• Should Central Park Have Standing? Applying the Urban Rights of Nature Doctrine to the Urban Environmental Context [Article]

  Lee, Nathan (The University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law (Tucson, AZ), 2025)

  Expanding conceptions of legal personhood and the pressing need for creative approaches to remedying environmental damage have led to a resurgence in the Rights of Nature Doctrine. Under the Rights of Nature framework, the environment itself becomes a plaintiff with recognizable rights and causes for action. The Rights of Nature literature has thus far largely concerned itself with natural objects that are pristine and untouched, perhaps newly threatened by human activity. This Article considers how the Rights of Nature Doctrine might be adapted to the urban context, where environmental issues are almost always seen as secondary to human usage and need. It advances the premise that the heightened protection of natural spaces is compatible with human flourishing. The Article first explains the background of the Doctrine, then explores how it might be applied to urban environments like cities. The Article then proposes a rudimentary balancing test for determining when legal standing should be conferred to “natural objects” located within or near cities. Lastly, the Article considers the benefits and concerns tied to this application. As a case study, it looks at how various environmental issues in New York might have been resolved differently if the Rights of Nature Doctrine was applied.
• Poseidon's Executive: How the Unitary Executive Theory Could Impact Coastal Fisheries [Note]

  Vertesch, Austin (The University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law (Tucson, AZ), 2025)

  Recent constitutional challenges to Regional Fishery Management Councils have trimmed away various minor powers that council members previously possessed to regulate coastal fisheries. Currently, district and appellate courts have shown restraint by refusing plaintiffs extreme remedies that threaten to disrupt the unique system of appointments that allow for state and tribal governments to negotiate for regulatory plans suitable for their unique local circumstances. With the ascendency of Unitary Executive Theory at the Supreme Court, this Note examines how an increasingly powerful Office of the President may negatively impact the profitability, sustainability, and inclusivity of coastal fisheries.
• Safety or Shelter: The Costs and Benefits of Excluding Domestic Violence Shelters from The Fair Housing Act [Note]

  Muller, Lucas E. (The University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law (Tucson, AZ), 2025)

  Following the Supreme Court’s decision in Grants Pass v. Johnson, the options for survivors of domestic violence to escape abusive situations are fewer than ever. Survivors may now be forced to choose between remaining in place or fleeing to a domestic violence shelter, possibly populated by those who resemble their abuser. To remedy this choice using existing extra-circuit case law, this Note argues that the Ninth Circuit should take a bifurcated approach when determining whether a domestic violence shelter is a “dwelling” under the Fair Housing Act. Short-term shelters—escape shelters—should not be considered “dwellings”; thus allowing shelters to be more exclusive and careful with their admission policies. Whereas longer-term shelters—rebuilding shelters—should be considered “dwellings.” Such a rule would both remove a point of hesitation for those fleeing dangerous situations and help to reacclimate those on the precipices of reentering society.
• Table of Contents

  The University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law (Tucson, AZ), 2025
• Salinity and Sodicity – Fundamental Points

  Silvertooth, Jeffrey C.; University of Arizona (College of Agriculture, Life & Environmental Sciences, University of Arizona (Tucson, AZ), 2025-09-03)

  This article, in the VegIPM Newsletter (Vol. 16, No. 18), outlines key definitions, symptoms, and management strategies for saline and sodic soils in desert agriculture, emphasizing leaching, amendments, and drainage.

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