Human Rights Record of the US in 2004, China State Council, March 3, 2005. Excerpt: In 2004 the atrocity of US troops abusing Iraqi POWs exposed the dark side of human rights performance of the United States. The scandal shocked the humanity and was condemned by the international community. It is quite ironic that on [...]

In Thursday's environmental law news, a task force charged with reducing air pollution to 2001 levels at the Port of Los Angeles is expected to approve a preliminary plan today. The task force was commissioned by LA mayor James Hahn, and is comprised of members from a variety of Federal, state and local agencies, as [...]

A US Department of Agriculture spokesperson said Thursday that the USDA will appeal yesterday's federal court decision to delay the re-opening of US border to cattle imports from Canada . USDA spokesperson Ed Lloyd said that the court's injunction decision was not based on the merits of the case, but was focused on procedural issues. [...]

US Bankruptcy Judge Letitia Clark ruled Thursday that she will not reinstate Russian oil company Yukos' bankruptcy filing, which she dismissed last week for lack of jurisdiction in the United States. Late last week, Yukos filed a motion asking Judge Clark to reconsider her analysis of Section 1112(b) of the US bankruptcy code, saying there [...]

Leading Thursday's corporations and securities law news, the SEC announced Putnam Investments has been ordered to pay an additional $43 million in fines as part of its punishment for an improper trading scandal. The announcement came after an independent consultant found the trading scandals cost investors in Putnam funds $4.4 million. Read the SEC press [...]

Ellen S. Podgor, Georgia State University College of Law: "With the upcoming release of Martha Stewart from prison, the press is writing of her experiences and future. The Wall Street Journal provides a view of her life in prison here, AP here, and there have been many a story on her upcoming TV show. (see [...]

Halliburton has disclosed in annual 10-K SEC filings that former employees may have engaged in bid rigging on foreign construction projects. Former company consultant and chairman of Halliburton subsidiary Kellogg Brown & Root , Jack Stanley and others allegedly engaged in improper bidding and bribery of Nigerian officials to win a contract for a liquefied [...]

The Canadian government said Thursday it could not appeal Wednesday's decision by a US federal judge in Montana to delay the re-opening of the American market to young Canadian cattle. Canadian cattle imports were stopped last year after a Canadian animal was found to have died of "mad cow disease" . Elizabeth Whiting, from the [...]

Rasim Delic , the former commander of Bosnia's Muslim army during the 1992-95 Bosnian war, pleaded not guilty Thursday in his first appearance before the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia at The Hague on charges of violating the laws of war by murder and cruel treatment of ethnic Croat and Serb prisoners. Prosecutors [...]

Lawyers for former Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien filed a motion in Canada's Federal Court Thursday to remove Justice John Gomery from the chairmanship of a judicial commission of inquiry investigating Chretien’s involvement in improper payments made by a defunct national unity program. Last month Gomery refused to step down after Chretien's lawyers alleged that [...]