Attorney General

Obama Urged to Withdraw DOJ’s Legal Opinions on Terrorism

Barack Obama is being urged to restore public confidence in the Justice Department by keeping politics out of decision-making and reforming the Office of Legal Counsel. The critics say former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales damaged the department by allowing politics to influence hiring and firing, and that has to change,…

Nov 13, 2008 3:57 PM CST

Antitrust Chief Resigns; Obama Likely to Seek Aggressive Successor

The Justice Department’s antitrust chief has announced his resignation. Assistant attorney general Thomas Barnett, who headed the antitrust division since 2005, will leave on Nov. 19, Reuters reports. Barnett was known for aggressive enforcement of laws barring pricing conspiracies, but critics said he too-readily approved mergers between market-dominating companies, the…

Nov 7, 2008 6:22 PM CST

Will a Woman be Appointed Solicitor General?

The names of several women are being bandied about as possible appointees to the Justice Department’s solicitor general post. A new president typically appoints a new solicitor general before filling other Justice Department posts, and the job could go to a woman, according to USA Today. No female has previously…

Nov 7, 2008 1:53 PM CST

WilmerHale Partner to Lead Justice Department Transition Team

Two Justice Department veterans who are now partners at large law firms will be leading the DOJ transition team for Barack Obama. WilmerHale partner David Ogden will be heading the team, the Washington Post reports at its blog 44: Transition to Power. Jenner & Block partner Thomas Perrelli will be…

Nov 7, 2008 12:22 PM CST

Judge to Review DOJ Legal Memos on Warrantless Wiretapping

A federal judge in Washington, D.C., has ordered the Justice Department to release legal memorandums on warrantless wiretapping. Ruling in a lawsuit by civil liberties groups, U.S. District Judge Henry Kennedy said he will review the documents to determine whether attorney-client privilege bars their release to the public, report the…

Nov 3, 2008 2:22 PM CST

AG Asks Whether Potential Deportees Have Right to Effective Lawyers

Attorney General Michael Mukasey has asked lawyers in three immigration cases to submit briefs on whether aliens have a right to effective assistance of counsel and if so, how they can enforce the right. The move comes as the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals allowed immigrant Maria…

Oct 30, 2008 12:13 PM CDT

47 Youths Rescued in Multicity Crackdown on Sex Trafficking Rings

Authorities arrested 642 pimps and adult prostitutes and rescued 47 youths in a multicity crackdown on a dozen sex trafficking rings that force children into prostitution. FBI Deputy Director John Pistole said at a news conference that federal, state and local authorities acted together to make the arrests in 29…

Oct 28, 2008 12:55 PM CDT

Mukasey Subpoenaed for Terrorism Memos

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy has subpoenaed Attorney General Michael Mukasey to testify and provide Justice Department memos on terrorism legal advice. Leahy, a Democrat, says the committee has obtained only a fraction of the documents it is seeking, the Associated Press reports. The subpoena orders Mukasey to appear…

Oct 22, 2008 2:00 PM CDT

DOJ Memo: White House May Ignore Laws Barring Hiring Bias in US Programs

A 2007 Justice Department memorandum maintains the Bush administration has the power to give money to groups that hire persons of only one faith, even for federal programs created under laws barring discrimination. The New York Times says the memorandum by the Office of Legal Counsel was “quietly posted” on…

Oct 20, 2008 5:19 PM CDT

US Prosecutors in NY and NJ Add Lawyers to Probe Financial Firms

Federal prosecutors in New York and New Jersey are adding more lawyers to investigate financial firms for possible fraud and misrepresentation. U.S. Attorney Michael Garcia of Manhattan told Bloomberg he has added three prosecutors to his white-collar crime unit, for a total of 20 prosecutors, and assigned eight lawyers to…

Oct 17, 2008 3:10 PM CDT

State Department Officials Consider DOJ Gitmo Filing to be Inflammatory

A Justice Department court filing describing 17 Guantanamo detainees as “a danger to the public” has reportedly stalled State Department efforts to find a country willing to accept the men. The State Department contends the legal brief harmed its efforts on behalf of the men, members of the Uighur Muslim…

Oct 16, 2008 3:36 PM CDT

Court Stays Order Requiring Testimony on Prosecutor Firings

In a victory for the Bush administration, a federal appeals court has refused to require White House officials to testify or produce documents about the firings of nine U.S. attorneys. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit granted a stay of a lower court order requiring cooperation with…

Oct 7, 2008 11:00 AM CDT

Maine Courts Have ‘Model’ Interpreter System Under DOJ Agreement

The administrator for Maine’s courts says the state now has a model system for court interpreters now that a Justice Department investigation has been resolved. Administrator Ted Glessner told the Associated Press the state can get an interpreter on the phone in minutes if someone shows up at a clerk’s…

Oct 1, 2008 6:13 PM CDT

Solicitor General Had Winning Supreme Court Term

Solicitor General Paul Clement was on the winning side in 20 out of 25 Supreme Court cases in which the Justice Department filed an amicus brief last term. In business cases, Clement was particularly successful, staking out a win in six out of seven cases. The figures are reported in…

Oct 1, 2008 1:53 PM CDT

Prosecutor Firing Tidbits: Phone Firings, Rejected 9th Circuit Bid, Iglesias E-Mails

Reporters taking an in-depth look at the Justice Department report on the firings of nine U.S. attorneys have uncovered some interesting tidbits about the way they were carried out and possible involvement of the White House. The report released on Monday cited evidence that “partisan political considerations played a part…

Oct 1, 2008 1:08 PM CDT