Browsing by Author "Ryznar, Margaret"

Now showing 1 - 10 of 60
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    Adoption in China: Past, Present and Yet to Come
    (2016) Ryznar, Margaret
    This Article explores the future of adoption in China and the demographics of the Chinese family. Part II begins by examining the cultural continuity of Chinese domestic adoption, finding it to be relatively substantial. Part III considers modem adoption law and policy in China, focusing on the previous one-child policy. Finally, Part IV turns to the future of Chinese adoption and families, particularly in light of global demographic trends with the potential to impact China.
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    Adult Rights as the Achilles' Heel of the Best Interests Standard: Lessons in Family Law From Across the Pond
    (2007) Ryznar, Margaret
    Part I considers the constitutional rights for American adults that implicate the best interests standard, particularly under due process and equal protection arguments. Part II explores the same conflict between adults' rights and children's best interests under recent English legislation incorporating the European Convention on Human Rights. Finally, Part III exacts lessons for the United States from England's similarly positioned situation. It concludes that American federal courts should be more hesitant to federalize family law as it relates to children if the best interests standard is to be preserved and argues that the standard is more effective in protecting children's interests than the Constitution.
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    Advancing Faculty Diversity Through Self-Directed Mentoring
    (2017) Dutton, Yvonne M.; Ryznar, Margaret; Shaver, Lea
    Mentoring is widely acknowledged to be important in career success, yet may be lacking for female and minority law professors, contributing to disparities in retention and promotion of diverse faculty. This Article presents the results of a unique diversity mentoring program conducted at one law school. Mentoring is often thought of as something directed by the mentor on behalf of the protégé. Our framework inverts that model, empowering diverse faculty members to proactively cultivate their own networks of research mentors. The studied intervention consisted of modest programming on mentorship, along with supplemental travel funds to focus specifically on travel for the purpose of cultivating mentors beyond one’s own institution. Participants were responsible for setting their own mentorship goals, approaching mentors and arranging meetings, and reporting annually on their activities and progress. Both quantitative and qualitative evidence demonstrate that the program has been effective along its measurable goals in its first year. Participants report growing their networks of mentors, receiving significant advice on research and the tenure process, and being sponsored for new opportunities. The authors conclude that this type of mentoring initiative, if more broadly applied, could have a significant impact on reducing disparities in retention and promotion in the legal academy. To facilitate such replication, the Article describes both the process of designing the program and the actual operation of the program as carried out at one school. In sum, the Article offers a concrete starting point for discussions at any law school interested in advancing faculty diversity through improved mentoring.
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    Alimony's Job Lock
    (2015) Ryznar, Margaret; Robert H. McKinley School of Law
    In family law, courts often prevent people who owe alimony from changing jobs. If a job change is accompanied by a salary decrease, the court will not necessarily readjust the alimony obligation and instead impute the higher income to the obligor. This Article introduces the term “job lock” to describe this situation, borrowing the term from the health care context, wherein job immobility due to health insurance concerns has received significant scrutiny. This Article draws similar attention to the alimony context, proposing a balancing test to assist courts interested in alleviating job lock under certain circumstances.
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    All's Fair in Love and War: But What About in Divorce - The Fairness of Property Division in American and English Big Money Divorce Cases
    (2010) Ryznar, Margaret
    Eyebrows have recently arched not only at the high sums involved in big money divorce cases, but also at the amount of ink spilled on this relatively small subset of divorce cases. Yet, it is precisely in big money cases, wherein judges have discretion over resources that significantly exceed the needs of the parties, that fairness acquires substantial haziness. The question of fairness is particularly acute in short marriages, as well as when one spouse is at fault for the divorce or when one spouse contributes extraordinarily to the marriage. Courts in both England and the United States have been encountering these issues with increasing frequency and differing results. The majority of American courts have employed the principle of equitable distribution, resulting in a disproportionate property division between spouses, particularly when the marital estate grew because of one spouse's extraordinary efforts. England, on the other hand, has re- cently implemented a yardstick of equality that aims for near equal property division between spouses, representing a major shift in English case law and a doctrinal break from American law. This article examines these changes in the comparative context, underscoring the consequences of each country's interpretation of fairness in post-divorce property division.
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    Assessing Online Learning in Law Schools: Students Say Online Classes Deliver
    (2019) Dutton, Yvonne M.; Ryznar, Margaret; Long, Kayleigh
    This Article provides empirical data on the effectiveness of distance education in law schools following the American Bar Association's decision to increase the number of permitted online course credits from fifteen to thirty. Our data, composed of law student surveys and focus groups, reveals not only the success of distance education in legal education, but also the online teaching methods that are most effective for students.
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    Au Revoir, Will Contests: Comparative Lessons for Preventing Will Contests
    (2013) Ryznar, Margaret; Devaux, Angelique
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    A Brief Guide to Online Teaching
    (2020) Ryznar, Margaret
    Online teaching became commonplace during the corona- virus pandemic, and may be here to stay. Since then, much literature on online law teaching has arisen. This Article adds to this literature by providing a brief step-by-step guide to online teaching. Part II of this Article therefore begins by examining the threshold question-whether an online course should be synchro- nous or asynchronous-and offers a quiz to help determine which format works best for each professor and course. Part III then dis- cusses how professors can deliver content and engage students in both synchronous and asynchronous online courses. Finally, this Article highlights the roles of content creator and curator in online teaching.
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    Child Support for Adult Children
    (2012) Stepien-Sporek, Anna; Ryznar, Margaret
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    A Coffee Break for Bitcoin
    (2019) Ryznar, Margaret
    For many, the appeal of bitcoin is in its detachment from government regulation. However, the Coffee bonding theory, which initially arose in the context of foreign stocks, suggests certain benefits of regulation for bitcoin, including increased legitimacy. By invoking the Coffee bonding theory, this Article offers another perspective on the regulation of bitcoin.