Woo v. Lockyer, Superior Court of the State of California, County of San Francisco, Judge Richard A. Kramer, March 14, 2005 . Excerpt: The state's protracted denial of equal protection cannot be justified simply because such constitutional violation has become traditional…. Simply put, same-sex marriage cannot be prohibited solely because California has always done so [...]

The Prosecutor v. Vicent Rutaganira, International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda , March 14, 2005 . Excerpt: The Accused knew that during the disturbances that occurred earlier in Kibuye préfecture, Tutsi civilians used to seek refuge in churches, and especially that between 8 and 15 April 1994, thousands of Tutsi civilians took refuge in the Mubuga [...]

As world capitals reacted Monday to China's adoption of a law authorizing "non-peaceful means" of reunification with Taiwan, the White House called the legislation "unfortunate" while Russia said it understood China's position . In Washington, White House spokesman Scott McClellan noted that that the US "does not support Taiwan independence," but he told reporters that [...]

A US District Court judge ruled Monday that a Hollinger International lawsuit over a looting of $425 million that allegedly took place under the watch of former CEO Conrad Black and his former deputy could proceed. Hollinger, which owns the Chicago Sun-Times among its many media holdings , maintains that Black diverted funds for his [...]

Defense contractor Halliburton Inc. may have overcharged the federal government by more than $100 million, according to an audit conducted by the Defense Contract Audit Agency and released Monday by Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) , which questioned $108 million in costs charged by Halliburton subsidiary Kellogg Brown & Root (KBR) for delivering fuel to civilians [...]

In Monday's environmental law news, the UK has announced it will go ahead in late April or early May with its original plan for limiting CO2 output under the European Union's emissions trading scheme in keeping with Kyoto Protocol requirements. The UK had proposed a revised plan that would have increased their limits for the [...]

AP is reporting that a California Superior Court judge has ruled that California's law limiting marriage to a union between a man and a woman is unconstitutional. 4:32 PM ET – San Francisco County Superior Court Judge Richard Kramer has ruled that the California law limiting marriage to opposite-sex couples is unconstitutional. "The state's protracted [...]

The leaders of United States, Canada and Mexico will discuss a joint plan to protect North American borders and improve movement between countries when they meet next week at a North American summit in Texas. A report released Monday , jointly sponsored by the foreign relation councils of all three nations, calls for the creation [...]

The International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda Monday sentenced Vincent Rutaganira, a former local leader, to six years in prison after he pleaded guilty to a charge of extermination by omission. In the court's first judgment this year, the court handed down its shortest sentence ever. The ICTR was established by the UN in 1995 to [...]

Former Kosovo prime minister Ramush Haradinaj Monday pleaded not guilty in his initial appearance before the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) . Haradinaj, who resigned his post and turning himself over to the court last week, plead not guilty to all 37 counts of war crimes including murder, persecution, and rape. His [...]