In Monday's human rights news, UN Secretary General Kofi Annan has proposed the establishment of a UN committee to help prevent world genocide. Speaking at the annual Stockholm International Forum, he suggested the appointment of a special rapporteur who would report massive human rights violations and threats to international peace directly to the UN Security Council. AP has more.... Amnesty International, the International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights, the Moscow Helsinki group, and Human Rights Watch have appealed to the Council of Europe for a fair non-political trial of Russian scientist Igor Sutyagin. Sutyagin was charged with selling information on nuclear submarines and missile warning systems to a British company that turned out to be the CIA’s intelligence cover. AP has more.

click for previous human rights news

Here's Monday's legal news from the US Department of Justice. Updating a story reported Monday by JURIST's Matt Jacobs, the US Department of Justice has issued an official reaction to today's decision by US District Judge Audrey Collins which held a portion of the Patriot Act to be unconstitutional. Mark Corallo, the Department's Director of Public Affairs, said:

The provision at issue in today's decision was a modest amendment to a pre-existing anti-terrorism law that was designed to deal with real threats caused by support of terrorist groups. By targeting those who provide material support by providing ‘expert advice or assistance,’ the law made clear that Americans are threatened as much by the person who teaches a terrorist to build a bomb as by the one who pushes the button.

The full text of the DOJ press release is here.

click for previous Department of Justice news

Leading Monday's round-up of news from the federal courts, Judge Charles R. Norgle of the US District Court for the District of Northern Illinois today dismissed a lawsuit by descendents of slaves seeking reparations, but left the door open for the plaintiffs to file an amended complaint. AP reports that the suit was dismissed because the plaintiffs did not establish a clear link to the defendant companies they sued. The suit was dismissed without prejudice. Read the opinion here.... AP reports that the US Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals refused to grant an executive's request for a new trial. Michael Monus was convicted in 1995 for embezzling millions of dollars from Phar-Mor Inc., a company he helped found. Read the opinion here.... Also reported by AP, the US Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a lower court decision ruling that a doctor did not violate federal law when he had a woman restrained during an abortion procedure. The woman claimed that she was restrained despite demanding for the procedure to stop and requesting to leave the facility. The doctor countered that she was restrained to save her life after complications had arisen during the abortion.... Lastly, as reported earlier on JURIST's Paper Chase, a federal judge has ruled part of the Patriot Act unconstitutional.

In Monday's immigration law news, investigators told a 9-11 Commission hearing that as many as 13 of the terrorists involved in the September 11 terrorist attacks got into the US using suspicious passports. One of the terrorists was allowed to enter the country after claiming to be a student, despite the fact that he possessed a tourist visa, which does not allow a holder to take classes. Others entered on passports that had been doctored "in ways that have been associated with al-Qaida." The Washington Times has more... In other immigration law news, the Michigan Supreme Court has taken a case on whether an illegal immigrant is entitled to the same worker's compensation benefits as an American citizen. Lawyers for David Sanchez, an illegal immigrant who had his arm crushed on the job, say that state law provides that aliens are covered as well as citizens. The defendant company argues that Sanchez is a criminal because of his status as an illegal immigrant, and thus disqualified from the benefits.

click for previous immigration law news

Leading the legal news this evening, AP reports: "Three Marine reservists appeared in military court Monday to face charges stemming from the death of an Iraqi prisoner who prosecutors said was punched, karate-kicked and dragged by the throat while in their custody." AP has more.

In other legal news...

• Connecticut govenor impeachment panel gets unanimous OK
  Reuters reports: "Connecticut lawmakers voted unanimously on Monday to set up a panel to investigate whether to launch an impeachment probe of embattled Gov. John Rowland after he accepted gifts and free work from state contractors and lied about it."
  
  
• Domestic partner registry opens in Ohio
  AP reports: "Balloons decorated City Hall as unmarried couples, gay and straight, lined up Monday to be among the first to sign up for the city's domestic partner registry, the first in the nation created by voters."
  
  
• Federal government bans cattle blood in feed
  AP reports: "The government is outlawing the use of cattle blood in livestock feed and cow brains and other parts in dietary supplements, part of broader restrictions in wake of the nation's first known case of mad cow disease."
  
  
• Judge says US can't deport banker to Russia yet
  Reuters reports: "A federal judge on Monday ruled that a former Russian banker, who has ties to a jailed Russian oil magnate, should not be deported until he exhausts his legal effort to seek asylum in the United States."
  
  
• Cigarette maker loses high court appeal
  AP reports: "R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. lost a Supreme Court appeal Monday that challenged a judgment awarded to the widow of a teacher who died of cancer."
  
  
• Tribe appeals federal court ruling on raid of tax-free smoke shop
  AP reports: "An American Indian tribe on Monday appealed a federal court decision that said Rhode Island rightly shut down its tax-free tobacco store after a violent raid."
  
  
• Report says WorldCom could be sued for back taxes
  The New York Times reports: "WorldCom is vulnerable to being sued for hundreds of millions of dollars in back taxes by the states in which it has operated since the late 1990's, according to the final report filed today by the court-appointed examiner in WorldCom's bankruptcy proceedings."
  
  
• Attorneys opposes cameras at Nichols trial
  AP reports: "Defense attorneys objected Monday to allowing cameras in or near the courtroom where Oklahoma City bombing conspirator Terry Nichols will be tried on 161 counts of first-degree murder."

In international legal news...

• Iran reformists consider quitting, election boycott
  Reuters reports: "Iranian reformist politicians on Monday considered mass resignations or boycotting next month's parliamentary elections after a hard-line body vetoed their attempt to overturn bans on thousands of election hopefuls."
  
  
• French President Chirac faces opposition over scarf ban
  AP reports: "French President Jacques Chirac is facing growing political opposition to his proposal to ban the Muslim head scarf in public schools."
  
  
• Portugal awaits abortion ruling
  AFP reports: "Portuguese lawyers representing women accused of illegally undergoing abortions have made their final arguments and await a verdict."
  
  
• EU keeps hope alive for constitutinal deal
  AFP reports: "The European Union could yet strike a deal on a first-ever constitution by June, the bloc's Irish presidency said in an upbeat assessment of the first talks since an EU summit collapsed last month."
  
  
• Germany offers to release prisoners for news on Israeli airman
  CBC reports: "Germany said on Monday it would release three prisoners in return for information about Ron Arad, an Israeli air force navigator shot down over Lebanon in 1986."
  
  
• Court firm on Israel barrier case
  BBC reports: "The International Court of Justice has rejected a call by Israel to move a 30 January deadline for written arguments on the security barrier case."
  
  
• Brussels set to rule against Microsoft
  FT.com reports: "The European Commission has reached a preliminary decision that Microsoft broke European competition law and abused its dominant position in the personal computer market."

Every day, JURIST's editors at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law review thousands of developing stories from the wire services, newspapers and broadcast media in the US and abroad, selecting the latest legal news worth thinking about. That's all for now. Check back after 10 AM ET tomorrow for the AM legal news brief on JURIST's Paper Chase.

In Monday's judicial news, following up on a story reported here last week, Chief Justice William Rehnquist has decided that Justice Antonin Scalia does not have to recuse himself from an upcoming case involving Vice President Dick Cheney. Several prominent Democrats, including Senators Joe Lieberman and Patrick Leahy had written a letter to Rehnquist calling for Justice Scalia's recusal after he and Cheney went on a hunting trip together. The Washington Times has more here.... Jury selection has begun in the trial of an Ohio judge, who is accused of setting his house on fire in order to collect the $235,000 in insurance money. Don McAuliffe, a Fairfield County municipal judge, is facing federal arson and insurance fraud charges in US District Court. Read the Ohio News Network article here.

In Monday's tax law news, Richard A. Shaw, chair of the American Bar Association Tax Section, urged the IRS to promote simplification of the tax code in testimony today before the IRS Oversight Board. He said that code simplification would increase taxpayer compliance and overall public confidence in the federal tax system. The ABA has more.... Capital News Service reports today that only 8 out of 70 corporations offered amnesty by the Maryland State Comptroller agreed to pay back taxes as of the comptroller's Dec. 31st deadline. The Maryland parent corporations allegedly set up Delaware subsidiaries that bought patents, copyrights and trademarks from the parent companies. The subsidiaries subsequently leased back the intellectual property rights to the parent resulting in lower Maryland income tax and taking advantage of Delaware's failure to tax intellectual property rights. Maryland's comptroller intends to take court action against the other 62 corporations. Delaware's Daily Times has more here.... The Orlando Sentinel reports that Florida's unemployment tax will automatically increase $133 million in April, tripling the amount businesses pay currently. Florida state law triggers the increase when the unemployment fund reaches a certain level to prevent it from dyring up. Read more here.

Leading Monday's law school news, the American College of Trial Lawyers has presented its annual Emil Gumpert Award for Excellence in Teaching Trial Advocacy Award to the James E. Rogers College of Law at the University of Arizona. According to the university's Daily Wildcat, the "award honors the work and dedication of professor Thomas Mauet and the trial advocacy program he developed during his 25 years" at Arizona. Mauet and company will be the last to receive the award in its current incarnation, as the ACTA believes its original objective of fostering the teaching of trial advocacy has been "principally satisfied."

Also on the awards front, the University of Texas at Austin School of Law announces that Professor Norma Cantu has been named a recipient of the 2004 Spirit of Excellence Award from the American Bar Association's Commission on Racial and Ethnic Diversity. Cantu will join her five fellow recipients at the presentation of awards next Saturday.

And on the funding front, there are stories today about two schools' efforts to simply stay put. The Daily Camera reports that the University of Colorado School of Law is still in search of funding for a new law school building. The ABA has warned that without a new facility, Colorado could lose its accreditation. Meanwhile, the Camera reports that nearby University of Denver College of Law, just 35 miles from Boulder, "is gaining in academic prestige as it enjoys its physical superiority over CU." Elsewhere, Dickinson School of Law Dean Philip McConnaughay has told alumni that the school is close to a financial package that could keep Dickinson in Carlisle, rather than moving it to the University Park campus of Penn State, with which it has merged. The Sentinel carries the full story here.

In international law news Monday, the International Court of Justice has rejected Israel's request to postpone the January 30 deadline for submission of written arguments in the security barrier case. BBC News has more. EU foreign ministers today discussed the possibility of submitting a written statement outlining its views on the fence, as the ICJ has requested. Haaertz has the full story.... The European Court of Justice has ruled in favor of a Finnish citizen who demanded access to EU documents concerning the relations of the EU with Russia and Ukraine. Read the Court's judgment and the corresponding press release. EUObserver.com has more.... Former owners of land on which the Berlin Wall was built may be able to recover their property, according to a recent European Court of Human Rights decision. The Court has ruled that Germany violated the protection of private property mandated by the European Convention on Human Rights [PDF] by repossessing land allocated to farmers and refugees without providing compensation. A summary of the judgment is available here. Deutsche Welle has the full story.

click for previous international law news

AP: "A federal judge has declared unconstitutional a portion of the USA Patriot Act that bars giving expert advice or assistance to groups designated foreign terrorist organizations."

The decision - handed date late Friday but only released today - marks the first court decision to declare unconstitutional a part of the post-Sept. 11 anti-terrorism statute. In her 35-page ruling [PDF] US District Judge Audrey Collins said the ban on providing "expert advice or assistance" is impermissibly vague, in violation of the First and Fifth Amendments. The judge's ruling said the law, as written, does not differentiate between impermissible advice on violence and encouraging the use of peaceful, nonviolent means to achieve goals. The case before the court involved five groups and two US citizens seeking to provide support for lawful, nonviolent activities on behalf of Kurdish refugees in Turkey.

In environmental law news for Monday, The New York Times reports that the Bush Administration has proposed a change to a rule used by environmentalists to block the issuance of state permits relating to strip mining. As the rule currently stands, mining is not allowed within 100 feet of a stream, which helps environmentalists to combat the amount of fill dumped in given areas. The change proffered by the Office of Surface Mining, however, would make it clear that depositing mining waste would be allowed under Federal law as long as the company shows that environmental damage is being minimized. The rule could go into effect as early as March... Reuters reports that the EPA has set forth a proposal that would allow New Hampshire to opt out of a federal fuels program by permitting the state to make their own cleaner burning gasoline that does not contain fuel additives. Although it has not banned the use of MTBE, New Hampshire's use of Oxygen Reformulated Gasoline (RFG) would allow for an avoidance of using MTBE as well as the more costly ethanol additive. Some political observers have noted that a similar proposition by California was struck down and that the upcoming presidential primary in New Hampshire may have had an impact on the decision to allow for the easement.

click for previous environmental law news

In Monday's criminal law and punishment news, MichNews.com reports that lawmakers in South Dakota are seeking to pass a bill that would criminalize abortion unless it is necessary to save the mother's life. Text of the bill is available here [PDF].... The Utah House of Representatives has approved a bill that would replace the firing squad with lethal injection for the state's death-row inmates, according to AP. For a breakdown of the nation's death-row population by state, click here.... Lastly, check out three stories posted earlier today on JURIST's Paper Chase: US Supreme Court reaffirms Miranda warnings, US Supreme Court takes case on juvenile killers, and Martha Stewart's jury selected.

click here for previous criminal law and punishment news

Reuters: "A court-appointed examiner investigating MCI said on Monday the bankrupt telephone company can sue former Chief Executive Bernie Ebbers and other top executives should it seek reparations for their roles in its $11 billion accounting scandal."

In addition, the 542-page examiner's report by former US Attorney General Dick Thornburgh says that MCI could sue its former investment banker, Citigroup, and its former accountant, Arthur Andersen. Shareholders and bondholders would still not be compensated for the roughly $200 billion they lost in the company's implosion, should MCI choose to pursue the lawsuits. MCI has responded with a press release saying it has no plans to pursue claims against KPMG, the company's tax planner.

AP: "With health care looming as a major campaign issue, President George W. Bush slammed what he called "junk lawsuits" as a major factor in the skyrocketing cost of health care. Visiting an Arkansas hospital Monday, he declared such suits are "threatening medicine across the country." "

Speaking at Little Rock's Baptist Health Medical Center, Bush urged Congress to limit "pain-and-suffering" awards, a topic he also referred to in his State of the Union address. The White House provides the full text of today's remarks here. Last year, the House passed a medical malpractice cap, but it died in the Senate. Bush argues that increasing amounts of lawsuits are forcing up insurance premiums, impairing the practice of medicine, and forcing doctors out of rural areas. Democrats argued that the previous bill would have helped the insurance industry more than patients.

Leading the legal news this afternoon, AP reports: "President Hamid Karzai signed the post-Taliban constitution into law Monday, hailing its promise of equal rights in hopes of uniting his splintered nation and ending the reign of violence in Afghanistan." AP has more.

In other legal news this afternoon...

• Federal judge dismisses slave reparations suit
  AP reports: "A federal judge in Chicago today has dismissed a lawsuit brought by descendants of slaves from across the country."
  
  
• Ruling a blow to Martha Stewart defence
  AP reports: "In a defeat for Stewart, U.S. District Judge Miriam Goldman Cedarbaum ruled that the defence cannot argue that she is being prosecuted for asserting her innocence and exercising her right to free speech."
  
  
• Iraq war justified even without WMD: Ashcroft
  CTV reports: "U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft has joined the list of top U.S. administration members who are struggling to defend the war in Iraq amid mounting criticism that no weapons of mass destruction have ever been found."
  
  
• Court Ruling May Change NJ Megan's Law
  1010 Wins.com reports: "Sex offenders who show that they can adhere to restrictions that would substantially reduce the risk of their committing further offenses can be authorized for release, a state appeals court has ruled."
  
  
• Judge allows young killer Lionel Tate to go home
  The Miami Herald reports: "A Broward County judge allowed Lionel Tate to go home today, four days before his 17th birthday."
  
  
• University of Pittsburgh law school receives second largest endowment
  AP reports: "The University of Pittsburgh's law school is getting its second largest gift ever, but the donor said the money can't be used for athletics."
  

In international legal news this afternoon...

• Surprise Witness in Germany 9/11 Trial
  AP reports: "A surprise witness who claims to be a former Iranian intelligence agent will appear this week at the trial of a Moroccan accused of aiding the Sept. 11 hijackers, the court hearing the case said on Monday."
  
  
• EU could lift arms ban for China, officials say
  AP reports: "The European Union could decide this spring to lift a ban on arms sales to China, opening the way for lucrative contracts from Beijing's big-spending military, officials said Monday.."
  
  
• Govt aiming to clarify self-defense rights
  The Yomiuri Shimbun reports: "The government's new stance on Japan's constitutional right to respond to military strikes against U.S. forces defending this nation reflects its decision to clear up ambiguities surrounding its view on the right to individual self-defense, according to analysts."
  
  
• Colonialism: Britain Faces Lawsuits from EA
  The East African reports: "The British government is facing a veritable avalanche of law suits relating to the colonial period in Kenya and Uganda over the coming year."
  

Every day, JURIST's editors at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law review thousands of developing stories from the wire services, newspapers and broadcast media in the US and abroad, selecting the latest legal news worth thinking about. That's all for now. Check back this evening after 10 PM for the evening legal news brief on JURIST's Paper Chase.

BBC: "A Pakistani reporter detained last month while working with two French journalists will be put on trial for anti-state activities, police say."

Khawar Mehdi Rizvi and two other Pakistanis stand accused of defaming the image of Pakistan. Rizvi allegedly showed "fake" images of Taliban fighters training in Pakistan. He is currently in police custody. Last month, Human Rights Watch criticized Pakistan's treatment of journalists. The two French journalists working with Rizvi were sentenced to six months in jail, but were instead deported, after protests from French diplomats.

In Monday's corporations and securities law news, the chairman of the SEC, William Donaldson, has indicated that regulators looking into the massive fraud at Parmalat should not concentrate solely on the company but also on the banks that financed the Italian dairy giant. AP has more.... In related news, Donaldson has called for closer cooperation between American and EU market regulators to help prevent damaging corporate scandals like the one at Parmalat. The SEC head proposed a formal dialogue between the SEC and the Committee of European Securities Regulators, which helps the European Commission draft EU financial legislation and the vital implementation guidelines. Reuters has more.... A jury of eight women and four men has been set in the Martha Stewart stock fraud trial. Additionally, the federal judge presiding in the case has ruled that the defense cannot argue that Stewart is being prosecuted for asserting her innocence, exercising her right to free speech, nor can the defense ask jurors to speculate why Stewart was not charged with insider trading. AP has more.... Hollinger International has filed a lawsuit against former CEO Conrad Black aimed at preventing him from selling his majority share in the company to Britain's wealthy Barclay brothers. Reuters has more.

click for previous corporations and securities law news

The New York based monitoring group Human Rights Watch released its annual global survey on human rights and armed conflict Monday. In his keynote essay, HRW Executive Director Kenneth Roth notes that although the organization ordinarily took no position on whether a given state should go to war, it could not accept the contention of the US and UK governments that the invasion of Iraq was humanitarian:

[R]emoving Saddam Hussein from power brought about the end of one of the world’s most abusive governments. But intervening militarily on the territory of a sovereign state, without its permission, is inherently dangerous and must be undertaken for humanitarian purposes in only the most extreme cases. While Saddam Hussein had an atrocious human rights record, his worst atrocities were committed long before the intervention. At the time coalition forces invaded Iraq, there was no ongoing or imminent mass killing of the sort that would require the kind of preventive military action that should characterize true humanitarian interventions.

The full 407-page report is online here. HRW also provides a press release.

The Canadian teenager who sparked a 25 page cease-and-desist letter from Microsoft Corp. has struck a deal with the company to rename his website, featured here last week. Mike Rowe, 17, registered mikerowesoft.com, causing the software giant to initiate legal action for infringing on their trademark. The two parties have made an arrangement under which Rowe will receive Microsoft products, certification, and an Xbox, along with the relocation of his website. BizReport has more more.

UK Press Association: "Senior judges have resolved their disagreement with ministers over crucial aspects of the Government’s radical constitutional reforms, it was announced today."

The UK Department of Constitutional Affairs provides a press release with background information on the UK government's constitutional reform proposals, which include the elimination of the House of Lords as the highest UK judicial authority in favor of a new Supreme Court.

AP: "A jury of eight women and four men was chosen Monday to hear Martha Stewart's stock fraud trial."

Opening statements will begin Tuesday; Stewart promises to provide "transcripts and other relevant materials" from her trial here on her defense website.

In another decision handed down this morning, the US Supreme Court held that the Eighth Circuit erred in holding that the absence of interrogation foreclosed the petitoner's second statements, which were preceded by waived Miranda warnings, from being suppressed as fruits of an illegal post-indictment interview absent the presence of counsel. The case was remanded to the Eighth Circuit to decide the issue of whether the rationale of Oregon v. Elstad applies when a suspect makes incriminating statements after a knowing and voluntary waiver of his right to counsel notwithstanding earlier police questioning in violation of Sixth Amendment standards. The case is Fellers v. United States (case backgrounder from Duke Law School's Program in Public Law). Read the unanimous opinion reversing and remanding authored by Justice O'Connor. AP has more

In a decision handed down this morning, the US Supreme Court affirmed an appeals court ruling that the federal Bankruptcy Code does not authorize compensation awards to debtors' attorneys unless employed under section 327. Additionally, if an attorney is to be paid from estate funds under section 330(a)(1) in a chapter 7 case, he must be employed by the trustee and approved by the court. The case is Lamie v. United States Trustee (case backgrounder from Duke Law School's Program in Public Law). Read the majority opinion by Justice Kennedy and the concurring opinion by Justice Stevens.

AP: "The Supreme Court, which two years ago abolished executions for the mentally retarded, said Monday it will now consider ending the execution of killers who were under 18 when they committed their crimes."

Read the Missouri Supreme Court opinion appealed from here (setting aside the death sentence of a juvenile murderer and suggesting that "the United States Supreme Court would hold that the execution of persons for crimes committed when they were under 18 years of age violates the evolving standards of decency and is prohibited by the Eighth Amendment to the United States constitution.").

In addition, the US Supreme Court this morning notably delined to hear appeals by Reynolds Tobacco (disputing a $195,000 judgment awarded to the widow of a teacher who died of lung cancer) and Max Factor cosmetics heir Andrew Luster (claiming he had been unfairly deprived of his right to appeal three rape convictions in the California courts). Today's full Order List from the US Supreme Court is here.

CNSNews.com: "Republican lawmakers who generally back President Bush are not backing him on immigration. In a letter addressed to House Speaker Dennis Hastert, Rep. Walter Jones (R-N.C.) and several other members of the Congressional Immigration Reform Caucus said they won't go along with the president's plan because it does not address the problem appropriately."

Review a White House backgrounder on the President's immigration proposal.

AP: "The federal commission examining the Sept. 11 attacks, facing a May deadline to issue its final report, says a two-day hearing will reveal fresh evidence of how the hijackers obtained visas and entered the country without suspicion."

Visit the website of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States and review the agenda of today's hearing.

AP: "Saddam Hussein's past use of 'evil chemistry' and 'evil biology' and the threats they posed justified the war in Iraq even if no weapons of mass destruction are ever found, U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft said Monday. "

VOA: "Iran's conservative Guardian Council has vetoed a bill that would have restricted the council's ability to ban candidates from running in next month's election. The latest move is likely to further escalate the political crisis between reformists and conservatives in Iran. "

The latest Library of Congress Country Study on Iran offers this overview of the Guardian Council and its powers:

The Constitution also provides for the Council of Guardians, which is charged with examining all legislation passed by the Majlis to ensure that it conforms to Islamic law. According to Article 91, the Council of Guardians consists of twelve members; six of them must be "just and pious" clergymen who are chosen by the faqih or the Leadership Council. The other six must be Muslim lawyers who are first selected by the High Council of Justice, then approved by a majority vote of the Majlis. The members of the Council of Guardians serve six-year terms, with half the members being changed every three years.

The responsibilities of the Council of Guardians are delineated in Articles 94 through 99. The members must review each law voted by the Majlis and determine, no later than ten days after the assembly has submitted a bill for consideration, whether or not it conforms with Islamic principles. If ten days are insufficient to study a particular piece of legislation, the Council of Guardians may request a ten-day extension. A majority of the clerical members of the Council of Guardians must agree that any given law does not violate religious precepts. If the Council of Guardians decides that a law contradicts Islam, the bill is returned to the Majlis for revision. If the Council of Guardians decides that a law conforms with Islam, that law is ratified.

In a recent op-ed in JURIST's Forum series, law professor Ali Khan argued that the Guardian Council should be de-politicized to play a more narrow juristic role in Iran's constitutional structure. Read Saving Islamic Democracy in Iran.

New York TImes: "As a group of carriers quietly works to create the first wireless white pages, legislation is in the works to protect consumers concerned about the privacy issues of those numbers going public. Privacy advocates say the proposed protections are not strong enough."

Review the provisions of the draft Wireless 411 Privacy Act, as introduced in the House in November. Read a press release from Rep. Edward Markey (D-MA), the ranking Democrat on the House Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet. Rep. Joe Pitts (R-PA), the bill's co-sponsor, offers a backgrounder.

New York Times: "A powerful cleric's demand for quick elections has delayed the drafting of an interim constitution and created a serious new split in the Iraqi Governing Council, officials said Sunday, further undermining the Bush administration's troubled plan for a political transition in Iraq."

The current deadline for the drafting of an interim Iraqi constitution is February 28, pursuant to the terms of the November 15 Agreement on Political Process between the Coalition Provisional Authority and the Iraqi Governing Council. Under that document, the interim Iraqi "Fundamental Law" will include these elements:

• Bill of rights, to include freedom of speech, legislature, religion; statement of equal rights of all Iraqis, regardless of gender, sect, and ethnicity; and guarantees of due process.
  
  
• Federal arrangement for Iraq, to include governorates and the separation and specification of powers to be exercised by central and local entities.
  
  
• Statement of the independence of the judiciary, and a mechanism for judicial review.
  
  
• Statement of civilian political control over Iraqi armed and security forces.
  
  
• Statement that Fundamental Law cannot be amended.
  
  
• An expiration date for Fundamental Law.
  
  
• Timetable for drafting of Iraq’s permanent constitution by a body directly elected by the Iraqi people; for ratifying the permanent constitution; and for holding elections under the new constitution

The Council on Foreign Relations offers a backgrounder on the Iraq transition process as envisaged in November.

AP: "Prosecutors [in Seoul] plan to question IOC vice president Kim Un-yong on Monday for a second time over corruption allegations, a news agency reported Sunday. Kim faces allegations that he collected illicit money from former South Korean Olympic officials and embezzled funds from taekwondo organizations."

On January 23 the International Olympic Committee executive board announced that was provisionally stripping Kim of his organizational rights and privileges pending investigations of his actions by South Korean authorities and by the IOC's own ethics commission. Read the IOC news release here.

AP: "Pakistan's interior minister promised Monday that legal action would be taken against scientists 'at any level' who are implicated in sales of nuclear weapons technology to Iran as investigators wind up their questioning of suspects."

The Federation of American Scientists offers a backgrounder on Pakistan's nuclear weapons program.

AP: "State lawmakers were set Monday to convene a special bipartisan committee that will recommend whether Gov. John G. Rowland should be impeached over gifts he has received."

Rowland has admitted to accepting gifts and free labor from state contractors in connection with his construction of a cottage in Litchfield. In early December, he asked for public forgiveness for his actions in a televised address, saying that he had granted no political favors in consideration of the work.

AFP: "Security was tight in the Swedish capital Stockholm as UN Secretary General Kofi Annan and ten heads of state or government joined other delegates from some 60 countries for a conference on ways to prevent genocide, ethnic cleansing and mass killings."

See this morning's Docket on JURIST's Paper Chase for conference details and a webcast link.

AP reports that Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai signed the country's new constitution into law in Kabul Monday. A copy of the final draft is available here from Afghanistan's Constitutional Commission.

Monday, January 26 - The Stockholm International Forum 2004 on Preventing Genocide: Threats and Responsibilities begins today and runs through January 28. Representatives of some 60 governments will discuss key humanitarian, political and moral issues relating to genocide at the conference, hosted by Prime Minister Göran Persson. UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan will deliver the keynote address. The proceedings will be webcast live.

The US Senate will convene at 1 PM ET to resume consideration of H.R. 3108, the Pension Funding Equity Act.

The UN Security Council meets at 10 AM ET to discuss the role of the United Nations in post-conflict national reconciliation. The proceedings will be webcast.

In Monday's US law and business press, the Legal Times reports on the highly anticipated release of the late Supreme Court Justice Harry Blackmun's papers, to occur on March 4th, the fifth anniversary of his death.... The Legal Intelligencer reports that on the basis of improper use of peremptory challenges, the Third Circuit has overturned a death sentence and ordered a new trial for an alleged heroin dealer charged with killing a 17-year-old boy.... The ABA Journal advises attorneys on mentoring young associates in their firms.... The National Law Journal reports on the effect of intangible holding companies on states and corporations.... FindLaw's Writ features Brooklyn law professor Anthony J. Sebok's commentary on the role of tort reform and civil justice issues in the Democratic presidential primaries.

click for the previous US law and business press review

Here are some of the legal stories featured in the foreign press on Monday... Aljazeera reports the veto of an electoral reform bill. In exercising its veto Iran's Guardian Council retained its ability to exclude hundreds of liberal candidates from next month's parliament elections.... Indonesia's Jakarta Post covers a law establishing a labor law court. The new court, designed for faster trials at lower costs, will hear complaints brought by both employees and employers starting in 2005.... BBC News follows ongoing litigation over the removal of dead children's organs without family consent. Over 2000 claimants are suing the National Health Service for thousands of pounds each. The claimants bear the burden of proving the entire medical profession has been acting illegally.

click for the previous foreign press review

On January 26, 1838, Tennessee became the first US state to pass a law prohibiting the general sale of alcohol; fines paid by lawbreakers were put towards the support of public schools. Read more about the history of Prohibition.