Explainer: US Supreme Court Prepares for Oral Arguments in Local Corruption Case
The US Supreme Court will hear arguments on Monday in Snyder v. United States, a case involving illegal gratuities paid to a local government official. The issue is whether the federal government can use 18 U.S.C. § 666(a)(1)(B)—known as federal funds bribery—to prosecute those who give and take illegal gratuities or whether the statute only [...]
US Supreme Court hears oral arguments on Trump-era bump stock ban
The US Supreme Court heard oral arguments Wednesday on the legality of a Bureau of Alchohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) rule that banned rapid-fire “bump stock.” The case is an appeal from the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, which struck down the rule. Throughout all the arguments, the justices wrestled with [...]
South Africa brings genocide accusation against Israel to International Court of Justice
South Africa initiated proceedings against Israel in the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on Friday, according to a press release from the ICJ. South Africa alleges that Israel’s actions during its military operations in Gaza violate the UN’s 1948 Genocide Convention. Particularly, South Africa claims that Israel has engaged in, is engaging in and risks [...]
US Justice Department charges four Russia soldiers with war crimes in Ukraine
The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) formally unsealed war crime charges against four Russian soldiers on Wednesday. The soldiers charged with three war crimes each—unlawful confinement, torture and inhuman treatment—and one count of conspiracy to commit war crimes. The defendants face a maximum penalty of life in prison. None are currently in custody. In [...]
Child Labor Investigation at Tyson Foods, Inc.: Is Supply Chain Due Diligence the Next Step?
In September 2023, the US Department of Labor (DOL) launched investigations into possible child labor violations by meat and chicken processors Perdue Farms and Tyson Foods. The investigation, which is to determine whether migrant children are working inside slaughterhouses owned by the poultry-processing giants, follows a New York Times magazine report of minors working at the facilities [...]
US Supreme Court finds securities law requires proof of traceability to misleading information
The U.S. Supreme Court unanimously found Thursday in Slack Technologies v. Pirani that federal securities law requires plaintiffs to prove their shares are directly traceable to misleading information in a registration statement in order to sue. Fiyyaz Pirani, an individual investor, sued Slack Technologies, an instant messaging app, after the stock price dropped. Pirani bought [...]
In 2014, Florida’s Fourth District Court of Appeal in Sargeant v. Al-Saleh held that a trial court does not have authority to order a debtor to turn over stock certificates located abroad in order to satisfy a judgment under Fla. Stat. § 56.29(6), which reads as follows: The court may order any property of the [...]
The US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit Friday struck down a Trump-era ban on rapid-fire bump stocks. The ban prevented anyone from possessing bump stock devices, which enable a shooter to rapidly fire multiple rounds from semi-automatic weapons after an initial trigger pull, and encourages possessors to either destroy or turn in their devices. [...]
Recent concerns about leaks of US Supreme Court decisions and Justice Clarence Thomas’s refusal to recuse himself in a case that might involve connections to his wife, Virginia Thomas, have spurred calls for a code of ethics for US Supreme Court justices. Although the Judicial Conference of the United States promulgated a Code of Conduct [...]
Why was the cryptocurrency exchange FTX valued at $32 billion before it filed for bankruptcy? Many of the world’s most sophisticated investors believed it was worth that much and invested billions based on that valuation. They failed to detect the company’s massive misconduct and their investments were completely wiped out over the course of a [...]
