Law Librarian Blog

DOJ Releases Guidance for FOIA Act Amendments

The DoJ's Office of Information and Privacy has released guidance on how federal agencies should implement the OPEN Government Act of 2007 which amends the Freedom of Information Act. The amendments require agencies to specifically cite the exemption justifying each redaction to a document requested under FOIA. Agencies also have to mark documents in such a way that shows how much information is being redacted. [JH]

DMCA at 10

Yesterday was the 10th anniversary of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). Over the course of this week and into the next Public Knowledge will post a series of video interviews with scholars, educators, and innovators affected by the DMCA. See 10 Years of the DMCA and the first video interview in the series, an interview with Vijay Raghavan, who serves as a Director at Qorvis Communications and who co-founded the now extinct video-to-iPod service, Load N’ Go Video. [JH]

Federal Courthouse Named After Rush Limbaugh's Grandfather

President Bush signed Pub. L. No 110-13 on March 21, 2007. The statute designates the United States courthouse located at 555 Independence Street in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, as the "Rush Hudson Limbaugh, Sr. United States Courthouse." From H. Rep. No. 110-10:

Rush Hudson Limbaugh, Sr. was born in Bollinger County, Missouri on September 27, 1891.

He began his education in a one room school a mile from his farm home. He attended the University of Missouri at Columbia and in 1914 entered the University of Missouri Law School. He skipped his third year of law school, passed the Missouri bar exam, and was admitted to practice in 1916.

Limbaugh was a leading figure in the legal profession for his accomplishments not just in Missouri and the United States, but around the world. At the time of his death, at the age of 104, he was still practicing law after nearly eight decades. He was the nation's oldest practicing attorney. He argued over 60 cases before the Missouri Supreme Court. He tried cases before the Interstate Commerce Commission, the U.S. Labor Board and the Internal Revenue Appellate Division.

Limbaugh served as City Attorney of Cape Girardeau from 1917 to 1919. In 1923, he started a law firm that still bears his name. From 1942 until 1946 he served as Missouri Counsel for the War Emergency Pipelines, through which gasoline was transported from Texas and Louisiana to the East Coast as a war measure. He was President of the Missouri Bar from 1955 to 1956. He served on the committee that drafted the 1955 Missouri Probate Code and served as Chairman of the Real Property, Probate, and Trust Law Section of the American Bar Association from 1954-1955. Limbaugh also served as Counsel to what is now Southeast Missouri State University for over four decades. In the early days of Indian independence in the 1950s, the U.S. State Department sent him to India to be an ambassador for the U.S. legal system.

He was also active in other areas of civic life. He was elected to the Missouri State Legislature from 1931 to 1932, where he pressed for the formation of the Missouri State Highway Patrol and the consolidation of school districts. He served as President of the State Historical Society of Missouri from 1956 to 1959. He was also a Sunday school teacher, and a member of many local civic organizations including the Boy Scouts of America, Centenary United Methodist Church, and the Salvation Army.

Rush H. Limbaugh Sr. died in his home on April 8, 1996.

Rush H. Limbaugh Sr. will be remembered as more than a brilliant attorney; he will also be remembered as a great American. As such, it is very appropriate that the United States Court House in Cape Girardeau, Missouri be designated the `Rush H. Limbaugh, Sr., United States Courthouse.'

Rush H. Limbaugh Sr. is the grandfather of radio pundit Rush Limbaugh. For more about the Senior Limbaugh see his wikipedia entry and Federal Judge Stephen N. Limbaugh's Rush Hudson Limbaugh and His Times: Reflections on a Life Well Lived (2003). [JH]

Professors and Librarians Win Narrow Exemptions Under Digital Millennium Copyright Act

From the Chronicle.com:

"The U.S. Copyright Office has issued exemptions to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act that may benefit media professors, archivists, and other academics. Under certain circumstances, they will be allowed to circumvent access-control technologies on various electronic media." (for subscribers)

See also:

• Exemptions from Prohibition on Circumvention of Technological Measures that Control Access to Copyrighted Works
• Statement of the Librarian of Congress on the Anticircumvention Rulemaking
• Determination of the Librarian of Congress and Text of the Regulation
• The Recommendation of the Register of Copyrights

[RJ]

Revised Chinese Bankruptcy Law and Partnership Law Adopted

The Chinese Law Prof Blog has the details, including links to the Chinese texts. [JH]

Worst Statute in the World

Mercer Law Prof David Hricik, editor of our sister blog, Statutory Construction Blog, has nominated The Class Action Fairness Act as this week's winner of the Worst Statute in the World. Check out why. [JH]

As we approach the end of the current session of Congress

I am reminded of something Mark Twain said:

"Suppose you were an idiot. And suppose you were a member of Congress... But I repeat myself."

[JH]

DOJ Drops Demand for Library Records

The FBI is no longer seeking library records from the Library Connection, Inc. of Windsor, thus ending this disturbing chapter of attempting to use national security letters under the USA Patriot Act to invade patron privacy. The library group had maintained that the requested records would have been released if the FBI had obtained a search warrant issued by a judge, a course of action the Justice Department argued was unnecessary under the original USA Patriot Act.

In yesterday's press release announcing this development, Ann Beeson, Associate Legal Director of the ACLU stated

First the government abandoned the gag order that would have silenced four librarians for the rest of their lives, and now they've abandoned their demand for library records entirely. While the government's real motives in this case have been questionable from the beginning, their decision to back down is a victory not just for librarians but for all Americans who value their privacy.

Library Connection has now released the NSL letter via the ACLU site. The letter shows that the FBI was seeking all records associated with one computer for a 45 minute time period during one day. In dueling press releases, the FBI explained that although its investigation was "less efficient" because Library Connection refused to comply with the NSL,"the FBI was able to investigate and over time, discount the threat that was transmitted over this computer that was part of the Library Connection’s network."

Text of National Security Letter

ACLU Press Release | FBI Press Release | New York Times article

File under "Privacy trumps inconvenience." [JH]

Michelle's Law Signed by NH Governor

Michelle's Law, which allows seriously ill college students to take leave from school but keep their health insurance was signed into law by NH Gov. John Lynch last week. The Act was named after Michelle Morse a 22-year-old Plymouth State University student who was forced to remain a full-time student, though she was undergoing chemotherapy, because her parents' health insurance company would not let her take a leave of absence from college and maintain her dependent health coverage.  Michelle died on colon cancer last November.

Michelle's mother, AnnMarie Morse, announced plans to launch a national campaign to promote Michelle's Law now. Visit the Michelle's Law website. [JH]

Mine Improvement and New Emergency Response Act of 2006

Here's the legislative history of the recently signed MINER Act of 2006.

S.2803 | CRS Summary | All Congressional Actions | CBO Cost Estimates | Presidential Statement

[RJ]

La. Governor Signs Abortion Ban

The statute, SB 33, which would apply to all abortions except when the life of the mother is threatened, will take effect only if the US Supreme Court overturns the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision or if the US Constitution is amended to allow states to prohibit abortions.

Hat tip to HealthLawProg Blog co-editor Tom May (SMU). [JH]

Glossary of Chinese Tort Liability Law, P.R.C. Civil Code

George W. Conk (Adjunct Professor, Fordham Law School) has distributed a glossary of the English translation of of Part 8, Articles 1 - 68, Tort Liability Law, of the current draft (December 17, 2002) of the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China on SSRN.

From the abstract:

The version published in China by Peking University Press in the journal SiFa [Private Law Review] contained no glossary, nor did the pinyin have phonetic tone marks.

This version is intended for use as teaching materials. The pinyin here - in both the glossary and the translation - does have phonetic tone marks.

A facsimile of the Si Fa version of the translation published in China is available on SSRN: George W. Conk, People's Republic of China Civil Code: Tort Liability Law, Private Law Review, Vol. 5, No. 2 (The 10th Issue), pp. 77-111, December 2005.

[JH]

Surprise! New Bankruptcy Law's Debt Relief Agency Provisions Should be Held Unconsititutional if Applied to Attorneys

NACBA, along with the Connecticut Bar Association, has filed suit in the Connecticut federal court to have the "debt relief agency" provisions of the new bankruptcy law held unconstitutional if they are applied to attorneys. The suit seeks a preliminary injunction prohibiting their application to attorneys, including all NACBA members.

Read the Press Release | Complaint | Plaintiff's Motion for Preliminary Injunction | Memorandum in Support

[RJ]

Legislative Resources for the Tax Increase Prevention and Reconciliation Act of 2005

President Bush has signed into law Tax Relief Extension Reconciliation Act of 2005.

Highlights Include:

• The bill extends for two years the 15 percent tax rate for dividends and capital gains.
• It extends through 2006 changes to the alternative minimum tax.
• It extends through 2009 a tax cut that gives small businesses a write off -- up to $100,000 -- for equipment and other depreciable assets.
• Among other provisions, the bill also eliminates, for 2010, the $100,000 income limitations on converting traditional IRAs to Roth IRAs.

Legislative History

H.R. 4297

House Report 109-304 | Conference Report 109-455

CRS Summary | CBO Cost Estimates

Major Congressional Actions

Presidential Signing Statement | Presidential Fact Sheet | Video of Bill Signing

[RJ]

Crazy Animal Laws

• Bear wrestling matches are prohibited in Alabama

• It is considered an offense in Alaska to push a live moose out of a moving airplane.

• Donkeys cannot sleep in bathtubs in Arizona

• Alligators may not be kept in bathtub in Arkansas

• In Hollywood California, it is illegal to drive more than two thousand sheep down Hollywood Boulevard at one time.

• In Sterling, Colorado, cats may not run loose without having been fit with a taillight.

• In Connecticut, any dogs with tattoos must be reported to the police.

• If an elephant is left tied to a parking meter in Florida, the parking fee has to be paid just as it would for a vehicle.

• In Quitman Georgia, it is illegal for a chicken to cross the road.

• In Boise Idaho, residents may not fish from a giraffe's back.

• It is against the law for a monster to enter the corporate limits of Urbana, Illinois.

• And one law that isn't animal related but is too good to pass up. In Indiana, the value of Pi is 4, and not 3.1415.

Source: Crazy Laws 

DOJ Goes Fishing ... Subpoenas 34 Internet Companies in Hope of Resurrecting COPA

Subpoenaed Companies

711Net (Mayberry USA), American Family Online, AOL, AT&T, Authentium, BellSouth, Cablevision, Charter Communications, Comcast Cable Company, Computer Associates, ContentWatch, Cox Communications, EarthLink, Google, Internet4Families, LookSmart, McAfee, MSN, Qwest, RuleSpace, S4F (Advance Internet Management), SafeBrowse, SBC Communications, Secure Computing Corp., Security Software Systems, SoftForYou, Solid Oak Software, SurfControl, Symantec, Time Warner, Tucows (Mayberry USA), United Online, Verizon, and Yahoo.

Information Week is reporting that the Department of Justice is leaving no stone unturned in its effort to "uphold the Child Online Protection Act." According to Information Week, which received its data through FOIA requests, DOJ has demanded information from at least 34 Internet service providers, search companies, and security software firms.

The bulk of the subpoenas were directed at Internet service providers and makers of content filtering software. The effectiveness of filtering technology is a critical issue in the COPA case. If the Department of Justice can prove that filters fail to shield minors from explicit material online, COPA may well be reinstated.

And if COPA is reinstated, ISPs will become content police for the DOJ.

File under fishing expedition.

Sarbanes-Oxley Resources by PwC

PricewaterhouseCooper is making its collection of SOX content accessible online. You will find the text of the law and the supporting SEC regulations; the firm's comments on both; PwC white papers and webcasts; as well as timely analysis and commentary.

Check it out. See also The Securities Lawyer's Deskbook published by the University of Cincinnati Marx Law Library

Ron Jones, University of Cincinnati Law Library

Text of Signed Deficit Reduction Bill Includes Clerical Error ... Is It Law?

The Washington Times is reporting that S.1932, Deficit Reduction Act of 2005, as signed by President Bush last Wednesday did not pass both the House and Senate in identical form, and House Democrats now say that means it is not legitimately a law (read the Democrats would like to revisit the Medicare provisions). According to the report, here is the sequence of events:

After the Senate voted on the bill, aides said, a Senate clerk inadvertently changed the length of time Medicare would reimburse for certain medical equipment to be rented from 13 months to 36 months. 

Congressional Quarterly reported that staffers discovered the error before the House passed the bill, but did not disclose the mistake until this week.

After the House vote, a Senate clerk changed the length of time back to 13 months and sent the bill to Mr. Bush.

The Senate passed a resolution stating they meant to say 13 months in the bill.

This could become every legislative history instructors' dream come true!

In Annual State Law Survey, DOL Reports that Minimum Wage Was "Hot Button" Issue

The minimum wage was the "hot button" issue in 2005. More than 140 minimum-wage bills were introduced in at least 42 States and the District of Columbia. In Connecticut, Florida, Hawaii, Minnesota, New Jersey, Oregon, Vermont, Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia, State minimum-wage rates increased either because of new legislation that was enacted, because of laws that were previously enacted and that contained scheduled increases. In the January 2006 issue of Monthly Labor Review, BLS reports on additional state law developements included child labor, drug and alcohol testing, equal employment opportunity, human trafficking, prevailing wages, time off, wage payment, and worker privacy.

Patriot Act Extended 5 Weeks

The Associated Press is reporting that Congress sent President Bush a second five-week extension of the Patriot Act as Senate negotiators worked to close a deal with the White House on renewing the antiterrorism law with some new civil liberties protections.