Category: Digital Advocate
The Turning Tide on Medicalized Gender Interventions for Kids by Rep. Bruce Skaug
In 2023, in the wake of a mental health crisis among America’s youth and an exponential rise in gender clinics pushing medical interventions to alter children’s bodies in response to gender dysphoria,[1] Idaho enacted the Vulnerable Child Protection Act.[2] As…
Read Full ArticleHow Attorneys Can Think About Artificial Intelligence by Will Fletcher
Imagine the future of legal practice: A potential client calls about representation for injuries from an automobile accident. But instead of a human answering the phone, the person speaks with an “AI intake specialist,” a form of artificial intelligence (“AI”)[1]…
Read Full ArticleEnvironmental Enforcement: When EPA Comes Knocking by Krista K. McIntyre and Wade C. Foster
Introduction There is significant skepticism about EPA’s inspection and enforcement activities in the current administration. Certainly, EPA’s priorities shifted after the second inauguration of President Trump; however, EPA is still flexing its enforcement muscle. This is particularly true for…
Read Full ArticleThe End to NEPA Nitpicking? By Jeffrey S. Beelaert
Whenever a federal agency proposes a project on federal land in Idaho, there is a good chance that the project will face a legal challenge under the National Environmental Policy Act (“NEPA”). That should come as no surprise. Thousands of…
Read Full ArticleThe Need for Speed: Expediting Permitting for Mining and Infrastructure—Safely by Andrew A. Irvine
Imagine you’re running late for a flight. You get into the TSA line, which snakes longer than expected. People fumble with their countless carry-ons, one person argues about the “new” twenty-year-old liquid restriction, and you worry you'll miss your departure—yet…
Read Full ArticleEndowment Lands: A Sovereign Startup, Sacred Trust & Promise for the Future by Alli Olson
What are endowment lands? Are they public lands? Or are they just open to the public? Aren’t they owned by the state? So, they’re managed for the people of the state…right? Endowment lands are, well, complicated. But their underlying principle…
Read Full ArticleNextGen Bar Exam Update by Abby Kostecka
In July of 2026, Idaho and ten other jurisdictions will be the first to administer the NextGen Uniform Bar Exam (“UBE”). The NextGen UBE is designed to balance the skills and knowledge needed to successfully practice law and is touted…
Read Full ArticleNote from the Environmental and Natural Resources Section Chair by Katy Riker
Note from the Chair by Katy Riker The Environment and Natural Resources Section is pleased to sponsor October’s issue of the Advocate. I hope that you find these articles helpful as you navigate environmental law’s evolving landscape. In recent years,…
Read Full ArticleThe Role of 18 U.S.C. § 242 Prosecutions in Upholding Constitutional Rights by Wendy J. Olson
A federal criminal civil rights statute passed right after the end of the Civil War, 18 U.S.C. § 242, plays an important role in ensuring that law enforcement officers provide Fourth Amendment and due process protections when detaining any…
Read Full ArticleEnhanced Immigration Enforcement, Where Are We in 2025? by Luis Campos Vasquez
I am an immigration and asylum lawyer, practicing in both Idaho and Arizona. In the first half of 2025, several clients have been the subject of aggressive immigration enforcement. This might seem unremarkable, particularly given the now common spectacle of…
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