The US Supreme Court ruled Monday that under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, where federal law applies, state law will not be adopted. A California drilling platform worker, Brian Newton, filed suit claiming that under California law, he was entitled to pay for both his shift time and his time on standby. Newton pointed [...]

The US Supreme Court ruled Monday that federal agencies are not “persons” who may take advantage of administrative procedures for challenging patents. The agency in question, the US Postal Service (USPS), attempted to use administrative procedures from the America Invents Act to challenge a patent held by Return Mail, Inc. USPS had originally tried to [...]

In an opinion by Justice Kavanaugh, the US Supreme Court affirmed the ruling below in Quarles v. United States that intent formed at any time during a burglary is sufficient. Defendant Jamar Quarles was charged with a violation of the Armed Career Criminal Act for committing a felony with a weapon after three prior felony [...]

The US Supreme Court’s Monday orders added five new cases on a range of topics from the EPA to race discrimination in media, but denied a case filed by a current Guantanamo prisoner. A Yemeni national, al-Alwi, has been held in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, for 17 years, since the early days of the war on [...]

A new report from Freedom House warns that the right to freedom of the press may be under attack in a number of democratic countries. The report paints a dark picture showing former bastions of democracy turning on the media. The report does clarify that it is not generally through arrests or authoritarian suppression, but [...]

The French government has amended Article 33 of the Justice Reform Act to prohibit the use of data analytics on judge behavior. The new law specifically prohibits: “The identity data of magistrates and members of the judiciary cannot be reused with the purpose or effect of evaluating, analysing, comparing or predicting their actual or alleged [...]

A new report from the Canadian National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls calls for justice the systemic murder and disappearance of women, girls, and 2SLGBTQQIA people (Two-Spirit, Lesbian, Gay, Transgender, Queer, Questioning, Intersex, Asexual) The first volume provides background and personal stories on the research and the victims. The report highlights [...]

The US and Chinese governments both issued statements Tuesday reflecting on how China has changed since the 1989 student protests in Tiananmen Square. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo released a statement honoring the protesters and criticizing the current Chinese government. Pompeo praised the protesters and the democratic reforms they called for while simultaneously railing [...]

The US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit on Friday revived a case against Colonial Williamsburg brought by an 11-year-old boy with gluten sensitivity. The boy, identified only as JD, had traveled to Colonial Williamsburg as part of a class trip. While at Williamsburg, the class was to enjoy a historic dinner at Shields [...]

The Supreme Court of Iowa ruled Friday that the Dakota Access Pipeline is a valid use of eminent domain in the state of Iowa. The Dakota Access Pipeline is set to be one of the largest oil pipelines in North America, running from North Dakota through South Dakota and Iowa to reach a refinery in [...]