The Big Push: ABA Urges the Senate to Finally Ratify Law of the Sea Convention

Aug 1, 2012 5:50 AM CDT

Legal Experts Raise First Amendment Concerns with Alderman’s Plan to Block Chick-fil-A

Legal scholars and civil liberties advocates are expressing constitutional qualms about a Chicago alderman’s plan to ban Chick-fil-A from his ward because of the company president’s stance against gay marriage. Alderman Proco Joe Moreno plans to block the restaurant in response to comments by Chick-fil-A president Dan Cathy, who said…

Jul 30, 2012 10:58 AM CDT

Wash. DC Jail Eliminates In-Person Visits with Inmates, Offers Electronic Alternative

As of this week, family and friends can no longer visit inmates at the Washington, D.C., jail in person. Instead, they are allowed one free 45-minute electronic contact per week, which must be scheduled in advance, as the District of Columbia Department of Corrections explains on a web page. The…

Jul 27, 2012 6:24 PM CDT

Chicago-Based Consumer Law Firm to Wind Down in 38 States After $2.1M Settlement with Illinois AG

A Chicago-based consumer law firm described by the Illinois attorney general as a “front” for collecting hefty fees rather than a provider of actual assistance to struggling individuals is winding down its operations in some 38 states after agreeing to pay a $2.1 million refund to its customers in the…

Jul 27, 2012 5:27 PM CDT

IG Seeks Review of Ex-Chief Municipal Judge’s Hiring of Relatives; Their Wages Cost $39K Per Month

Although there appears to be no clearcut prohibition against employing family members, a New Orleans inspector general is asking the Louisiana Judiciary Commission to take a look what he calls “the appearance of abuse” created by a former chief municipal court judge’s hiring of 18 relatives and in-laws at a…

Jul 24, 2012 10:25 PM CDT

Citing Privilege Issues, Cuomo Aides Remove Some AG Documents from Archives

Reporters from the Albany Times Union noticed a curious thing when reviewing archives from the New York attorney general. Documents relating to New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s time in the AG’s office were disappearing. The New York Times and the Times Union have the answer to the mystery: Cuomo’s aides…

Jul 24, 2012 3:02 PM CDT

Chicago Committee OKs $5.375M Police Torture Case Settlement; Ex-Mayor Daley May Not Have to Testify

A Chicago city council finance committee Monday recommended that members OK a $5.375 million settlement to conclude a case of claimed police torture. If approved on Wednesday by the full city council, it will be paid to Michael Tillman. He served well over 20 years for a rape and murder…

Jul 23, 2012 7:58 PM CDT

Plagued by High Lawsuit Costs, Town Will Ask Its Residents for More Money

The town of Gold Bar, Wash., will ask its nearly 2,100 citizens in a ballot referendum this fall whether they will be willing to pony up some extra money to help pay legal bills. The residents will be asked if they would pay a one-time levy amounting to $100 to…

Jul 23, 2012 10:59 AM CDT

Appeals Court OKs Detective’s Warrantless Use of Suspect’s Seized Cellphone to Text His Contacts

Courts in this country have often equated a cellphone with an address book, as far as listed phone numbers are concerned. And, taking that concept a step further, a number have also OK’d police looking at other information in seized electronic devices. Thus, like the California Supreme Court, appellate courts…

Jul 19, 2012 5:10 PM CDT

Federal Judge Won’t Dismiss RICO Conspiracy Case Against South Texas DA, But Delays Trial Until 2013

A federal judge in Brownsville has refused to dismiss a racketeering conspiracy case against a sitting district attorney and a lawyer accused of involvement in a judicial bribery scheme. However, the judge did agreed to postpone until April 2013 the trial of Cameron County District Attorney Armando Villalobos and attorney…

Jul 18, 2012 6:50 PM CDT

New Consumer Agency Announces First Enforcement Action, Accuses Capital One of Deceptive Marketing

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has taken its first public enforcement action days before its one-year anniversary. The CFPB accused Capital One Bank of using deceptive tactics in its marketing of credit cards, report the New York Times DealBook blog, the Huffington Post and the Hill’s On the Money Blog.…

Jul 18, 2012 3:10 PM CDT

It Isn’t Necessarily Big Brother, But Somebody Is Potentially Watching, Virtually All the Time

Think your posts on Facebook are private? Think again. It’s only a computer scanning them, under ordinary circumstances, but certain content could flag a post for human review if criminal conduct is suspected, according to Reuters and Slate. Tempted to say you’re hard at work when you’re not or for…

Jul 17, 2012 9:59 PM CDT

LA Files Big-Bucks Suit Against ‘Slumlord’ US Bank, Blames Lender for Condition of Foreclosed Homes

In a big-bucks lawsuit that blames U.S. Bank NA for the condition of some of the approximately 1,500 foreclosed homes to which it holds title as trustee, the city of Los Angeles seeks to hold the lender responsible for what it alleges are substandard conditions in many of the bank’s…

Jul 17, 2012 6:20 PM CDT

Government Workers’ Pension Contributions May Violate Their Free Speech Rights, Law Prof Says

The Citizens United decision finding that corporations have a First Amendment right to support political candidates has had a “perverse” effect, according to a law professor. That’s because corporations are financing political spending partly with funds acquired from stock purchases by public employee pension funds, violating the government workers’ free…

Jul 16, 2012 11:00 AM CDT

After Settling Plaintiff Lawyer’s Civil Rights Suit, Phila. Tries to Make Stop-and-Frisks Courteous

With violent crimes on the increase this year in Philadelphia and other major cities, the so-called stop-and-frisk is seen by many as a standard tool to use to crack down on possible perpetrators and illegal guns they may have in their possession. However, police in Philadelphia are trying to question…

Jul 11, 2012 9:45 PM CDT