UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay insisted on Friday that anyone who engaged in violent acts relating to the April 12 coup d’etat in Guinea-Bissau should be held accountable for their actions. In the press release, Pillay voiced concern that the unstable situation in Guinea-Bissau following the coup could lead to crackdowns on [...]

Human Rights Watch (HRW) criticized the Hungarian government on Friday for ignoring recommendations by the Council of Europe to change its media laws that allegedly curtail press freedom. HRW expressed concern that the media laws’ requirement for journalists to register with the national government, as well as a mandate of “balanced” reporting would have a [...]

The appeals chamber of the International Criminal Court (ICC) on Thursday rejected challenges to the court’s jurisdiction in two cases stemming from the 2007 Kenyan post-election violence , clearing the way for trial. The pre-trial chamber confirmed charges against four suspects in January, and their defense lawyers appealed, arguing that the court lacks subject matter [...]

A senior judge for the US District Court for the Southern District of Florida approved a settlement agreement on Thursday between JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPMC) and more than one million litigants nationwide who sued over excessive overdraft fees. The settlement requires JPMC to pay $110 million to customers in order to resolve the litigation. [...]

A judge for the US District Court for the District of Columbia on Wednesday ordered the US Department of Defense (DOD) to turn over three videotapes depicting Kuwaiti Guantanamo Bay detainees being forcibly removed from their cells. The ruling came in a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit filed in 2008 by the International Counsel [...]

A federal judge ruled on Thursday that California’s state pension system must afford same-sex spouses of state workers the same access to long-term care insurance as heterosexual spouses. Judge Claudia Wilken of the US District Court for the Northern District of California struck down a provision of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) , declaring [...]

The US Department of State (DOS) on Friday released the 2011 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices . The reports outline the prevailing trends that shaped human rights last year. These include uprisings across the Middle East and North Africa, positive reforms in Myanmar, the persecution of religious minorities and the use of new connective [...]

JURIST Guest Columnist Tim McEvoy, an attorney for Southeast Louisiana Legal Services, says that the settlement agreement between BP and affected plaintiffs in the wake of Deepwater Horizon has benefits, but also has certain drawbacks…

The top UN human rights official urged Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe on Thursday to ensure that Zimbabwe’s next elections are legitimate and free from violence . UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay , visiting Zimbabwe for the first time, stated in the press release that her meeting with Mugabe was productive: It was [...]

US Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer rejected a stay application Thursday evening by Rhode Island Governor Lincoln Chafee attempting to prevent the release of alleged murderer Jason Pleau to federal authorities. Chafee has been arguing since last year that he has the authority to have Pleau tried in state court, rather than have him face [...]