Legislation & Lobbying

Bush Aides Cited for Contempt in Prosecutor Probe

In the latest move toward a potential constitutional showdown between Congress and the White House, the Senate Judiciary Committee voted today to hold two aides to President George W. Bush in contempt for failing to cooperate with its probe of why nine U.S. attorneys were fired. White House Chief of…

Dec 13, 2007 4:56 PM CST

Committee OKs Bill to Pay Federal Trial Judges $218K

Federal judges would get a pay raise for the first time in two decades under a bill approved by the House Judiciary Committee yesterday. Trial level judges would earn $218,000 a year, up from their current pay of $165,200 a year, Legal Times reports. Appeals judges would be paid $231,000,…

Dec 13, 2007 11:23 AM CST

Anti-Mansion Law for L.A.?

Responding to a growing trend of building bigger and bigger homes, city officials in Los Angeles could impose as early as next month a controversial proposed new law that would severely limit the size of new-construction homes in established single-family neighborhoods. A number of homeowners who might wish to sell…

Dec 11, 2007 5:14 PM CST

CIA Director to Testify About Tapes

The director of the CIA will testify before Congress tomorrow and Wednesday about at least two videotapes the agency destroyed of its interrogations of terrorism suspects in their custody. The interrogations are controversial because CIA agents reportedly use harsh techniques that some consider tantamount to torture. CIA Director Michael Hayden…

Dec 11, 2007 1:05 AM CST

N.J. Lawmakers Nix Death Penalty

New Jersey is on the verge of becoming the first state in the country to repeal the death penalty by a legislative vote. The toughest hurdle, a state senate vote, was cleared yesterday, and both the state house and New Jersey’s governor are expected to approve putting an end to…

Dec 11, 2007 12:47 AM CST

Did Megan’s Law Website Target Rapist for Murder?

One common argument against publicly listing home addresses and other identifying information for convicted sex criminals is that it might put them in danger. But proving such cause and effect in real-life cases is difficult, to say the least. Now, however, officials in California say they might have the first-ever…

Dec 10, 2007 7:27 PM CST

Pay Cut for $2M Legal Aid Lawyers

Unlike their American counterparts, some British lawyers make a more-than-comfortable living as legal aid lawyers. Barristers reportedly can earn as much as a million pounds annually—that’s a little over $2 million in U.S. dollars—for defending complex criminal cases. But this cushy situation is about to change, as the Legal Services…

Dec 10, 2007 5:27 PM CST

Adult Children Sue French Parents for Support—and Win

A growing number of adult children suing their parents for support—and winning—has sparked a lobbying effort to revise the French law that holds parents responsible for supporting their children into their 20s and beyond. French parents’ obligation to “nourish, maintain and raise” their children dates back to an 1804 Napoleonic…

Dec 7, 2007 10:50 PM CST

Dems Seek Probe re CIA Tapes; Destruction a Plus for Suspects’ Defense?

Democratic legislators reacted angrily today to news that the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency had destroyed at least two videotapes of harsh interrogations of al-Qaida terrorist suspects in its custody, and called for an investigation. Meanwhile, observers predicted potential litigation and an adverse effect on the prosecution of suspected terrorists. “Senator…

Dec 7, 2007 9:53 PM CST

U.K. Considering Sarbanes-Like Rules

In the wake of an unprecedented loss of a government database containing confidential information about tens of millions of people, British legislators are reportedly considering new data-protection safeguards. Possible changes in the law being discussed would hold company chief executives directly responsible for data protection and make it a crime…

Dec 7, 2007 5:51 PM CST

Former Top Pakistan Judge Blames Country’s Western Allies

Although bar groups throughout the world, including the ABA, have made unprecedented efforts to lobby for the restoration of the rule of law in Pakistan, a deposed Pakistan supreme court judge contends government leaders in Western countries could and should do more. Held under house arrest at his home in…

Dec 5, 2007 11:22 PM CST

Teaser-Freezer Subprime Mortgage Rescue Plan Detailed

Updated: Details are emerging of a so-called teaser-freezer plan intended to rescue some subprime mortgage borrowers from huge increases in their monthly payments. To be introduced tomorrow by President George Bush, the plan calls for a five-year freeze on the initial low “teaser” interest rate for homeowners who are current…

Dec 5, 2007 4:48 PM CST

Senate Stalls on AMT Fix

Although senators on both sides of the aisle agree that an alternative minimum tax fix is needed, they stalled today on efforts to work together to craft an acceptable resolution to the problem. As a result, it appears increasingly likely that as many as 25 million middle-class wage earners can…

Dec 5, 2007 12:17 AM CST

ABA President Asks Attorneys to Sign Pakistan Petition

The president of the American Bar Association is calling on fellow attorneys to sign an online petition seeking the restoration of the rule of law in Pakistan. “I urge you not to look aside, as if standing up for the rule of law is somebody else’s job. Add your name,…

Dec 4, 2007 10:22 PM CST

Seniors, Good Credit Risks Targeted By Lenders; Mortgage Solution Sought

It isn’t just people with poor credit who are now suffering in the aftermath of a subprime lending spree. And, although a federal government plan is supposed to be announced later this week to help financially struggling homeowners, it appears unlikely to do much to rescue many of those now…

Dec 3, 2007 10:16 PM CST