He Said/She Said, Save Our Sons, and the Stories that Stick: Part One of a Two-Part Series of Columns

SHERRY F. COLB

Cornell law professor Sherry F. Colb comments on the U.S. Department of Education’s recent push toward a higher burden of proof in determinations of sexual harassment or assault under Title IX. In this first part, Colb suggests that men who say “not guilty” in response to a sexual assault accusation are not especially credible and that we accordingly need an explanation for why people find the accuser’s words equally lacking in credibility (and therefore call the dispute a “he said/she said” dilemma for the factfinder).

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“Remain Humble and Compassionate—And Have a Plan to Kill Everyone You Meet”

JOSEPH MARGULIES

Cornell law professor Joseph Margulies argues that to fix policing, we must change police culture and norms, starting with ending the warrior model of policing. Margulies describes what this model means and explains why it is such a substantial obstacle to productive relationships between the police and the communities they serve.

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Napleton 1050, Inc. v. National Labor Relations Board

Docket: 19-1025

Opinion Date: October 6, 2020

Judge: Patricia Ann Millett

Areas of Law: Labor & Employment Law

Intentional discrimination against the statutorily protected collective actions of employees remains discrimination even when it takes the form of scapegoating. Napleton petitioned for review of the Board's decision finding that Napleton's response to a union drive and a union strike constituted discrimination against the employees' rights to collective action under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). The DC Circuit held that the Board properly focused its analysis on the employer's discriminatory intent to punish its employees as a group for their known decision to unionize, rather than on the employer's knowledge of the targeted employees' individual views about the union. In this case, the Board's ruling that Napleton violated Sections 8(a)(3) and 8(a)(1) of the NLRA by terminating one employee and laying off another to punish its employees for their pro-union vote is reasoned, consistent with the statutory text and precedent, and supported by substantial evidence. The court denied the petition in all other respects and granted the Board's cross-application for enforcement.