The Supreme Court of India ruled Monday that fatwas issued by shariat courts or muftis had no legal sanctity, meaning that there will be no civil or criminal consequences for the defiance of these legal opinions rendered over issues of Islamic law. The court found that it violated citizens’ fundamental rights to impose religious-based opinions [...]
The US District Court in the Northern District of Illinois on Monday ordered the City of Chicago to reimburse the National Rifle Association (NRA) for the $940,000 spent on legal fees challenging gun ordinances. Chicago’s ban on the sale and transfer of firearms was overturned in January after the NRA brought claims that the ban [...]
California Governor Jerry Brown on Monday signed into law a bill that will change the language in California’s marriage code to accommodate same-sex couples. The bill , introduced by California Senator Mark Leno , proposes that all state-statutory references to opposite-gender couples, such as “husband” and “wife,” be modified to apply to same-sex couples as [...]
Missouri Governor Jay Nixon on Monday signed legislation that will allow Missouri state officials to develop carbon dioxide pollution standards that are less rigid than those mandated by federal guidelines. The signing of the bill coincided with the release of proposed rules by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that would require Missouri to cut [...]
US President Barack Obama on Monday signed into law legislation concerning spending for the US intelligence community that increases protections for intelligence agency whistleblowers. The bipartisan legislation authorizes $564 million in spending over five years and specifies that employees who divulge information about possible misconduct within their agencies to intelligence committees will be protected. Supporters [...]
The US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit on Monday blocked an Arizona policy barring certain immigrants from obtaining a driver’s license. The decision reversed a ruling by the US District Court for the District of Arizona , which had denied plaintiffs a preliminary injunction. The appeals court found that plaintiffs demonstrated a likelihood [...]
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo on Monday signed the Compassionate Care Act into law, making New York the twenty-third state to legalize medical marijuana. The bill legalizes the possession, manufacture, use, delivery, transport or administration of medical marijuana by a designated caregiver for a certified medical use. It allows medical professionals to prescribe marijuana to [...]
JURIST Guest Columnist Christian Ehret of the Webb Law Firm discusses patent law in reference to Alice Corp. v. CLS Bank International… Alice Corp. v. CLS Bank International is the last of several patent law cases decided by the US Supreme Court in its October 2013 term. While the decision has generated considerable speculation [...]
Lawyers for Guantanamo Bay detainees on Thursday filed an emergency application in the US District Court for the District of Columbia for a temporary restraining order prohibiting the government from depriving the inmates of the right to pray communally during the month of Ramadan. Lawyers for petitioner Imad Abdullah Hassan have already applied for a [...]
The Bolivian National Congress on Wednesday passed legislation permitting children as young as 10 to join the workforce as long as it does not interfere with one’s education and is done independently in an effort to provide for their family. The U.N. International Labor Organization’s (ILO) Carmen Moreno stated that the new legislation would make [...]
