The Supreme Court of Chile on Friday issued a ruling preventing the construction of a new hydroelectric dam in Patagonia. The dam was one of three hydroelectric plants proposed by Energia Austral , a private joint-venture between Xstrata Copper and Origin Energy Limited, to supply power to nearby communities and copper mines. The court found [...]
JURIST Guest Columnist Michael Macchiarola of the City University of New York School of Law says that several recent cases involving the Securities and Exchange Commission may present an opportunity to reevaluate the judiciary’s deferential approach toward settlements made between administrative agencies and private parties…
A 14-judge panel for the US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit ruled 12-2 Friday that the earlier dismissal of lawsuits against two Abu Ghraib contractors on the grounds that they have immunity as government contractors was premature. The court sent the cases against CACI International Inc. and L-3 Communications Holdings Inc. back to [...]
The US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit heard arguments Friday from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) which is appealing a dismissal of a challenge over the no-fly list maintained by the Transportation Safety Association (TSA) . The lower court dismissed the case claiming that the suit would have to be filed against [...]
JURIST Guest Columnist Charles Radcliffe, Head of Global Issues at the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, says that while international laws protect LGBT persons, proper enforcement is required to combat discrimination…
Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights Ivan Simonovic on Friday addressed the recent increase in violence in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and the resulting human rights violations.The tension between government forces and dissident groups and militia has escalated during the recent weeks and fighting has resumed. This has detrimental effects on civilians [...]
The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit on Friday rejected a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request arising out of 2010 cyber attack on Google targeting Gmail accounts of Chinese human rights activists. The Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) sought any communications between the National Security Agency (NSA) and Google concerning [...]
The Kansas State Senate approved a bill on Friday that forbids the use of foreign or religious law in Kansas courts. The bill both prohibits state judges from using foreign law to adjudicate disputes and makes contracts that purport to be governed by foreign or religious law unenforceable. Senator Ty Masterson defended the bill against [...]
A judge in Suriname delayed the trial of President Desi Bouterse on Friday until a constitutional court can determine whether an amnesty law passed in April grants Bouterse immunity from murder charges. Judge Cynthia Valstein Montnor explained in her ruling that the court needs to determine if the amnesty law applies to Bouterse even though [...]
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) on Thursday filed a compliant with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) seeking a federal investigation into allegations of abuse of individuals at ports of entries (POEs) along the U.S.-Mexico border by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents. The complaint illustrates 11 instances of abuse involving excessive force, invasive [...]
