Recent Updates
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Court: Bloggers have First Amendment protections
National News 01/20/2014A federal appeals court ruled Friday that bloggers and the public have the same First Amendment protections as journalists when sued for defamation: If the issue is of public concern, plaintiffs have to prove negligence to win damages. The 9th U.S. C...
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Court: Feds can target California pot clinics
National News 01/16/2014An appeals court Wednesday affirmed the federal government's long-standing policy that California medical marijuana dispensaries have no protection under state law from drug prosecutions. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Wednesday that thr...
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High court rejects Ohio killer's last-minute plea
Headline Legal News 01/16/2014The state made preparations on Wednesday to use a never-tried lethal drug combination to put a man to death for the slaying of a pregnant woman that went unsolved until he inadvertently helped authorities, and the U.S. Supreme Court refused to block ...
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Court upholds approval of BP oil spill settlement
Recent Cases 01/13/2014Over BP's objections, a federal appeals court on Friday upheld a judge's approval of the company's multibillion-dollar settlement with lawyers for businesses and residents who claim the massive 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico cost them money. BP...
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Chile's top court rules against coal-fired complex
National News 01/13/2014Chile's Supreme Court sided with local fishermen who contend a coal-fired power complex harms ocean life and pollutes their community, but the judges stopped short of ordering a suspension and left it to environmental authorities to decide if operati...
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Court suspends ban on a show by French comic
Headline Legal News 01/10/2014A French court has suspended a ban the city of Nantes imposed to prevent a show on Thursday night by a comic whose performances are considered anti-Semitic. But Interior Minister Manuel Valls said he would appeal the ruling to the Council of State, F...
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Court: Lawmakers must expedite education funding
National News 01/10/2014The Washington Supreme Court on Thursday ordered lawmakers to submit a complete plan by the end of April to detail how the state will fully pay for basic education. The 8-1 ruling said that while the state made progress in last year's budget to incre...
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Supreme Court Puts Utah Same-Sex Marriage on Hold
Legal Events 01/06/2014The Supreme Court on Monday put same-sex marriages on hold in Utah, at least while a federal appeals court more fully considers the issue. The court issued a brief order blocking any new same-sex unions in the state. The order grants an emergency app...
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Pa. monsignor due in court after leaving prison
National News 01/06/2014A Roman Catholic church official is due in court Monday for the first time since his conviction in the priest sex-abuse scandal was reversed. Monsignor William Lynn is not quite a free man. He must remain under electronic monitoring while prosecutors...
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Court order needed to stop Pa. center utilities
Recent Cases 01/02/2014A judge says a court order is needed to shut off lights and other utilities at Pittsburgh's struggling August Wilson Center for African American Culture. Allegheny County Judge Lawrence O'Toole on Monday approved an order sought by the center's court...
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Serial rapist Coe appeals confinement in US court
National News 01/02/2014Kevin Coe, who was arrested in 1981 after dozens of women were raped in Spokane, is appealing his confinement as a sexually violent predator to federal court. Coe was suspected in the rapes, attributed to the "South Hill Rapist," but only one convict...
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Supreme Court denies appeal in arson case
Recent Cases 12/30/2013The Montana Supreme Court has denied a petition for post-conviction relief filed by a Billings man who argued that a District Court judge misinterpreted the state's arson law and that he had ineffective attorneys. The Dec. 20 Supreme Court ruling lef...