The President’s Court

The President’s Court: The Supreme Court’s new term will address the travel ban and other hot-button issues with President Trump’s first appointee on the bench.

Oct 1, 2017 12:10 AM CDT

Relatives of undocumented children caught up in ICE dragnet

This summer, a Kansas City man named Edwin got a call from immigration officials. They had picked up his nephew at the southern border and wanted to release the teen into his care. So Edwin went online and bought a bed. Later that week, he was contacted again, this time…

Sep 12, 2017 3:45 PM CDT

How ICE uses secret police databases to arrest immigrants

In 2011, then 19-year-old Luis Vicente Pedrote-Salinas was leaving a relative’s house and getting into his car when he was stopped by Chicago police. Officers found an unopened can of beer in the cupholder and booked him for underage drinking. He spent a night in jail, and the charges were…

Aug 29, 2017 3:48 PM CDT

Fake news lacks straightforward cure

The confusion and misinformation caused by fake news is undermining America’s ability to govern itself, experts fear.

Jul 1, 2017 12:15 AM CDT

Fake news has long held a role in American history

Fake news has a long history in America. Benjamin Franklin intentionally published stories alleging that the British paid Native Americans to scalp men, women and children in the rebellious colonies. During the contentious election of 1800, Federalist newspapers tried to keep people from voting for Thomas Jefferson by running fake stories of his death.

In the early days of the republic, however, people’s expectations for news stories were quite different from today.

Jul 1, 2017 12:10 AM CDT

Video cannot replace the courtroom sketch artist

Things changed after the U.S. Supreme Court’s 1981 decision in Chandler v. Florida gave approval to cameras in the courtrooms. Now all 50 states have some variation on when, where and how cameras can be used. Federal courts continue to resist the technology, thus still providing work for courtroom sketch artists.

Jun 1, 2017 5:00 AM CDT

What bloggers told us about the state of the legal blogosphere

The blog is not a slog. Even as more people express themselves online in fleeting notes and images, law bloggers enjoy their more reflective discipline.

Dec 1, 2016 5:10 AM CST

10th Annual Blawg 100

See this year’s list of 100 blawgs, read about our survey of law bloggers and check out the latest additions to our Blawg 100 Hall of Fame.

Dec 1, 2016 12:00 AM CST

Lawyer in El Salvador says clients were charged with abortion crimes after suffering miscarriages

Dennis Muñoz grew up in a conservative El Salvadorian family, and while the birth of his daughter inspired him to become an attorney, he never anticipated that he’d become known as the county’s “abortion lawyer,” the New York Times reports. The title seems somewhat misleading. Muñoz represents women in El…

Sep 13, 2016 3:31 PM CDT

Panama firm obscured the trail of US funds to protect clients’ money from scrutiny, says NY Times

While there can be legitimate reasons for moving funds abroad to shell corporations, wealthy clients of the Panama-based law firm Mossack Fonseca wanted to know, as one put it in an email to the firm: “How does a US citizen legally get funds to Panama without the knowledge of the…

Jun 7, 2016 10:50 AM CDT

Did litigation kill the Beatles?

As the most successful band in history, the Beatles generated not only a record number of music hits but probably more legal disputes than any other music group before or since. As the first international rock band brand in a still nascent music business – and guided by a neophyte…

May 1, 2016 12:10 AM CDT

Fisherman who survived 13 months adrift at sea now faces legal battle over attorney rights

An El Salvador man who says he spent more than a year adrift at sea on a Mexican fishing boat before washing up on the Marshall Islands, over 6,000 miles away, is now the subject of a legal battle over the rights to tell his story. Attorney Benedicto Perlera says…

Jan 9, 2015 11:15 AM CST

Littler Mendelson combines with law firms in Colombia and Costa Rica

Littler Mendelson has combined with law firms in Colombia and Costa Rica as part of its push to expand into Latin America. Littler is combining with Colombian law firm Godoy Córdoba Abogados and Costa Rican law firm BDS Asesores under the name Littler Global, according to a press release. The…

Oct 1, 2013 2:20 PM CDT

Top Mexican drug cartel chief’s capture may not quell violence, authorities say

The head of one of the two most powerful drug cartels in Mexico has been captured in the countryside outside Nuevo Laredo, along with a bodyguard and an accountant, authorities say. Miguel Angel Trevino Morales, 40, the claimed chief of Los Zetas, is charged with kidnapping, torture, murder and other…

Jul 16, 2013 5:35 PM CDT

ABA, IABA pledge cooperation on issues involving human trafficking, rule of law

The American Bar Association and the Inter-American Bar Association have agreed to work together on issues involving human trafficking, the globalization of the legal profession and funding for judicial systems in the Americas. Leaders of the two organizations signed a memo of understanding (PDF) to that effect Friday in Paraguay.…

Jun 21, 2013 8:49 PM CDT