Attorney General

Federal court documents and DOJ emails compromised in cybersecurity breach

The federal courts and the U.S. Department of Justice have announced that they were apparently affected by a hack of widely used network management software known as SolarWinds.

Jan 7, 2021 1:11 PM CST

Afternoon Briefs: SCOTUS will consider cheerleader’s First Amendment case; former AG dies at 88

Supreme Court asked to weigh in on student’s discipline over social media At its first private conference after the holiday break, the U.S. Supreme Court will decide this week whether to hear a case involving a former high school cheerleader who sent vulgar messages on Snapchat to about 250 friends.…

Jan 4, 2021 4:17 PM CST

Afternoon Briefs: Dentons merges with another firm; dad can’t be banned from procreating, court rules

Dentons will combine with Alabama law firm Dentons has announced that it will combine with Sirote & Permutt, an Alabama law firm with 86 lawyers and offices in five locations. The merger will be Dentons’ fifth combination through Project Golden Spike, a U.S. expansion effort that uses a dual-partnership model.…

Dec 23, 2020 4:07 PM CST

Afternoon Briefs: SCOTUS justices get early COVID-19 vaccines; DOJ sues Walmart

Supreme Court justices receiving early coronavirus vaccines U.S. Supreme Court justices are eligible for early coronavirus vaccines and could be receiving them this week. Other judges “are settling in for a wait,” according to BuzzFeed News. An advisory committee of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has included “legal”…

Dec 22, 2020 4:45 PM CST

Chemerinsky: Looking back at the Supreme Court in 2020

Everyone, I am sure, will be glad to bid farewell to 2020 and looks forward to better things in 2021. As the year draws to a close, the COVID-19 pandemic is surging with a catastrophic loss of lives and serious illnesses, but there is the hope of vaccines soon becoming widely available. What were the most important stories about the U.S. Supreme Court during this plague year?

Dec 22, 2020 3:09 PM CST

AG Barr has no plans to appoint special counsels to investigate Hunter Biden or election fraud

Outgoing U.S. Attorney General William Barr said at a news conference Monday he had no plans to appoint special counsels to investigate election fraud or Hunter Biden, the son of President-elect Joe Biden. Barr said he saw no reason in either case.

Dec 21, 2020 1:19 PM CST

Afternoon Briefs: 2 death-row inmates test positive for COVID-19; US attorney in Missouri will resign

2 federal inmates test positive for COVID-19 ahead of January executions Cory Johnson and Dustin John Higgs, two federal prisoners who are scheduled to be executed on Jan. 14 and Jan. 15, respectively, have tested positive for COVID-19. In their announcement Friday, Johnson’s lawyers asked federal authorities to strike their…

Dec 18, 2020 4:10 PM CST

Former prosecutor faces felony misconduct charges related to alleged inappropriate relationship

A former Michigan state prosecutor will be charged with two counts of felony misconduct in office after allegedly engaging in an inappropriate relationship with a victim in a criminal sexual conduct case.

Dec 18, 2020 11:39 AM CST

Deputy attorney general who will replace AG Barr has no prosecution experience

U.S. Deputy Attorney General Jeffrey A. Rosen will be taking over leadership of the Department of Justice on an acting basis when U.S. Attorney General William Barr leaves the office Dec. 23.

Dec 15, 2020 9:54 AM CST

Biden’s AG pick will be scrutinized amid probe of his son; will special counsel be appointed?

President-elect Joe Biden’s selection of a new U.S. attorney general may be complicated by revelations that Biden’s son, Hunter Biden, is under investigation.

Dec 11, 2020 10:50 AM CST

Texas AG asks SCOTUS to overturn election results in 4 states via its original petition

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to accept a lawsuit that seeks to overturn the election results in the battleground states of Georgia, Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania.

Dec 8, 2020 11:35 AM CST

AG Barr appoints special counsel to investigate illegality in probe of Russian election influence

U.S. Attorney General William Barr disclosed Tuesday that he has appointed Connecticut U.S. Attorney John Durham as a special counsel to investigate any illegality by officials in the federal probe into Russian election influence in 2016.

Dec 2, 2020 11:03 AM CST

DOJ probed possible bid to pay for presidential pardon, unsealed opinion says

The Department of Justice has investigated whether an individual offered a substantial political contribution in exchange for a presidential pardon, according to a redacted opinion released Tuesday and unsealed by Chief U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell.

Dec 2, 2020 9:44 AM CST

Afternoon Briefs: Former Trump adviser sues over FBI surveillance; ex-lawyer sentenced in Ponzi scheme

Former Trump campaign adviser sues over FBI surveillance Former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page has filed a $75 million lawsuit against the FBI and the U.S. Department of Justice for alleged “unlawful spying” on him during the investigation of Russian influence. Page alleges that the surveillance was authorized as a…

Dec 1, 2020 4:48 PM CST

Trump lawyer says official who defended voting machines should be shot; AG Barr also sees no manipulation

U.S. Attorney General William Barr told the Associated Press on Tuesday that the Department of Justice has uncovered no evidence of widespread election fraud and no evidence of bad voting machines.

Dec 1, 2020 3:25 PM CST