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Appeals court strikes down Arizona ban on abortions at 20 weeks

Tue, 21 May 2013 18:52:33 -0400

By Dan Whitcomb (Reuters) - A federal appeals court struck down an Arizona law on Tuesday that bans abortions from 20 weeks gestation, saying it violated "unalterably clear" U.S. Supreme Court rulings that women have a right to terminate pregnancies until a fetus is viable. The decision by a three-member panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of appeals in San Francisco, which overturned the ruling of a federal district court judge, was hailed by abortion rights groups as a "huge victory" in a state they say has taken one of the nation's toughest stances on the issue. ...

Court strikes down Arizona 20-week abortion ban

Tue, 21 May 2013 15:02:18 -0400

A federal court in San Francisco Tuesday struck down Arizona's ban on abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the law violates a string of U.S. Supreme Court ...

'Stop and frisk': 7 questions about New York's controversial policing tactic

Tue, 21 May 2013 11:09:00 -0400

A federal class-action lawsuit regarding the New York Police Department’s stop-and-frisk program has raised questions about the controversial practice made legal under a 1968 US Supreme Court ruling. Closing arguments in the trial were May 20, with the judge expected to rule in several months.

Court rules against man for emailing NKorean spy

Tue, 21 May 2013 10:32:37 -0400

South Korea's Supreme Court has upheld a ruling sentencing a man to a year and half in prison for exchanging emails with an alleged North Korean spy and praising Pyongyang on his website. Spokesman Lee ...

Constitution Check: When can prayers and government activity coexist?

Tue, 21 May 2013 09:45:23 -0400

Lyle Denniston looks at the Supreme Court’s decision to hear a case involving prayers at government meetings, and if the justices possibly have changed their opinions in recent years.

Supreme Court to hear case of disgruntled frequent flyer

Mon, 20 May 2013 17:19:44 -0400

By Lawrence Hurley WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court agreed on Monday to weigh whether federal law prevented a customer from suing an airline for kicking him out of its frequent flyer program for allegedly complaining too frequently about the service. Rabbi Binyomin Ginsberg sued Northwest Airlines Corp, which ceased operations in 2010 after merging with Delta Air Lines Inc, for breach of contract after the airline said he had abused the program. Ginsberg, who is from Minnesota, said he and his wife were thrown out in 2008 for filing too many service complaints. ...

U.S. Supreme Court agrees to hear town meeting prayer case

Mon, 20 May 2013 14:23:56 -0400

By Lawrence Hurley WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Delving into the controversial relationship between government and religion, the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday agreed to consider whether a town in New York could allow members of the public, who in practice were nearly all Christian clergy, to open meetings with a prayer. Two residents sued Greece, New York, in 2008, saying it was endorsing Christianity, a violation of the U.S. Constitution's First Amendment guarantee of separation of church and state. ...

Supreme Court to hear at least one religious case

Mon, 20 May 2013 14:07:05 -0400

The Supreme Court will hear at least one of two potentially wide ranging cases involving the separation of church and state in its next term, which starts in October 2013.

Court: woman can seek lawyer fees in vaccine case

Mon, 20 May 2013 12:41:52 -0400

The Supreme Court says a woman can seek lawyers' fees from the government even though her lawsuit over damage she said was caused by a vaccine was ruled untimely. The high court on Monday ruled for Melissa ...

Are prayers before public meetings OK? Supreme Court to decide

Mon, 20 May 2013 12:21:41 -0400

The US Supreme Court on Monday agreed to examine whether offering a prayer before a town meeting violates the First Amendment’s separation of church and state.

High court to weigh in on legislative prayers

Mon, 20 May 2013 12:00:37 -0400

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court said Monday it will hear a new case on the intersection of religion and government in a dispute over prayers used to open public meetings.

Court won't get involved in Miss. redistricting

Mon, 20 May 2013 11:00:30 -0400

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court won't order new legislative elections in Mississippi over complaints about the timing of the state's redistricting.

High court uphold FCC power in cell tower disputes

Mon, 20 May 2013 10:40:27 -0400

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court has affirmed the authority of federal regulators to try to speed local government decisions on proposals to build or expand cell phone towers.

U.S. justices rule for PPL Corp in overseas tax case

Mon, 20 May 2013 10:36:57 -0400

By Lawrence Hurley WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Supreme Court on Monday ruled for utility PPL Corp in its dispute with the U.S. Internal Revenue Service over credits the company claimed to offset overseas tax payments. The court ruled on a unanimous vote that Pennsylvania-based PPL can claim $39 million in U.S. foreign tax credits against a 1997 British windfall tax. Writing on behalf of the court, Justice Clarence Thomas said the "predominant character of the windfall tax is that of an excess profits tax, a category of income tax in the U.S. sense." At least two other U.S. ...

Supreme Court agrees to hear Fidelity whistleblower case

Mon, 20 May 2013 10:24:25 -0400

By Lawrence Hurley WASHINGTON (Reuters) - In a case involving whistleblowers at Fidelity Investments, the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday agreed to consider whether mutual fund employees are subject to the same whistleblower protections as workers at publicly traded companies. Two Fidelity whistleblowers asked the court to decide whether the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, which prevents public companies from retaliating against whistleblowers, applies to private companies serving under contract as advisers to public companies. ...

Supreme Court agrees to hear Medtronic patent case

Mon, 20 May 2013 10:17:30 -0400

By Lawrence Hurley WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday agreed to hear a patent dispute concerning Medtronic Inc over medical devices it manufactures that give the heart electrical jolts when it fails to pump blood properly. Medtronic wants the Supreme Court to reverse an appeals court finding that it had the burden of showing that it was not infringing on patents owned by Mirowski Family Ventures LLC and licensed exclusively to Boston Scientific Corp. ...

Supreme Court declines to hear Alaska climate change case

Mon, 20 May 2013 10:11:10 -0400

By Lawrence Hurley WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear an Alaskan village's claim that it should be able to sue oil companies and utilities for damages attributed to climate change. Lawyers for the village of Kivalina wanted various named defendants responsible for greenhouse emissions, including Exxon Mobil Corp, Chevron Corp and Duke Energy Corp, to pay damages for greater flooding and erosion that they say have caused by a reduction in sea ice. The court's refusal to take the case means an appeals court ruling in favor of the defendants remains intact. ...

Court: Should whistleblower protection be wider?

Mon, 20 May 2013 10:00:49 -0400

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court will decide if government whistleblower protection applies to employees of a privately-held contractor or the subcontractor of a publicly-held company.

Iran hangs two spies working for Israel and U.S.: report

Sun, 19 May 2013 05:54:27 -0400

DUBAI (Reuters) - Iranian authorities executed two men on Sunday convicted of working for Israeli and U.S. spy agencies, Iran's Fars news agency reported. Mohammad Heidari, accused of passing security-related information and secrets to Israeli Mossad agents in exchange for money, and Kourosh Ahmadi, accused of gathering information for the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, were hanged at dawn, it said. The sentence for their execution was handed down by Tehran's Revolutionary Court and confirmed by the country's Supreme Court. ...

Court sides with Iowa dentists in key billing case

Fri, 17 May 2013 12:23:49 -0400

The Iowa Supreme Court says insurers cannot impose price caps on dentists who accept their plans for procedures that aren't reimbursed. The court's 7-0 ruling Friday is a victory for dentists who can now ...

Looking back at the decision that ended segregation

Fri, 17 May 2013 10:25:28 -0400

May 17 marks a landmark day in the Supreme Court’s history: A unanimous court ended a policy of segregation in public facilities it had endorsed nearly 58 years before.

Today in history: May 17

Fri, 17 May 2013 08:05:00 -0400

May 17 On this day. 1954: Arguably the 20th century's most important Supreme Court ruling: Brown v. Board of Education, which ended school segregation. But Brown v. Board of Education was not endorsed by President Eisenhower; he also did not condemn segregation as morally wrong. Eisenhower feared the ruling would spark racial unrest. But he enforced it with vigor, sending federal troops to Arkansas in 1957 to ensure the enrollment of the "Little Rock Nine."

How Columbia's 'Illegal' White-Only Scholarship Disappeared

Thu, 16 May 2013 18:25:01 -0400

A few weeks ago, JPMorgan Chase filed a curious affidavit with the Supreme Court of Manhattan, requesting that seven clauses outlining a graduate-student fund it oversees at Columbia University be struck down, because the scholarship doesn't exist anymore. While most of the clauses in question are dry and very procedural, one in particular stuck out: a requirement that the scholarship, currently valued at $840,000, "shall only be awarded to persons of the Caucasian race. ...

OJ back in court; Day 4 of bid for new Vegas trial

Thu, 16 May 2013 17:48:32 -0400

LAS VEGAS (AP) — The lead defense attorney in O.J. Simpson's armed robbery trial had a conflict of interest because he could have been a witness in the case, a lawyer who worked on Simpson's unsuccessful appeal to the Nevada Supreme Court testified Thursday.

Brown v. Board site to mark anniversary of ruling

Thu, 16 May 2013 15:53:07 -0400

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The Brown v. Board of Education National Historic site will display a black doll used in a series of famous race studies to mark the 59th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that ended legal segregation in public schools.

Jane Kelly's experience rare on US appeals court

Thu, 16 May 2013 13:19:58 -0400

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Jane Kelly will become a federal appeals court judge Friday with an unusual background that supporters say makes her a perfect fit for the job and a potential U.S. Supreme Court candidate someday.

Mont. man in custody after release in 1979 slaying

Thu, 16 May 2013 09:40:48 -0400

BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — The three-decade fight for freedom by a Montana man convicted of the 1979 slaying of a teenage classmate entered what could be its final stage this week, when the Montana Supreme Court ordered him back to prison and took away his brief taste of normal life.

NZ Supreme Court to hear Megaupload evidence appeal

Thu, 16 May 2013 01:39:19 -0400

WELLINGTON (Reuters) - Megaupload founder Kim Dotcom has won the right to demand the United States hand over all the evidence in its online piracy case against the internet entrepreneur, New Zealand's Supreme Court ruled on Thursday. The ruling by New Zealand's highest court is a minor victory for Dotcom, a resident of the country who along with six associates is facing extradition to the United States to face charges that they conspired to infringe copyright, launder money and commit racketeering and fraud. ...

Analysis: Obama climate agenda faces Supreme Court reckoning

Thu, 16 May 2013 01:25:46 -0400

By Lawrence Hurley and Valerie Volcovici WASHINGTON (Reuters) - With a barrage of legal briefs, a coalition of business groups and Republican-leaning states are taking their fight against Obama administration climate change regulations to the U.S. Supreme Court. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other industry groups, along with states such as Texas and Virginia, have filed nine petitions in recent weeks asking the justices to review four U.S. Environmental Protection Agency regulations that are designed to cut greenhouse-gas emissions. ...

Why Monsanto’s Big Win Matters

Wed, 15 May 2013 20:11:00 -0400

The Supreme Court’s ruling in favor of Monsanto’s soybean patent is a victory for the protection of intellectual property.