Ayman Nour , the Egyptian opposition leader jailed for forgery after his unsuccessful campaign last year, has filed an appeal and requested a suspension of his five-year sentence until the appeals court can rule on the matter, his lawyers said Monday. In his appeal, Nour's lawyers argue that he was denied due process under Egyptian [...]

The Japanese government is planning to put English translations of its business-related laws on the internet in order to avoid their misinterpretation by foreign companies. Right now there are no official translations, although unofficial private English translations of multiple Japanese statutes have been online for years. On April 14, major laws including the Civil Code, [...]

The United States and Vietnam have ended a three-year suspension on talks regarding human rights and religious freedoms in the communist country, Barry Lowenkron , US Assistant Secretary for the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labour said Monday. The suspension began when the US cancelled the annual Human Rights Dialogue with the Government of [...]

The next nominee to the Supreme Court of Canada will face televised questioning from a parliamentary committee , Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced Monday. Justice John Major retired from the court in December, and his replacement will be the first-ever nominee to face a US-style confirmation hearing. According to Harper, all four parties in the [...]

The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) , the world's largest general scientific society, has denounced legislation and policies that "undermine evolution" and "deprive students of the education they need to be informed and productive citizens," referring specifically to pending legislation in 14 states that would "weaken science education." According to an AAAS [...]

Brian J. Foley : "Why should Congress revise FISA to give the executive more power to spy? The main argument that AG Gonzales seemed to raise at the February 6 hearing was that it is too difficult/onerous/slow to get a warrant under FISA, even with FISA's giving the executive up to 72 hours after the [...]

British officials from the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) who are investigating the killing of Brazilian Jean Charles de Menezes, who was mistakenly shot by London police last year after the London bombings , plan to charge the officers who oversaw the operation with tampering with evidence and obstructing public justice. De Menezes was killed by [...]

McDonald's is facing multiple legal actions after the fast-food giant admitted last week that milk and wheat ingredients are used to flavor its trademark french fries. Lawsuits in Illinois, California and Florida have been filed by two people claiming intolerance to gluten, a protein found in wheat, and by a vegetarian who claims she would [...]

Human rights groups have condemned the Egyptian Higher Judiciary Council's decision to strip three judges of immunity after they protested voting irregularities during the December parliamentary elections. Members of a group known as the Judges Club, the three were charged with defamation after they refused to monitor run-off elections in protest of the irregularities. Vocal [...]

The US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit Sunday refused to stay the execution of Michael Morales , but in a second decision also approved the presence of a doctor at his execution Tuesday morning to ensure that Morales is unconscious and to defray "an undue risk that will suffer excessive pain when he [...]