Mike Scarcella reports that a case over the government's plan to create a public hiking trail could dramatically alter the rules for plaintiffs across the country who bring big-money class actions against the government. If the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit sides with the Justice Department's interpretation of a six-year statute of a limitations in the case, Scarcella says pending and future class actions could be significantly downsized.
Supreme Court Correspondent Tony Mauro takes a close look at the writing style of SCOTUS nominee, Judge Sonia Sotomayor. Sotomayor's preoccupation with the record of a case, writes Mauro, offers a partial explanation for her long, plodding opinions-- considered by some to be one of her weak spots.
Jordan Weissmann reports on the first week of former Rep. William Jefferson's federal corruption trial. So far, the defense has depicted Virginia businesswoman Lori Mody-- who wore a wire for the FBI in its sting against Jefferson-- as "emotionally fragile," "difficult" and "unreliable."
Marisa McQuilken looks at the first ever insider trading case brought by the SEC involving credit default swaps-- the derivatives blamed for much of the economic meltdown. As the Obama administration and Congress figure out how to revamp the financial regulatory system, securities lawyers say the case signals that the SEC is staking out new territory.
Marcia Coyle examines a court challenge whose outcome, veterans' groups and litigators say, could mean the survival or practical end to veterans' preference-- a bedrock of federal employment law for more than 60 years.
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