The lower house of Russia’s Parliament, the Duma, passed the first reading of a draft law granting “guarantees to the President of the Russian Federation who has terminated the exercise of his powers.” These guarantees are to be extended to the former president’s family members as well. According to the Explanatory Note to the draft law, [...]

Judge Gary Feinerman of the US District Court for the Northern District of Illinois Monday struck down an immigration rule enacted by the Trump administration, holding it violating the Administrative Procedure Act (APA). \Feinerman granted the plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment and vacated the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) final rule. The rule addressed section [...]

Several separate lawsuits have been filed in opposition to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) rule and Department of Labor (DOL) rule on H-IB visas, both announced by the Trump administration on October 8. The DHS rule, set to become effective December 7, sets out revisions and clarifications to the regulatory definition and standards of [...]

Judge James Babler of the Barron County Circuit Court in Wisconsin Monday reinstated Governor Tony Evers’s emergency order setting in place precautions to help slow the spread of COVID-19 as Wisconsin experiences a surge in new cases. Judge Babler denied the Tavern League of Wisconsin’s motion to continue blocking the order, originally issued on October 6. [...]

The UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) adopted a resolution Tuesday extending the investigation into human rights abuses in Venezuela. The resolution expresses concern about the ongoing political, economic, social and humanitarian crisis, exacerbated by the “erosion of the rule of law” and the lack of an independent judicial system, which has created and contributed to [...]

The European Court of Justice ruled Tuesday that “general and indiscriminate transmission or retention of traffic data and location data” is banned. The court was ruling on proceedings brought before bodies in the UK, France and Belgium dealing with these privacy and data surveillance issues. The court found that the directive on privacy and electronic communications  precludes [...]

Central Election Commission officials in Kyrgyzstan annulled the results of the October 4 parliamentary election Tuesday, following protests and opposition supporters seizing government buildings. In the now-annulled election results announced on Monday, Birimdik (Unity), a pro-government party, won 24.5 percent of the votes, Mekenim (My Homeland) Kyrgyzstan won 23.88 percent, and Kyrgyzstan Party won 8.76 percent. [...]

Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega, along with 70 lawmakers, proposed new legislation Monday that would require individuals and organizations to register as “foreign agents” if they receive money from outside of Nicaragua. Critics of the proposed law on regulation of foreign agents say that this is an attempt by Ortega to control the media and prevent [...]

Armenia lodged a request with the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) Monday seeking interim measures against Azerbaijan following military clashes over the weekend. The request sets out three specific interim measures. Armenia is requesting that the ECHR direct Azerbaijan: to cease the military attacks towards the civilian settlements along the entire line of contact [...]

The Sipekne’katik First Nation in Nova Scotia, Canada, have launched a rights-based “Moderate Livelihood” fishery in St. Mary’s Bay, which has sparked outrage and protests from non-Indigenous fishermen. Sipekne’katik band is the first to start this type of moderate livelihood fishery. The Mi’kmaw (also spelled Mi’kmaq) band has the constitutional right to fish for a [...]