[JURIST] Jurors in the trial of 5 former Enron Corp. [JURIST news archive] broadband executives Wednesday acquitted three on some charges, including insider trading, money laundering, conspiracy and security and wire fraud, but failed to reach a verdict on the remaining charges. Former CEO Joseph Hirko [Houston Chronicle profile], strategist Scott Yeager, and software engineer Rex Shelby were charged [indictment, PDF] with a total of 164 criminal counts for their involvement in making the failed broadband venture appear strong to investors to boost the energy giant's stock price. AP has more.

[JURIST] Following up on a story reported this morning in JURIST’s Paper Chase, AP is reporting that in the absence of the Canadian Governor General, Canadian Supreme Court Chief Justice Beverley McLachlin [official website] has signed Bill C-38 [text] into law, making Canada the fourth nation in the world to legalize gay marriage.

[JURIST] Two just-released Guantanamo Bay [JURIST news archive] detainees told reporters Wednesday that more than 180 prisoners at the US detention facility in Cuba are 14 days or so into a hunger strike. Habir Russol and Moheb Ullah Borekzai, both from Afghanistan, indicated that the prisoners are not eating or drinking in protest of their detention and alleged mistreatment during interrogation. A Pentagon spokesman said he was unaware of any hunger strike, but would make inquiries. The US Department of Defense issued a press release Wednesday to announce the release of both men and 6 other detainees, including Moroccan Lahcen Ikassrien, who has been transferred to the government of Spain [JURIST report]. To date, 242 prisoners have been released or transferred from Guantanamo Bay. AP has more.

[JURIST] Retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor has told reporters that while she approves of President Bush’s decision to nominate federal appeals court judge John Roberts to replace her on the US Supreme Court [JURIST news archive], she's somewhat disappointed that the nominee was not a woman. Justice O’Connor described Roberts as a "first rate" choice with an excellent reputation as a lawyer, but expressed regret at seeing "the percentage of women on our court drop by 50 percent". Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is now the only female US high court justice. AP has more.

[JURIST] Leading Wednesday's corporations and securities law news, the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC) [corporate website] will pay $125 million to settle with US regulators. The SEC and the state of New York accused CIBC of lending money to hedge funds that engaged in illegal market timing trades. In a press release, the SEC said that CIBC will pay $100 million in a disgorgement to investors and $25 million in fines. CIBC's CEO said in a press release that his bank had "added policies and procedures to enhance our abilities to monitor and recognize such activities if they ever were to occur again." Bloomberg has more.

In other corporations and securities law news...

• France's Prime Minister plans to fight any takeover bids for Danone Group [corporate website] from foreign investors. Dominique de Villepin [Wikipedia profile] vowed to "defend France's interests" when asked about rumors that US-based PepsiCo [corporate website] is planning a hostile takeover of the French dairy maker with annual sales of $16.5 billion. Danone has pledged to fight a takeover and may be planning to acquire other companies to strengthen its position [Bloomberg report]. Reuters has more.
  
  
• Three major insurance companies have settled with California over allegations that they used kick-backs to win more business. The California Insurance Commission [official website] accused First American Corp., Fidelity National Financial Inc., and LandAmerica Financial Group Inc. of sending over $25 million to builders, realtors, and lenders in exchange for business. In a press release, the Commission said that the insurance companies will pay back all of the money and also pay $12 million in fines. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] The US Federal Trade Commission [official website] announced Wesdnesday that five companies will pay a total of $1.16 million in fines to settle civil charges that they violated FTC anti-spam rules [FTC press release and complaints]. The companies were targeted for sending unsolicited emails advertising pornography that didn't include the phrase "sexually explicit" in the subject line to facilitate users blocking them. The FTC adopted a final rule [PDF] requiring the labelling in April 2004 [press release], acting under the the federal CAN-SPAM Act of 2003. The FTC has a dedicated website for consumers looking to block all unwanted emails, and has previously been successful in court against porn spammers [JURIST report]. Three other companies have similar FTC complaints pending against them. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] Leading Wednesday's states brief, Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius signed legislation [Governor's bill passage press release] today that increases school funding by $148.4 million for the upcoming school year and prohibits any state court handling a lawsuit over school funding from enforcing any order that would close schools [JURIST report] or prevent the distribution of funds for public education [JURIST report]. The legislation is the result of a Kansas Supreme Court decision which ordered the Legislature to increase school funding by $143 million by July 1st, 2005. After the court-imposed deadline passed without action from the Legislature, the Supreme Court said it was prepared to close schools if the Legislature failed to act. View the Supreme Court's school finance proceedings here. AP has more.

In other state legal news ...

• A Michigan Court of Appeals has upheld [PDF text] the state's 1965 Prevailing Wage Act [text] which requires nonunion contractors working on public projects to pay wages equal to prevailing union wages in the area where the work is done. The court threw out the lawsuit which was filed by a builders association. The association argued that the law was an unconstitutional delegation of legislative authority because it relies on privately negotiated wage and fringe benefit rates. The secretary-treasurer of the Michigan State Building and Construction Trades Council [trade association website] said the law provides good protection for employees. An appeal to the Michigan Supreme Court is likely. AP has more.
  
  
• The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania ruled [PDF text] Wednesday that part of a state law barring delinquent students from regular Philadelphia public classrooms violates the students' due process rights as no hearing is required before placement into alternative educational settings. The law [Pennsylvania School Code of 1949] requires school districts to place students returning from juvenile delinquency placement or criminal convictions into a transitional center and then to place some of those students into alternative educational settings. Judge Doris A. Smith-Ribner wrote for the majority, "The absolute denial of any opportunity for the students to challenge their transfer to an alternative educational setting violates due process." The 2002 amendment was passed in response to school-safety concerns. AP has more.
  
  
• Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal has announced [press release] that Dey Inc. [corporate website] has agreed to pay the state $1.7 million and to donate $800,000 worth of free pharmaceuticals to be used at clinics to settle charges that the pharmaceutical company artificially inflated the average wholesale prices of pharmaceuticals. Artificially inflated average wholesale prices allowed the company to increase their market share as it allowed healthcare providers to increase their profits. State lawsuits against six other defendants are still pending, and Blumenthal said the state "will be relentless in fighting inflated and manipulated drug prices." PharmaLive has more.

[JURIST] Senate Judiciary Chairman Arlen Specter (R-PA) said Wednesday he preferred waiting until September to begin hearings for US Supreme Court nominee John G. Roberts, creating a tight timetable for Roberts to be approved by the full Senate in time for the court's new term starting October 3. No Senate Democrats have publicly voiced opposition to the nominee, but his positions on some contentious issues are unclear, which could lead to lengthy questioning at his hearing [AP report]. Judiciary Committee Democrat Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) has already said Roberts "has to be more forthcoming" in order to show that he "is in the mainstream of American thinking". Specter and Senator Pat Leahy (D-VT), the committee's ranking Democrat, expect the confirmation process to take a week at most [AP report] once it gets going. AP has more.

[JURIST] Saudi Arabia announced Wednesday that the United States has returned three Saudi detainees from the Guantanamo Bay [JURIST news archive] detention facility. Government television said that "legal measures concerning them will be completed" but gave no other details. The US last returned Saudi detainees in May 2003, when five men were sent home [Reuters report], where they were then arrested. AFP has more.

[JURIST] Leading Wednesday's international brief, in the strongest statement so far by a European governmental body, the German Bundestag [government website] has called on the German government to take several strong steps against the administration of Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe [Wikipedia profile], including measures to ensure that the relevant "masterminds" behind Operation Murambatsvina [Wikipedia backgrounder] are referred to the International Criminal Court [official website] by the UN Security Council [official website]. The resolution also included a call for German officials to enforce all possible sanctions against Zimbabwe, to expand those if necessary, and to encourage the African Union to emphasize to Zimbabwe that all "pledges of assistance for Africa are firmly linked to respect for human rights and the rule of law." JURIST's Paper Chase has continuing coverage of Zimbabwe [JURIST news archive]. ZimOnline has local coverage.

In other international legal news ...

• Kenyan Attorney-General Amos Wako [official website] has voiced his opposition to the creation of a legislative shield for American military personnel that would exempt them from investigation and prosecution by the International Criminal Court [official website] while within Kenya's territorial borders. Wako said that the International Crime Bill, Kenyan legislation designed to implement the responsibilities assumed by Kenya's ratification of the ICC's Rome Statute [official PDF text], was designed to aid the ICC in the investigation of all possible war crimes committed within Kenya, and that any shield or special exception defeated the purpose of the Bill and the ICC. The United States has requested special exemption status from the Kenyan government under an Article 98 agreement [US State Dep't backgrounder], and has threatened to withdraw significant amounts of financial support [JURIST report] from Kenya's military should the legislature not approve the immunity clause. Wako argued that the wording of the International Crime Bill would prohibit Kenya from entering into any immunity agreement once it has been passed by Parliament [official website]. JURIST's Paper Chase has continuing coverage of Kenya [JURIST news archive]. Kenya's Daily Nation has local coverage.
  
  
• Sudanese Interim President Omar al-Bashir [Wikipedia profile] has lifted the publishing ban on the Khartoum Monitor, the only independent, English-language, daily newspaper in Khartoum, following consultations with his legal advisor and the Sudanese Minister of Justice. The Monitor has been the focus of repeated attempts by the government to stop its presses permanently under the emergency laws that penalized publication of materials critical of the central government. After al-Bashir lifted the emergency laws [JURIST report] earlier in July, he promised no more government censorship of the media would occur. Pro-media rights groups praised the move, but warned that Sudan still had a long way to go towards true journalistic freedom. JURIST's Paper Chase has continuing coverage of Sudan [JURIST news archive]. The Sudan Tribune has local coverage.
  
  
• Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi [Wikipedia profile] successfully manipulated the parliamentary rules of procedure in Italy's Chamber of Deputies [government website in Italian] to ensure the passage of his controversial Justice Reform Bill. Berlusconi used a provision allowing for an affirmative vote of confidence to cut off all debate and pass legislation to ensure its acceptance, winning the motion with a coalition vote of 312 to 225. The bill, an earlier version of which had been essentially vetoed by Italian president Carlo Azeglio Ciampiis [JURIST report], is designed to speed up the legendary lethargy of Italy's criminal justice system, as well as civil suits, but opponents are harshly critical of its provisions, alleging that many of the reforms proposed by Berlusconi are unconstitutional. JURIST's Paper Chase has continuing coverage of Italy [JURIST news archive]. BBC News has more.

[JURIST] In the wake of the US Supreme Court's June decision in Kelo v. New London [Duke Law backgrounder; opinion] allowing a local government authority to expropriate private property for private redevelopment that confers economic benefits on the community, legislators in at least 25 states are working to limit the scope of the controversial ruling. In Alabama, Gov. Bob Riley put a bill that would block city and county governments from using eminent domain to take property for retail, office or residential development on the agenda of a special session of the state legislature [press release] that began Tuesday. Lawmakers in Texas and California have meanwhile proposed amendments to their state constitutions to prohibit the government from taking private property for economic development. After the high court ruling the Institute for Justice [official website], a conservative public interest law firm that aided the plaintiff's case, predicted strong battles over the issue [statements by the Institute for Justice and its clients] in many state courts, despite some expert commentary that the decision did not significantly expand the scope of state and local govcernment power [JURIST report]. AP has more.

[JURIST] Under pressure from the US government, Unocal [corporate website] late Tuesday accepted an increased $17.1 billion buyout bid [press release] from Chevron, turning down an $18.5 billion offer from the China National Offshore Oil Company Ltd. (CNOOC) [official website]. Unocal had made an earlier merger deal with Chevron when the CNOOC offer was made. US legislators had objected [JURIST report] to the China bid amidst concerns of allowing the Chinese government, which owns 70% of the CNOOC, to control such a large US-based oil company. China said the fears of hoarding were unfounded and urged Congress not to interfere [JURIST report]. AFP has more.

[JURIST] Several Sunni Arab members of the 71-member team drafting the new Iraq constitution have halted their participation in the process following the assassination of two colleagues [JURIST report] Tuesday. Differing reports say that between 4 and 15 Sunni members have stopped working on the drafting committee [official website] because "the environment in Iraq isn't right for anyone to get work done." Members of the Sunni group National Dialogue called the attacks an attempt to discourage Sunnis from the political process. Despite the walkout, Sheikh Humam al-Hammoudi, head of the constitutional drafting committee, nonetheless told a news conference in Baghdad Wednesday that the draft constitution was on schedule and would be sent to the national assembly in early August; he added that five million copies would be distributed to Iraqi households on August 15. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] A federal shield law for reporters introduced [press release] by Senator Richard Lugar (R-IN) and Rep. Representative Mike Pence (R-IN) [official websites] was called "bad public policy" by US Deputy Attorney General James Comey in written remarks submitted at a US Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on reporters' privilege legislation [witness list and statements]. Comey was scheduled to testify in person but was called to a House hearing about the Patriot Act instead. The bill comes in response to the Valerie Plame leak scandal [JURIST report], where New York Times reporter Judith Miller was found in contempt of court and sent to jail for refusing to testify before a grand jury in order to protect a source. Thirty-one states and Washington DC have so-called "shield laws", but none apply to the federal courts. The proposed federal bill would allow reporters to protect sources as long as national security interests were not threatened. Lugar testified, "Compelling reporters to testify and, in particular, forcing them to reveal the identity of their confidential sources without extraordinary circumstances, hurts the public interest." Subpoenaed TIME magazine reporter Matthew Cooper also testified [text] in favor of the legislation at Wednesday's hearing. AP has more.

[JURIST] The commissioner of Israel's prison service Ya'akov Ganot [commissioner's message] told a Knesset committee on Wednesday that Israeli detention facilities were equipped to hold as many as 2,300 anti-pullout activists predicted to take part in illegal protests against the pullout from Gaza [JURIST report] now slated to begin in August. Ganot added that the prison service had set up temporary compounds to be used as makeshift courts, shortening judicial procedures and lessening the need to use standing courts. Israel plans to evacuate all the 21 settlements in the Gaza Strip as well as four West Bank settlements, though large scale opposition has prompted protests. Haarets has local coverage.

[JURIST] US Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter [official website] said Wednesday that a bill he is co-sponsoring to end asbestos injury lawsuits is unlikely to receive a vote in the Senate before the August recess. The statement comes after Specter earlier in the month urged the bill to be brought forward [JURIST report] despite a tight schedule. The Fairness in Asbestos Injury Resolution Act of 2005 (FAIR) [PDF text], approved by Specter's committee [JURIST report] in May, would replace lawsuits with a $140 billion compensation fund. Many families of those affected by asbestos exposure oppose the bill [Copley report]. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] Thailand's National Human Rights Commission [official website] said Wednesday that a security decree passed by the Cabinet Tuesday giving Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra [profile] new power to deal with an insurgency in the country's Muslim south should be abolished. The group argues that the law violates United Nations human rights covenants and infringes on rights and liberties secured by Thailand's constitution. Under the decree, three southern, primarily Muslim provinces - Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat - were declared "severe emergency zones," allowing the government to impose curfews, censor news, ban public gatherings, tap phones, and hold suspects without bringing charges. Former Prime Minister and current head of the National Reconciliation Commission [organization backgrounder], Anand Panyarachun [profile] cautioned that "giving the government broader power could lead to increased violence and eventually a real crisis." Reuters has more.

[JURIST] According to a working draft of the new Iraqi constitution obtained Tuesday by the New York Times, Islamic law would play a strong role in the Iraqi legal and political system and women's rights would be cut back. Under the text, equality for women would be allowed only insofar as it did not conflict with Islamic Shariah [BBC backgrounder], or Koranic Law, on marriage, divorce, and inheritance; women would be required to obtain their families' permission to marry, and under some interpretations a husband could be allowed to divorce his wife by simply telling her three times that he wished to do so. Court cases involving these issues would also be governed by laws of the parties' religious sect. From a rights perspective the draft provisions represent rollback both from Iraq's relatively-progressive 1959 personal status law that applied during the Saddam era and principles enshrined in Iraq's interim constitution, the Transitional Adminstrative Law [text], composed under the aegis of the US Coalition Provisional Authority. A clause co-written by the US that would require that women make up 25% of parliament [AFP report] is also apparently still up for debate as the August 15 deadline for a final draft approaches.

American and Iraqi officials insist that there are several drafts of the new constitution in circulation and no final version has been agreed upon. On June 30 the Iraqi al-Mada newspaper published what it said was a draft version of the Iraqi bill of rights that bears some resemblance to the document described by the Times; the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace later posted an English translation, with commentary [PDF]. The New York Times has more.

[JURIST] The Canadian Senate approved a bill Tuesday that would make Canada the fourth nation in the world to legalize gay marriage after the Netherlands, Belgium, and, most recently, Spain [JURIST report]. Bill C-38 [text], which passed the House of Commons [JURIST report] in late June, now goes to Canada's Governor-General [official website] for royal assent in the name of the Queen and could be approved as early as Wednesday. The legislation was introduced by the minority Liberal government of Prime Minister Paul Martin after courts in seven provinces ruled that the country's traditional definition of marriage violated the Charter of Rights and Freedoms [text]. Members of the oppositon Conservative Party have fought to prevent passage [JURIST report] of the bill and Catholic leaders strongly oppose it [LA Times report]. The Toronto Globe and Mail has local coverage.

[JURIST] In the wake of an Italian judge's decision last month to issue warrants for 13 CIA operatives [JURIST report] wanted in connection with the kidnapping of radical Muslim cleric Abu Omar [Washington Post report] off the streets of Milan in 2003, Italian prosecutor Armando Spataro asked an appeals court Wednesday to issue six more arrest warrants for purported CIA agents. When the initial 13 warrants were issued, that court refused to issue warrants for the six operatives Spataro claims studied the area where the imam was seized, watched his daily activities, and determined the most efficient route for transporting Abu Omar to a joint US-Italian air base. A three-judge panel is expected to rule on Spataro's request in the next few days. AP has more.

[JURIST] Nine senior staff members of the Iraqi Special Tribunal [JURIST news archive], each former members of Saddam Hussein's Baath Party [Wikipedia backgrounder], were dismissed on Tuesday, apparently at the instance of Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister and former Iraqi exile leader and Pentagon favorite Ahmad Chalabi [JURIST news archive], currently in charge of the Iraqi government's "de-Baathification" program. The dismissals are technically in accordance with the Tribunal's governing statute [text], which bans Baathists, but the provision had up to now been loosely enforced as membership in the Baath party was required of all senior legal figures during the Saddam era. Sources close to Chalabi say nineteen other tribunal officials have been threatened with dismissal, including Raid Juhi, the chief investigating judge, but those dismissals have not been carried out because of concern over disrupting the court's apparent plan to start Saddam Hussein's trial in September. Other sources, however, say Juhi is actually pressing for the tribunal's de-Baathification himself [FT report], and is seeking changes in the tribunal's statute to accomplish that more effectively.

Relations between Chalabi and the Iraqi Special Tribunal have been cool since Chalabi's nephew Salem Chalabi was dismissed [JURIST report] as executive director of the IST in 2004 at the instance of Interim Iraqi Prime Minister Iyad Allawai, an estranged cousin and rival secular Shiite leader. Salem Chalabi's replacement is one of the officials said to have been dismissed, along with the court's head of security and the chief of its witness protection program. US officials are reportedly upset with the ongoing political interference in the work of the IST, and an unnamed American is even said to have threatened to have the Saddam regime trials removed to The Hague. At the same time, concern about Baathists has affected other Iraqi institutions, including Iraq's constitution-drafting committee [JURIST report]. The New York Times has more.

[JURIST] Former Philadelphia City Treasurer Corey Kemp was sentenced Tuesday to 10 years in prison for corruption. Kemp was convicted in May 2005 [JURIST report] on 20 counts of accepting kickbacks during his time in office [JURIST report] that included gifts, favors and cash after phone conversations recorded by the FBI showed that Kemp and Democratic fundraiser Ronald A. White discussed shaking down businessmen for cash contributions and other payments. Reports of the investigation first surfaced after a bug was discovered in the office of Mayor John F. Street [official website]. Street was never charged and no evidence that he had committed a crime ever came to light, but more than a dozen other people were convicted over the course of the probe. AP has more.

[JURIST] Interest groups from across the political spectrum are weighing in with their reactions to the White House nomination of Judge John G. Roberts to the US Supreme Court [JURIST report]. Conservative groups have largely welcomed the announcement. C. Boyden Gray, chairman of the Committee for Justice which promotes constitutionalist judicial nominees, said in a statement Tuesday evening that

John Roberts has had one of the most distinguished legal careers in modern times... His outstanding education and career, high character, and faithfulness to the Constitution make him an excellent fit for the court at this moment. His nomination is a solid first step towards returning the federal judiciary to its proper role in our system.

Roberts' background shows a political ideology that is inconsistent with the independence we have a right to expect from the Supreme Court. He does not have a commitment to the basic values of fairness and equality, and our hard-won rights will be in jeopardy if he is confirmed.

[JURIST] President Bush's Tuesday evening nomination [JURIST report] of conservative federal appeals court judge John G. Roberts to the US Supreme Court has predictably drawn praise from Republicans and calls for caution from Democrats, who vow to examine Robert's record carefully during the confirmation process. In preparation for the confirmation hearings, which will likely begin in late August or early September, the US Senate Judiciary Committee [official website] will conduct its own investigation of Roberts and make a recommendation to the Senate. Nominees require a simple majority - 51 of 100 votes - to be confirmed, but if a filibuster were to occur, 60 votes would be needed to break it. Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Democratic Member Patrick Leahy [official profile] promised Roberts would receive a thorough and careful investigation [Leahy statement], but that no candidate would receive a "free pass to a lifetime appointment." Democratic Senator Dianne Feinstein, the only woman on the Senate Judiciary Committee, said somewhat more cautiously that "I will keep my powder dry until the due diligence is completed." GOP Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter is scheduled to hold a news conference on the Roberts nomination later today as the nominee begins to make get-acquainted rounds on Capitol Hill.

Off the Hill, Republican National Committee Chairman Ken Mehlman applauded the choice [RNC statement] of Roberts to fill the O'Connor vacancy, citing his unanimous approval by the Senate when he was appointed to the DC Circuit in 2003 as evidence of his "wide breadth of support." Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean meanwhile expressed disappointment [DNC statement] that the President had chosen a candidate with "sharp partisan credentials." AP has more reaction to Roberts' nomination.