CRS Legal Sidebar Prepared for Members and Committees of Congress Legal Sidebar. Sidewalks, Streets, and Tweets: Is Twitter a Public Forum? Valerie C. Brannon, Legislative Attorney. May 30, 2018. “On May 23, 2018, a federal district court in New York in Knight First Amendment Institute v. Trump held that the Free Speech Clause of the… Continue Reading
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Category Archives: Courts
In secret memo Trump’s lawyers argued he has full power over DOJ investigations
The New York Times: “President Trump’s lawyers have for months quietly waged a campaign to keep the special counsel from trying to force him to answer questions in the investigation into whether he obstructed justice, asserting that he cannot be compelled to testify and arguing in a confidential letter that he could not possibly have… Continue Reading
Largest federal employee union sues Trump over rollback of union protections
Washington Post – Largest federal employee union sues Trump over rollback of union protections – “The American Federation of Government Employees claims that Trump’s executive order violates the First Amendment guarantee of the right to freedom of association and oversteps the president’s constitutional authority.” …On Friday [May 25, 2018 President Trump]…used his ultimate weapon, his power… Continue Reading
Smart devices in your home have data that may be used by law enforcement
Your Home is Your…Snitch? When your appliances work as police informants – By Daniel Zwerdling – The Marshall Project Justice Lab column examines the science, social science and technology of criminal justice. “Police records in Bentonville, Arkansas show that James Bates called 911 on Sunday morning just before Thanksgiving 2015, and reported chilling news: he’d… Continue Reading
You’re Bad at Legal Research, and Your Judge Knows It.
Above the Law – You’re Bad at Legal Research, and Your Judge Knows It: “One reason artificial intelligence is a hot topic in law: When attorneys miss precedents, the stakes are high. Recent research conducted by Casetext uncovered that judges have a surprisingly consistent opinion of the work they see from us litigators: they believe… Continue Reading
Court Rules That Government Officials Who Tweet to the Public Can’t Block Users Who They Disagree With
EFF – Victory For The First Amendment..Lawsuit Against President Trump Brought by Twitter Users He Blocked “President Donald Trump’s blocking of people on Twitter because they criticize him violates the First Amendment, a federal judge in New York ruled today in a resounding victory for freedom of speech and the public’s right to communicate opposing… Continue Reading
White Collar Prosecutions Fall to Lowest in 20 Years
Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse: “Current prosecution levels represent the lowest number of white collar prosecutions in more than 20 years. Government case-by-case records, updated through April 2018, indicate a total of 3,249 new white collar crime prosecutions were brought during the first seven months of FY 2018. If this level of activity continues at the… Continue Reading
Yale Law School Consumer Arbitration Data Archive
“On May 21, 2018, a United States Supreme Court majority held in Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis, 584 U.S. ___ (2018) (link is external), that, “Congress has instructed in the Arbitration Act that arbitration agreements providiing for individual proceedings must be enforced, and neither the Arbitration Act’s saving clause nor the NLRA suggests otherwise.” In… Continue Reading
Supreme Court decision – companies can use arbitration clauses to block employees class action suits
The New York Times: “The Supreme Court on Monday ruled that companies can use arbitration clauses in employment contracts to prohibit workers from banding together to take legal action over workplace issues. The vote was 5 to 4, with the court’s more conservative justices in the majority. The court’s decision could affect some 25 million… Continue Reading
TIME magazine cover story – How Baby Boomers Broke America
Steven Brill – How My Generation Broke America [Brill is the author of Tailspin, from which this article is adapted, out this month from Alfred A. Knopf.] This appears in the May 28, 2018 issue of TIME: “Lately, most Americans, regardless of their political leanings, have been asking themselves some version of the same question:… Continue Reading
Facebook loses fight with IRS over 7B tax bill from overseas income
The Register: “Facebook has lost its bid to throw out a tax bill on $7bn worth of income it had stashed overseas. A Northern District of California judge ruled in favor of the IRS this week, finding the Social Network did not have standing to challenge the tax bod’s finding that Facebook underreported its revenues… Continue Reading
US Circuit and District Court Nominations During President Trump’s First Year in Office
CRS report – U.S. Circuit and District Court Nominations During President Trump’s First Year in Office: Comparative Analysis with Recent Presidents, May 2, 2018. “This report, in light of continued Senate interest in the judicial confirmation process during a President’s first year in office, provides statistics related to the nomination and confirmation of U.S. circuit… Continue Reading
