Barred?: The U.S. Justice Department says an undocumented immigrant should not be allowed to practice law in California despite passing the bar there, The Recorder reports. The DOJ position is a blow to Sergio Garcia, whose parents brought him to the United States as a toddler. More coverage here of the dispute in the California Supreme Court.
Innocent: A federal review of a murder case that jailed five people shows the defendants did not commit the crime. The New York Times described the findings from federal prosecutors as a "colossal breakdown in the criminal justice system." Defense lawyers for the defendants said they are planning to file court papers asking a judge to vacate the convictions. One attorney, who declined to discuss the substance of the new findings, said: “It’s a mind-boggling case. She’s stone cold innocent.”
$1 Billion:A jury in St. Louis this week returned a $1 billion verdict in a patent verdict for Monsanto Co. against rival DuPont in a case that is troubling members of the intellectual property bar, The National Law Journal reports. Lawyers for DuPont contend Monsanto's soybean patent was invalid and unenforceable.
Returning: Politico reports this morning that Cass Sunstein, the administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, is expected to leave his White House post and return to Harvard Law School.
Reversed: A federal appeals court in a rebuke against federal prosecutors has overturned the convictions of six brokers who were charged in a scheme to allow day traders to eavesdrop on confidential communication, The New York Law Journal reports. More coverage here about the decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.
Under Fire: A scientist at the center of the FDA employee spying controversy is under fire for blocking approval of certain mammography machines for several years, The Wall Street Journal reports. The FDA has approved 13 machines since the scientist, Robert Smith, left the agency. Smith's lawyer, Stephen Kohn, says the FDA pushes approvals too quickly.
Far, Far Away: NASA officials say Sunday's planned landing of the Curiosity rover on Mars is still a go despite a dust storm and a minor wobble in the spacecraft's trajectory, the Los Angeles Times reports. The mission involves the delivery of "the largest and most ambitious machine" ever sent to another planet.
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