International

Holy Cow! Sacred Bull Spared in UK Case

At least for the moment, Shambo is safe from the butcher’s knife. Revered by the Hindu Skanda Vale Community in West Wales, the 6-year-old Friesian bull had tested positive for bovine tuberculosis and been ordered slaughtered by the Welsh Assembly. But a High Court judge in Cardiff ruled today in…

Jul 17, 2007 12:09 AM CDT

Duane Morris Opens Offices in Vietnam

Broadening its expansion into Asia, a major Philadelphia firm has announced it will open two offices in Vietnam. Duane Morris, a business firm with an attorney roster of 650, announced in January the opening of a Singapore office with eight lawyers, reports the Philadelphia Inquirer. The two new offices that…

Jul 13, 2007 6:38 PM CDT

Now Outsourced to India: Child-bearing

It isn’t just data entry, computer programming and some legal work that’s being outsourced to India these days. Infertile couples from the U.S. and other foreign countries are now paying women there to bear their biological children, in part because it costs less than hiring a surrogate mother at home,…

Jul 12, 2007 10:37 PM CDT

Landmark Google Suit Over Foreign Ads

A landmark lawsuit has been filed over Google’s Internet advertising in Australia and Ireland that could, if successful, force the search engine giant to make significant changes in the way it handles “sponsored links” paid for by advertisers. Described by a company spokesman as an “attack” on all search engines,…

Jul 12, 2007 8:42 PM CDT

Ghana: British Girls, 16, Smuggled Drugs

Two 16-year-old girls in London told their parents they were taking a short trip across the English Channel to France in late June for a six-day school trip. In fact, they went to Ghana, where they are now being held on charges of having attempted to smuggle $300,000 pounds worth…

Jul 12, 2007 8:13 PM CDT

UK Considers Citizen Travel Restrictions

Concerned about possible terrorism-related visits abroad by immigrants and British citizens, U.K. officials are considering imposing a ban on travel to certain countries by convicted criminals. In the wake of ongoing terrorist incidents, including recent failed attempts by a group comprised largely of immigrant physicians to blow up fuel-laden cars…

Jul 12, 2007 7:32 PM CDT

UK Firm Outsources IT to India

A London law firm is outsourcing almost half of its information technology work to India. CMS Cameron McKenna is hiring HCL Technologies of India and cutting its in-house IT staff from 70 to 40 people, reports ZDNet.com. Ten of the fired employees will transfer to the new outsourcing firm. A…

Jul 11, 2007 7:35 PM CDT

HIV Death Sentences Affirmed

The Libyan Supreme Court has rejected the results of an investigation that found unsanitary hospital medical conditions are to blame for the infection of more than 400 children with the AIDS virus. The court affirmed death sentences for five nurses and a physician convicted of charges they intentionally infected the…

Jul 11, 2007 4:12 PM CDT

UK Bomb Plot Jury Deadlocked

A jury has failed to reach a verdict against two remaining defendants in a failed plot to bomb London’s subways. The jury convicted four of the six defendants of conspiracy to murder on Monday, but remained deadlocked on the other two after deliberating two more hours today, the Associated Press…

Jul 10, 2007 4:38 PM CDT

China Executes Ex-Drug Chief

China has executed the former director of its Food and Drug Administration for taking bribes to approve medicines. Zheng Xiaoyu was convicted of taking cash and gifts worth more than $800,000 to approve untested medicine, according to the Associated Press. He oversaw the food and drug agency from 1998 to…

Jul 10, 2007 1:22 PM CDT

Shearman Expands in China

Shearman & Sterling has opened a third office in China. The new location in Shanghai is the firm’s 20th office worldwide, the New York Law Journal reports. The firm already has offices in Beijing and Hong Kong. “The Shanghai office allows us to better serve clients in central and southern…

Jul 10, 2007 1:10 PM CDT

Report: Afghanistan Women = Currency

Despite some significant civil rights improvements, women in Afghanistan are still a form of currency under tribal law, and are commonly used to settle bad debts and, at least until recently, shield their families from the consequences of crimes committed by men. Two of five Afghan marriages are forced, the…

Jul 9, 2007 9:45 PM CDT

UK Big-Firm Partner Argues Age Claim

A hearing has begun in an age discrimination case brought against one of London’s most prominent law firms by a now-former partner, in a cutting-edge case could potentially threaten the British legal profession’s traditional “lockstep” compensation system. It could also be a sign of more litigation to come, as law…

Jul 9, 2007 7:16 PM CDT

First Banana Workers Get US Court Trial

It has been some 30 years since thousands of banana workers in Central America claim to have been exposed to carcinogenic pesticides on plantations there. Intended to kill worms infesting the roots of banana trees, the pesticides dripped from the leaves onto unprotected workers and leached into the water supply…

Jul 9, 2007 6:00 PM CDT

Linklaters’ Revenues Top $2 Billion

Linklaters’ revenues have increased by almost 20 percent, bringing the London law firm’s annual earnings to about $2.2 billion. Profits per partner increased at a similarly impressive rate of 21.8 percent, bringing the number to $2.56 million, the American Lawyer reports. Managing partner Tony Angel attributed much of the firm’s…

Jul 9, 2007 12:24 PM CDT