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Category Archives: Courts

National Labor Relations Board v. Noel Canning

Complete coverage and archive of all documents relevant to the case via SCOTUSblog: “Holding: The Recess Appointments Clause authorizes the president to fill any existing vacancy during any recess – whether occurring during or between sessions of Congress – of sufficient length. However, for purposes of the clause, the Senate is in session whenever it… Continue Reading

Network Neutrality and Quality of Service: What a Non-Discrimination Rule Should Look Like

van Schewick, Barbara, Network Neutrality and Quality of Service: What a Non-Discrimination Rule Should Look Like (June 26, 2014). Stanford Law Review, Forthcoming; Stanford Law and Economics Olin Working Paper No. 462; Stanford Public Law Working Paper No. 2459568. Available for download at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=2459568 “In December 2010, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) adopted the Open… Continue Reading

Despite Rise in Felony Charges, Most Immigration Convictions Remain Misdemeanors

“Convictions for the petty offense of illegal entry continue to dominate the criminal enforcement of federal immigration laws, according to a new analysis by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC) of case-by case records from the Justice Department. During the first six months of fiscal year 2014, two out of three immigration convictions — 24,647 out… Continue Reading

Unanimous Supreme Court Upholds Privacy Rights of Cell Phone Users – EPIC

EPIC – “The Supreme Court ruled today that a warrantless search of a cell phone violates the Fourth Amendment, even when it occurs during a lawful arrest. The Court’s decision in Riley v. California makes clear that “a search of the information on a cell phone bears little resemblance to the type of brief physical search” allowed… Continue Reading

ABA Opinion – Lawyer Reviewing Jurors’ Internet Presence

Formal Opinion 466 April 24, 2014  – Lawyer Reviewing Jurors’ Internet Presence “Unless limited by law or court order, a lawyer may review a juror’s or potential juror’s Internet presence, which may include postings by the juror or potential juror in advance of and during a trial, but a lawyer may not communicate directly or through… Continue Reading

Federal Appeals Court Releases “Drone Killing” Memo, EPIC Filed Amicus

EPIC – “The Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit today made public the legal analysis justifying the Administration’s controversial “targeted killing” drone program. The action follows an earlier ruling by the federal appeals court in New York Times v. Department of Justice. The government had argued that this memo could not be disclosed under the Freedom of… Continue Reading

Obama Renews NSA Bulk Record Collection Program – EPIC

EPIC – “Today the Attorney General and the Director of National Intelligence announced that the President will seek a renewal of the court order authorizing the NSA’s bulk collection of American telephone records through September 12, 2014. The President has chosen to renew this order despite his promise in March 2014 to end the bulk collection program and the… Continue Reading

WSJ – Canadians Have a Right to Online Anonymity, Nation’s Top Court Rules

Jacob Gershman – “A month after the Europe Union’ top court endorsed the right to be forgotten online, another landmark Internet privacy ruling has come down — this time from the highest court in Canada. The Supreme Court of Canada on Friday said Internet users there have a reasonable expectation of anonymity, ruling that telecommunications companies may not hand… Continue Reading

New code exposes hidden changes to Supreme Court opinions

Jeff John Roberts via Gigaom: “David Zvenyach is general counsel to the Council of the District of Columbia and, in his spare time, likes to experiment with computer code. Upon learning of Adam Liptak’s [New York Times article addressing changes to Supreme court opinions, which was based on a study by Harvard law professor Richard Lazurus, he decided to… Continue Reading

The Fourth Amendment Third-Party Doctrine – CRS

The Fourth Amendment Third-Party Doctrine, Richard M. Thompson II, Legislative Attorney. June 5, 2014. “In the 1970s, the Supreme Court handed down Smith v. Maryland and United States v. Miller, two of the most important Fourth Amendment decisions of the 20th century. In these cases, the Court held that people are not entitled to an expectation of privacy… Continue Reading

Another Fair Use Victory for Book Scanning in HathiTrust

EFF – “Fair use enjoyed a major victory in court today. In Authors Guild v. HathiTrust, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals handed down a decision that strongly underscores a fair use justification for a major book scanning program. For those counting along at home, today’s decision marks another in a serious streak of judicial findings of fair use… Continue Reading