Non-fatal strangulation will likely become a specific criminal offense in England and Wales next month. Presently, it falls under common assault, which allows perpetrators to serve light sentences. Under the proposed change, it would carry a maximum sentence of seven years. The Center for Women’s Justice (CWJ), which has long advocated for the change, underlined [...]

The National Conference of Black Lawyers (NCBL), the International Association of Democratic Lawyers (IADL) and the National Lawyers Guild (NLG) announced Thursday that they have assembled an international Commission of Inquiry to investigate racist police violence against people of African descent in the United States. In June of 2020, the United Nations Human Rights Council [...]

US Congresswoman Ilhan Omar (D-MN) announced Wednesday evening that she is drawing up articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump after hundreds of Trump supporters stormed the US Capitol. The Congresswoman tweeted her plans, writing, “I am drawing up Articles of Impeachment. Donald J. Trump should be impeached by the House of Representatives removed from [...]

The US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit dismissed a lawsuit Saturday brought by US Representative Louie Gohmert against Vice President Mike Pence, arguing that Pence should have the power to overturn President-elect Joe Biden’s victory. Gohmert, who represents Texas’ first district, claimed that the Electoral Count Act violates the Electors Clause and the [...]

A 12-year-old English girl took the first steps in a lawsuit against TikTok on Thursday. The intended claimant is joined by Anne Longfield as a litigation friend, a form of legal advocate in the English court system. Longfield, the United Kingdom’s Children Commissioner, and the claimant intend to bring action against “six corporate defendants said [...]

The Turkish Parliament passed a law Sunday aimed at controlling terrorism after two days of debate. Entitled the “Law on Preventing the Financing of the Spread of Weapons of Mass Destruction,” the new legislation includes controversial amendments to an existing law on aid collection. These amendments enable the government, led by President Tayyip Erdogan, to [...]

Five Alaska Native tribes filed a lawsuit on Wednesday to challenge the Trump administration’s attempt to allow logging in the 17 million acre Tongass National Forest. The tribes are represented by nonprofits Earthjustice and the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) and are joined as plaintiffs by environmental groups, commercial fishing groups and tourism businesses. In [...]

The US Congress Monday passed the Tibet Policy and Support Act (TPSA). The Senate passed the bill as an amendment to a 5,000-page spending bill, which also includes COVID-19 relief. The House of Representatives had previously passed the bill reaffirming the US government’s support for Tibet in January of 2020. The TPSA establishes that the United [...]

A New Zealand Royal Commission of Inquiry released a report Wednesday detailing abuse in state and faith-based care institutions from the 1960s to the 2000s. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern ordered the royal commission in 2018 after Australia concluded a similar six-year inquiry. The five-person commission, made up of lawyers, judges, and minority advocates, set out to uncover [...]

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit ruled Friday that bans on conversion therapy violate the First Amendment. Plaintiff-appellants Robert Otto and Julie Hamilton provided what they call “sexual orientation change efforts” (SOCE) through talk therapy until Palm Beach County and the City of Boca Raton banned conversion therapy in 2017. The [...]