Black lawyer alleges he was wearing handcuffs as judge pressed him to settle or produce documents

A Black lawyer who is a former pro football player has sued a Pennsylvania judge for allegedly ordering the lawyer’s arrest and having him hauled into court in shackles, where the lawyer was presented with a stark choice.

Aug 15, 2023 3:47 PM CDT

Religious act may protect Jehovah’s Witness who refused psychiatric meds before trial, 5th Circuit says

A federal judge should consider the religious claims of a defendant who has refused to take psychiatric medications to become competent for trial on a charge of threatening a New Orleans judge, a federal appeals court has ruled.

Aug 15, 2023 2:09 PM CDT

Montana’s disregard of climate change violates right to clean environment, judge rules

A law that bars the state of Montana from considering the impact of greenhouse gas emissions in environmental reviews violates the constitutional rights of 16 youths who sued over climate change, a state judge in Helena, Montana, has ruled.

Aug 14, 2023 3:15 PM CDT

Constitution bars Trump from presidency, 2 conservative law profs conclude in upcoming article

Former President Donald Trump is barred from office under the 14th Amendment because he “engaged in insurrection,” two conservative law professors have concluded in an upcoming law review article.

Aug 14, 2023 10:45 AM CDT

2nd Circuit rejects free exercise challenge to law ending religious exemptions for immunization mandate

A Connecticut law ending a religious exemption for required vaccinations does not violate constitutional guarantees, including the First Amendment right to free exercise of religion, a federal appeals court has held.

Aug 9, 2023 8:41 AM CDT

Supreme Court majority reinstates regulations requiring background checks for sales of ‘ghost gun’ kits

The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday temporarily revived Biden administration regulations that require makers and sellers of "ghost gun" kits and parts to add serial numbers to the products, keep transfer records and conduct background checks of buyers.

Aug 9, 2023 8:40 AM CDT

Sanctioned lawyers must take classes from conservative Christian nonprofit, federal judge rules

A federal judge in Dallas has ordered three in-house lawyers for Southwest Airlines to attend classes with Alliance Defending Freedom, a conservative legal advocacy group, to purge itself of civil contempt for "inverting" the language in a court-ordered message.

Aug 9, 2023 8:35 AM CDT

Citing 1st Amendment rights of students, ABA House passes resolution against book bans

Aug 8, 2023 4:54 PM CDT

Ban on lifetime voting for some felons violates Eighth Amendment, 5th Circuit rules

Mississippi’s lifetime ban on voting for felons convicted of some crimes serves no legitimate penological purpose and violates their rights under the Eighth Amendment, a federal appeals court has ruled.

Aug 8, 2023 8:08 AM CDT

Federal judge who said defendant ‘looks like a criminal’ can’t preside in new trial, 6th Circuit says

A federal appeals court has overturned a Michigan defendant’s drug convictions after a Detroit federal judge presiding in the case said the accused man “looks like a criminal to me.”

Aug 7, 2023 12:30 PM CDT

9th Circuit dissenters take aim at state-created danger doctrine

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals at San Francisco should narrow the state-created danger doctrine, according to four judges who dissented when the appeals court refused to grant an en banc rehearing in a lawsuit over a mother’s drowning of her 10-month-old twins.

Aug 3, 2023 10:30 AM CDT

Is dismissal bid effort to keep ADA ‘gravy train’ running? Tester urges SCOTUS to drop her case

A Florida woman who tests hotel websites for compliance with the Americans With Disabilities Act is seeking to dismiss all of her pending cases, including one pending before the U.S. Supreme Court.

Aug 1, 2023 2:45 PM CDT

Can Congress bind Supreme Court on ethics code? Alito offers opinion

Justice Samuel Alito doesn't think that Congress has the authority to bind the U.S. Supreme Court on ethics issues.

Jul 31, 2023 9:42 AM CDT

Paramedics who wrongly insisted woman was dead have immunity in civil suit, 6th Circuit says

A federal appeals court has ruled that emergency medical personnel have qualified immunity in a civil lawsuit alleging that they wrongly insisted that a woman was dead, leading to her subsequent death.

Jul 27, 2023 1:23 PM CDT

Hunter Biden’s BigLaw lawyers deny deception day before their client’s plea deal put on hold

Lawyers for Hunter Biden are fighting on two fronts as U.S. District Judge Maryellen Noreika of the District of Delaware asked attorneys from Latham & Watkins on Tuesday to show cause why they shouldn’t be sanctioned and then put a proposed plea agreement on hold the next day.

Jul 27, 2023 11:40 AM CDT