Without Roe v. Wade, Abortion Will Remain Legal in Most States
The experience with the Texas Heartbeat Act offers a preview of what that means.
Litigation
Even If Requiring People Who Have Recovered From COVID-19 To Be Vaccinated Is Legal, That Doesn't Mean It Makes Sense
The failure of legal challenges obscures an ongoing scientific debate.
Despite the Injunction Against the Texas Abortion Ban, Clinics That Resume Their Usual Services Could Face 'Crippling Liability'
S.B. 8 allows lawsuits against people who perform prohibited abortions even if they relied on a court's determination that the law is unconstitutional.
Can a Federal Judge Stop State Courts From Hearing the Lawsuits Authorized by the Texas Abortion Ban?
In a prior case challenging the law, the 5th Circuit said state judges were not appropriate defendants.
Now That Opponents of the Texas Abortion Ban Are Using Its Provisions To Defeat It, Pro-Life Activists Are Crying Foul
In the first two lawsuits filed under S.B. 8, all of the parties seem to think enforcement of the law should be blocked.
By Openly Defying the Texas Abortion Ban, a Physician Invites a Lawsuit That Will Make Constitutional Objections Unavoidable
Alan Braid says he broke the law, which prohibits the vast majority of abortions, to make sure it would be tested in court.
Opponents of the Texas Abortion Ban Are Struggling to Find Defendants They Can Sue To Prevent Its Enforcement
Meanwhile, the threat posed by the lawsuits that S.B. 8 authorizes has dramatically curtailed access to abortion in Texas.
The Texas Abortion Ban Violates Conservative Principles
S.B. 8 relies on litigation tricks that conservatives have long condemned as a threat to the rule of law.
The Sweeping Texas Abortion Ban That Took Effect Today Is Plainly Inconsistent With SCOTUS Precedents
Because the Supreme Court so far has not intervened, post-heartbeat abortions are now illegal in the Lone Star State.
The Court Order Approving Sanctions Against Sidney Powell Shows How Hastily She Assembled Her Kraken
A federal judge concluded that Powell and eight other pro-Trump lawyers who challenged Michigan's election results made frivolous arguments and treated evidence recklessly.
A Houston Man Framed on Drug Charges Is Suing the Lethally Corrupt Cop Who Sent Him to Prison
Otis Mallet's ordeal, like the deaths of Dennis Tuttle and Rhogena Nicholas, involved a fictional drug purchase.
If Texas Businesses Are Free To Require Face Masks, Why Can't They Require Proof of Vaccination?
Gov. Greg Abbott's position on private vaccination requirements is confused and confusing.
This Woman Faces $165,000 in Fines for 3 Trivial Code Violations
Sandy Martinez is challenging the exorbitant penalty for driveway cracks, a storm-damaged fence, and cars parked in an "unapproved" manner on her own property.
A Federal Judge Considering Sanctions Against Pro-Trump Lawyers Says They Made 'Fantastical' Election Fraud Claims Without Even 'Minimal Vetting'
Former Trump campaign lawyer Sidney Powell says the sheer volume of the affidavits she collected shows she exercised due diligence.
Andrew Cuomo Declares a Gun Violence 'Disaster Emergency' and Signs a Bill That Invites Lawsuits Against Firearm Suppliers
New York's new law seems to conflict with a federal statute that protects manufacturers and dealers from liability for gun crimes.
Did Congress Give the CDC More Authority Than the President?
The agency’s legal defense of its eviction moratorium implies that it has vast powers to order Americans around.
Sidney Powell, Who Denied That Her Wacky Election Conspiracy Claims Were Statements of Fact, Now Says She Will Prove They Were True
The former Trump campaign lawyer plans to defeat defamation lawsuits by showing "what actually happened."
Can Republicans Be Persuaded To Restrict Qualified Immunity?
Polling shows a sharp partisan divide on the issue, but it also suggests that compromise might be possible.
The Fear That Abolishing Qualified Immunity Would Expose Cops to Ruinous Personal Liability Is a Big Fat Red Herring
A study of civil rights cases found that "police officers are virtually always indemnified" by their employers.
Does This Elderly Veteran Have Any Recourse Against the Federal Cops Who Brutally Assaulted Him?
SCOTUS will soon decide whether to hear José Oliva’s argument that he should be allowed to sue V.A. officers for violating his Fourth Amendment rights.
A Lawyer for George Floyd's Family Says a Record-Breaking Settlement Gives Cities '27 Million Reasons' To Curtail Police Abuse
But the agreement could complicate Derek Chauvin's murder trial, and it leaves unresolved the question of whether qualified immunity would have blocked the lawsuit.
SCOTUS Rules Against an Innocent Man Who Was Choked and Beaten by Cops, but He May Still Get His Day in Court
The justices did not address one of James King's key arguments, which the 6th Circuit will now consider.
States Can Provide Their Own Civil Remedies for Police Abuse
They need not wait for the Supreme Court or Congress to restrict or abolish qualified immunity.
A $2.7 Billion Defamation Lawsuit Says Fox Hosts Recklessly Implicated Smartmatic in a Conspiracy To Steal the Election
Lou Dobbs, Maria Bartiromo, and Jeanine Pirro persistently promoted the wild claims of Rudy Giuliani and Sidney Powell.
Thanks to Colorado's Reforms, Cops Who Forced Children To Lie on the Pavement at Gunpoint Might Be Held Accountable
A state law eliminated qualified immunity as a defense for abusive officers.
Two Federal Lawsuits Say the Houston Police Department's Culture of Corruption and Impunity Killed an Innocent Couple
The families of Dennis Tuttle and Rhogena Nicholas say the city's policies and practices invited Fourth Amendment violations.
Surely Rudy Giuliani's 'Conclusive Proof' of Machine-Based Election Fraud Will Save Him From Dominion's $1.3 Billion Defamation Lawsuit
The company says Donald Trump's leading lawyer perpetrated "a viral disinformation campaign" based on "demonstrably false" charges.
An Abject Apology Highlights the Legal Exposure for Promoters of Trump's Election Fraud Fantasies
American Thinker says its claims about Dominion Voting Systems were "completely false."
A New Report Casts Doubt on Both Fears and Hopes About the Consequences of Abolishing Qualified Immunity
A Connecticut law that made it easier to sue abusive cops is not expected to have a noticeable effect on municipal insurance costs.
Sidney Powell's Loony Election Claims, Which Gave Birth to the Deadly Capitol Invasion, May Finally Cost Her
Dominion Voting Systems, the focus of the former Trump campaign lawyer's conspiracy theory, is seeking $1.3 billion from her for defamation.
Trump's Lawyers Surrender in Georgia Despite Giuliani's 'Conclusive Proof' of Election Fraud
Trump attorney Kurt Hilbert claimed he had reached settlement agreements with state officials, which was news to them.
Was Sidney Powell's Conspiracy Theory Too Crazy Even for Donald Trump?
Both the president and his personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, have publicly embraced Powell's wild claims about voting machine manipulation.
A Scathing Ruling Against the Trump Campaign Highlights the Gap Between Rudy Giuliani's 'Massive Fraud' Claim and His Legal Arguments
U.S. District Judge Matthew Brann rejected an attempt to block certification of Pennsylvania's election results.
Clobbering Purdue Pharma Makes Drug Warriors Feel Good, but It Won't Reduce Opioid-Related Deaths
The $8.3 billion DOJ settlement is part of a crackdown that has perversely pushed drug users toward more dangerous substitutes.
$465 Million Judgment Against Johnson & Johnson Threatens Freedom of Speech
A brief supporting the company's appeal argues that its discussion of pain treatment was constitutionally protected.
Amy Coney Barrett Demolishes the Qualified Immunity Claim of a Detective Accused of Framing a Man for Murder
The case is an encouraging sign that the SCOTUS contender is not the sort of judge who bends over backward to shield cops from liability for outrageous misconduct.
Chicago Residents Wait Months for Permission To Defend Themselves
Despite an alarming increase in crime, Illinois is illegally delaying gun licenses.
Is New York's Attack on the NRA Meant To Punish the Gun Rights Cause for Executive Malfeasance?
Second Amendment Foundation founder Alan Gottlieb insists "the strength of the NRA is not only in its leadership but in its members," who can do their work outside the NRA's aegis.
Would Derek Chauvin Receive Qualified Immunity for Killing George Floyd?
The answer speaks volumes about the extent to which that doctrine protects police officers from liability for outrageous conduct.
Another Judge Rules That Ohio's COVID-19 Lockdown Is Illegal
The decision says the "unbridled and unfettered consolidation of authority in one unelected official" violates due process and the separation of powers.
Will the Cops Who Killed Kenneth Chamberlain After Illegally Breaking Into His Apartment Ever Be Held Accountable?
Responding to a medical alert they knew was erroneous, White Plains officers killed the man they supposedly were trying to help.
Maybe Cops Should Be 'Pulling Back'
Abolishing qualified immunity is a crucial step in holding police accountable for violating our rights.
The Attorney General's Overblown Fears About Scrapping Qualified Immunity
It's not likely to have the chilling effect he expects. Unfortunately, it might not do as much as criminal justice reformers expect either.
Ohio Judge Deems the State's COVID-19 Lockdown 'Arbitrary, Unreasonable, and Oppressive'
The ruling says the state's top health official exceeded her statutory authority by ordering "nonessential" businesses to close.
Lockdown Lawsuits Ask How Long a Public Health Emergency Can Last
An Illinois resident obtained a TRO by citing a 30-day limit, while a New Hampshire hair salon owner says the goal of her state's lockdown has been achieved.
Court Rejects Motion to Seal Litigation Finance Agreements
"The public may well have an interest in how litigation is funded by third parties," the judge concludes. A law firm and two litigation finance companies are disputing (among other things) whether the litigation finance agreements are illegally usurious.
SCOTUS Declines To Intervene in Lawsuit Blaming Gun Maker for Sandy Hook Massacre
The plaintiffs now have to prove that Remington's advertising was not only "unfair or deceptive" but "a proximate cause" of the attack.
The False Premises of the Ruling Against Johnson & Johnson
Blaming opioid makers for the "opioid crisis" may be emotionally satisfying, but the reality is more complicated.