A federal judge has ruled that Dominion Energy Inc. may restart construction on its ambitious offshore wind project off the coast of Virginia, delivering another judicial rebuke to the Trump administration’s efforts to halt major renewable energy developments. The decision came late Friday in the U.S. District Court for the…
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Appointment of Trump Nominee as Acting U.S. Attorney Struck Down by Court
A federal judge has ruled that Ryan Ellison, the acting U.S. Attorney for the District of New Mexico, was improperly appointed and therefore has been serving unlawfully in the top federal prosecutor role, delivering a fresh legal setback for the Trump administration’s efforts to place loyalists in key Justice Department…
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Magistrates Can Issue Custody Orders for Sexually Violent Predators, Virginia Appeals Court Rules
The Court of Appeals of Virginia has overturned a circuit court order that sought to restrict which judicial officers could issue Emergency Custody Orders (ECOs) for a designated sexually violent predator, William Messenger. The appellate court firmly stated that under Virginia’s Sexually Violent Predators Act (SVPA), magistrates—not just circuit courts—have…
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CenturyTel Loses Bid to Overturn NLRB Ruling on Information Request
A federal appeals court has upheld a ruling by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) finding that CenturyTel of Montana, Inc., violated federal labor law by refusing to provide the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local Union 768 (the Union), with requested information regarding non-union technicians working in the Union’s…
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Court Sides with Homeland Security Agencies in FOIA Battle Over Reza Zarrab Records
A federal district court in Washington D.C. has granted summary judgment to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and its components—ICE, CBP, and USCIS—in a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit brought by the law firm Williams & Connolly, LLP. The firm sought records pertaining to Reza Zarrab, an Iranian,…
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Parolee Loses Fight for “Erroneous Liberty” Credit, But Board Must Explain Denial of Other Time Off
The Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court has issued a nuanced ruling concerning Vernon Robinson, a parolee whose sentence calculations were challenged after a complex series of violations and subsequent incarcerations. While the court sided with the Pennsylvania Parole Board (Board) in denying Robinson credit for time he spent out of custody following…
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Judge Allows MPD Officer to Join Disability Discrimination Suit, But Only for Damages
A former District of Columbia Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) officer has been granted permission to join a major class-action lawsuit alleging disability discrimination, but the judge has placed a specific limitation on his involvement: he can only pursue individual monetary damages, not the broader injunctive relief sought by the class.…
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Bolivia Loses Bid to Dismiss $253M Enforcement Case Over Service Technicality
A federal court in Washington D.C. has rejected Bolivia’s attempt to dismiss a major enforcement action brought by Glencore Finance (Bermuda) Ltd., ruling that the mining giant correctly followed complex international service rules when suing the South American nation. The ruling allows Glencore to proceed with its effort to enforce…
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GAO Wins Big: Court Rules Legislative Watchdog Is Immune from FOIA Requests
A federal court in Washington D.C. has sided with the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), ruling that the agency is not subject to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). America First Legal Foundation (America First) sued the GAO, an investigative arm of Congress, seeking public disclosure of its records under…
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Eighth Circuit Boots USCIS on Jurisdiction, Blocks Review of Asylum Seeker’s Status Denial
The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals has handed a significant win to the federal government in an immigration case, ruling that a district court overstepped its authority by reviewing the denial of an asylum seeker’s application to become a lawful permanent resident. The appellate court found that Congress intentionally barred…