Paul L. Caron
Dean
Pepperdine Caruso
School of Law
Uncategorized
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Section 122 Tariffs Ruled Unlawful
In a previous post, I previewed the consolidated cases, Burlap and Barrel, Inc. v. Trump and Oregon v. Trump, in which a set of private plaintiffs and state plaintiffs sued the Trump administration over its invocation of section 122 in rolling out 10% baseline tariffs on (nearly) all imports into the United States following the administration’s loss in Learning Resources.
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Checking In on Data Taxes and Related Reforms
Peter D. Enrich, Michael Mazerov, Darien Shanske, Robert D. Plattner & Doug Sheppard, Checking In on Data Taxes and Related Reforms, 120 Tax Notes State 333 (May 4, 2026). In this installment, the authors evaluate the latest state proposals to tax data and digital services, as well as the chances of recently enacted data tax
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Law School’s Ranked by Median LSAT Score
Click here to see a rankings by law school median LSAT score. Yale, Harvard, Chicago, Stanford, and Columbia top the list.
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Hackney: Arts Tax Policy
Philip Hackney (Pittsburgh), Arts Tax Policy: Democracy or Plutocracy?, 60 Loy. L.A. L. Rev. (forthcoming 2026), U. of Pittsburgh Legal Studies Research Paper No. 2026-13, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=6511360 The United States National Endowment for the Arts’ budget in 2024 was $207 million; in the same year the United States spent roughly between $2 and $3.35
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SALLD Statement on Role of Academic Law Library Directors
The Society of Academic Law Library Directors (SALLD) has published a “Statement on the Role, Qualifications, and Institutional Protections of Academic Law Library Directors” in response to events at Yale Law School, which I posted about here. From the Statement:
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“It’s Got To Stop” – Rising Concerns Over Threats to Judges
Last week, Chief Justice Roberts called out violent threats to Supreme Court justices. As Roberts said, “Personally directed hostility is dangerous, and it’s got to stop.” But the U.S. Supreme Court is only part of it. Judges across the country are noting the dangerous increase in the intensity of threats and violent rhetoric. Reports are
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Two Law Schools Receive ABA Council Approval
From the ABA Journal: Two law schools each received the blessing of the council of the ABA Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar last month. The High Point University Kenneth F. Kahn School of Law—the new North Carolina school—welcomed its first JD class in August 2024, was granted provisional approval by the council Feb.
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AALS Student Writing Competition
The Association of American Law Schools has announced the launch of a nationwide 2026 Student Writing Competition on Professional Independence and the Legal Profession. The competition challenges law students to write an academic paper focused on current issues related to professional independence in the legal profession. Paper topics may address a range of issues raised
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FIU Announces Law Dean Finalists
The finalists are: David Brennen (Kentucky), Drew Dawson (Miami), and Sean O’Connor (Brooklyn). Full information about the search can be found here.
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Harpaz Presents “Taxing AI” Today at Irvine
Assaf Harpaz (Georgia) presents Taxing AI at Irvine, as part of its Graduate Tax Policy Colloquium: Artificial intelligence (AI) is poised to transform the distribution and sources of income, with some experts predicting widespread job displacement. Even under optimistic projections, AI is expected to exacerbate wealth inequality, given that the technology’s ownership and immense value are concentrated within a
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NextGen Bar Updates
Several items related to the NextGen Bar Exam have been in the news. This includes announcements from Iowa, the introduction of a new preparation course tailored to the NextGen exam, and more discussion of the future of the California bar exam. More information about the NextGen Bar Exam on the NCBEX Webpage.
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Justice & Opportunity Honor Roll (National Jurist)
National Jurist‘s preLaw has a new honor roll for the “more than 35 law schools [that] are expanding access through admissions innovation, program design and community-centered pathways — strengthening justice through opportunity.” The “Justice & Opportunity Honor Roll recognizes law schools for leadership in expanding access to legal education.” As the introduction to the article
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China’s Crackdown on Christians—and Their Defiant Faith
Christianity Today, China’s Crackdown on Christians—and Their Defiant Faith: John Piper’s sermons are often memorable, but one in particular has been seared in my mind ever since I first listened to it five or so years ago. I can still vividly hear his awestruck voice reading this passage from Hebrews 10: But recall the former
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Silver: Tax-tualism
Benjamin Silver (Davis Polk, New York; Ph.D. 2024, Chicago; J.D. 2021, Yale), Tax-tualism, 111 Minn. L. Rev. ___ (2027): Textualism has long bedeviled tax law. Many longstanding tax anti-abuse doctrines lack clear textual footing and therefore appear vulnerable in an era that prioritizes statutory text. This threat has sharpened in the wake of Loper Bright
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Kentucky Names Law Dean Finalists
The finalists for the position are: Michael Higdon, associate dean for academic affairs and law professor at the University of Tennessee; Mary Graw Leary, law professor at The Catholic University of America; Milena Sterio, law professor at Cleveland State University; Gregory Van Tatenhove, U.S. District Judge, Eastern District of Kentucky. Read more here.
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NY Times Op-Ed: ‘The Testament of Ann Lee’ Broke My Heart
New York Times Op-Ed: A Movie About America Broke My Heart, by David French (Author, Divided We Fall: America’s Secession Threat and How to Restore Our Nation (2020)): I couldn’t stop blinking back tears, and I couldn’t understand why. I’d just walked out of a movie called “The Testament of Ann Lee.” Lee was the founder of the American Shakers,
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The Rise of Law Profs’ Amicus Briefs: How Academic Voices Shape Supreme Court Decisions
Adam Feldman (Empirical SCOTUS), The Rise of Scholars’ Amicus Briefs: How Academic Voices Shape Supreme Court Decisions: [Supreme Court] Justices increasingly turn to scholar briefs not merely for doctrinal synthesis—a traditional function of academic amici—but for empirical claims, historical reconstruction, and comparative constitutional analysis that shapes the Court’s understanding of fundamental legal questions. These submissions
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Princeton Review: Best Law School Professors
The Princeton Review’s 2025 Best Law School rankings for appear below. The best professor rankings are based on law student ratings of their professors’ teaching abilities and their accessibility outside the classroom. 1 University of Virginia – School of Law, 923 Full-Time Enrollment 2 Duke University – School of Law, 682 Full-Time Enrollment 3 Vanderbilt University –
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As immigration operations continue, legal education is a form of self-defense
I have blogged before about the possible impacts on law schools and universities of the controversy over the Trump administration’s fervent dedication to immigration enforcement. This article (and here) triggered more general thoughts about education about the law in our current immigration climate. It begins: “As ICE continues crackdown in Minnesota, legal education is a
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Tax Podcasts Featuring Tax Profs
Perhaps this is old news for some, but I recently learned of two tax podcasts that feature tax professors. First, Tax Notes hosts a podcast called “Tax Notes Talk” (Apple, Spotify). This came across my radar because of a recent episode in which Jeremy Bearer-Friend (GWU) and Sarah Polcz (UC Davis) discuss their recent paper,
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WaPo Op-Ed: Christianity at the Super Bowl
Following up on last Sunday’s post, Super Bowl Leadership Lessons for Coaches, Players, Deans, and Professors: Washington Post Op-Ed: Christianity at the Super Bowl Defies a Trend, by Paul Putz (Faith & Sports Institute, Baylor Truett Seminary; Author, The Spirit of the Game: American Christianity and Big-Time Sports (2024)): In many ways, America has grown more secular over the
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Brenzel-Weiss, Koeniger & Valladares-Estaban: Tax Incentives, Portfolio Choice, and Macroprudential Risks
Housing and housing affordability are hot political issues in the United States. Tax benefits for owner-occupied housing have played a role in this debate. But what are the potential collateral effects of these interventions into the residential housing market? In a new Center for Financial Studies working paper, three European researchers evaluate the effects of
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NY Times: Americans Are Paying the Bill for Tariffs, Despite Trump’s Claims
Ana Swanson & Sydner Ember, Americans Are Paying the Bill for Tariffs, Despite Trump’s Claims (New York Times, Feb. 12, 2026): President Trump has frequently claimed that foreign countries were paying for his tariffs, not Americans. But as economists predicted, that is largely turning out not to be the case. Research published on Thursday by economists at
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Pelikan: Toddlers, Investors, and Tax Policy
Lauren Shores Pelikan (U. of Missouri School of Law), Toddlers, Investors, and Tax Policy (January 16, 2026). 99 Southern California L. Rev. __ (forthcoming 2026), Available at SSRN: There is a continuing childcare crisis that worsens every year. Congress has historically used tax incentives aimed at parents and employers to try to alleviate the lack