[JURIST] For the first time since 1954, the US Supreme Court [official website] will consider the issue of eminent domain when a group of New London, CT homeowners argue Tuesday against the city's attempt to take their property for private economic development. New London officials claim the takings would be for a "public purpose" in that the development plans would increase tax revenue and help the local economy, but residents assert that the situation simply constitutes an unconstitutional transfer of private property to another private entity for its own use. CNN has more. The ABA has posted the petitioners' brief [PDF text] in Kelo v. City of New London. Institute for Justice, which represents the homeowners, provides a case resource center, and has also made available more than two dozen amicus briefs filed in support of the homeowners.

[JURIST] Leading up to this week's summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin [official website], President Bush Monday criticized the leader's continuing shift toward authoritarian rule and called for the Russian government to "renew a commitment to democracy and the rule of law." In Bush's speech [White House text] delivered to European leaders in Brussels, he made mention of the need for open markets, a free press, the sharing of power, and the rule of law if Russia is to further strengthen its ties with Western nations. Reuters has more. BBC News has recorded video of Bush's speech.

[JURIST] In Monday's environmental law news, China's State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) [official website] has approved the resumption of 26 of the 30 large construction projects that were halted last month for failing to complete environmental impact statements before beginning. The initial halting was seen as a show of power by SEPA and its authority to enforce environmental regulations. The remaining 4 projects will likely continue once their reports are completed. AFP has the full story.

In other news,

• The Japanese Iron and Steel Federation [official website, in Japanese] has adopted a plan that would provide emission control technology to China's steel industry. Japan hopes to use its assistance to China as a credit to its own emissions reduction target under the Kyoto Protocol. AP has the full story.
  
  
• The US Department of Justice [official website] has charged the now-former manager of the Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge [official website] in Arizona with illegally moving the Chiricahua leopard frog [species profile], a threatened species, into the refuge. In 2003, Wayne Shifflett [personal statement on the events, PDF], a 38 year veteran of the US Fish and Wildlife Service [official website], assisted and authorized the relocation of the frog from the control of a university researcher into two of the refuge's ponds and a captive breeding facility. The frog had been present at the refuge until severe droughts dried up their habitat. Shifflett, who retired last year, has said he will pay the $3,500 fine [DOJ citation, PDF] for moving the frogs. Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility has more.

[JURIST] European Union [official website] foreign ministers announced Monday that the EU will renew its sanctions against the Zimbabwean government [official website] for another year. However, the ministers indicated the sanctions could be reexamined after the March 31 parliamentary elections. The sanctions were put in place after President Robert Mugabe's [BBC profile] ruling party allegedly rigged parliamentary elections in 2000 and the 2002 presidential election. The sanctions, which apply to all senior Zimbabwean officials "who commit human rights violations and restrict freedom of opinion," include a ban on arms sales, freezing of Zimbabwean assets in European banks, and travel ban on Mugabe and other government officials to EU countries. BBC News has more.

[JURIST] Syrian officials have indicated that the country will soon begin to withdraw its troops from Lebanon in compliance with the Taif agreement [text], signed at the end of Lebanon's 1975-90 civil war. Syria's move coincides with President Bush's speech [White House text] in Belgium today, which pressed for Syria to "end its occupation" of its neighbor. The international community and the Lebanese opposition have exerted increased pressure on Syria to pull its troops since the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri [Wikipedia profile] in Beirut a week ago, which many blame on Syria. Arab League [official website] chief Amr Moussa said Monday that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad [official website] has told him that Syrian troops will soon be withdrawn from Lebanon according to the Taif agreement, which committed Syria to shifting its troops to the eastern Bekaa Valley. It also stipulated that Syria and Lebanon must agree on a timetable for a complete troop pullout. No agreement on a timetable has yet been made. Syria pulled out or redeployed a few thousand troops last year and is expected to pull out more after the May general election in Lebanon. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] Togo's parliament [official website in French] has re-amended the country's constitution so that presidential elections can be held within 60 days, overturning a change made to allow Faure Gnassingbe [BBC profile] to fulfill his father's term as president. However, Gnassingbe will remain in power until the vote is conducted and is expected to run for president. The US, France, and other African nations have called on Gnassingbe to resign and allow the speaker of the parliament to govern as mandated by the constitution. The African Union [official website] announced Sunday night that it has imposed sanctions [African Union press release, PDF] on the Gnassingbe regime by suspending Togo from all AU activities. Parliamentary leaders undid the earlier change to the constitution because of increasing international demands and street protests calling for elections. JURIST's Paper Chase has continuing coverage [JURIST Country archive] of Togo. AP has more.

[JURIST] The British government announced Monday that same-sex partners will be able to enter into civil unions starting in December. Under the Civil Partnerships Bill [text], passed last year by Parliament, same-sex couples will have the right to form legally binding partnerships and will be entitled to the same tax and pension benefits that married couples have. Starting Dec. 5, couples will be able to register for a civil partnership, which will become official after a 15-day waiting period. "This legislation is going to make a real difference to these couples and it demonstrates the government's commitment to equality and social justice," said Deputy Minister Jacqui Smith [official bio]. The Guardian has more. In a related story [JURIST report] noted earlier today on JURIST's Paper Chase, UK armed services said they would allow same-sex couples to share living quarters.

[JURIST] The World Council of Churches (WCC) [official website], a global organization for non-Catholic Christians, accused the United States on Monday of violating international law in its treatment of Guantanamo Bay detainees. The detainees "are held without due process and in total violation of the norms and standards of international humanitarian and human rights law," according to Monday's WCC statement [text]. The statement was supported by the US National Council of Churches (NCC) [official website], which unites 36 Christian communities across the nation. The statement further called for all NCC churches to educate their congregations on the Guantanamo Bay situation to urge followers to call "for the release of those being held in detention under inhuman conditions." The denouncement of the treatment of Guantanamo detainees may earn special attention from President Bush, who is a fervent Christian, and has often publicly invoked his religious beliefs. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] Leading Monday's corporations and securities law news, the SEC [official website] has started an informal investigation into aluminum producer Alcoa Inc. [corporate website] over the classification of trade accounts payable transactions starting in 2003. Alcoa has said it will cooperate with the probe. The Pittsburgh Business Times has more.

In other news...

• A MCI [corporate website] shareholder has filed a lawsuit to stop Verizon's $6.75 billion bid to buyout the company. The shareholder, who is hoping to get a better deal, said in his lawsuit that Verizon [corporate website] is paying an "unconscionable, unfair and grossly inadequate" sum for MCI. BBC News has more.
  
  
• Chaunce Hayden, a regular guest on Howard Stern's syndicated radio show, said he was ordered to testify in an SEC investigation of insider trading of Sirius Satellite Radio Inc. [corporate website]. Sirius' stock surged last year after Stern announced his move to the satellite radio provider. AP has more.
  
  
• Kmart Holding Corp. [corporate website] and Sears, Roebuck and Co. [corporate website] announced that they have set up a meeting for shareholders on March 24 to vote on their $11 billion merger. Read the Kmart press release. Reuters has more. In related news, Sears, Roebuck & Co. Chief Financial Officer Glenn Richter announced he will leave the company after the merger is completed. Bloomberg has more.
  
  
• Swiss pharmaceutical giant Novartis AG [corporate website] announced it will buy American company Eon Labs [corporate website] and German company Hexal AG [corporate website in German] for $8.3 billion in cash. The integration of the two companies into its Sandoz unit will create the world's largest generic drug company. Read the Novartis press release and the Eon Labs press release. AP has more.
  
  
• British online travel firm Lastminute.com [corporate website] has asked the Financial Services Authority [official website] to begin an investigation into an anonymous fax it received questioning its financial situation. BBC News has more.
  
  
• As previously reported on JURIST's Paper Chase, ChoicePoint [corporate website] announced Monday that residents in all 50 states and the District of Columbia may have been affected by a security breach which resulted in criminals gaining access to its massive database of consumer information. Read the ChoicePoint press release. AP has more.

[JURIST] ChoicePoint [corporate website] announced Monday that residents in all 50 states and D.C. may have been affected by a security breach which resulted in criminals gaining access to its massive database of consumer information. California authorities say as many as 500,000 people may have been affected, but ChoicePoint believes that number to be closer to 145,000. Last week, thieves apparently used previously stolen identities to create what appeared to be legitimate businesses seeking ChoicePoint accounts. The thieves then opened up 50 accounts and received volumes of data on consumers, including names, addresses, Social Security numbers and credit reports. AP has more. According to a ChoicePoint statement [text] released Monday detailing the problem, the company is actively working with law enforcement agencies investigating the fraud. The statement also describes the company's plans to protect customer information in the future. Last week, Attorneys General in 38 states sent an open letter to ChoicePoint [AP report] urging the company to give "as much detailed information as possible about the breach and when it occurred."

[JURIST] Retired Bosnian Serb general Milan Gvero agreed on Monday to voluntarily surrender to the UN war crimes tribunal at The Hague. The Serbian government said that Belgrade had received an indictment against the general from the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia [official website], although the charges against Gvero have not yet been made public. General Gvero served under Serb army chief Ratko Mladic [ICTY case backgrounder; amended indictment] in the Bosnian Serb army during Bosnia's 1992-95 inter-ethnic war. Mladic is currently one of the most wanted war criminals still at large. AFP has more.

[JURIST] In an unprecedented move, Irish Justice Minister Michael McDowell has publicly claimed that three of the most prominent figures in the Sinn Fein [party website] political party, including party leader Gerry Adams [BBC profile], are members of the IRA Army Council, the internal group in charge of the terrorist organization. Martin McGuinness, Sinn Fein's deputy leader and one of the men named by McDowell, said "What [McDowell] has alleged is absolutely false," but stopped short of calling McDowell a liar, so as to comply with Ireland's liberal libel laws. Sinn Fein leaders also released a statement denying the allegations [text]. Monday's Boston Globe has more. In a related development, the Independent Monitoring Commission [official website], a joint British/Irish antiterrorism organization, released a report [PDF text] last week blaming December's record $50 million bank heist [Scotsman report] on the Provisional IRA and accuses Sinn Fein leaders of having sanctioned the plan. The implications for Sinn Fein leaders are potentially severe: political parties agreed to renounce all connection with violence and crime as part of the 1998 Good Friday Agreement [PDF text, BBC News backgrounder], and sanctions for failing to do so include the reduction or elimination of their salaries and funding cuts for the parties involved. Ulster Unionist Party leader and architect of the Good Friday Agreement David Trimble [BBC News profile] has called for the exclusion of Sinn Fein from the government [BBC News report]. Responding to accusations it was involved in the heist, the IRA withdrew its offer to disarm [BBC News report]. Gerry Adams initially challenged Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern [BBC News report] to "arrest" him in connection with the heist, but the next day suggested that he and Ahern instead meet to discuss the issue and "clear the air." AP has more on recent arrests suggesting the IRA was behind the heist.

[JURIST] European Union officials are encouraged by Spain's overwhelming support in Sunday's referendum [JURIST report] for the body's proposed new Constitution [PDF], but remain guarded because there are still many challenges ahead in the numerous countries set to cast similar ballots over the next 18 months. According to the official results [Spain's official referendum website, in Spanish], more than 76 percent of Spaniards casting ballots supported the Constitution, but the nation did suffer a low turnout of 42 percent. The document must be ratified by all 25 member states before it takes effect. Spain's University of Zaragoza provides a wealth of resources on the proposed Constitution, including historical background and a step-by-step timeline on the constitutional process. AFP has more.

[JURIST] Haitian police are still hunting several hundred prisoners who escaped when an armed commando attacked Haiti's national penitentiary in what sources close to Haiti's president are calling an attempt to free those "imprisoned for money crimes," an apparent reference to drug traffickers and kidnappers. In the melee following the attack Yvon Neptune and Jocelerme Privert, respectively the former Prime Minister and former Minister of the Interior under exiled president Jean-Bertrand Aristide [BBC News profile], were swept up in the crowd of prisoners heading for the exit. Media sources conflict on what happened next: French newspaper Le Monde reports that they escaped and contacted several embassies to request political asylum [Le Monde report in French]. This enabled police to locate them and transport them to a secret location where they are now guarded by police and UN peacekeepers. However, according to AP, Chilean ambassador Marcel Young met with both men and disputes this story. AP sources suggest the imprisoned former cabinet members were taken by guards to a secret safe location and then returned to prison. The two prominent prisoners have been held without charges [BBC News report] since mid-2004 on suspicion of involvement in the February 2004 killings of Aristide opponents, a situation that has prompted criticism [Haiti Action news release] around the globe. Radio station Radio Caraibes has local coverage [in French] on the situation on the ground. AP has more on Neptune and Privert.

[JURIST] A national conference on constitutional change meets Monday in Nigeria to review and propose amendments to the nation's 45-year-old constitution [official text]. Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo [official profile] has traditionally opposed a reform movement, but agreed to the constitutional conference last year in an attempt to find a solution to the myriad of problems that face Africa's most populous nation. Nigeria has over 250 ethnic groups scattered between 36 member states [list of official state websites]. The tension between the ethnic groups and the regional and federal governments has resulted in years of unrest and bloodshed. While Obasanjo encouraged the discussion of reforms and the revision of the constitution, he warned that none of the solutions should involve the disintegration of Nigeria in part or in whole. Nigeria is one of Africa's wealthiest nations, due largely to its significant reserves of oil. IRIN has more.

[JURIST] The Royal Navy [official website] has become the first branch of the British Armed Forces to actively promote the protection of the civil rights of its homosexual and bisexual members. Navy officials signed the Diversity Champions Programme [PDF text] from the alternative lifestyle equal rights group Stonewall [advocacy website] on Monday. Homosexuals have been permitted in the UK Armed Forces since 2000, but the Royal Navy is the first to actively promote the rights of homosexual members. The Royal Navy also announced that homosexual couples will be able to apply for accommodation in married quarters by this coming autumn, as long as they have previously registered a civil partnership. BBC News has more.

[JURIST] Israel released 500 prisoners Monday in a 'goodwill gesture' that was first proposed at the Sharm al-Sheikh summit held nearly two weeks ago and was approved by the Israeli parliament [JURIST report] last Sunday. The 500 prisoners are the first to be released under the new truce; 400 more are expected to be released in the near future. Palestinian groups are demanding the release of all the estimated 8,000 Palestinian captives [Palestinian Prisoners' Society advocacy website], but Israel has pledged only to release those not arrested in connection with deadly attacks. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas also presented his cabinet selections to the parliament for approval on Monday. The selection process was reportedly long and drawn out, but the parliament eventually accepted all of Abbas' recommendations. The Jerusalem Post has local coverage.

[JURIST] Here's a run-down of law-related events, expected developments and live webcasts on JURIST's docket for Monday, Feb. 21.

The US Senate and US House [official websites] are in recess today for the President's Day holiday. Both will resume their sessions on Feb. 28.

European Commission Vice President Margot Wallström will speak at a press conference on the results of the Spanish referendum [JURIST report] on the European Constitution, followed by a statement by European Parliament President Josep Borrell. Watch a live webcast at 9:15 AM local time [3:15 AM ET]. Also today, the European Parliament [official website] opens its plenary session, which runs through this week. Watch a live webcast of proceedings beginning at 4:30 PM local time [10:30 AM ET].

At the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, the trial of Nasir Oric [ICTY case backgrounder] continues. Watch a webcast of proceedings beginning at 2:45 PM local time [8:45 AM ET].