D.C. Circuit Court

Star Wizards Guard Charged With Gun Felony in Locker-Room Incident

Already in hot water with the National Basketball Association over a Dec. 21 incident in which he admittedly brought unloaded guns into the locker room in apparent violation of league rules, star Washington Wizards guard Gilbert Arenas is now facing a felony gun possession charge over the situation. Filed this…

Jan 15, 2010 12:45 AM CST

Comcast Scores Against FCC in Court Battle Over Net Neutrality

The Federal Communications Commission was on the hot seat today in a much-watched appellate court case implicating the agency’s power to regulate the Internet. Comcast Corp. is appealing a 2008 decision by the FCC that it violates so-called net neutrality standards by slowing or blocking certain peer-to-peer applications that use…

Jan 8, 2010 8:42 PM CST

Accused Holocaust Museum Shooter Dies in Prison Hospital

The 88-year-old suspect accused of fatally shooting a guard at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C., on June 10 has apparently died in a federal prison hospital in North Carolina. Citing an unidentified government official, Fox News reports that James Von Brunn died while awaiting trial. He has…

Jan 6, 2010 7:58 PM CST

DC Circuit Upholds Broad US Power to Detain Terrorism Suspects

A federal appeals court has taken a broad view of the government’s power to detain Guantanamo terrorism suspects. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit ruled today that the president’s power to detain terrorism suspects is not limited by international law, SCOTUSblog reports. Instead, domestic law applies. “The…

Jan 5, 2010 5:57 PM CST

Judge Holds US in Contempt for Not Videotaping Gitmo Detainee Testimony

A federal judge in Washington, D.C., held the U.S. Department of Defense in civil contempt of court today for disobeying a prior court order that required “the appropriate agency” to preserve a videotape of a detainee’s testimony in a closed-door habeas corpus hearing. Although Mohammed al-Adahi couldn’t appear in open…

Dec 10, 2009 11:16 PM CST

After ABA Wins ‘Red Flags’ Suit Over ID Theft Rules, Accountants Sue, Too

After apparently taking note of an American Bar Association win last month in a federal case contending that the Federal Trade Commission exceeded its authority by applying the so-called Red Flags Rule to lawyers, a trade association for accountants has filed a similar suit. Just like lawyers, accountants also send…

Nov 12, 2009 7:55 PM CST

US Citizen Sues Feds Over ‘Rendition’ Outside American Court System

An American citizen who was allegedly held and interrogated in Kenya, Somalia and Ethiopia at the behest of his own country’s law enforcement agents over a several-month period in 2007 filed a federal lawsuit in Washington, D.C., yesterday contending that the “rendition” violated his constitutional rights. Amir Mohamed Meshal, who…

Nov 11, 2009 8:41 PM CST

Fed’l Judge Rules From Bench for ABA: ‘Red Flags’ Doesn’t Apply to Lawyers

Updated: In a surprise ruling from the bench today, a federal judge in Washington, D.C., agreed with the American Bar Association that the Federal Trade Commission exceeded its authority by applying its “red flags rule” to practicing lawyers. Congress did not intend lawyers to be considered “creditors” under the Fair…

Oct 30, 2009 12:33 AM CDT

‘Newt Suit’ Says Gingrich Book Used Religious Art Pix Without Permission

A book by former U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Newt Gringrich used her copyrighted pictures of religious images in government buildings without permission, a photographer claims in a federal lawsuit. The suit by Carrie Devorah contends that several photos she took for a 2003 essay were used in Gingrich’s 2006…

Oct 15, 2009 12:34 AM CDT

Sued for Malpractice, Law Firm Must Now Fight for Insurance Coverage

Two lawyers in a Washington, D.C., firm already were facing a $10 million malpractice claim over a tax shelter matter when their situation changed for the worse. Now their insurance carrier, Carolina Casualty Insurance Co., is seeking a declaratory judgment that it doesn’t have to defend the claim. It contends…

Sep 28, 2009 6:06 PM CDT

Fed’l Judge Slams US, Orders Release of Kuwaiti Man Held 7 Years at Gitmo

In a sealed decision last week that was declassified today, a federal judge in Washington, D.C., orders the release of a 50-year-old Kuwait Airlines engineer and slammed the United States for holding him for seven years at a U.S. military detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. “If there exists a…

Sep 25, 2009 10:43 PM CDT

Nixon Peabody Lawyer Used Client Stock Info to Net $5,800, SEC Says in Suit

Within 15 minutes of when Melissa Mahler was asked by a client company’s CEO to draft a letter of intent concerning a potential merger in 2004, the then-Nixon Peabody technology and intellectual property associate allegedly called her stockbroker, according to the Blog of Legal Times. She purchased 10,000 shares in…

Sep 21, 2009 9:57 PM CDT

D.C. Circuit Overturns Restriction on Nonprofit Campaign Spending

A federal appeals court has struck down campaign finance restrictions on nonprofit groups. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit ruled that nonprofits have a First Amendment right to spend money to advocate policy positions as long as they don’t coordinate with a candidate or party, the New…

Sep 21, 2009 4:20 PM CDT

Ex-AG Gonzales Wins Dismissal From Suit Alleging DOJ Hiring Blacklist

A federal judge in Washington, D.C., has dismissed former U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales from a lawsuit alleging that the U.S. Department of Justice illegally blacklisted job applicants based on their political beliefs during the administration of President George W. Bush. U.S. District Judge John Bates said the case against…

Sep 17, 2009 9:05 PM CDT

No Lawyers in US Plan Allowing Afghan Detainees to Challenge Detentions

Detainees at the American-run Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan will be allowed to challenge their detention under new Pentagon guidelines, but they won’t be represented by assigned lawyers. Instead, each detainee will be assigned a U.S. military official who can gather evidence and challenge the detention before a military-appointed review…

Sep 14, 2009 11:37 AM CDT