International

‘Eliot Ness of Iraq’ Wins Asylum

It was a great Independence Day gift. On July 3, Judge Radhi Hamza al-Radhi, “the Eliot Ness of Iraq,” learned that the Department of Homeland Security had granted him asylum. After the 2003 invasion, American advisers in Baghdad insisted that Radhi head Iraq’s version of the FBI. Radhi had a…

Jul 7, 2008 10:11 PM CDT

Are Lawyers Becoming ‘Luxury Goods’?

Lawyers increasingly are becoming like luxury goods to many would-be clients, an expensive article that they can’t afford or don’t want to make a priority. And that is bad news for the profession as well as for the public, says a recent article in the National (PDF), a magazine published…

Jul 7, 2008 8:42 PM CDT

Bryan Cave Plans 1st Office in France

Bryan Cave plans to add a third European office, its first in France, as soon as regulators grant their approval. The St. Louis-based international law firm “has recruited corporate and M&A partner Kathie Claret and public and private funds partner Joseph Smallhoover, who will start up Bryan Cave’s French practice…

Jul 7, 2008 5:59 PM CDT

Colombia’s 2,800 Kidnap Victims Spark Talk Radio Program

Despite the recent high-profile Colombian army rescue last week of politician Ingrid Betancourt and 14 others held captive by kidnappers for years, some 2,800 others are still being held by Colombian kidnappers, most for ransom. The number of victims, which is the most in any country in the world, has…

Jul 7, 2008 5:34 PM CDT

World Justice Project Reveals ‘Rule of Law Index’

Anyone anxious to start chewing on the results of the initial findings of a new Rule of Law Index being developed by the World Justice Project will have to wait a little longer. A much-anticipated report on the Rule of Law Index was delivered to attendees of the World Justice…

Jul 3, 2008 6:09 PM CDT

IRS Isn’t Just Pursuing UBS Clients; Auditors to Look at Other Foreign Banks

In the wake of a precedent-setting federal court ruling earlier this week that the IRS can seek the names of Americans holding secret accounts from Swiss-based UBS AG, the agency is stepping up enforcement efforts at other foreign banks. It is asking auditors at major accounting firms to help identify…

Jul 3, 2008 2:19 PM CDT

US Court Tells Swiss Bank UBS to Reveal Customer Names

In a reportedly unprecedented court order, a federal judge in Miami has ordered Swiss-based UBS AG to reveal the names of U.S. residents who have been using secret accounts to avoid paying American income tax. “Federal prosecutors have accused UBS of helping American clients hide $20 billion overseas in secret…

Jul 1, 2008 11:15 PM CDT

More eBay Suits Expected Over Sales of Fake Luxury Goods

Lawyers representing eBay are likely to be busy with additional lawsuits over sales of fake luxury goods after a $63 million ruling by a French court this week holding the Internet auctioneer liable for online sales conducted by users of its site. “I expect this ruling to encourage a number…

Jul 1, 2008 10:18 PM CDT

Chinese Lawyers Barred from Dinner With U.S. Congressmen

At least three Chinese human-rights lawyers were put under house arrest before a scheduled dinner on Sunday with two members of the U.S. Congress. Chinese police took two lawyers from their homes and barred them from returning to Beijing, and prevented another from leaving his apartment complex, the Washington Post…

Jul 1, 2008 3:34 PM CDT

The Forgotten

Iraqis who helped American soldiers are being slaughtered. A small band of U.S. lawyers is fighting to save their lives.

Jul 1, 2008 1:15 PM CDT

ABA President Calls for Mugabe to Restore Rule of Law

Against a backdrop of increasingly violent contention that has led Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II to rescind the knighthood of Zimbabwe’s President Robert Mugabe, the president of the ABA today sent a letter (PDF) to Mugabe. It calls for Mugabe to put an end to “state-sponsored violence and intimidation of lawyers”…

Jun 30, 2008 10:35 PM CDT

Willkie Forms Alliance With UK’s Dickson Minto

New York-based Willkie Farr & Gallagher is forming a strategic alliance with the U.K.’s Dickson Minto, a corporate boutique known for its private equity expertise. Together, the two firms can each help the other expand their business abroad, although both will continue to operate independently of each other, reports Legal…

Jun 30, 2008 7:42 PM CDT

eBay Must Pay $63M Damages for Unauthorized Sales of Luxe Goods

For the second time in a month, a French court has held Internet auction site eBay Inc. liable for helping to facilitate the sale of luxury goods outside of authorized outlets. This time, a judge awarded $63 million in damages, after finding that eBay had failed to take the necessary…

Jun 30, 2008 4:24 PM CDT

5 Iraq Appeals Judges Escape Bomb Blasts at 5 Homes Today

Just days after the chief judge of one of Baghdad’s two appeals courts was assassinated as he was driving home, five more judges in the same Iraq appeals court escaped serious injury in five bombings at their homes today. “All five bombs in different neighborhoods detonated but failed to kill…

Jun 30, 2008 3:41 PM CDT

High-Profile Murder Verdict Given to Press Before Judge Reads It

In an unusual gaffe, the press was given copies of the 74-page verdict in a high-profile Irish murder trial by a court official today before the judge even had a chance to read it in court. “Mr. Justice Gillen had not even sat down at Belfast Crown Court when photocopies…

Jun 27, 2008 4:05 PM CDT