Faculty News

Professor Jeremiah Ho’s recent two commentaries on the Human Rights at Home Blog regarding recent Supreme Court decision garnered separate mentions on SCOTUSBlog.

Professor Anna Tabor, who joins UMass Law this fall in an honorary faculty appointment, recently published her article Unclaimed Defined Benefit Pensions Can Help COVID-19 Economic Recovery in the Journal of Aging & Social Policy. In her article, she observed that people retiring during the current public health crisis may find it particularly difficult to access their defined benefit pensions and recommends specific actions that police makers at the Congress and Department of Labor ought to take to ensure easier access to pensions, which could enhance economic recovery after COVID-19.

Professor Julie Baker presented at William and Mary’s national conference on building and maintaining online student engagement.

Professor Duncan was quoted by the Supreme Court and helped win two for two cases this term involving religious freedom. He participated in both cases as an amicus curiae, or friend of the court.

Professor John Rice commented on the Supreme Court’s decision in Bostock v. Clayton County, Georgia, in which the Court construed the statutory prohibition against workplace “discrimination on the basis of . . . sex” to protect against workplace discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. Rice noted that the Court’s decision has been widely hailed as a victory for civil rights and equality and welcomed the ruling with “cautious optimism.”

UMass Law professor Dwight Duncan was quoted on the SCOTUS case Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue.

UMass Law Professor Margaret Drew was re-appointed Chair of the ABA HIV Impact Project and Special Advisor to the ABA Commission on Domestic and Sexual Violence.

UMass Law Professor Dwight Duncan was interviewed by Court TV on the Little Sisters of the Poor case at the Supreme Court discussing religious freedom in healthcare.

UMass Law Librarian Emma Wood published an article on public libraries as a community symbol and unrestricted space.

UMass Law Professor Ralph Clifford submitted a brief with a team of UMass Dartmouth and UMass Lowell researchers to the Supreme Court for the case Google v. Oracle.