legal-issues
Biden’s SCOTUS commission is more symbol than substance | Fletcher McClellan
Presidential commissions usually pursue reform. This one stands out because it wants to stop major changes to the nation’s highest court.
Philly attorney continues to challenge statewide anti-bias rule
The dispute is pending before U.S. District Judge Chad F. Kenney of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
Perry Co.’s DA could put a homeless man in jail over a Mountain Dew. Is that justice? | Opinion
Prosecutors have broad discretion on whether to pursue cases. Is politics driving this one?
Did Pa. Supreme Court Justice David Wecht herald the death of God? | Bruce Ledewitz
I have a book coming out in a few weeks that argues that America’s deep divisions are the fallout from the Death of God proclaimed by the philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche in 1882. But, I am asked, how can God be dead when most Americans say that they believe in God and almost half of Americans […]
Pa. prison guards union sues to block Wolf’s vaccine policy
The union representing 11,000 Pennsylvania prison guards and other corrections staff has filed a lawsuit to block Gov. Tom Wolf’s vaccine policy. The policy, announced last month, required thousands of state employees working in congregate settings — such as state-run hospitals, homes for the disabled, and prisons — to get vaccinated or be tested for […]
A powerful pummeling of Trump’s hack MAGA lawyers | Dick Polman
A federal judge's ruling in Michigan is part of a broader pattern of comeuppance. We should welcome it
Pa. Sen. Saval, Gov. Wolf, call on Pa. Supreme Court to halt evictions
A progressive, first-term state senator has called for the Pennsylvania Supreme Court to halt evictions in the commonwealth, after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a federal moratorium Thursday evening on landlords removing tenants from their homes during the pandemic. State Sen. Nikil Saval, D-Philadelphia, said in a statement Friday afternoon that replacing the federal […]
The wrong font, misplaced staples leads to unusual court rebuke of Pa. teachers’ pension fund
“I have never seen it before,” Duquesne University law professor, and state court watcher, Bruce Ledewitz said. “That could be because lawyers comply with the rules.”
How ‘friendly whites’ used conservatorships to exploit, swindle Native Americans | Opinion
Between 1908 and 1934, guardianships became a vehicle for the swindling of Native communities out of their lands and royalties.
DACA in doubt after federal court ruling: 3 questions answered | Analysis
President Joe Biden has said his administration will appeal the ruling, and the U.S. Supreme Court ultimately could take the case.
Mr. Justice Breyer, Thank you for your service. Now please retire | Bruce Ledewitz
Breyer will not change the law by remaining on the court. But he might do so by resigning.
Allegheny Co. President Judge Kim Clark says systemic racism exists in courts
Clark, who has served as a judge since 1999, and as president judge since 2018, is the first Black person to hold the top position in Allegheny County history.