State Government

Lawyer who failed to show up for hearings said he had ‘other stuff to worry about,’ reprimand order says

An Iowa City, Iowa, lawyer has been publicly reprimanded for skipping several parole revocation hearings for appointed clients and causing a client to miss two court dates because of mistakes.

Nov 16, 2023 1:55 PM CST

Bar applicant denied damages for test mishaps and proctor distractions

Three software crashes and annoying habits of proctors didn’t entitle a law grad taking the bar exam to damages for reduced accommodations, the Delaware Supreme Court has ruled.

Nov 13, 2023 2:23 PM CST

Lawyer suspended for charging inflated and fake fees to real estate clients; did everybody do it?

Updated: A New Jersey lawyer has been suspended after an audit found that she overcharged clients in real estate transactions by collecting fake fees or fee amounts that were higher than the actual expenses incurred.

Nov 13, 2023 9:49 AM CST

Keramet Reiter helps build in-prison education programs in California

Keramet Reiter has spent countless hours inside prisons, working with individuals who are incarcerated and studying the impact of prison and punishment policies on them, their communities and the legal system. As part of her work, Reiter has focused on expanding access to in-prison education programs.

Nov 9, 2023 10:02 AM CST

GOP can put Trump on primary ballot, even if he is ineligible for office, top Minnesota court rules

The Minnesota Supreme Court has tossed a lawsuit contending that former President Donald Trump can’t appear on the primary ballot in the state because he is ineligible for office under the 14th Amendment.

Nov 9, 2023 9:26 AM CST

Oregon approves alternative to bar exam

Starting in 2024, law graduates aiming to practice in Oregon can skip the bar exam and instead follow an alternative pathway to licensure.

Nov 8, 2023 3:35 PM CST

Family members who step in to care for children can get extra support with ABA guidance

In late September, the U.S. Administration for Children and Families published a rule urging child welfare agencies to develop different standards for grandparents, aunts and uncles or other kinship caregivers who step in to raise children who can no longer live with their parents. The ABA Center on Children and the Law is now working to assist these states.

Nov 8, 2023 3:10 PM CST

Ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines likely constitutional, 7th Circuit says

A Chicago-based federal appeals court ruled Friday that Illinois and several municipalities may enforce bans on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines while challenges continue in the courts.

Nov 8, 2023 9:37 AM CST

Alabama inmate may be first person to be executed this way

An Alabama inmate may be the first person in the United States to be executed with the use of nitrogen asphyxiation.

Nov 7, 2023 12:24 PM CST

Supreme Court to consider whether NRA can sue official for ‘pressure tactics’ against banks, insurers

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to decide whether the National Rifle Association can sue a New York official for allegedly violating the First Amendment by pressuring banks and insurers to cut ties with the advocacy group.

Nov 6, 2023 11:15 AM CST

9th Circuit allows challenge to law banning abortions based on genetic abnormality

A federal appeals court ruled Monday that two reproductive health doctors have standing to challenge an abortion law that bans abortions conducted solely because of a genetic abnormality of a fetus.

Nov 1, 2023 8:52 AM CDT

Evidentiary hearing begins in suit to block Trump from Colorado ballot under 14th Amendment

A weeklong evidentiary hearing begins Monday in Denver to determine whether former President Donald Trump should be banned from the ballot in Colorado for engaging in insurrection.

Oct 30, 2023 10:42 AM CDT

Top Georgia court tosses ethics case against lawyer who alleges racial bias in discipline

The Georgia Supreme Court has tossed a disciplinary case against a Black lawyer who alleges in a separate lawsuit that the disciplinary process is tainted by racial bias.

Oct 25, 2023 10:05 AM CDT

Missouri can’t ban enforcement of federal gun restrictions after Supreme Court denies emergency request

The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday turned down an emergency request to reinstate a Missouri law that barred state officials from helping enforce federal gun laws.

Oct 23, 2023 3:34 PM CDT

Mississippi isn’t following state supreme court’s new rule for protecting poor defendants, critics say

Three months after Mississippi’s Supreme Court directed judges in the state to ensure that poor criminal defendants always have a lawyer as they wait to be indicted, one of those justices acknowledged that the rule isn’t being widely followed.

Oct 20, 2023 9:17 AM CDT