The Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) will enter into force Sunday, making the provisions of the treaty legally binding on countries that have ratified the convention . The FCTC, the first international treaty negotiated under the auspices of the World Health Organization , requires its signatories to implement measures ensuring that tobacco packaging has [...]

Richard Posner, University of Chicago Law School: "I approach the issue of immigration reform (theoretical reform – neither Becker nor I are considering the political obstacles to radical changes in immigration law) somewhat differently. I begin by asking: why restrict immigration at all? The only answer I consider fully compatible with a market-oriented approach to [...]

Yukos and its main shareholder Group Menatep said Friday that they would keep fighting against the "Russian Federation's campaign to destroy the company," despite yesterday's US court decision to dismiss Yukos' bid for bankruptcy protection ]. In Yukos' statement , the company said: We have read the Judge's opinion and it supports YUKOS' position on [...]

British Attorney General Lord Goldsmith issued a statement Friday denying reports that his 2003 parliamentary answer on the legality of the Iraq invasion had been drawn up in the Prime Minister's office. Earlier this week, British papers reported that the answer, presented to Parliament as Lord Goldsmith's official opinion, was drawn up in No. 10 [...]

In Friday's international brief, the African Union announced the suspension of Togo's membership in the continental organization following a meeting of the AU Peace and Security Council . The AU also called for wider sanctions against Togo , while endorsing the current sanctions imposed by the West African regional body ECOWAS . The controversy is [...]

The UK Parliament Joint Committee on Human Rights questioned the legality of proposed anti-terror legislation that grants the home secretary power to order house arrests of terror suspects in a report released Friday. The committee's report presents a new challenge for the government, which had hoped to rush the recently announced legislation through Parliament so [...]

Leading Friday's corporations and securities law news, US District Judge Sim Lake has ordered the jury selection for the trial of former Enron Chairman Ken Lay , ex-CEO Jeff Skilling and top accountant Rick Causey to begin on Jan. 17, 2006. Judge Lake had been eyeing a summer 2005 start to the trial, but on [...]

The Palestinian parliament overwhelmingly approved Thursday a new Cabinet made up primarily of professionals rather than politicians. Of the 24 members of the Cabinet, 17 are new, marking a departure from the Yasser Arafat era. The approval came after Prime Minister Ahmed Qurei withdrew his initial list of nominees due to criticism that those on [...]

Citing a Government Accountability Office study, several lawmakers Thursday called for an end to the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy regarding homosexuals. The report , released Wednesday, indicated that the policy has hurt recruiting and retainment as the war in Iraq has drained resources. Specifically, the report stated that the Department of Defense spent [...]

The US Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the constitutionality of Utah's so-called hate-crimes statute. The law, passed in 1992, differs from most other hate-crimes prohibitions because it does not protect an enumerated class of victims. Attempts to broaden the statute's application by specifically identifying classes of victims have repeatedly failed in the Utah legislature. [...]