JUL
28
2009

Senator Sessions opposes Sotomayor confirmation

Ranking Republican on the US Senate Judiciary Committee [official website] Jeff Sessions (R-AL) [official website] opposed the confirmation of Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor [WH profile] on Monday, maintaining that she lacks "deep-rooted convictions" [USA Today editorial] needed to resist judicial activism.

JUL
28
2009

SEC makes rule banning ´naked´ short selling permanent

The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) [official website] on Monday made permanent [rule, PDF; press release] a temporary ban on the so-called ´naked´ short selling of stocks.

JUL
27
2009

World oil demand to rise in 2010, supply still high

World oil consumption will rise for the first time in two years in 2010 as a recovery in the global economy boosts demand, according to a Reuters poll of top oil-tracking analysts and organizations.

JUL
27
2009

Skype singled out as threat to Russia´s security

Russia´s most powerful business lobby moved to clamp down on Skype and its peers this week, telling lawmakers that the Internet phone services are a threat to Russian businesses and to national security.

JUL
27
2009

Microsoft in new EU browser offer

It proposes that European buyers of its new Windows 7 operating system will be offered a list of potential browsers when they first install the software.

JUL
27
2009

Gaza female lawyers ordered to wear religious headscarves in court

Chief Justice of the High Court of Justice in Gaza [JURIST news archive] Abdul Ra´ouf al-Halabi Sunday announced an order requiring female lawyers to wear traditional religious robes and headscarves or hijab [JURIST news archive] for any court appearances. The order, originally issued July 9, also establishes new guidelines for male lawyers. The decision has been criticized for establishing different courtroom garb rules for Palestinian areas in Gaza and the West Bank.

JUL
27
2009

Obama administration may bring more Guantanamo detainees to US

The Obama administration is considering transferring more Guantanamo Bay detainees to the US, according to testimony [schedule] Friday by US Defense Department General Counsel Jeh Charles Johnson [official profile] to the the House Armed Services Committee [official website]. Some detainees could be transferred for long-term incarceration and others for prosecution, but none would be released domestically.

JUL
27
2009

Federal appeals court orders Interior Department to account in Indian Trust case

The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit [official website] ruled [opinion, PDF] Friday that the US Department of the Interior (DOI) [official website] must provide an accounting in a 13-year class action lawsuit [plaintiffs´ website; JURIST news archive] concerning the US government´s alleged mismanagement of trust funds [DOI materials] for a group of some 500,000 American Indians. Both parties appealed two separate rulings from the US District Court for the District of Columbia [official website]. In January 2008, district judge James Robertson ruled [opinion, PDF; JURIST report] that the DOI "unreasonably delayed" the accounting of billions of dollars of American Indian money, holding that it was impossible for the DOI or for Congress to remedy the breach.

JUL
27
2009

US to sign UN disability rights treaty: Obama

President Barack Obama announced Friday that the United States will sign the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities [official website; JURIST news archive]. At a celebration commemorating the 19th anniversary of the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990 [DOJ materials], Obama said that US Ambassador to the UN Susan Rice [official profile] has been instructed to sign the convention next week.

JUL
24
2009

Senate terminates federal judge impeachment proceedings

The US Senate [official website] on Wednesday dismissed articles of impeachment [text, PDF] for former federal judge Samuel Kent [JURIST news archive]. The decision to terminate impeachment proceedings came after the White House accepted Kent´s resignation [JURIST reports] last month. Kent resigned at the end of June after the US House of Representatives [official website] voted to impeach him [JURIST report]. Kent is the first federal judge to be impeached in 20 years, and only the thirteenth federal judge ever to be impeached.

JUL
24
2009

Ex-Credit Suisse broker pleads guilty to fraud and conspiracy

Former Credit Suisse broker Julian Tzolov pleaded guilty Wednesday to multiple counts of fraud and conspiracy before the US District Court for the Eastern District of New York [official website]. Tzolov is accused [complaint, PDF; JURIST report] of defrauding clients out of more than $400 million [WSJ report] by selling high-risk, mortgage-backed securities to clients who requested low-risk investments, in violation of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Securities Act of 1933, and other SEC regulations [text].

JUL
24
2009

Senate narrowly rejects amendment to allow concealed firearms across state lines

US Senate [official website] on Wednesday rejected [roll call vote] a proposed amendment to a military appropriations bill [SR 1390 materials] that would allow individuals with permits to carry concealed firearms across state lines. The amendment [S.AMDT.1618 materials] was proposed by Senator John Thune (R-SD) [official profile] and had been a hotly contested issue, reflected by the 58-39 vote. Sixty votes were needed for passage.

JUL
24
2009

European Commission sets stricter bank bailout rules

The European Commission (EC) [official website] on Thursday announced [press release] new rules including a number of specific criteria [communication, PDF] that European banks seeking government assistance must meet.

JUL
24
2009

Civilian engineer loses claim against MoD over blast injuries in Iraq

A civilian engineer wounded in a bomb blast in Iraq lost a claim for damages against the Ministry of Defence and a private consultancy today. The ruling is a potential blow for other people hoping to sue for injuries sustained in a war zone.

JUL
24
2009

OFT increases pressure over milk price-fixing

The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has renewed its attack on two leading retailers, Tesco and Wm Morrison, over alleged price-fixing in milk and other dairy products. The two supermarket groups continue to deny any wrong-doing.

JUL
23
2009

Report finds government vulnerable to cyber attacks

The federal government is at risk of being unable to fight off attacks on the nation´s computer networks unless it strengthens its cyber-security work force, according to a report released Wednesday.

JUL
23
2009

South Korea fines Qualcomm $208 million in anti-trust case

South Korea´s anti-trust agency on Thursday imposed a $208 million fine on Qualcomm Inc and ordered the U.S. wireless chip and technology company to stop discriminating against companies using competitor´s products.

JUL
23
2009

Intel Appeals Antitrust Ruling

Intel, the world’s largest chip maker, filed an appeal Wednesday challenging the European Commission’s record €1.06 billion fine and ruling in May that it had abused its dominance in computer processors by offering rebates to computer makers who used more of its chips.

JUL
23
2009

Hague arbitration court redraws Sudan oil region boundaries

The Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) [official website] in The Hague issued an order [text, PDF; materials] Wednesday redrawing boundaries of Sudan´s oil-producing Abyei region. The borders of the region had been disputed by the country´s southern Sudan People Liberation Movement (SPLM) [group website] and its northern, ruling National Congress Party (NCP) [party website].

JUL
23
2009

Pentagon media program did not violate propaganda rules: report

The US Government Accountability Office (GAO) concluded Tuesday that the US Department of Defense (DOD) [official websites] did not violate prohibitions on propaganda [report text] by having retired military officers (RMOs) offer public support to the Bush administration´s war policies.

voltar para o topo