Earlier this month, the Georgia Supreme Court [official website] upheld [JURIST report] the state's 2006 Photo ID Act that requires voters to present one of six government-issued photo identifications in order to vote. The court ruled that the law "does not deprive any Georgia voter from casting a ballot in any election," and that presenting valid identification does not represent an unconstitutional impediment to voting. In contrast, the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit [official website] struck down [JURIST report] a portion of an Arizona law requiring proof of citizenship for voter registration in October. The court held that the law was inconsistent with the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (NVRA) [materials], which was passed with the intent of increasing voter registration and removing barriers to registration imposed by the states. The NVRA requires voters to attest to the validity of the information on their registration forms, including their citizenship, but does not require them to provide additional proof of citizenship. The law exceeded the federal statute, requiring applicants to show proof before registering to vote.

[JURIST] The Supreme Court of California [official website] on Thursday ruled [opinion, PDF] unanimously to allow claims against tobacco companies for smoking-related ailments that arise after the statute of limitations for an earlier condition has elapsed. Though state law requires that parties file suit within two years of discovering an injury, the decision will allow smokers to proceed with claims based on medical conditions originating after a previous diagnosis so long as the injuries are "separate and distinct." Focusing on medical similarities over causation, Justice Joyce Kennard stated:

We hold that two physical injuries - both caused by the same tobacco use over the same period of time - can, in some circumstances, be considered "qualitatively different" for purposes of determining when the applicable statute of limitations period begins to run. Specifically, when a later-discovered disease is separate and distinct from an earlier-discovered disease, the earlier disease does not trigger the statute of limitations for a lawsuit based on the later disease.

Tobacco companies are currently involved in numerous lawsuits. The Illinois Court of Appeals for the Fifth District in February unanimously decided [JURIST report] to reopen a $10.1 billion class action against Philip Morris [corporate website] for allegedly misleading consumers into thinking that "light" cigarettes were safer and contained less tar. The ruling came in light of a favorable 2008 US Supreme Court decision [opinion, PDF] that state consumer protection laws can be used to hold cigarette companies liable for the marketing of "light" cigarettes. In December, Philip Morris and RJ Reynolds [corporate website], along with an industry trade group, filed an appeal [JURIST report] with the US Supreme Court to overturn a $271.5 million class action settlement for having "distort[ed] the entire body of public knowledge about the addictive effects of nicotine." The settlement was awarded [opinion, text] by the Louisiana Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit [official website] in order to establish a fund meant to help Louisianans quit smoking.

Foreign and domestic courts and legislators are increasingly addressing the issue of gay marriage. Last month, Hungary added a prohibition against gay marriage [JURIST report] to its Constitution. France upheld a same-sex marriage ban [JURIST report] in January. In the US, judges in Wisconsin, California and Texas [JURIST reports] confronted the issue last year. Governments in Mexico, Kenya, Portugal and Germany [JURIST reports] are also addressing the issue.

As founder and leader of al Qaeda, Bin Laden represents the highest profile terror target captured or killed by the US. US Attorney General Eric Holder [official website] said Wednesday that the killing of Bin Laden by US forces on Sunday was lawful and justified [JURIST report]. Testifying before the US Senate Judiciary Committee [official website], Holder said that the shooting of Bin Laden was "consistent with our values," and that the soldiers who killed him "conducted themselves totally appropriately." In April, Holder announced that the priorities of the Department of Justice (DOJ) [official website] will include protecting Americans from terrorism [JURIST report] at home and abroad, fighting violent crime, combating financial fraud and protecting the most vulnerable members of society.