Professor Shelley Saxer, "Public Nuisance and a Theory of State Action" -- The Journal of Law, Economics and Policy

Professor Shelley Ross Saxer's article, "Public Nuisance and a Theory of State Action," (SSRN) is published in The Journal of Law, Economics and Policy.  The article considers the use of public nuisance law to address community harms.

Excerpt from "Public Nuisance and a Theory of State Action"

Historically, public nuisance law provided government officials with the authority to enjoin or abate unreasonable conduct that interfered with the public’s health, safety, and welfare. While a public entity may not obtain monetary damages for the harmful conduct, a private plaintiff who can show that her injury from the public nuisance is different in kind from other members of the public may obtain damages. As a means of holding people accountable for offenses against the community, public nuisance law has expanded over time to address issues like environmental harms, the spread of infectious diseases, protests, gang activity, gun control, opioid abuse, global warming, and other “catch-all” categories.

One doctrine that potentially affects the use of public nuisance law to address community harms is the state action doctrine. The doctrine enhances federalism and individual autonomy by protecting individual liberties against the abuse of government power, but allows private interference with constitutional rights.

The article may also be found at The Journal of Law, Economics and Policy