Law of the United Kingdom

U.S. News Welcomes Dafna Linzer as Editorial Director

Retrieved on: 
Monday, September 11, 2023

WASHINGTON, Sept. 11, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- U.S. News & World Report, the global authority in empowering informed decisions through news, rankings and advice, is pleased to announce that Dafna Linzer has joined the company as its editorial director and executive vice president.

Key Points: 
  • WASHINGTON, Sept. 11, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- U.S. News & World Report, the global authority in empowering informed decisions through news, rankings and advice, is pleased to announce that Dafna Linzer has joined the company as its editorial director and executive vice president.
  • In this role, Linzer will be responsible for editorial and business strategies that further engage consumers, increase synergy between editorial products, and elevate the company's brand.
  • While at POLITICO, Linzer oversaw publication of the Dobbs draft opinion and led the publication's 2022 award-winning series on the Supreme Court.
  • "I am thrilled to join U.S. News and an environment that is committed to rigorous journalism," said Linzer.

Danco Statement on Filing of Cert Petition, September 8, 2023

Retrieved on: 
Friday, September 8, 2023

Danco remains confident in the safety and effectiveness of Mifeprex® under the 2023 REMS that currently governs its use.

Key Points: 
  • Danco remains confident in the safety and effectiveness of Mifeprex® under the 2023 REMS that currently governs its use.
  • The changes in 2016 and 2021—approved by FDA after careful analysis—have expanded the availability and use of Mifeprex®, providing crucial individual and public health benefits.
  • Serious and sometimes fatal infections and bleeding occur very rarely following spontaneous, surgical, and medical abortions, including following MIFEPREX use.
  • The frequency of adverse reactions varies between studies and may be dependent on many factors including the patient population and gestational age.

Alabama’s defiant new voting map rejected by federal court — after Republicans ignored the Supreme Court’s directive to add a second majority-Black House district

Retrieved on: 
Wednesday, September 6, 2023

Those redistricting proposals are due to the court by Sept. 25.

Key Points: 
  • Those redistricting proposals are due to the court by Sept. 25.
  • Alabama officials have denied any wrongdoing and said their proposed voting districts, including one where the percentage of Black voters jumped from about 30% to 40%, were in compliance with recent federal court rulings.
  • The state is expected to appeal the panel’s latest ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court.
  • “We intend to promptly seek review from the Supreme Court to ensure that the State can use its lawful congressional districts in 2024 and beyond.”

A surprising decision to protect Black voters

    • At issue in the Alabama case was whether the power of Black voters was diluted by dividing them into districts where white voters dominate.
    • After the 2020 census, the Republican-controlled Alabama legislature redrew the state’s seven congressional districts to include only one in which Black voters would likely be able to elect a candidate of their choosing.
    • Black residents comprise about 27% of the state’s population, and voting rights advocates argued that their numbers suggest they should control two congressional districts.
    • In its surprising ruling on June 8, the U.S. Supreme Court jettisoned Republican-drawn congressional districts in Alabama that a federal district court in Alabama had ruled in 2022 discriminated against Black voters and violated Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

What Alabama did

    • State lawyers further argued that the legislature was not required to create a second majority-Black district if doing so would require ignoring traditional redistricting principles, such as keeping communities of interest together.
    • In its decision on Alabama’s redistricting, the Supreme Court upheld laws that were designed to protect minority voting power for the last nearly four decades.

Renowned Artist Jason M. Allen Launches "Space Opera Theater" Limited Edition Prints Amid Second Copyright Refusal

Retrieved on: 
Friday, September 1, 2023

DENVER, Sept. 1, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- As the saga of AI-assisted art and copyright continues, digital artist Jason M. Allen responds with a bold step forward.

Key Points: 
  • DENVER, Sept. 1, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- As the saga of AI-assisted art and copyright continues, digital artist Jason M. Allen responds with a bold step forward.
  • Every piece will be hand-numbered, titled, and signed by Jason M. Allen in archival pencil.
  • Copyright Office has maintained that the piece contains an "appreciable amount of AI-generated material" and is thus ineligible for full copyright protection.
  • In the face of this decision, Allen and attorney Tamara Pester submitted a Second Request for Reconsideration.

His Choice No Cut Vasectomy: The Newest No Scalpel Vasectomy Procedure

Retrieved on: 
Friday, September 1, 2023

His Choice vasectomy is a no needle, no scalpel vasectomy, single skin opening vasectomy procedure that can can be performed in an office setting in less than 15 minutes.

Key Points: 
  • His Choice vasectomy is a no needle, no scalpel vasectomy, single skin opening vasectomy procedure that can can be performed in an office setting in less than 15 minutes.
  • His Choice No Cut Vasectomy is the newest form of minimally invasive vasectomy.
  • His Choice vasectomy is a no needle, no scalpel vasectomy, single skin opening vasectomy procedure that can be performed in an office setting in less than 15 minutes.
  • His Choice vasectomy is the newest no scalpel vasectomy with a low risk of side-effects and a low risk of failure.

White men have controlled women’s reproductive rights throughout American history – the post-Dobbs era is no different

Retrieved on: 
Friday, September 1, 2023

Candidates sparred over the idea of a federal abortion ban during the Aug. 23, 2023, Republican presidential debate.

Key Points: 
  • Candidates sparred over the idea of a federal abortion ban during the Aug. 23, 2023, Republican presidential debate.
  • And abortion is likely to figure prominently in the November 2023 contest for a seat on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.
  • White men controlled people’s reproductive rights during the 20th century, too, with the American eugenics movement.
  • As a researcher who specializes in the history of race and racism in the U.S., I study historical issues related to race, gender and social justice.

Enslaved women forced to reproduce

    • With this shift, enslavers stepped up the forced breeding of enslaved women.
    • White men raped the Black women andgirls they enslaved, and then enslaved the children born from those rapes.
    • Because the Black midwives and enslaved women often were blamed for or suspected of using birth control and abortions to resist forced pregnancy and the enslavement of their offspring, enslavers turned increasingly away from midwives and to white male doctors to figure out why nearly half of enslaved infants were stillborn or died within their first year of life and why so many enslaved women were infertile.
    • The forced breeding of these enslaved women was linked to the profitability of southern economies.

Eugenics and control over women’s bodies

    • Thirty-two states, between 1907 and 1937, enacted forced sterilization mandates to prevent births by people eugenicists considered socially inadequate.
    • For example, in North Carolina, which had the country’s third-highest sterilization rate, far more women than men were forcibly sterilized.
    • Between 1930 and 1970, close to 33% of the women in Puerto Rico, a U.S. territory, were forcibly sterilized.
    • In California, between 1997 and 2003, 1,400 female inmates, mostly Black, were forcibly sterilized.

The post-Dobbs era

    • The Census Bureau projects that in the 2040s, non-Hispanic white people will no longer make up a majority of the U.S. population.
    • Black women represent 39% of the country’s abortion patients, but many live in communities that have limited access to family planning clinics.
    • As a result, Black women - who experience higher maternal complications and mortality rates - will be forced to give birth to more babies.
    • This is another period in the country in which the reproductive health decisions made by mostly white men will harm Black women.

As concern about Mitch McConnell's health grows, his legacy remains strong

Retrieved on: 
Friday, September 1, 2023

His doctor has said the episodes are part of the normal recovery from a concussion McConnell experienced in March, but political circles are concerned about his ability to continue to serve.

Key Points: 
  • His doctor has said the episodes are part of the normal recovery from a concussion McConnell experienced in March, but political circles are concerned about his ability to continue to serve.
  • His success could hardly have been predicted when Senate Republicans elected McConnell as their leader in 2006.
  • He fulfilled that threat in 2016, refusing to confirm Merrick Garland, Barack Obama’s pick for the Supreme Court.
  • Trump had exercised his power with what often seems like reckless audacity, but McConnell’s 36-year Senate tenure is built on his calculated audacity.

McConnell’s political rise

    • McConnell ran anyway.
    • But McConnell won.
    • They reacted emotionally to this touchy issue; he studied it, owned it and moved higher in the leadership.

Business, not service

    • McConnell makes up for that by having command of the rules and the facts and a methodical attitude.
    • The recording on his home phone once said, “This is Mitch McConnell.
    • Not something like “my service to you in the United States Senate,” but “business.” This lack of emotion keeps McConnell disciplined.
    • The first word was no surprise, because of McConnell’s well-known maxim; the second one intrigued me.

McConnell’s Supreme Court

    • He and his colleagues slow-walked and filibustered Obama’s nominees, requiring “aye” votes from 60 of the 100 senators to confirm each one.
    • The process consumed so much time that then-Majority Leader Harry Reid abolished the filibuster for nominations, except those to the Supreme Court.
    • Trump’s 2016 victory preserved the Senate Republican majority, which then did away with the Supreme Court exception, allowing McConnell and his colleagues to install by simple majority vote the sort of Supreme Court justices they wanted: Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett.
    • It is the Roberts Court, but it is also the McConnell Court.

RICO is often used to target the mob and cartels − but Trump and his associates aren't the first outside those worlds to face charges

Retrieved on: 
Thursday, August 31, 2023

Many racketeering prosecutions involve lucrative criminal enterprises, such as illegal drug operations or the Mafia.

Key Points: 
  • Many racketeering prosecutions involve lucrative criminal enterprises, such as illegal drug operations or the Mafia.
  • Whatever the lawfulness of Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election, no one claims his conduct was part of a Mafia scheme.
  • At that time, he will be read his formal charges and will plead guilty or, far more likely, not guilty.
  • A grand jury in Fulton County, Georgia, indicted Trump and 18 other political associates on Aug. 15, 2023.

RICO’s relatively short history

    • At least 31 states, including Georgia, have since enacted so-called “little RICO” or “state RICO” laws modeled after federal RICO, allowing such prosecutions to be brought in their courts.
    • In general, both federal and state judges have interpreted RICO broadly, in both allowing charges and convicting defendants.
    • But in such cases only monetary damages and other forms of civil relief may be awarded, and this does not result in imprisonment.

Anyone can get charged with RICO

    • So, if otherwise upstanding citizens who work for legitimate businesses commit acts of bribery and corruption, this can lead to a RICO charge.
    • A few years later, in 1994, the Supreme Court unanimously ruled that abortion clinics could use the federal RICO law to sue anti-abortion protesters who conspired to shut them down.
    • In 1997, the federal government charged a Texas sheriff with RICO after he accepted money from a federal prisoner in exchange for conjugal visits with the prisoner’s wife or girlfriend.
    • Over the past few decades, many business leaders, politicians and other government officials have been convicted of state and local RICO offenses for various crimes.

Georgia courts are on board

    • Georgia courts agree with the Supreme Court that their state RICO law requires no allegation or proof of “nexus with organized crime.” A range of people in Georgia have been hit with RICO charges.
    • In 2005, Georgia prosecutors charged a former DeKalb County sheriff named Sidney Dorsey with killing his successor, as well as racketeering and other crimes.
    • Truck stop owners and operators accused of doctoring the prices and fuel quality labels on gas pumps have also been prosecuted.

Otsuka Pharmaceutical to Acquire Mindset Pharma

Retrieved on: 
Thursday, August 31, 2023

Under the terms and conditions of the Agreement, each Mindset shareholder will receive $0.75 in cash for each share of Mindset held.

Key Points: 
  • Under the terms and conditions of the Agreement, each Mindset shareholder will receive $0.75 in cash for each share of Mindset held.
  • Makoto Inoue, president and representative director of Otsuka, commented, "Otsuka Pharmaceutical has designated psychiatry and neurology as one of its top priority therapeutic areas and has been developing antipsychotic agents with clinical significance on a global basis.
  • James Lanthier, CEO of Mindset, said, "We are thrilled to announce this all-cash transaction with Otsuka as we believe it maximizes value and is a great outcome for all Mindset stakeholders.
  • We believe Otsuka is ideally positioned to maximize the value of the Mindset assets and IP portfolio to the future benefit of patients."

Medicare starts a long road to cutting prices for drugs, starting with 10 costing it $50.5 billion annually – a health policy analyst explains why negotiations are promising but will take years

Retrieved on: 
Thursday, August 31, 2023

The drugs are purchased through Medicare Part D, a prescription drug coverage program for Americans ages 65 and older.

Key Points: 
  • The drugs are purchased through Medicare Part D, a prescription drug coverage program for Americans ages 65 and older.
  • The 10 medications accounted for more than US$50.5 billion in gross costs between June 1, 2022, and May 31, 2023.
  • Pending successful negotiations, these changes would amount to what researchers estimated to be net savings of about $1.8 billion in 2026.
  • Negotiations are expected to begin in October and continue until August 2024, with lower prices going into effect in 2026.

Cutting drug costs for Medicare enrollees

    • The Inflation Reduction Act allows the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to negotiate prices with the companies that make some of the most expensive drugs in the Medicare program, including life-saving cancer and diabetes treatments like Imbruvica and Januvia.
    • The Biden administration hopes that these cost savings will be passed down to Americans 65 and older through reduced Medicare Part D premiums and lower out-of-pocket costs.
    • The Inflation Reduction Act also includes a separate provision that requires drugmakers, under certain conditions, to provide the Medicare program with rebates if drug price increases outpace inflation, starting in January of 2023.

Penalties for companies that won’t negotiate

    • Pharmaceutical companies have to sign agreements to participate in the upcoming negotiations by October 2023.
    • If drugmakers don’t negotiate, they will face stiff penalties in the form of a tax, reaching as high as 95% of U.S. pharmaceutical product sales.
    • Alternatively, the companies may pull their drugs from the Medicare and Medicaid markets, meaning that seniors on Medicare would lose access to them.

Why US drug prices are so high

    • While Americans spent more than $1,100 a year in 2019, Germans paid $825, the British paid $285 and Australians paid $434 per person.
    • Of course, many other countries also directly set prices for drugs or use their monopoly on health services to drive down costs.
    • For example, Dulera, an asthma drug, costs 50 times more in the U.S. than the international average.
    • Januvia, a diabetes drug that is among the first 10 drugs up for price negotiation, and Combigan, a glaucoma drug, cost about 10 times more.

Strong resistance

    • This is because potential Republican wins in the 2024 presidential and congressional elections could unravel or severely curtail the new drug negotiation policy.
    • Indeed, Republicans have been working feverishly on designing a strategy to use the negotiations against Democrats in the upcoming elections.

Weighing the prospects

    • For now, the effect will likely be small because patients already receive discounts on the listed drugs, bringing the net savings down substantially.
    • However, the potential for real savings for Americans ages 65 and older will undoubtedly grow as more drugs become subject to negotiation.
    • Moreover, drugmakers could also simply pull their drugs from Medicare and Medicaid to force the government’s hand.