Retired Justice Stevens Hits ‘Misleading’ Parts of Bush v. Gore, Suggests Extension of Rationale

Retired Justice John Paul Stevens took aim at Bush v. Gore on Monday, criticizing parts of the controversial opinion as misleading and its reliance of the equal protection clause as lacking a “coherent rationale.” Stevens spoke Monday evening at a meeting of the American Law Institute, report the New York…

May 23, 2012 1:03 PM CDT

Lawyer’s Suit Saying Ex-Senate Candidate Christine O’Donnell Owes Him $20K Heads to Court

A lawsuit that a lawyer aide filed against former Delaware Republican Senate candidate Christine O’Donnell alleging that he wasn’t paid opened today in Delaware’s New Castle County Court of Common Pleas. Jonathan Moseley, a Virginia lawyer, claims O’Donnell owes him more than $20,000, the Associated Press reports. He testified today…

May 21, 2012 7:54 PM CDT

How a Kennedy Concurrence Turned into a Majority Opinion in Citizens United

Citizens United v. FEC was initially a case about a video critical of Hillary Clinton and whether a campaign finance law regulating TV advertising barred its on-demand broadcast before elections. The issue was one of statutory interpretation. “There did not seem to be a lot riding on the outcome,” the…

May 15, 2012 1:14 PM CDT

Feds Say Ex-Partner Committed Crimes to ‘Dramatically Increase’ Rothstein Law Firm’s Political Power

A former partner has pleaded guilty to crimes that federal prosecutors say were intended to “dramatically increase the political influence and power” of a South Florida law firm headed by now-convicted Ponzi schemer Scott Rothstein. Steven N. Lippman, 49, who was a non-equity partner of Scott Rothstein’s law firm in…

May 11, 2012 3:55 PM CDT

Texas Inmate Gets 40 Percent of Vote in W. Va. Presidential Primary

President Obama is so unpopular in West Virginia that a Texas inmate won about 40 percent of the vote in the state’s Democratic primary. Keith Judd paid a $2,500 filing fee and filed a form to get on the state ballot, the Associated Press reports. AP says Judd is in…

May 9, 2012 11:33 AM CDT

Citizens Dis-United: Justices May Take Another Look at Campaign Finance Case

May 1, 2012 8:00 AM CDT

Ex-Partner Is Federally Indicted re Claimed Laundering, Via Law Firm, of Client’s $8K Campaign Gifts

Updated: A former Herzog Crebs partner who served on the St. Louis-based law firm’s management committee has been federally indicted in St. Louis along with a former governor of Missouri on accusations of helping a corporate client of the law firm launder a total of $8,000 in election campaign contributions…

Apr 12, 2012 5:53 PM CDT

Jury Selection to Begin in Trial of John Edwards on ‘Largely Untested’ Legal Theory

Jury selection begins in Greensboro, N.C., today in the federal trial of former presidential candidate John Edwards, accused of using campaign funds to hide his affair with Rielle Hunter. Edwards is accused of violating laws that bar the personal use of campaign funds and cap individual contributions, Bloomberg News reports.…

Apr 12, 2012 2:52 PM CDT

DC Elections Board Probes Video Stunt in Which Activist Asks for Eric Holder Ballot

The Board of Elections in Washington, D.C., says it is investigating an incident in which a voter fraud activist asked about a ballot for Attorney General Eric Holder. The activist from James O’Keefe’s Project Veritas posted video of the April 3 incident on YouTube, report the Associated Press, the Washington…

Apr 12, 2012 11:00 AM CDT

Arizona AG Says Disgruntled Prosecutor ‘Conjured Up’ Accusations of Campaign Violations

Arizona Attorney General Tom Horne is denying allegations that he worked illegally with an independent campaign committee that ran attack ads against his opponent in 2010. Horne said a disgruntled employee “conjured up” the allegations, the Arizona Republic reports. The complaint by former prosecutor Don Dybus was filed in February…

Apr 3, 2012 1:29 PM CDT

Supreme Court Rejects Louisiana Bid to File Original Complaint Challenging Census Count

The state of Louisiana’s bid to file a lawsuit over the counting of illegal immigrants in the 2010 Census has been turned aside by the U.S. Supreme Court. Today, the justices rejected the state’s request to file an original complaint in the case, according to SCOTUSblog and the Associated Press.…

Mar 19, 2012 3:20 PM CDT

Show Me the Money: States, ABA Try to Figure Out When Campaign Cash Leads to a Judge’s Recusal

Mar 1, 2012 11:00 AM CST

Supreme Court Stays Montana Campaign Ruling; Ginsburg Sees Opportunity to Revisit Citizens United

A controversial Montana ruling that distinguished Citizens United and upheld corporate campaign restrictions in the state could give the U.S. Supreme Court an opportunity to revisit the issue, according to Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. The U.S. Supreme Court stayed the Montana ruling on Friday pending action on an upcoming cert…

Feb 21, 2012 1:16 PM CST

ACLU Offers $1,000 Reward for Proof of Voter-Impersonation Fraud in Minnesota

Weighing in on a controversial effort to pass a Minnesota ballot measure in November that would require voters to show photo identification at the ballot box, the local chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union is offering a $1,000 reward for proof of voter fraud as part of a lobbying…

Feb 14, 2012 12:14 AM CST

Ariz. Supreme Court Affirms Decision Keeping Candidate Off Ballot Because of Poor English Skills

The Arizona Supreme Court has affirmed a lower court ruling keeping a local candidate off the ballot because her English language skills are lacking. The two-page order by the Arizona Supreme Court didn’t detail reasons for the decision, report the Associated Press, the Los Angeles Times, the Yuma Sun and…

Feb 8, 2012 4:17 PM CST