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Right And Left Join To Reform Criminal Justice System

New York Times | ADAM LIPTAK | Posted 11.24.2009 | Politics

Read More: Civil Liberties, Republican Party, Heritage Foundation, Conservatives, Liberals, Courts, Crime, Ronald Reagan, Nacdl, Reform, National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Edward Meese Iii, Beyond Left and Right, Aclu, Libertarians, Judicial Reform, Politics News

WASHINGTON -- In the next several months, the Supreme Court will decide at least a half-dozen cases about the rights of people accused of crimes invol...

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A Bad Lawsuit Over Impeachment

David O. Stewart | Posted 11.17.2009 | Politics

Read More: Thomas Porteous, Congress, Federal Judge, American History, Impeachment, Courts, Politics News
David O. Stewart

I wish Judge Porteous well. If he has committed neither treason nor bribery nor a high crime or misdemeanor, he should not retain his judgeship. But he just filed a dumb lawsuit.

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Crucifix Banned From Italy's Schools By New EU Court Ruling

AP | ALESSANDRA RIZZO | Posted 11.03.2009 | World

Read More: Public Schools, Islam, Crucifixes Banned, Atheism, EU Courts, Catholicism, Italy Schools, Immigration, Italy, Eu, Catholics, Religion, Education, Italian Schools, Courts, Vatican, Pope, Separation of Church and State, Faith, World News

ROME — The Vatican on Tuesday denounced a ruling by the European court of human rights that said the display of crucifixes in Italian public sch...

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The Effects of the Subjugation of English

Fred Silberberg | Posted 11.17.2009 | Politics

Read More: Citizenship, Government Services, America, Courts, Interpreters, Equal Protection, Assimilation, English Language, Cultural Cohesion, Politics News
Fred Silberberg

If we really want our society to be more cohesive, if we want everyone to be treated equally, the way to do that is to insure that people who live here speak the same language.

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Political Trials and Crimes Against Reality

Robert Amsterdam | Posted 11.09.2009 | World

Read More: Russia, Burma, Robert Amsterdam, Rule of Law, International Law, Democracy, Iran, Due Process, Detainees, Aung San Suu Kyi, Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbaev, Human Rights, Courts, Political Prisoners, Justice, Asia, Yevgeny Zhovtis, China, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, World News
Robert Amsterdam

It's a crime against reality for us to carry on pretending that countries like Kazakhstan can hold fair trials.

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My Divorce is None of Your Business

Fred Silberberg | Posted 10.21.2009 | Politics

Read More: Law, Confidentiality, Divorce, Courts, Domestic Partnerships, Gossip, Family Law, Divorce Court, Judicial Oversight, Media, Privacy, Celebrities, Politics News
Fred Silberberg

If I get divorced in New York, the documents pertaining to my divorce remain confidential. If I get divorced in California, the documents pertaining to my divorce become a matter of public record.

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Do Conservatives Follow the Framers -- or the French?

Nicholas Stephanopoulos | Posted 08.24.2009 | Politics

Read More: Supreme Court, Judicial Activism, Conservatives, Courts, Reagan, Strict Constructionist, French Revoultion, Sonia Sotomayor, Politics News
Nicholas Stephanopoulos

It is no coincidence that American conservatives now sound like French revolutionaries when they talk about legal issues.

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Friday Talking Points [79] -- Judicial Activism And Bias

Chris Weigant | Posted 06.29.2009 | Politics

Read More: Mark Nickolas, Supreme Court, White House, Autoworkers, Burris, Constitutional Crisis, Power Struggle, Founding Fathers, Detainee Deaths, Gingrich, President, War Crimes, Rnc, Courts, Princeton, Midotw, Nancy Pelosi, Sotomayor, Most Impressive Democrat of the Week, Pussy Galore, Un, Ralph Nader, Judicial Activism, Republican National Committee, Court, Twitter, Terry McAuliffe, Congress, Newt Gingrich, Barack Obama, Constitution, Mddotw, Rod Blagojevich, Sonia Sotomayor, Truth Commission, Youtube, Banks, Hillary Clinton, Uaw, Bonuses, Up or Down Vote, Michael Guest, Same Sex, Nader, President Obama, Moses Taylor Pyne Honor Prize, United Nations, Blaggy, Filibuster, Bankers, Obama, Scotus, Prejudice, Auschwitz, Blago, Republican, Government, Blagojevich, Lionel Sosa, Pelosi, Clinton, Activism, Federal Government, Bias, Most Disappointing Democrat of the Week, Defense of Marriage Act, Legislating From the Bench, Benefits, Gm, Pyne Prize, Roland Burris, Philip Alston, Gay, State Department, Checks and Balances, Mcauliffe, Chris Kelly, Secretary of State, Wall Street, Chris Weigant, Spousal Benefits, Nominee, Doma, Torture, Alston, Politics News
Chris Weigant

"Judicial activism" (or, alternatively, "legislating from the bench") is defined -- no matter what your political beliefs -- as "judges not ruling the...

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Secrecy in the Courts: How to Get Judges, Lawyers and Sharon Stone to Follow the Rules?

Peter Scheer | Posted 06.05.2009 | Politics

Read More: Secrecy, Supreme Court, US Supreme Court, Government Secrecy, Celebrity Gossip, Sharon Stone, Courts, Lawsuit, Politics News
Peter Scheer

California has long had judicial openness rules that are exemplary -- on paper. The time has come to insist that they be followed.

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My Exclusive Interview with Justice Sandra Day O'Connor

Marianne Schnall | Posted 05.29.2009 | Politics

Read More: Government, Supreme Court, Education, Civic Participation, Sandra Day O'Connor, Courts, Civics, Schools, Media, Politics, Politics News
Marianne Schnall

I recently spoke with the inspirational former Supreme Court Justice about her new web site, the judiciary and her legacy as the first woman on the Supreme Court.

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Will the California Supreme Court Strike Down Prop 8, or "Willy-Nilly Disregard" Its Duty?

Evan Wolfson | Posted 04.30.2009 | Politics

Read More: California Gay Marriage, Proposition 8, Prop 8, Chief Justice Ronald George, No on Prop 8, California Supreme Court, Freedom to Marry, Constitution, Civil Rights, Gay Marriage, Same-Sex Marriage, Evan Wolfson, Judges, Courts, Politics News
Evan Wolfson

Unlike right-wing opponents of equality, who denounce and seek to punish courts for doing their job, I criticize only when they flinch or fail to do it.

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Don't Kill the Lawyers -- Yet

Tanya M. Acker | Posted 04.26.2009 | Business

Read More: AIG Litigation, Courts, Edward Liddy, Litigation, Business News
Tanya M. Acker

We would all do well to remember that litigation, powerful sword that it is, should be a tool of last resort.

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Impeaching Judges: Time for a Rethink

David O. Stewart | Posted 04.16.2009 | Politics

Read More: Impeachment Process, US History, Constitution, Courts, Politics News
David O. Stewart

Under its power to restrict judges to service during good behavior, Congress can establish a new mechanism for removing lower court judges.

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Where Has the Time Gone?

Byron Williams | Posted 02.14.2009 | Politics

Read More: Katrina Response, Attorney, Bush, Courts, Hurricane Katrina, Social Security, Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, Bush Legacy, President Bush, Dismantle Social Security, Habeas Corpus, Fdr, Commander in Chief, Politics News
Byron Williams

Bush, You had more impact on the country than any other president in my lifetime. One may have to go back to FDR to find a commander in chief that had more influence on the republic.

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Getting Ready for the Bush Pardons

Hoyt Hilsman | Posted 02.13.2009 | Politics

Read More: George Bush, US Attorneys, White House, Truth and Reconciliation Commission, Warrantless Wiretapping, Karl Rove, Michael Milken, Michael Mukasey, Cheney, Guantanamo, Obama, Truth and Reconciliation, Barack Obama, Bush, Constitution, Courts, Wiretapping, Scooter Libby, Torture, Politics News
Hoyt Hilsman

It would be wrong for an outgoing President who presided over disastrous... enterprises like the torture program to unilaterally slam the door on all future investigations into that conduct.

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Congress Pushes Back Against Supreme Court, Returns Civil Rights to People with Disabilities

Cristóbal Joshua Alex | Posted 10.23.2008 | Politics

Read More: Americans With Disabilities Act, S.3406, Legislation, Steny Hoyer, Courts, Disabilities, Civil Rights, ADA Amendments Act, S.1881, Americans With Disabilities Restoration Act, Supreme Court, Rollback, Congress, H.RES.1299, Ada, Politics News
Cristóbal Joshua Alex

In passing the ADA Amendments Act, Congress is finally pushing back at a Court that has been hard at work dismantling our civil rights infrastructure.

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Another Corporate Gimmick -- Arbitration

Dave Johnson | Posted 06.22.2008 | Business

Read More: Deregulation, Mediation, Tort Reform, Corporations, Courts, Arbitration, Attorneys, Corporate Power, Business News
Dave Johnson

More and more consumer-oriented contracts have clauses specifying that disputes must go to arbitration rather than our civil justice system. But 98.8% of arbitrations end in favor of the corporations.

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"God" Reponds To Lawsuit Filed In Nebraska

AP | NATE JENKINS | Posted 03.28.2008 | Home

Read More: Courts, Lawsuits, Nebraska, God, Home News

God has apparently responded to a lawsuit filed by a Nebraska lawmaker, and one of the filings seems to have dropped in from the heavens. "This one mi...

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