The high court ruled that genes naturally found in the body cannot be patented, but that synthetically created genetic …
Courts
Court Says Human Genes Cannot Be Patented
(WASHINGTON) — The Supreme Court ruled Thursday that companies cannot patent parts of naturally-occurring human genes, a decision with the potential to profoundly affect the emerging and lucrative medical and biotechnology industries.
The high court’s unanimous judgment reverses three decades of patent awards by government …
DEA Settles Walgreens Painkiller Case for $80M
(MIAMI) — Federal authorities have reached an $80 million civil settlement with the Walgreens pharmacy chain over rules violations that allowed tens of thousands of units of powerful painkillers such as oxycodone to illegally wind up in the hands of drug addicts and dealers, officials said Tuesday.
Mark R. Trouville, chief of the …
AP Source: Obama Nominating 3 to U.S. Appeals Court
(WASHINGTON) — President Barack Obama plans to jointly name three nominees to the federal appeals court in Washington, a White House official said Monday, setting up a Senate battle with Republicans who say the influential court doesn’t need more judges.
The official said Obama plans to announce his nomination of Patricia Ann …
Uncertain Justice
Justice Anthony Kennedy may hold the key vote in four major cases next month.
Court Stays Out of Planned Parenthood Funding Case
(WASHINGTON) — The Supreme Court will not disturb a lower court ruling that blocks Indiana’s effort to strip Medicaid funds from Planned Parenthood because the organization performs abortions among its medical services.
The justices did not comment Tuesday in rejecting the state’s appeal of a federal appeals court ruling in favor of …
Court: US Can Keep Bin Laden Photos Under Wraps
A federal appeals court is backing the U.S. government’s decision not to release photos and video taken of Osama bin Laden during and after a raid in which the terrorist leader was killed by U.S. commandos.
What Will Justice Kennedy Do?
For decades the country’s top lawyers have tried to come up with a unifying theory for Justice Anthony Kennedy’s jurisprudence in hopes of winning over the closely divided Supreme Court’s key swing vote. Sometimes siding with …
Sued: DOJ Brings E-Book Antitrust Lawsuit Against Apple, Publishers
Just like that, Apple is officially on the receiving end of a major antitrust lawsuit filed this morning by the U.S. Justice Department for alleged e-book price-fixing. The suit, filed in New York district court, includes …
The Lone Star Way: Why Texas’ Legal War with the Federal Government Could Be the Biggest One Yet
The debate over what has come to be called Obamacare moved into the eye of a political storm last week as the U.S. Supreme Court weighed the law’s constitutionality. With its civilized tone, the legal discourse was akin to the …
Is Obamacare Constitutional?
Two interesting columns this morning on the Supreme Court’s upcoming consideration of the Affordable Care Act, a.k.a. Obamacare. Jonathan Cohn, one of the very best writers on this subject, cuts to the chase: If the individual mandate — the requirement that everyone purchase health insurance — is unconstitutional, then Medicare and …
The 2nd Circuit Slams Occupy Wall Street ‘Hero’ Judge Rakoff
Remember how last fall that “heroic” Manhattan-based U.S. district court judge Jed Rakoff “ripped the SEC a new one” by blocking a massive settlement the agency had proposed with Citigroup for the bank’s allegedly knowing and …
The Gay Marriage Decision: Is It Too Narrow to Reach the Supreme Court?
Tuesday’s ruling striking down California’s ban on gay marriage marks the first time a federal appellate court has squarely rejected a state decision to limit marriage to straight couples. In so doing, it scored big for the two …
