On Monday, the court also ruled on the following cases:
Bias:
The court ruled that judges must step aside from cases when large campaign contributions from interested parties create the appearance of bias. The high court on a 5-4 vote sent back to the West Virginia Supreme Court a case where a judge remained involved in a lawsuit filed against the company of the most generous supporter of his election.
Iraq:
The court ruled that the current government in Iraq cannot be held responsible for the actions of Saddam Hussein’s regime. The high court unanimously turned away lawsuits from Americans who were held in Iraq during the Gulf War. The court said a federal law enacted in 2003 gave Iraq back the immunity that was stripped because of the Hussein government’s designation as a sponsor of terrorism.
Place of business:
The court agreed to find a way to determine where a company’s principal place of business is located. Hertz Corp. wanted a lawsuit alleging wage and hour violations moved from California courts to federal court because that state is not its principal place of business. A federal court said a plurality of Hertz’s business occurs in California, even though its headquarters is in Delaware, and sent the case back to state court. Hertz said different courts have used different criteria, including headquarters location, center of corporate activities and places of operation.
Ski resort:
The court turned down an appeal from Indian tribes that wanted to block expansion of a ski resort on a mountain they consider sacred. A half-dozen Western tribes wanted to block the expansion of the Arizona Snowbowl ski area north of Flagstaff because the resort plans to use treated wastewater to make artificial snow on the mountain.
Tyco execs:
The court refused to hear an appeal from two former top executives of Tyco International that challenges their convictions for fraud and larceny involving more than $100 million in bonuses. Tyco’s former chief executive, Dennis Kozlowski, and former chief financial officer Mark Swartz will serve prison terms of 8 1/3 to 25 years for taking unauthorized pay.
Toxic water:
The court refused to hear a Marine’s lawsuit blaming the government’s dumping of toxic chemicals at Camp Le jeune, N.C., for his son’s illnesses. Donal McLean Snyder Jr. argued that the dumping of tri chloroethylene, an ingredient in cleaning solvents, into the ground in the 1970s polluted the water and made his son ill.
Arson:
The court will not consider making changes to the sentence of a radical environmentalist linked to multiple arsons across the West. Kendall Tankersley was sentenced to 41 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to arson and attempted arson at U.S. Forest Industries in Medford, Ore., in December 1998.
Child porn:
The court won’t stop Pennsylvania officials from prosecuting a man whose computer was found to contain child pornography while it was at Circuit City being upgraded. Kenneth Sodomsky wanted the videos found on his computer suppressed. He had taken it into the store to get a DVD burner installed. A worker found questionable files and called police, who found child pornography.
Bankruptcy:
The court will decide whether a new bankruptcy law applies to lawyers and, if it does, whether their free-speech rights are violated by the law’s ban on people being told to incur more debt before filing bankruptcy.
