Corporations are asking the Supreme Court to allow them to spend freely
to influence upcoming elections in Montana, despite a state high court
ruling upholding a ban on independent corporate campaign spending.
Three groups filed papers with Justice Anthony Kennedy on Friday, saying
that the Montana court's decision in December is out of step with
Kennedy's majority opinion in the 2010 Citizens United case that struck
down a federal ban on independent campaign spending.
The American Tradition Partnership and two other groups sued soon after
the 2010 decision to overturn Montana's century-old corporate spending
ban. But the state Supreme Court said the Montana law could remain in
place because it was a response to political corruption and allows for
some corporate spending.
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
Miss high court hears challenge to Barbour pardons
Feuding attorneys asked the Mississippi Supreme Court on Thursday to
determine the validity of pardons that Haley Barbour gave to convicted
killers and other convicts during his final days as governor.
Chief Justice Bill Waller Jr. said the court would not rule Thursday, but he didn't say when a decision would come.
"We want them to take enough time to do it right," said Randy Walker, who objects to the pardons. Walker was shot in the head in 1993 by one of the men Barbour set free last month. That former inmate, David Gatlin, also fatally shot his own estranged wife as she held the couple's baby.
At the heart of the dispute is Section 124 of the Mississippi Constitution, which says "no pardon shall be granted" by the governor until the convicted felon applying for the pardon publishes notice of that application for 30 days in a newspaper in or near the county where the crime was committed.
Justices could uphold the pardons, as requested by a private attorney representing Republican Barbour. Or they could declare the pardons invalid, as requested by Democratic Attorney General Jim Hood. If they agree with Hood that the 30-day publication is a must, they could send the pardons back to a lower court, where a circuit judge could hold a trial to determine whether the pardons met those requirements.
Chief Justice Bill Waller Jr. said the court would not rule Thursday, but he didn't say when a decision would come.
"We want them to take enough time to do it right," said Randy Walker, who objects to the pardons. Walker was shot in the head in 1993 by one of the men Barbour set free last month. That former inmate, David Gatlin, also fatally shot his own estranged wife as she held the couple's baby.
At the heart of the dispute is Section 124 of the Mississippi Constitution, which says "no pardon shall be granted" by the governor until the convicted felon applying for the pardon publishes notice of that application for 30 days in a newspaper in or near the county where the crime was committed.
Justices could uphold the pardons, as requested by a private attorney representing Republican Barbour. Or they could declare the pardons invalid, as requested by Democratic Attorney General Jim Hood. If they agree with Hood that the 30-day publication is a must, they could send the pardons back to a lower court, where a circuit judge could hold a trial to determine whether the pardons met those requirements.
Thursday, March 1, 2012
Mass. court: Intent to sell pot still a crime
The state’s highest court has ruled that a person can still be criminally charged with attempting to distribute marijuana even when the amount of the drug discovered is less than an ounce.
But the court left open the question of whether those criminal charges can also be leveled against people sharing a marijuana cigarette.
The court’s decision was intended to help clarify a 2008 voter-approved ballot question that decriminalized possession of small amounts of pot. Someone caught with less than an ounce of marijuana now faces a $100 fine instead of jail time.
But the court left open the question of whether those criminal charges can also be leveled against people sharing a marijuana cigarette.
The court’s decision was intended to help clarify a 2008 voter-approved ballot question that decriminalized possession of small amounts of pot. Someone caught with less than an ounce of marijuana now faces a $100 fine instead of jail time.
US bishops fight birth control deal
The top U.S. Catholic bishop vowed legislative and court challenges Tuesday to a compromise by President Barack Obama to his healthcare mandate that now exempts religiously affiliated institutions from paying directly for birth control for their workers, instead making insurance companies responsible.
Cardinal-designate Timothy Dolan, who heads the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, said in an interview with The Associated Press that he trusted Obama wasn't anti-religious and intended to make good on his pledge to work with religious groups to fine-tune the mandate.
"I want to take him at his word," Dolan said in Rome, where he will be made a cardinal Saturday. But he stressed: "I do have to say it's getting harder and harder," to believe Obama's claim to prioritize religious freedom issues given the latest controversy.
Obama sought to quell fierce election-year outrage on Friday by abandoning his stand that religiously affiliated institutions such as Catholic hospitals and universities must pay for birth control. Instead, he said insurance would step in to provide the coverage.
The administration's initial position had outraged evangelicals and Catholic bishops and emboldened many Republicans who charged that it amounted to an assault on religion by forcing religious institutions to pay for contraception, sterilization and the morning-after pill against their consciences.
Cardinal-designate Timothy Dolan, who heads the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, said in an interview with The Associated Press that he trusted Obama wasn't anti-religious and intended to make good on his pledge to work with religious groups to fine-tune the mandate.
"I want to take him at his word," Dolan said in Rome, where he will be made a cardinal Saturday. But he stressed: "I do have to say it's getting harder and harder," to believe Obama's claim to prioritize religious freedom issues given the latest controversy.
Obama sought to quell fierce election-year outrage on Friday by abandoning his stand that religiously affiliated institutions such as Catholic hospitals and universities must pay for birth control. Instead, he said insurance would step in to provide the coverage.
The administration's initial position had outraged evangelicals and Catholic bishops and emboldened many Republicans who charged that it amounted to an assault on religion by forcing religious institutions to pay for contraception, sterilization and the morning-after pill against their consciences.
Law Firm Marketing - Why do law firms need a good SEO?
Most lawyers who are freshly introduced to the idea of internet marketing will build their website with a design company and then think visitors will start flowing in automatically after the website's initial launch. No matter how professional and aesthetically appealing your website may be, in the web environment today, visitors will never "automatically" attract and roll in. This is why law firms need good SEO and more importantly, why SEO matters if you want your business to be successful.
So what exactly is SEO you say? Surely, you must have heard talk about this recent buzz. And if you haven't, I am here to provide the 411 on everything you need to know about good SEO.
SEO is the acronym given for "search engine optimization" and choosing to invest in good SEO will be the huge factor in improving your law firm website and will also save time and money on other marketing strategies. There is, however, a possibility at risking damage to your law firm's reputation and website if you do not do your research in advance and end up in the hand's of a careless SEO company. Good SEOs will provide useful services for law firm website owners, including but not limited to:
- content development
- keyword research
- expertise in marketing techniques
- review of your website's structure and content
- advice on technical aspects of website development
In short, SEO-friendly websites allow online robots to analyze the codes and contents of your site. Major search engines like Google and Yahoo then look specifically for keywords, phrases, and web coding in order to rank your website amongst the other competiting webpages. Organic search results is the better resort over Pay Per Click (PCC) advertisement by increasing indexability and because of it's history. Pay Per Click services can cost a hefty sum and may not even produce effective results.
Why should you take my word for it? If I have still yet to convince you on why your law firm needs a good SEO, I'll dissect into all the benefits. A great search optimization company will do more than just generate leads for your website. Creating a website without incorporating good SEO can pretty much equate to throwing money away. The money invested in building a great website alone will not cut it AND you might even be spending more on other marketing strategies like advertising through other avenues of media.
So what exactly is SEO you say? Surely, you must have heard talk about this recent buzz. And if you haven't, I am here to provide the 411 on everything you need to know about good SEO.
SEO is the acronym given for "search engine optimization" and choosing to invest in good SEO will be the huge factor in improving your law firm website and will also save time and money on other marketing strategies. There is, however, a possibility at risking damage to your law firm's reputation and website if you do not do your research in advance and end up in the hand's of a careless SEO company. Good SEOs will provide useful services for law firm website owners, including but not limited to:
- content development
- keyword research
- expertise in marketing techniques
- review of your website's structure and content
- advice on technical aspects of website development
In short, SEO-friendly websites allow online robots to analyze the codes and contents of your site. Major search engines like Google and Yahoo then look specifically for keywords, phrases, and web coding in order to rank your website amongst the other competiting webpages. Organic search results is the better resort over Pay Per Click (PCC) advertisement by increasing indexability and because of it's history. Pay Per Click services can cost a hefty sum and may not even produce effective results.
Why should you take my word for it? If I have still yet to convince you on why your law firm needs a good SEO, I'll dissect into all the benefits. A great search optimization company will do more than just generate leads for your website. Creating a website without incorporating good SEO can pretty much equate to throwing money away. The money invested in building a great website alone will not cut it AND you might even be spending more on other marketing strategies like advertising through other avenues of media.
US justice rejects death penalty law he wrote
As a young state senator 30 years ago, Paul Pfeifer helped write Ohio's death penalty law. Today, as the senior member of the state Supreme Court, he's trying to eliminate it.
It's not uncommon for sitting judges to change their mind on the death penalty — U.S. Supreme Court Justice Harry Blackmun famously said in 1994 he would no longer "tinker with the machinery of death" — but Pfeifer may be the only one to argue so ardently against a capital punishment law he himself created, and yet continue to rule on death penalty cases.
"I have concluded that the death sentence makes no sense to me at this point when you can have life without the possibility of parole," Pfeifer said in his most recent public comments, testifying in December in favor a bill to abolish Ohio's law. "I don't see what society gains from that.
After the U.S. Supreme Court declared capital punishment unconstitutional in 1972, states spent several years rewriting their laws. Ohio's first attempt, in 1974, was found unconstitutional, but the second try, when Pfeifer was chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, was enacted in 1981 and has never been successfully challenged. Lawmakers pledged at the time to draft a law reserved for the most heinous murders.
It's not uncommon for sitting judges to change their mind on the death penalty — U.S. Supreme Court Justice Harry Blackmun famously said in 1994 he would no longer "tinker with the machinery of death" — but Pfeifer may be the only one to argue so ardently against a capital punishment law he himself created, and yet continue to rule on death penalty cases.
"I have concluded that the death sentence makes no sense to me at this point when you can have life without the possibility of parole," Pfeifer said in his most recent public comments, testifying in December in favor a bill to abolish Ohio's law. "I don't see what society gains from that.
After the U.S. Supreme Court declared capital punishment unconstitutional in 1972, states spent several years rewriting their laws. Ohio's first attempt, in 1974, was found unconstitutional, but the second try, when Pfeifer was chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, was enacted in 1981 and has never been successfully challenged. Lawmakers pledged at the time to draft a law reserved for the most heinous murders.
Cisco challenges Microsoft takeover of Skype in EU
Networking company Cisco said Wednesday that it is challenging Microsoft's $8.5 billion takeover of Skype at the European Union's top court to ensure Microsoft won't block other video conferencing services.
Microsoft completed the deal in October shortly after the European Commission, the EU's competition regulator, cleared the takeover. Microsoft Corp. hopes that owning Skype will allow it to better compete with other tech giants including Apple Inc. or Google Inc.
But for Cisco Systems Inc., the world's largest maker of computer networking equipment, the Skype deal creates a serious challenger to its video conferencing systems.
"Cisco does not oppose the merger, but believes the European Commission should have placed conditions that would ensure greater standards-based interoperability," Marthin De Beer, the head of Cisco's video conferencing division, wrote in a blog post.
Video conferencing equipment is a relatively small part of Cisco's overall sales, but it's growing rapidly. Cisco's latest major acquisition was of Tandberg, a Norwegian maker of video conferencing equipment. Cisco spent $3.4 billion for the company in 2010.
Microsoft completed the deal in October shortly after the European Commission, the EU's competition regulator, cleared the takeover. Microsoft Corp. hopes that owning Skype will allow it to better compete with other tech giants including Apple Inc. or Google Inc.
But for Cisco Systems Inc., the world's largest maker of computer networking equipment, the Skype deal creates a serious challenger to its video conferencing systems.
"Cisco does not oppose the merger, but believes the European Commission should have placed conditions that would ensure greater standards-based interoperability," Marthin De Beer, the head of Cisco's video conferencing division, wrote in a blog post.
Video conferencing equipment is a relatively small part of Cisco's overall sales, but it's growing rapidly. Cisco's latest major acquisition was of Tandberg, a Norwegian maker of video conferencing equipment. Cisco spent $3.4 billion for the company in 2010.
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