Domestic Relations

Gun laws aren’t ‘trapped in amber,’ SCOTUS says while upholding restraining-order gun ban

The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday upheld a federal law banning gun possession by those who are subject to domestic-violence restraining orders.

Jun 21, 2024 10:03 AM CDT

Netflix’s true-crime documentary about woman stalking man flows like book you can’t put down

It’s rare to find a true-crime documentary that is equal parts entertaining, educational and polished to the point of resembling something you’d see on the silver screen. Netflix’s new documentary Lover, Stalker, Killer meets those criteria, though, all the while finding a way to fit an incredibly engaging narrative into…

Jun 20, 2024 1:25 PM CDT

Judge who cut bail for man linked to later fatal arson had cited his right to counsel

Updated: A judge in Maine is being blamed for reducing bail for a man who was later shot and killed in a standoff with police on Saturday after he allegedly set a fire that killed a person.

Jun 17, 2024 3:31 PM CDT

Judge used N-word when questioning whether prosecutors were too aggressive, transcript shows

Updated: A Black judge in Louisiana used the N-word and complained about a “piss-poor" resolution of a case while chastising prosecutors during an April hearing, a transcript indicates.

May 15, 2024 11:19 AM CDT

ABA is committed to protecting sexual assault survivors in bar admissions process, letter says

ABA President Mary Smith is asking an ABA commission to study the prevalence and impact of bar admissions questions that require survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking to disclose their involvement in legal and administrative proceedings.

May 8, 2024 11:54 AM CDT

Texas man files legal action to probe ex-partner’s out-of-state abortion

As soon as Collin Davis found out his ex-partner was planning to travel to Colorado to have an abortion in late February, the Texas man retained a high-powered antiabortion attorney—who court records show immediately issued a legal threat.

May 6, 2024 12:45 PM CDT

Ex-BigLaw partner can’t get cyberstalking injunction against blogger, judge says

A former Greenberg Traurig partner can’t get a cyberstalking injunction against a blogger who posted videos of the lawyer yelling and telling his wife that he hates her, a Florida state judge has ruled.

Apr 18, 2024 2:57 PM CDT

2 lawyers and client die in law office shooting; 1 attorney was alleged gunman

Updated: A lawyer and his wife were shot and killed during a deposition at the office of the Prince Law Group in Las Vegas on Monday. Police think that the suspect, identified in multiple reports as the opposing lawyer, then fatally shot himself.

Apr 9, 2024 10:09 AM CDT

Incarceration series includes female inmates but doesn’t tell full story

“Moreover, the series has thus far failed to explain some of the most counterintuitive aspects and sex-based discrepancies of American sentencing and incarceration,” writes Oklahoma lawyer and ABA Journal columnist Adam Banner.

Apr 8, 2024 12:32 PM CDT

Rape survivor Chanel Miller will speak at ABA’s ‘Write & Tell Live’ series

Chanel Miller, whose victim impact statement at the rape trial of Brock Allen Turner went viral in 2016, will present about the importance of survivors’ stories at an ABA event on April 16.

Mar 19, 2024 8:46 AM CDT

Texas lawyer’s sentence for spiking wife’s drinks with abortion drug was ‘profound injustice,’ she says

The wife of a Texas lawyer accused of spiking her drinks with an abortion drug isn’t satisfied with the sentence that he received last week following his guilty plea.

Feb 13, 2024 8:37 AM CST

Client escapes sanction for lawyer’s refusal to appear on camera in Zoom deposition

A client won’t have to pay a sanction of nearly $10,000 for his lawyer’s refusal to appear on camera during a remote deposition, a California appeals court ruled Tuesday.

Jan 25, 2024 12:01 PM CST

Could generative AI help break down language barriers plaguing the Indian justice system?

Updated: To overcome the language barriers in a region where the official language the courts use is English, Kishore Kommi, a police officer and a former data scientist, is making use of Jugalbandi, an open-source multilingual chatbot using generative artificial intelligence.

Jan 22, 2024 8:34 AM CST

Poll: Which ABA Journal magazine cover from 2023 was your favorite?

We covered a wide array of diverse, in-depth and hard-hitting legal topics at the ABA Journal in 2023.

Dec 18, 2023 8:40 AM CST

Private criminal defense lawyers failed to show up for their cases more often than defendants, Philly study finds

Some lawyers are less reliable than defendants when it comes to showing up in court, according to a study of criminal cases in Philadelphia courts during a 10-year span.

Dec 6, 2023 4:12 PM CST