In the Legal Latin feature of this issue quorum is defined in the context of corporate meetings, however quorums are also used in legislative bodies. In the US Senate, a quorum is the number of Senators (51) who must be present before business may be…
One controversial practice of the U.S. Congress which has recently been the subject of heightened criticism and much debate is that of earmarking. Earmarking is the dedication of public funds for a specific program or purpose by Congress. Revenues are earmarked by law, while expenditures…
Many lawyers are familiar with the use of the term holding as used to describe the ruling of a court. However, lawyers and public policy professionals in the U.S. use hold in another, very specific context. As used in Professor Kelly’s article on Internet gambling…
The phrase third rail is a political metaphor used to denote an issue or topic that is so controversial or charged that it is actually politically dangerous. Indeed, any politician who introduces such a subject runs the risk of suffering political damage. “His district is…