Essay: At Least One Thing to Watch For In The First Circuit's DOMA Case
By Mary L. Bonauto and Gary D. Buseck Contrary to much of the commentary about the President’s decision not to […]
Amicus, Guest Author, LGBTQ Rights
Amicus, Courts & Judicial Interpretation, LGBTQ Rights
Can Being A Minority Be A Conflict Of Interest?
After the revelation by Proposition 8 judge Vaughn Walker that he is gay and in a long-term same-sex relationship, Prop. 8 supporters are trying to have his landmark ruling striking down the California referendum vacated on the grounds that he should have recused himself. This is an attempt to strain the general practice of conflict of interest recusal from family and financial conflict of interest to some other type of personal conflict of interest.
Amicus, Uncategorized
Portland Rejoins the Joint Terrorism Task Force
After a six-year absence, the Portland, OR, police department has voted for a limited return to the Joint Terrorism Task
Amicus, Courts & Judicial Interpretation
Harvard Professor Calls On Justices To Retire
Harvard Professor Randall Kennedy suggests that Supreme Court Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Stephen Breyer should consider retirement in the interest of the long-term survival of the more progressive wing of the court. Kennedy calls retirement “the responsible thing to do.” Looking ahead to the 2012 election and the prospect, however slim, of the beginning of a new eight-year Republican administration, Professor Kennedy fears that the two moderate progressives wouldn’t be able to wait eight years to retire, and “they will have contributed to a disaster.”
Amicus, Courts & Judicial Interpretation
In a 5-4 decision, SCOTUS rules that corporations can block consumers' class-action lawsuits.
In what will surely be seen as a sweeping win for corporations and a a major abrogation of the class-action
Amicus, Courts & Judicial Interpretation, LGBTQ Rights
Firm Drops DOMA Defense
King and Spalding announced today that they would no longer be representing the House of Representatives in litigation defending DOMA.
Amicus, Voting and Elections Rights
Iowa AG leading mortgage investigation rakes in cash from real estate industry
The National Institute on Money in State Politics published a report this week that breaks down over a quarter-million dollars
Amicus, Sex Equality
A new round in the fight between corporations and women
The New York Times editorial on the disappointing hold up in congressional efforts to pass the Paycheck Fairness Act rightly
Amicus, Courts & Judicial Interpretation, Criminal Justice
Justice is (now) “how recently the judge ate”
According to The Economist (and others), the old adage “what the judge ate for breakfast” should instead be “how recently
Amicus, LGBTQ Rights
Congress Hires Attorney to Defend DOMA, while Poll Indicates Majority of Americans Support Gay Marriage
The House of Representatives has hired a prominent attorney, Paul Clement, to defend the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) against
Amicus, Courts & Judicial Interpretation, Criminal Justice
Judges Say New Sentencing Law Still Doesn't Stop Injustice
Many federal judges are criticizing the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010, aimed at narrowing the gap between sentences for convictions