Here's a run-down of law-related events, expected developments and live webcasts on JURIST's docket for Wednesday, March 23. The US Senate and US House are in recess until April 4. The European Council session continues today, with the second working session set to begin at 9:30 AM local time . View the session agenda , [...]

Brown v. Payton, Supreme Court of the United States, March 22, 2005 . Excerpt from the Court's opinion by Justice Kennedy: Testimony about a religious conversion spanning one year and nine months may well have been considered altogether insignificant in light of the brutality of the crimes, the prior offenses, and a proclivity for committing [...]

City of Rancho Palos Verdes v. Abrams, Supreme Court of the United States, Justice Scalia, March 22, 2005 . Excerpt: Enforcement of §332(c)(7)through §1983 would distort the scheme of expedited judicial review and limited remedies created by §332(c)(7)(B)(v).We therefore hold that the TCA —by providing a judicial remedy different from §1983 in §332(c)(7)itself —precluded resort [...]

Muehler v. Mena, Supreme Court of the United States, March 22, 2005 . Excerpt from the Court's opinion by Chief Justice Rehnquist: The governmental interests in not only detaining, but using handcuffs, are at their maximum when, as here, a warrant authorizes a search for weapons and a wanted gang member resides on the premises. [...]

Peter Henning, Wayne State University Law School: "An article in the Wall Street Journal…states that two senior American International Group Inc. executives — Howard Smith, the company's CFO, and Christian Milton, a vice president — have been fired because they indicated that they would assert their Fifth Amendment rights in response to the investigation of [...]

Gregory Felos, attorney for Michael Schiavo, told reporters late Tuesday afternoon that he had electronically filed two more reply briefs with the US Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta, but he did not know when the court would rule on the case. A three-judge panel is generally expected to hand down a decision late [...]

The Justice Department and tobacco industry representatives have begun settlement negotiations in the government's racketeering case against the industry, an anonymous source involved with the case said Tuesday. The two sides have met at least once with a court-appointed mediator, but both are under court orders not to discuss the negotiations. The talks were prompted [...]

In issuing new mercury emissions regulations last week, the Environmental Protection Agency failed to include conflicting data from a study sponsored by the agency, the Washington Post reported Tuesday. EPA officials emphasized that the mercury regulations could not be more stringent because the costs to businesses already substantially outweighed health benefits. However, a Harvard University [...]

AP is reporting that UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan has said that Syria will completely withdraw its military forces from Lebanon. Last week, Annan had demanded a withdraw in accordance with Security Council Resolution 1559 . AP has more.

A UK court on Tuesday granted Home Secretary Charles Clarke more time to decide on a US request to extradite three British bankers indicted on fraud charges stemming from the Enron scandal. A court ruled last fall that the three, Gary Mulgrew, David Bermingham and Gile Darby, could be extradited , but the final decision [...]