In Tuesday's Congressional news, AP reports today that House members narrowly defeated a motion aimed at reconciling their proposed federal budget for fiscal 2005 with that of the Senate. The motion, defeated in an unusual 209-209 tie vote, would have required measures such as spending reductions to offset revenue lost due to tax cuts. Following initial indications that the measure might pass, House leaders extended the voting time while some Republican members who originally had supported the measure switched their votes to oppose it. Ultimately, eleven Republicans voted with Democrats in support of the motion, opposed by the White House but consistent with similar provisions in the Senate's proposed budget, detailed in S Con Res 95. That legislation requires tax increases or spending cuts to offset new tax cuts. Today's motion was strongly supported by the increasingly influential fiscally-conservative Blue Dog Democrats.... The Senate has begun debating an extension of the 1996 welfare reform act. The bill, HR 4, would continue the program for five years, but would increase the minimum work requirements for welfare recipients to 34 hours per week, still less than the 40 hours required by a corresponding House bill. According to today's Washington Post, other controversial changes in the new legislation include marriage incentives and provisions to raise the minimum hourly wage to $7. Despite disagreement on some fronts, however, an amendment adding $6 billion for child care passed today by 78-20, according to AP.... Reuters reported today that some Democratic senators have begun expressing reservations about proposed changes that would increase government regulation on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The changes represent a response to concerns expressed by Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan about possible deleterious economic consequences from the mortgage giants' lending practices. His comments to the Senate Banking Committee were reported in February in JURIST's Paper Chase.

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In Tuesday's federal courts roundup, less than a week before the National Football League's annual player draft, the US Second Circuit Court of Appeals will hear an appeal over whether former Ohio State running back Maurice Clarett will be eligible. A lower court ruled last month that Clarett must be allowed to enter the draft. Oral arguments are set for April 19. AP has the full story.... The US Federal Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that a lower court mistakenly dismissed a patent infringement suit in 2002, reviving the case between Monsanto Co. and Bayer BioScience. The lower court erroneously agreed with Monsanto that the patents were unenforceable. AP has the full story. Read the opinion here [DOC].... The US First Circuit Court of Appeals vacated a lower court ruling that dismissed a claim that Rhode Island's legislative redistricting plan violated the rights of black voters. The court ordered "fuller development of the evidence, and further legal analysis based on that evidence." AP has more on this story. Read the opinion here.... In an unusual case from Louisiana, Judge Ralph Tyson of the US District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana ruled against prisoner Billy Wayne Sinclair in his lawsuit against former state police head Paul Fontenot. Sinclair claimed that Fontenot transferred him to a more dangerous prison in retaliation for filing a suit against the state Parole Board regarding eligibility for parole. AP has the complete story.... The US Supreme Court heard arguments in a case asking whether a Mexican doctor can sue in American courts under the Alien Tort Claims Act, passed in 1789. Dr. Humberto Alvarez-Machain was kidnapped on orders of the US government under suspicion of murder of a US drug agent. He was eventually acquitted because of a lack of evidence, and later sued his captors. AP has the full story.... The High Court also heard arguments in a California case asking what evidence is necessary to demonstrate discrimination in jury selection. At issue were the prosecution's use of peremptory challenges in a murder case. AP has more on today's arguments.

In Tuesday's tax law news, the US Treasury Department has announced that the new US-Japan tax treaty enters into effect today, although its tax provisions are not actually applicable until July 1, 2004. The exchange of instruments of ratification took place in Tokyo Tuesday between Howard H. Baker, Jr. Ambassador to Japan, and Ichiro Aisawa, Senior Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan. Read the Treasury's press release here. Review the treaty here {PDF]. The US Treasury offers explanation of the treaty provisions here; the Joint Committee on Taxation's explanation of the provisions is here.... The IRS announced Tuesday that corporations and tax-exempt organizations can now e-file their tax and information returns. View the IRS press release here. For more information on the IRS e-file services see here.... The Miami Herald reports that some of the investors who lost money in Enron and WorldCom are attempting to deduct the losses under IRC section 165 that allows a deduction for theft. The IRS, in notices to be issued later this week, will explicitly deny allowing such a deduction. The Miami Herald has more.... Finally, and as previously reported in JURIST's Paper Chase, the US Supreme Court agreed yesterday to take a 9th Circuit Court of Appeals tax case out of Oregon, Banaitis v. Commissioner. The case deals with whether Banaitis, a former bank executive, must pay federal income taxes on the part of a settlement that went to his lawyer. Banaitis's lawyer already paid taxes on the amount received, however, the IRS argues that Banaitis should also pay taxes on the amount that went to the attorney. The appeals court decided in favor of Banaitis. Read the court's opinion here. AP has more.

In international law news Tuesday, the European Parliament has approved the proposed Investment Services Directive and the proposed Transparency Directive which are expected to increase competition in the European market for financial services. The investment services directive will allow investment firms to operate anywhere in the EU once they have been authorized in their own state and the transparency directive will require companies listed on the stock market to publish interim statements between half-year and full-year reports. EUObserver.com has more.... Turkey has signed the Criminal Law Convention on Corruption, a Council of Europe instrument, designed to prevent active and passive corruption offenses through the exchange of information, facilitation of extradition of criminals and withdrawal of immunity. The Turkish Press has more.... The UN Commission on International Trade Law has drafted a legislative guide on secured transaction which is designed to provide a template for countries to frame their domestic legislation. Kathryn Sabo, chair of UNCITRAL's Working Group on Security Interests, said that "the guide aims to present to legislators recommendations for establishing a secured transactions regime that is efficient and transparent, that fairly balances the interests of the parties and that meets the goal of facilitating access to credit at lower cost." The UN News Service has this press release and more.

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In Tuesday's agencies and regulations news, the General Accounting Office has released a report stating that federal civilian departments do not have adequate plans for continued operation during a crisis under standards set by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for Continuity of Operations (COOP). The main problems identified by the GAO were inconsistency of compliance with the guidelines and widely varying definitions of what was an essential function. Read the GAO report here [PDF]. GovExec.com has more.... The Federal Communications Commission has seen a decrease in complaints from consumers regarding problems switching their wireless carriers without changing their phone number. The agency has received over 6,000 complaints since the program became available in November, and only 788 new complaints have been received in the past month. Read the FCC report here. Reuters has more.

In Tuesday's family law news, a Colorado Senate judiciary committee has quashed a bill that would have allowed men to stop paying child support for a child he was told he fathered if it were later found out he did not. The bill [PDF] had already passed the House, but the Senate committee voted it down 3-4, fearing it would have negative consequences on children. The bill would have also allowed men who are falsely told they are the father to have DNA testing to prove they are not. Current Colorado law gives named fathers five years after the child is born to contest parentage. The Durango Heraldhas more.

In Tuesday's state court news, the Supreme Court of Missouri has set aside a ruling which had terminated the parental rights of a woman who tried to place her twin daughters up for adoption over the internet. The Kansas City Star has more.... The Supreme Court of Oklahoma has upheld the constitutionality of a statute banning cockfighting and related activities. The statute was passed by voters in the November 2002 election, with more than 125,000 in favor of the ban. ChannelOklahoma.com has more... The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania will be the new battleground for the six-year old dispute between an adult movie theater and the city of Pittsburgh's Urban Redevelopment Authority. The city has already spent over $500,000 in its attempt to take the theater through eminent domain. AP has more.

As a follow-up to her participation in a teach-in on gay marriage last Thursday at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, Pitt law professor Rhonda Wasserman has agreed to elaborate her views in an interview with JURIST. Professor Wasserman specializes in civil procedure and conflict of laws, and has earned high marks from students here as a teacher of both subjects. She has recently completed a book on procedural due process. Read the full text of her comments on gay marriage from a conflicts perspective in today's edition of JURIST's law school news.

Thomas Kean, chairman of the 9/11 Commission, holds a news conference beginning at 3 PM ET to discuss the White House announcement that national security adviser Condoleezza Rice will testify under oath at a public session of the Commission. President Bush is scheduled to deliver his own remarks on Rice's 9/11 testimony at 4:30 PM ET. WNBC-TV in New York City provides a live webcast of both events. WNBC has more on the White House change of position here.

In Tuesday's corporations and securities law news, the SEC has finalized $241 million settlement with five New York Stock Exchange specialist firms accused of violating securities laws by depriving clients of fair trades and possibly better prices when they executed their own orders ahead of the customers. $154 million of the settlement will go to customers while the rest will pay fines that go to the SEC. Read the joint SEC and NYSE press release announcing the deal here. Bloomberg.com has more.... Chip maker Intel Corp. will pay Intergraph Corp. $225 million to settle patent-infringement disputes over its Itanium chip. Read the Intel press release announcing the deal here. Read the Intergraph press release here. Bloomberg.com has more.... Motorola Inc., the world's second-largest maker of cell phones, agreed to buy Quantum Bridge Communications Inc., a maker of gear to wire homes and businesses with high-speed fiber-optic networks, in an all-cash transaction. Read the Motorola press release here. Reuters has more.... The Ontario Securities Commission [OSC], will begin enforcing a new set of rules, similar to Sarbanes-Oxley Act, which will force companies to certify financial statements. The OSC has a webcast detailing the new rules here. Bloomberg.com has more.... The IRS is refusing requests for tax deductions for investors who feel they were robbed by Enron, WorldCom, and other corporations part of the fraud and accounting scandals. The Miami Herald has more.... Apartment Investment and Management Co., the nation's largest US real estate investment trust, announced the SEC has ordered a formal investigation into the company. Reuters has more.... The SEC is considering civil charges against the NYSE for failure to enforce its own rules when policing specialist firms, who oversee the buying and selling of stocks on the exchange floor. Dow Jones has more.

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AP reports that the European Parliament has adopted a report on equal treatment in access to goods and services that rejects the use of gender in setting insurance rates. It is part of a broader movement to extend gender equality outside of the employment context. The report is not legally binding on national governments, but it will create significant political pressure. Read the report here.

The US Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that the federal government does not have to release the suicide photos of former Clinton Administration lawyer Vince Foster. Read National Archives and Records Administration v. Favish [PDF]. AP has more. Also Tuesday, the Supreme Court ruled that customs officers at an international border may randomly search and dismantle gas tanks as part of drug interdicton program. The officers need not have "reasonable suspicion" that a particular vehicle is carrying contraband. Read US v. Flores-Montano [PDF]. Again, AP has more.

Suspended South Korean President Roh Moo-Hyun failed to show up for his first scheduled impeachment hearing before the country's Constitutional Court Tuesday, forcing its postponement until April 2. Roh was advised to stay away by his legal advisors, who wish to protect him from potential questioning by opposition politicians. The South Korean Parliament voted to impeach Roh March 12 for making partisan statements during an election campaign. If Roh fails to appear for his postponed hearing the Court will proceed on its own; it has 180 days to uphold the impeachment or order Roh to be reinstated in office. AFP has more. The Korea Times provides local coverage from Seoul.

In the wake of the Massachusetts Constitutional Convention's approval Tuesday of a proposed constitutional amendment which would ban gay marriages but allow civil unions, Massachusetts Attorney General Tom Reilly has turned down Governor Mitt Romney's request that he seek to delay scheduled mid-May implementation of the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts' 2003 ruling directing the legalization of same-sex marriage. The Attorney General said the Court's intent was clear, that they had already ruled twice in favor of same-sex marriage (once in November and again in February), and that his duty was to uphold the law as laid down. Governor Romney, if he insists on delay, will now have to find other means of proceeding, which may be very limited according to observers. Read the text of Governor Romney's call for a stay here. Watch recorded video of his televised statement here, courtesy New England Cable News. The Boston Globe has more.

AP is reporting that the White House will allow National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice to testify in public under oath before the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States. She had previously declined to do so on grounds of executive privilege, as reported on JURIST's Paper Chase.

A former Bosnian Serb official who testified against former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic was sentenced Tuesday at The Hague to ten years in prison for ordering the 1992 destruction of a Bosnian Muslim village which resulted in the deaths of 65 people. Miroslav Deronjic had pleaded guilty to charges of persecution last year. The International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia has issued a press release; the sentencing judgment against Deronjic is here [PDF]. Reuters has more.

In the wake of hundreds of lawsuits against online file-sharers launched by the American music industry and recent threats of legal action from the British music industry, the International Federation for the Phonographic Industry that governs the international music business announced Tuesday that it was taking legal action against illegal song-swappers in Germany, Italy, Denmark and Canada, with more suits likely to follow elsewhere. Read the IFPI press release here. BBC News has more.

Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian Tuesday removed key procedural obstacles to a rapid recount of the votes cast in the country's March 20 election by waiving his right to a hearing and requesting the judges to proceed. Chen won the election by a mere 30,000 votes; opposition politicians have protested the vote, citing irregularities and even claiming that an attempted assassination attempt against the President and Vice-President two days before the poll which wounded both of them was faked. AP has more. Pittsburgh coroner Cyril Wecht is currently in Taiwan heading up an investigative team, according to a story in Tuesday's Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Over 700 UK law enforcement officers from Scotland Yard and the MI5 and MI6 security services seized a half-ton of explosive material and arrested 8 suspects reported to be of Pakistani descent in anti-terror raids across the south of England early Tuesday. The operation was the large anti-terror sweep by British authorities in recent years. The explosive material seized, ammonium nitrate fertiliser, was used by terror bombers in Bali and Istanbul and would have caused many casualities had it been detonated in, say, central London. A press release from the London Metropolitan Police Service is here. A statement from UK Home Secretary David Blunkett made after the arrests is here. BBC News has more.

A Spanish judge Tuesday charged two more individuals - a Syrian and a Moroccan - in connection with the March 11 Madrid train bombings, bringing the total of individuals charged to 14. After questioning at the National Court, three other suspects were released. AP has more. In a related development, the Spanish Interior Minister Tuesday named a Moroccan extremist group - the Moroccan Islamic Combatant Group, the first radical jihad movement set up in Morocco - as the main focus of their current investigation. Again, AP has more. Madrid's El Mundo provides local coverage of the latest developments in Spanish.

In Tuesday's US law and business press, the Connecticut Law Tribune reports that a three-judge panel of the US Second Circuit Court of Appeals is wrestling with the question of whether a remedy is required to repair Connecticut's system of concealing thousands of court cases and orders from public view.... The Los Angeles Business reports that a CA Superior Court judge has dismissed the suit brought against The Walt Disney Co. by the family with US merchandising rights to Winnie the Pooh.... The Las Vegas Business Press reports that the NV State Bar is expected to recommend changes in client confidentiality rules to the state supreme court by mid-April.... FindLaw's Writ features Hastings law professor Vikram David Amar's column on the latest developments in the San Francisco gay marriage controversy.

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Here are some of the legal stories running in Tuesday's foreign press... Japan's Asahi Shimbun reports that Tokyo's High Court has denied an extradition request for a medical researcher indicted by a US federal grand jury. The Court found the objective of the extradition treaty with the US was to determine the likelihood of guilt under US law. It determined there was insufficient evidence to support the charges of economic spying and transporting stolen good across state borders.... Indonesia's Jakarta Post follows the appeal of a Central Jakarta District Court judgment which found Tempo magazine guilty of libeling a businessman. The magazine was ordered to pay damages and publicly apologize for alluding to the businessman's involvement in a textile market fire. The plaintiff has also appealed, seeking a higher award.

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On March 30, 1867, the US and Russia signed a treaty ceding Alaska to the United States for a payment of $7,200,000 in gold. Review the terms of a Treaty concerning the Cession of the Russian Possessions in North America by his Majesty the Emperor of all the Russias to the United States of America, the terms of which were included in the Treaty's Proclamation by President Andrew Johnson on June 20, 1867.