The Yale Law Journal

VOLUME
131
2021-2022
Forum Collection

Yale Law Journal Public-Interest Fellowship Essays

23 Jan 2022

In this Collection, the 2020-21 Yale Law Journal Public-Interest Fellows draw on their work experiences. The first Essay in this Collection argues that Congress can and should replace the existing state-law defamation regime with a federal defamation law.

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The Case for a Federal Defamation Regime

Alexandra M. Gutierrez

This Essay argues that Congress can and should replace the existing state-law defamation regime with a federal defamation law. Doctrinally, a federal regime would better fit the modern, boundaryless digital-communications paradigm. Practically, it would benefit press organizations by ensuring their …

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Arbitration Asymmetries in Class Actions

Emily Villano

Courts frequently deny class certification when confronted with “arbitration asymmetries”: cases where the class representative is not bound to arbitrate claims, but class members may be. The result? Courts enforce illegal or nonexistent arbitration agreements. To avoid such patent injustice, this E…