A New York Supreme Court judge dealt a blow to same-sex couples seeking the right to marry on Thursday, upholding the state's stance that the extension of marriage rights is a matter for the state legislature rather than the courts to decide. Last year in Ithaca , 25 same-sex couples applied for marriage licenses, supported [...]

In Thursday's environmental law news, the US meatpackers industry group has filed a complaint in the US District Court of District of Columbia to lift a ban on the import of all cattle from Canada. Documents from the case, AMI vs. DeHaven and Johanns, are not yet online. Currently, the USDA is set to allow [...]

Senator Arlen Specter , chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee , said Thursday that the committee will hold confirmation hearings next week for William G. Myers III, nominated by President Bush to the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, and District Judge Terrence W. Boyle, a nominee for the Court of Appeals for the [...]

Connecticut's Joint Committee on the Judiciary has approved a bill that will allow civil unions for same-sex couples. If the bill is approved by the full House and Senate and the governor, Connecticut would join Vermont as the only two states extending the rights and responsibilities of marriage to same-sex couples. Under the proposed bill, [...]

Leading Thursday's corporations and securities law news, Senator Arlen Specter announced the Senate Judiciary Committee will start an investigation into how criminals were able to gain access to at least 145,000 consumer profiles maintained by ChoicePoint Inc. . Privacy advocates are calling for tougher regulations for ChoicePoint, which currently maintains personal profiles of almost all [...]

In Thursday's international brief, the Supreme Court of Zimbabwe held Wednesday that while voting was constitutionally protected in the country, it was not a "fundamental right." The ruling was made at a hearing for Zimbabweans who are petitioning the government to allow them to vote, even though they live outside of Zimbabwe. Counsel for the [...]

Jack Balkin, Yale Law School: "Today, in Johnson v. California, the Supreme Court held that California's practice of segregating newly arrived prisoners by race for up to 60 days was subject to strict scrutiny. Justice O'Connor wrote the majority opinion. Justices Scalia and Thomas dissented, arguing that strict scrutiny shouldn't apply in prison settings; instead [...]

Two medical clinics have asked the Kansas Supreme Court to intercede in secret investigation by Attorney General Phill Kline seeking medical records of females seeking late-term abortions. Kline wants the records in an attempt to find evidence of sex crimes against children. Kansas law gives prosecutors the authority to conduct secret inquisitions during a criminal [...]

New York District Court Judge Robert W. Sweet ruled Thursday that the New York Times can protect the confidentiality of its sources under the First Amendment , refusing to dismiss the paper's lawsuit against the government. The ruling comes after the New York Times filed a lawsuit last year attempting to stop the Department of [...]

The EU ended consideration Thursday of proposals that would have banned Nazi symbols in the 25-country bloc after it became apparent that member states could not agree on which symbols should be included in the ban. Luxembourg, which currently holds the rotating EU presidency, withdrew the proposal from consideration. Many voiced concerns that any ban [...]