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“Green fashion,” “ethical fashion,” “sustainable fashion.” It’s not a new concept, but in an industry that sees little regulation, it may have seemed like a lot of talk, ideals, and marketing. No bite. But all that could change if a bill currently making its way through the New York legislature becomes law. The Fashion Sustainability and Social Accountability Act, known as the “Fashion Act,” aims to regulate the apparel industry by setting sustainability reporting requirements on big clothing and footwear companies that do business in New York....

The Department of Justice recently outlined a new, tougher policy toward prosecuting white-collar criminals. According to Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco, the DOJ is going to focus more on prosecuting individuals who benefit from corporate misconduct. The agency will also focus more attention and resources on repeat offenders. Going After Individuals In remarks to the American Bar Association’s National Institute on White Collar Crime, Monaco said that “Accountability starts with the individuals responsible for criminal conduct....

Harshbarger v. Regan, No. 09-2243, involved a district court’s denial of defendant’s petition for a writ of habeas corpus in Canada’s extradition proceedings for the death of her husband in the Canadian wilderness. As stated in the decision: “Evidence that might be excluded at a trial, including hearsay evidence, is generally admissible at extradition hearings. This is so because ’the role of the magistrate judge in an extradition proceeding is…to determine whether there is competent evidence to justify holding the accused to await trial, and not to determine whether the evidence is sufficient to justify a conviction....

Dean Foods and Suiza were the two largest bottlers and processors of milk in the United States. In 2001, they merged, with the approval of the Department of Justice. The divested plants, as well as five others, were combined into a new competing company, National Dairy Holdings, which was owned by two former Suiza executives, a former business partner of DFA’s chief executive officer, and DFA itself, which owned 50 percent of the company and had veto rights....

Former law partner and Nebraska state chief deputy attorney general, Leonard Grasz, recently had his nomination to the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals confirmed by the Senate. Despite the ABA’s rarely given “unqualified” rating of soon-to-be Judge Grasz, the 50 to 48 vote cut along partisan lines, much like the Senate Judiciary Committee’s 11 to 9 vote. Judge Grasz is expected to be a conservative judge, and if the ABA is correct, potentially one that is a little too passionate....

Miller v. City of Cincinnati, 08-4679, involved a plaintiffs’ section 1983 suit against the city of Cincinnati, claiming that the city’s regulation governing access to the interior spaces of city hall violates the First and Fourteenth Amendments. In affirming the district court’s grant of plaintiffs’ motion for a preliminary injunction, the court held that the district court properly enjoined enforcement of Administrative Regulation #5 on the basis of the plaintiffs’ free speech and void-for-vagueness claims because plaintiffs have established a substantial likelihood of success on these claims, and there appears to be no issue as to the existence of the remaining preliminary injunction factors....

In plaintiff’s 42 U.S.C. section 1983 claim asserting a Fourth Amendment violations for malicious prosecution against the City of Chicago and detectives from the Chicago Police Department, district court’s dismissal of the action is affirmed as, the Seventh Circuit precedent does not permit an action for malicious prosecution under section 1983 if a state remedy exists, and plaintiff has explicitly limited his appeal to asking to overrule the precedent and there is no reason to overturn circuit precedent....

In a 42 U.S.C. section 1983 action based on a sheriff’s alleged failure to provide sexual harassment training to a subordinate, judgment for plaintiff is reversed where: 1) the Arkansas Code did not impose a duty on the county to train its officers not to sexually assault detainees; and 2) there was nothing in the record suggesting that defendant received any notice of a pattern of unconstitutional acts committed by any of his subordinates....

When small business owners think about ice cream trucks, those thoughts don’t usually involve ice cream purveyors who are scofflaws. Unless they park in front of your business, distract employees, and/or draw your customers out of your business. However, the recent citywide ice cream truck bust in NYC can teach small business owners and entrepreneurs some valuable lessons. What Happened? Apparently, in New York ice cream trucks can do some big business but as everyone knows, parking is tight in NYC....

Unpaid interns mean free labor and more money in your business’ coffers. That’s a great idea! Is it really? There are many labor laws and regulations regarding unpaid interns. For example, unpaid internships must be educational, cannot displace paid employees, and must primarily benefit the intern. Violations of these rules can lead to expensive lawsuits and judgments that could have been avoided if you just paid your interns. Just last year, NBCUniversal agreed to pay a $6....

Today’s a day for three of my favorite topics: guns, Ginsburg, and people suing the crap out of the National Security Agency. When Ginsburg, Kagan, and the rest of the justices stop making speeches and return to chambers (seriously, five out of the Nine made speeches last week), they’ll consider landmark cases dealing with the Second and Fourth Amendment, if they grant certiorari. What’s got us so excited on a Thursday morning, besides the impending weekend?...

The Third Circuit Court of Appeals heard oral arguments this week in a Delaware State Police officer’s sex discrimination lawsuit against former Governor Ruth Minner. The court is considering whether the statute of limitations or qualified immunity should prevent the case from proceeding to trial. Corporal Timothy Shockley, who has served with Delaware State Police (DSP) since 1992, filed a civil rights claim against Minner in 2006, claiming that she blocked his promotion because of his sex....

Getting the money to start your small business is never easy. Or maybe you need cash to expand or take advantage of a new market or idea. Either way, you might be seeing the success of GoFundMe, Indiegogo, and Kickstarter campaigns and wondering if crowdfunding is the way to go. Before you begin your crowdfunding campaign (or if you’ve already started), consider these legal ins and outs of crowdfunding for small business:...

When it comes to the High Court, most if not nearly all of the focus tends to fall on the cases and judges. However, a recent SCOTUSblog piece takes a look at which attorneys and law firms have fared the best before the High Court in recent years. The Empirical SCOTUS piece shows that over the past five terms, looking only at attorneys that have made four or more appearances at the Court during that time, only one attorney and one firm have perfect records....

The Second Circuit gave a real treat in the decision Brown v. Lockheed Martin Corp.; the court really tossed a bone to potential defendants in mass tort cases. In this case, the circuit court found that despite “systematic and continuous” presence in Connecticut, applicable law dictated that Lockheed was not “essentially at home” for general jurisdiction purposes. The plaintiff in this case brought a suit against Lockheed and other companies for asbestos-related injuries her father suffered during his stint as an Air Force mechanic....

Lawyers will be familiar with the old saying, oft-repeated, that “who represents themself has a fool for a client.” A pair of co-conspirators in the Sixth Circuit case of US v. Tucci-Jarraf eventually saw the wisdom in this aphorism, but only after having insisted on representing themselves. The duo ended up convicted of money laundering and sentenced to years in prison. Now they say that the judge shouldn’t have allowed them to represent themselves....

In US v. Rawlins, No. 08-2948, the Third Circuit faced a challenge to a conviction of a baggage handler for various drug crimes, claiming that the superseding indictment was invalid because count one failed to allege proper timeframe for the alleged conspiracy. As stated in the decision: “Although an indictment cannot be completely open-ended, an indictment that specifies an end date is sufficient to apprise defendants of the charges and enable them to prepare a defense....

A Native American group is entitled to $8.6 million from a Canadian company that polluted the Columbia River, a federal appeals court ruled. In Pakootas v. Teck Cominco Metals, the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a trial court decision against the mining company. The award will repay the cost of investigation and attorney’s fees in the case. Now that the courts have found the company liable, the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation will pursue damages....

Ashley Gager bought thousands of dollars worth of computer equipment on a Dell line of credit. When applying for the credit, Gager input her cell phone number where the application asked for her home number. When she later defaulted on the debt, she received many automated debt-collecting calls to her cell phone. She sent a letter to Dell asking it to stop calling her account, and after she sent the letter, she claimed that Dell called her about 40 times in a three week period....

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled on Monday that the Bureau of Prisons may continue to forcibly medicate Tucson shooting suspect Jared Lee Loughner with antipsychotic drugs, reports the Los Angeles Times. In a 2-1 decision, the appellate court approved forced medication for Loughner because he poses a threat to himself and others. The majority noted, “It is clear that Loughner has a severe mental illness, that he represents a danger to himself or others, and that the prescribed medication is appropriate and in his medical interest....