Here we go again. The Arkansas Municipal League has put out a series of proposals to gut the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). At least they're consistent — as they’ve previously attempted to undermine transparency in Arkansas and tarnish the Natural State's legislative crown jewel. The Municipal League has a handful of proposals, most of them rehashing their already failed … [Read more...]
Another Good Value in Arkansas!
The title of this article is absolutely true, but also a bit of marketing, which, I feel as an academic, I must forthrightly disclose. Richard Sander and I just released the first working draft of our article on the "mismatch phenomenon." Therein, we specifically show, for the first time using individual-level data, the negative effect on bar-exam success for those … [Read more...]
Advocates of FOIA Shrinkage Proven Wrong Again
In the first state Supreme Court opinion to cite to the latest version of the treatise "The Arkansas Freedom of Information Act" (which I coauthored), Justice Rhonda Wood recently penned a solid decision interpreting the Arkansas FOIA. That decision involves a 54-year-old murder case. No charges had ever been brought, and none were forthcoming. Nonetheless, the police sought … [Read more...]
A Response to Joann Maxey
I read Joann Maxey's opinion piece in Sunday’s Democrat-Gazette. It is a shame that the General Counsel to the University of Arkansas, who receives a $190,000 taxpayer-funded annual salary, has made several untrue statements in order to support an awful bill, SB373. SB373 would gut the Freedom of Information Act by creating a huge new attorney-client communication and … [Read more...]
The Value of Data and Litigation
As readers of the Arkansas Project know, I recently sued my law school (the UALR-Bowen School of Law) to get access to admissions and bar-passage data. I wasn't planning on doing that, but it became necessary after the administration refused my Freedom of Information Act request about these matters. After I filed suit, the school gave me the data I wanted. When I examined that … [Read more...]
