UN human rights experts on Friday urged  Brazil to reconsider its economic austerity measures. Specifically, the experts are focused on the negative impacts such measures might have on the countries most socially vulnerable, such as lower income, youth, women, and ethnic minorities. “Women and children living in poverty are among those hit hardest, as are [...]

A judge in the UK’s high court ruled Wednesday that there were grounds for a dissolution of a religious marriage that was not recognized by British law. The wife filed for divorce against her husband in 2016, alleging there were grounds for her to claim some of the assets, all of which were in her [...]

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) formally unveiled plans Thursday to rollback fuel economy standards previously aimed at bringing cars and small trucks to 50 miles per gallon by 2025. The new plan will freeze 2020 mileage targets, which are about 30 miles per gallon, for the next [...]

UN experts on freedom of expression on Thursday condemned  US President Donald Trump’s attacks on the media, saying that the attacks are “strategic, designed to undermine confidence in reporting and raise doubts about verifiable facts.” The experts emphasized the importance of the free press, and urged Trump to end these attacks and condemn his administration’s [...]

Poland’s Supreme Court  ruled Thursday that Supreme Court judges can continue to sit on the court until the Court of Justice of the European Union  rules  on the laws passed by Poland which give the government more control over the judiciary. One law  passed  by Poland’s legislative branch last week would give politicians the ability to select justices. Another law [...]

The Vatican announced  Thursday that Pope Francis has declared that the death penalty is “inadmissible,” calling it “an attack on the inviolability and dignity of the person.” The Pontiff’s announcement accompanied a revision made to number 2267  by the Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith to the Catechism of the Catholic Church. There is an [...]

Baltimore, Chicago, Cincinnati and Columbus argued in a lawsuit filed Thursday in the US District Court for the District of Maryland that President Donald Trump’s plan to undermine the Affordable Care Act (ACA) is a violation of the US Constitution. Congressional Republicans attempted and failed to repeal the ACA several times last year. Shortly after, [...]

A judge for the US District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan  on Wednesday dismissed  the state of Michigan and Governor Rick Snyder from a class action lawsuit concerning injuries resulting from the Flint water crisis, saying the government officials are given sovereign immunity. Under the Eleventh Amendment, state governments and officials, acting in their [...]

Iraqi judges routinely disregard allegations of torture by security forces against terrorism suspects and accept convictions credibly claimed to be the result of such tactics, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said  Tuesday. “Torture is rampant in Iraq’s justice system, yet judges lack instructions for responding to torture allegations,” said HRW deputy Middle East director Lama Fakih. The [...]

The US Circuit Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit  on Wednesday struck down  President Donald Trump’s executive order to end federal grant funding to sanctuary cities. Executive Order 13,768, “Enhancing Public Safety in the Interior of the United States,” directed the Attorney General and the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security to withhold [...]