Government

Human Rights Lawyer: ‘Rendition’ is Reality

Some moviegoers might think Hollywood overstates the horrors of being kidnapped by the CIA and taken to a secret foreign prison to be tortured in Rendition, a new film to be released next week starring Reese Witherspoon, Meryl Streep and Omar Metwally, among others. But, if anything, it understates them,…

Oct 11, 2007 4:56 PM CDT

Judge Stops Planned SS# Match Program

In a blow to the Bush administration, a federal judge has granted a temporary injunction halting a planned program to crack down on employers who hire illegal immigrants. It would have required employers to confirm with the government that workers’ social security numbers are valid, but is fraught with problems,…

Oct 10, 2007 10:00 PM CDT

Pro Bono Team Attacks Exec’s Prosecution

A team of pro bono attorneys from four different firms has taken up the cause of a convicted Dynegy Inc. executive and filed a habeas corpus petition seeking his release from prison. By pressuring Dynegy, under threat of prosecution, to renege on its promise of paying defense costs, the federal…

Oct 8, 2007 9:16 PM CDT

Man on Trial for Feeding Homeless

In what may be a first-in-the-nation case, a Florida man reportedly is to go on trial today for violating an unusual Orlando ordinance that bans feeding a group of homeless persons in a public place. The prosecution says it has videotape of Eric Montanez, 22, at an organized feeding of…

Oct 8, 2007 6:11 PM CDT

Foreign Farmworker Regulation Eases

Despite opposition from many fellow Republicans, the White House has been quietly spearheading an effort to streamline regulations and make it easier for farmers to import foreign field workers. Attempting to alleviate a severe farmworker shortage apparently caused at least in part by stepped-up border and immigration enforcement, the Bush…

Oct 8, 2007 5:46 PM CDT

Sidley ‘Partner’ Payout: Up to $1.8 M

The 32 former partners of Sidley Austin who were demoted in 1999 will receive a payment of between $122,000 and $1.8 million under an age discrimination settlement approved yesterday by a federal judge. “The amount to be paid to each of the 32 former Sidley [partners] was placed under seal,”…

Oct 6, 2007 12:39 AM CDT

Chief Gitmo Prosecutor Resigns

The chief military prosecutor for the Guantanamo Bay war tribunals has resigned, apparently over a lack of prosecutorial discretion. A Pentagon spokesman says Air Force Col. Moe Davis asked to be assigned to another post after losing a dispute over whether the higher-ranking officer responsible for holding the tribunals should…

Oct 5, 2007 11:12 PM CDT

CIA Director Details Interrogations

In another reaction to a lengthy New York Times article yesterday on secret Department of Justice legal opinions on interrogation tactics, the director of the CIA sent an internal memo to employees disputing the premise that the memos opened the door for harsher methods. In his memo, Michael Hayden describes…

Oct 5, 2007 10:40 PM CDT

MA Sues Lender, Seeks Foreclosure Role

In a legal action that takes an aggressive and perhaps unprecedented approach to the nationwide mortgage foreclosure crisis, the Massachusetts attorney general is blaming a California-based subprime lender as a “significant” cause of the debacle and seeking damages and an oversight role over all of its foreclosures. Martha Coakley filed…

Oct 5, 2007 10:06 PM CDT

Gitmo Lawyer: The Immoral is Mundane

Clive Stafford Smith is a lawyer who serves as the legal director of Reprieve, a British human rights agency that represents prisoners at the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay. Not long ago, he made the news after being accused by military authorities of smuggling contraband briefs—that is to say,…

Oct 5, 2007 6:10 PM CDT

Congress Probes Latest Torture Concerns

Congressional committees are launching investigations, after a New York Times article today revealed that two secret Department of Justice opinions in 2005 endorsed prisoner interrogation techniques some consider tantamount to torture. However, the White House has reiterated prior assertions that the U.S. doesn’t torture prisoners. The Democratic chairs of both…

Oct 4, 2007 9:22 PM CDT

Reporter Shield Law Moves Ahead in Senate

A proposed federal law that would protect journalists from having to reveal their sources in federal court has moved forward in the U.S. Senate. The Free Flow of Information Act was passed out of the Senate Judiciary Committee onto the floor today, reports the Associated Press. If enacted, it would…

Oct 4, 2007 4:27 PM CDT

Exploding OT Claims for Many Employers

Wage-and-hour class action claims brought over unpaid overtime are a hot practice area—and, as today’s $62 million judgment against Wal-Mart illustrates, one that can be extremely costly to employers. “Multiplaintiff wage-and-hour lawsuits pose the greatest employment litigation threat to American businesses today,” says Seyfarth Shaw, a law firm known for…

Oct 3, 2007 11:54 PM CDT

Surveillance Backlash in Britain

The U.K.’s famously state-of-the-art national surveillance system (at least compared to the U.S.), is suddenly taking it on the chin. A blog post today by the Pinsent Masons law firm says up to 95 percent of the closed-circuit television systems in Britain and Wales are illegal—and that may soon be…

Oct 1, 2007 6:50 PM CDT

NY AG to Facebook: Consumer Fraud?

The social networking site Facebook reportedly has been warned by the New York attorney general’s office to stop overstating the safety of the site for youngsters. Claims by Facebook administrators that Facebook is safer for minors than other online sites don’t appear to be true, and may give parents a…

Oct 1, 2007 3:58 PM CDT