR: The authors discusses the relative culpability of the people who invested in Bernie Madoff's Ponzi scheme as well as some of the legal opinions in the case and discusses the role of money laundering.
Abstract: This essay discusses the relative culpability of the people who invested in Bernie Madoff's Ponzi scheme as well as some of the legal opinions in the case.

1 citations