VOLUME FOURTEEN NUMBER 1 Regulating Homeschooling? by Phyllis Raybin Emert According to the National Center for Education Statistics, about 1.5 million U.S. students were homeschooled in 2007, representing a 74 percent increase from 1999 when 850,000 students were homeschooled. Responsibility for education remains a matter for the states and varies across the country. A recent tragic case in Washington, D.C. has opened a discussion as to how far such regulation should go. In 2007, Banita Jacks, a Washington, D.C. mother of four, killed her daughters who ranged in age from five to 17. FALL 2009 The Jacks children were withdrawn from Childhood Obesity and Advertising: school by their mother in March Should Junk Food Commercials 2007. The District Be Trimmed? of Columbia has by Barbara Sheehan no regulations for homeschooling and Nickelodeon’s SpongeBob macaroni and cheese, according to a New lovable cartoon SpongeBob York Times article, character popsicles; and he’s that “lack of supervision” could have SpongeBob even dabbled in been the downfall of the Jacks SquarePants the occasional children. The article pointed out that isn’t just peddling SpongeBob professionals “might have detected the notorious McDonald’s signs of abuse and neglect of the crabby patties happy meal. girls.” A social worker did visit the he cooks up on This cheerful Jacks home twice and notified the the show. With the help of real-life little guy who “lives in a pineapple Child and Family Services Agency advertisers, he also has a hand in hotline of suspected abuse. Several SpongeBob animal crackers, CONTINUED ON PAGE 6 other agencies attempted to contact Ms. Jacks, but no one answered the phone or the door. Weeks later, You Take the Car and the House, the case was closed after a report indicated that the family had moved But Fluffy Stays with Me! to another state. There was no by Cheryl Baisden follow-up in this case either by city If you have pets at home, you rather than family or school personnel. probably consider them a part of the members. So, The Jacks family fell through family. Chances are they have their when it comes to the cracks of the system and as a own beds; their own spots in the living divorce, who gets result six child-welfare workers room where they settle in when you custody of a were fired from their jobs, with the watch TV at night; and their own stash beloved pet can homeschooling movement taking of special snacks and favorite toys, be a little sticky. much of the criticism for the tragedy. just like you. In New Jersey and other Clive R. Belfield, a professor of states, pets are considered property CONTINUED ON PAGE 3 CONTINUED ON PAGE 4 Conjuring Copyright Infringement by Cheryl Baisden In the fictional world of who claims he read the series nearly Harry Potter, copying someone else’s 50 times and spent seven years work at the Hogwarts School of writing his book, never disputed that This publication was made possible through funding from Witchcraft and Wizardry could get he was using many of Rowling’s the IOLTA Fund of the Bar of New Jersey. you transformed into a ferret and words. Instead, his attorney argued Angela C. Scheck bounced around the room. Of course that he had a legal right to reproduce EXECUTIVE EDITOR in real life, as J.K. Rowling, the excerpts from her novels because as a Jodi L. Miller woman who wrote all seven Harry reference guide it needed to rely on EDITOR Potter novels, discovered this past her work. fall, the punishment for plagiarism “Regardless of the lexicon author’s EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD is far less dramatic. argument, when you look at the Steven M. Richman, Esq. In September 2008, Rowling won Harry Potter lawsuit it is pretty a lawsuit against RDR Books and much a clear case of copyright CHAIR received $6,750 in damages and a infringement ,” said attorney Marc S. Paula Eisen guarantee that the New York Friedman, who is the chairman John J. Henschel, Esq. publisher would not release a book of the New Jersey State Bar Stuart M. Lederman, Esq. called The Harry Potter Lexicon . The Association’s Intellectual Property Louis H. Miron, Esq. 400-page book was a Law Section. “Some Carole B. Moore detailed encyclopedia cases of Kimberly Yonta Aronow, Esq. of words, places, infringement, Thomas A. Zeringo people and events or plagiarism, NEW JERSEY STATE BAR FOUNDATION from the seven- can be difficult BOARD OF TRUSTEES volume to determine, but Harry not this one. When Richard J. Badolato, Esq. Potter you look at how the PRESIDENT series, and book was put Stuart M. Lederman, Esq. included lengthy excerpts together and how FIRST VICE PRESIDENT copied directly from Rowling’s novels. much of the material Louis H. Miron, Esq. According to Rowling, 2,034 of the was copied, there was no SECOND VICE PRESIDENT 2,477 entries in the book came question that it was copyright directly from her novels. infringement.” Steven M. Richman, Esq. “I believe this book constitutes TREASURER wholesale theft of 17 years of It all comes down to ownership Patrick C. Dunican Jr., Esq. my hard work,” Rowling told a Whenever someone creates a SECRETARY New York court in April 2008. literary, musical or artistic work — for TRUSTEES “What particularly galls me is the example a painting, poem or song — lack of quotation marks. If Mr. Vander that work is automatically protected Gwendolyn Yvonne Alexis, Esq. Ark had put quotation marks around under the Copyright Act, and cannot William G. Brigiani, Esq. everything he had lifted, most of be reproduced or used by someone Paris P. Eliades, Esq. the lexicon would have been in else without the creator’s permission. Allen A. Etish, Esq. quotation marks.” This protection is guaranteed in the Susan A. Feeney, Esq. The volume’s author, Steven U.S. Constitution under Article I, Norberto A. Garcia, Esq. Vander Ark, a major H arry Potter fan CONTINUED ON PAGE 5 Donna duBeth Gardiner, Esq. Peggy Sheahan Knee. Esq. Ralph J. Lamparello, Esq. Catch Us on the Web and Read The Legal Eagle Online Kevin P. McCann, Esq. Jeffrey J. McWeeney, Esq. Back issues of The Legal Eagle since its inception in 1996, may be Carole B. Moore downloaded on the New Jersey State Bar Foundation’s website at Lynn Fontaine Newsome. Esq. www.njsbf.org. Richard H. Steen, Esq. Robert J. Stickles, Esq. While you’re there, check out other law-related education publications Margaret Leggett Tarver, Esq. for kids, such as Bill of Rights Bulletin , Constitutionally New Jersey , Mary Ellen Tully, Esq. What You Need to Know About Plagiarism , and Students’ Rights Handbook . Miles S. Winder III, Esq. © 2009 New Jersey State Bar Foundation Fluffy CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 “There are no laws on the court’s custody decisions the books when it comes to would be based on, among deciding custody of a pet in other things, the type and a New Jersey court,” explains length of relationship each family lawyer Karen Scheiner, person had with the animal and of Cherry Hill. “In fact, a the financial cat, dog or other pet is responsibility each considered nothing more person had in caring than property in these for the pet. cases, just like a table The legislation or a chair, to be divided was drafted on the up between the heels of two New couple. When it Jersey cases that comes to children, illustrate the the courts consider different what is in their ‘best interest’ as far as custody goes. approaches the state’s judges now take when brought into When it comes to pets, that doesn’t apply under the a pet custody dispute as part of a legal battle. existing law.” In the fight over Dexter, Doreen Houseman was Lawyers usually encourage couples who are arguing originally told by her fiancé that she could keep their over who will get the family cat or dog, or whether they dog when they broke up, but when he found out she was will share ownership of the pet, to come to an agreement dating someone he demanded the dog be returned to outside of the courtroom, according to Scheiner, since him since he originally paid for the pug, said Scheiner. bringing up the issue before a judge can be tricky. The judge ordered the dog be returned to the fiancé “If you get a judge who is a real animal lover, you may when he proved it was a possession he owned. find he or she really will spend some time figuring out “The judge said he did not want to know about the what is best for the pet,” Scheiner explained. “But more emotional attachment,” Houseman’s attorney, Gina often than not, the judge won’t want to deal with those Calogero of Oradell, who specializes in animal law, issues. The decision, if there is one made at all by the explained on the Today Show in September 2008. “He judge, will be based on who can show they ‘own’ the pet, didn’t want to consider it, because to him the dog was not necessarily who the pet should be with.” no different from a chair or a couch. They’re not people. They’re not children.” How much do we love our pets? Mark Haskoor had a different experience when he According to the Animal Legal Defense Fund (ALDF), asked a judge to grant him joint custody of Bobesh a nonprofit organization that helps protect the rights of following his wife’s decision to refuse to let him see animals, there are approximately 124 million dogs and the dog after they separated.