This post was authored by Amy Lavine, Esq.

A Massachusetts case decided in August considered the Town of Nantucket’s zoning definitions for “hot tub/spa” and “swimming pool.” Specifically, the zoning code defined a “hot tub/spa” as a structure with less than 150 square feet of surface area and more than two feet of depth, while a “swimming pool” was defined as a structure either with more than 150 square feet of surface area or containing more than 1,000 gallons of water. The definition created a dilemma because of the structure “could at the same time have less than 150 square

Climate Torts Against Big Agriculture

Shanthi Chackalackal

Over the past two decades, the way society has discussed what was once referred to as “global warming” has changed dramatically, becoming “climate change,” “the climate crisis,” and most recently, “the climate emergency.” This new sense of urgency reflects more than just rhetorical flourish; underlying it are the increasingly direct warnings of the scientific community that if governments do not act swiftly to curb carbon emissions, the devastating effects of the climate crisis will become irreversible. In a recent press release, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Chair Hoesung Lee emphasized the necessity

Brazil’s attorney general has filed an indictment against 39 people for their alleged involvement in the storming of the Senate building on 8 January.

The riot saw thousands of supporters of former president Jair Bolsonaro attack government buildings following his election loss last year.

The indictment says the individuals – who are not named – used violence and threats to try to abolish democracy.

Mr Bolsonaro has voiced “regret” for the unrest, but denies he caused it.

Perceived threats to democratic order are

SEATTLE — A former Renton criminal defense attorney nursed a yearlong grudge against seven lawyers and judges he blamed for ruining his reputation and legal career, then ambushed one of the attorneys, stabbing him in the back, King County prosecutors say.

Lee Rousso self-published a book in 2021, years after his law license was suspended, detailing perceived wrongs against him, along with homicidal fantasies involving the group of seven, who he referred to as the “Bar Card Lynch Mob,” court records show .

The main target of Rousso’s ire was a 64-year-old longtime Seattle criminal defense attorney, who he’s accused

This post was authored by Matthew Loescher, Esq.

Property owner Powlette filed a malicious prosecution suit against the township’s zoning code enforcement officer, Carlson, alleging that the officer engaged in intentional and malicious conduct by swearing to a second criminal complaint against the owner for operating a bed and breakfast without a conditional-use certificate after the original complaint against the owner was conditionally dismissed. The Court of Common Pleas, Montgomery County, granted the officer’s motion for judgment on the pleadings, and Powlette appealed.

After reviewing the pleadings, and construing all material accusations and all reasonable inferences therefrom in favor of

PIERRE, SD (AP) — South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem has appointed the lead prosecutor in the Senate impeachment trial of former Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg to fill the remainder of Ravnsborg’s term.

Noem’s interim appointment of Pennington County State’s Attorney Mark Vargo was effective Tuesday.

She pushed for Ravnsborg, a first-term fellow Republican, to step down days after he was struck and killed a pedestrian with his car in 2020, and later pushed for his impeachment. Ravnsborg was ultimately successful last week of two impeachment counts and was removed from the office.

“Mark Vargo returns integrity, experience and stability to

An attorney for Rebecca Grossman, the LA-area socialite charged with murder for running over two young boys with her SUV in a Westlake Village crosswalk, offered a preview of her defense Tuesday, disputing prosecutors’ accusations of her speed and calling the pedestrian crossing a known danger.

The 58-year-old Hidden Hills resident and co-founder of the Grossman Burn Foundation awaits trial on two counts of second-degree murder in the September 2020 deaths of brothers Mark and Jacob Iskander after California’s Supreme Court refused last month to consider dismissing the charges.

During a court hearing Tuesday, the judge did not set a