International Courts/Tribunals

Double Trouble for Italian Attorney & Unlicensed Twin

Overwhelmed with work in her law practice and part-time position as a substitute judge, a 54-year-old Italian attorney allegedly exercised an option that isn’t available to most of her colleagues: She apparently sent her twin to cover her defense caseload when she was called in to work as a judge…

Sep 30, 2008 9:39 PM CDT

Japanese Businessman Faces US Trial in Alleged Conspiracy to Murder Wife

A Japanese businessman who is fighting a court battle on two fronts to avoid being tried on charges related to the 1981 murder of his wife has seemingly lost another round. Although Kazuyoshi Miura “was cleared of his wife’s killing by a court in Japan in 1998 following a marathon…

Sep 29, 2008 4:53 PM CDT

UK Appeals Court OKs Hefty Alimony Payment for Ex-Wife’s Horses

An investment banker in the United Kingdom had argued that his soon-to-be ex-wife could and should cut her post-divorce expenses by eliminating an unjustified extravagance—her three horses. But, finding that the horses have been an important part of the woman’s life during their 11-year marriage and that she was devoted…

Sep 22, 2008 6:23 PM CDT

Tort Suits Claim Chinese Chairs are Toxic

Sitting in an armchair or lying on a sofa isn’t ordinarily considered a hazardous activity. But for well over 1,000 people in several European countries, it allegedly was. After the Chinese manufacturer of furniture distributed by a French company put extra packets of a chemical mold retardant, customers began reporting…

Sep 19, 2008 6:50 PM CDT

Islamic Court Rulings are Enforceable in the United Kingdom

Islamic law now has legal effect in the United Kingdom, under a 1996 arbitration statute that recognizes the rulings of a network of five Shariah courts. Although there was a huge public outcry earlier this year when the Archbishop of Canterbury said that further recognition of such courts in Great…

Sep 19, 2008 5:55 PM CDT

3 UK Lawyers Charged in $7.6M Extortion Scheme re $54M Da Vinci Painting

Three United Kingdom lawyers reportedly are among a group of five men charged with conspiring or attempting to extort $7.6 million for the safe return of a $54 million Leonardo da Vinci painting stolen from a Scottish castle in 2003. The theft made the FBI’s top 10 list of art…

Sep 12, 2008 6:13 PM CDT

Family Challenges London Police Shooting of Armed Barrister

There’s no dispute that a wealthy London barrister was firing a shotgun from his upscale home this spring, before he was shot and killed by police. But authorities overreacted to a situation in which Mark Saunders, 32, wasn’t a threat, his family contended in a High Court hearing this week.…

Sep 10, 2008 5:55 PM CDT

‘Rush’ From $1.4M Law Firm Thefts Followed By Jail Term

A former legal assistant who pleaded guilty earlier this year to fraud and forgery in connection with the misappropriation of $1.4 million from a major Canadian law firm’s accounts was sentenced today to 42 months in prison. A forensic psychiatrist told the court earlier in a pre-sentencing report that Penny…

Sep 9, 2008 6:39 PM CDT

Police Beat Pakistan Lawyers in Clash Over Ousted Appellate Judges

Pakistani lawyers clashed with riot police in Islamabad as they protested dozens of appellate judges’ continued absence from the bench. The judges were ousted last year when former President Pervez Musharraf imposed a state of emergency and what many considered martial law. “Some lawyers were beaten by officers in front…

Sep 4, 2008 6:10 PM CDT

Did Lady Jane Douglas Lie in High-Profile 1700s Inheritance Case?

The lawsuit took about 10 years to resolve, at a cost of around $18 million in today’s dollars, and the winner inherited the riches of a man reputed to be the wealthiest in Scotland. At issue was whether the twins claimed by Lady Jane Douglas as her own biological children,…

Sep 3, 2008 5:22 PM CDT

Foley Hoag, Law Profs Represent Georgia in World Court Hearing

Foley Hoag and two law professors are representing the Republic of Georgia in an emergency hearing before the International Court of Justice. The hearing set to begin Sept. 8 claims Russian forces and Russian-supported separatist militias engaged in ethnic cleansing against Georgians, according to a Foley Hoag press release e-mailed…

Sep 3, 2008 2:09 PM CDT

Former Spokeswoman for War Crimes Court Charged with Contempt

A former spokeswoman for the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia has been charged with contempt for disclosing confidential information in a book and an article. The contempt charge doesn’t specify the confidential information that Hartmann is accused of disclosing, report the Irish Times and BBC News. A statement…

Aug 28, 2008 12:18 PM CDT

‘Stunningly Enormous’ Divorce Bill is Upheld By Canadian Court

A legal bill for a divorce described as “quite stunningly enormous” by an executive member of the Canadian Bar Association has been upheld by the British Columbia Court of Appeal. The bill, which exceed $1 million in Canadian dollars (that’s about $950,000 in U.S. dollars, at the current exchange rate)…

Aug 26, 2008 9:10 PM CDT

Wrangling Over Restoration of Judges Intensifies in Pakistan

Lawyers in Pakistan are planning new protests, starting Thursday, as wrangling among the country’s ruling parliamentary coalition intensifies over whether to restore to office all 60 of the appellate judges removed by then-President Pervez Musharraf in November after he declared a state of emergency and imposed what many considered martial…

Aug 25, 2008 3:35 PM CDT

Judges Still a Divisive Issue for Pakistan’s New Leaders

Even as a suicide bombing that killed perhaps 25 people served as a tragic reminder of the need for decisive leadership in Pakistan, those in charge of the country’s ruling coalition continued to wrangle today over whether some 60 appellate judges removed from office last year by now-former President Pervez…

Aug 19, 2008 11:12 PM CDT