The UN Special Rapporteur on human rights and counter-terrorism on Monday urged Chilean authorities to refrain from applying anti-terrorism legislation that directly impacts the Mapuche indigenous peoples. Special Rapporteur Ben Emmerson made his first official visit to Chile, finding that “the anti-terrorism legislation has been disproportionately and unfairly applied against Mapuche defendants, and has been [...]
The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) praised the High Court of Kenya Tuesday for upholding the asylum right of urban refugees and expressed hope the government of Kenya will now resume legal services. Last week the High Court of Kenya ruled against a government directive to transfer refugees from urban areas to refugee camps in Dadaab [...]
The US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit has reaffirmed that two anti-illegal immigration laws enacted in 2006 by Hazleton, Pennsylvania, are preempted by federal immigration law. On Friday the court permanently enjoined Hazleton’s enforcement of the Illegal Immigration Relief Act Ordinance (IIRAO) and the Rental Registration Ordinance (RO) , which denied permits to [...]
The Pennsylvania Department of Health on Tuesday filed a petition in the Commonwealth Court seeking to stop the Montgomery County Register of Wills from issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples. D Bruce Hanes of Montgomery County was allegedly acting under the guidance of Attorney General Kathleen Kane , who instructed him that the Pennsylvania Marriage [...]
Italy’s highest court, the Court of Cassation began hearing an appeal by Silvio Berlusconi of his tax fraud conviction, which, if upheld, would prevent the former prime minister from taking political office for five years. Prosecutors are seeking to reduce the five-year ban to three on technical legal grounds that the lower court erred in [...]
The First Department of the New York State Supreme Court Appellate Division on Tuesday uphled the lower court’s March ruling that a municipal agency cannot ban large portions of sugary drinks. Although the court conceded that over-consumption of high sugar content beverages is directly related to an increase in diabetes and juvenile mortality rates, it [...]
Military Judge Denise Lind on Tuesday found Army Pfc. Bradley Manning guilty of violations of the Espionage Act for his disclosure of classified information to anti-secrecy organization, Wikileaks . The judge, however, acquitted Manning of the more serious charge of “aiding the enemy.” In 2010 Manning leaked more than 700,000 government documents, diplomatic cables and [...]
Irish President Michael Higgins on Tuesday signed the country’s first abortion bill into law, legalizing the practice in exceptional cases where doctors deem a woman’s life at risk. The Protection of Life During Pregnancy Bill allows women to pursue an abortion to alleviate life-threatening conditions, including a women’s own threat to commit suicide if refused [...]
North Carolina Governor Pat McCrory on Monday signed a restrictive abortion bill into law. The new law requires abortion clinics to meet requirements similar to those for outpatient surgical centers. It also requires doctors to be present during abortions, bans the procedure based on gender and bars coverage by government provided insurance plans. The North [...]
A judge for the US District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania ruled Monday that the same-sex spouse—and not the parents—of a deceased city lawyer should receive the proceeds of her firm’s profit-sharing plan. Sarah Ellyn Farley and Jennifer Tobits were married in 2006 and soon thereafter Farley was diagnosed with cancer. After her [...]
