“Retiring justice laments influence of money; But he’s hopeful times are changing”: The Las Vegas Review-Journal today contains an article that begins, “Too many Nevadans hold the view that justice is for sale and only the rich can afford good lawyers, retiring Supreme Court Chief Justice Bob Rose says.”

“Fieger wins partial victory in feud with state high court”: The Detroit News provides an update that begins, “A federal appeals court today upheld lawyer Geoffrey Fieger’s challenge to the way the Michigan Supreme Court handles requests for judges to recuse themselves. The decision of the U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati is a partial victory for Fieger and a setback for a Michigan Supreme Court that has been in the news because of internal dissension.”

And The Associated Press provides a report headlined “Court: Fieger can continue recusal try against GOP justices.”

“Miss. Attorney Asks Out of Nomination”: The Associated Press provides a report that begins, “A Mississippi attorney asked President Bush to withdraw his nomination to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, saying he doesn’t believe the senior Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee considers him a consensus nominee. Jackson attorney Michael Wallace, 54, told The Associated Press on Tuesday that he made the request in a letter sent late last week.”

“Notice of Proposed Circuit Rule Changes And Opportunity for Comment”: The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit has today given notice of a proposed change to its local rules to accommodate Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 32.1, which nominally took effect on December 1, 2006 but which really, really takes effect January 1, 2007.

“Questioning Capital Punishment”: Bruce Shapiro will have this essay in the January 8, 2007 issue of The Nation.

“Texas City Tests Religion Law”: The Associated Press provides an article reporting that “The Texas Supreme Court is expected to hear arguments in March or April on whether Sinton’s zoning ordinance violates the state’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act.”

Thanks to the web site of the Supreme Court of Texas, you can access the briefs filed in the case via this link.

“Misjudging a judge”: Last Thursday’s edition of Newsday contained an editorial that begins, “In the annals of politicians using the federal judiciary as a foil to advance their own careers, the shenanigans of Sen. Sam Brownback (R-Kan.) will earn a special spot in the section dedicated to bigoted fools.”

Also that day, U.S. Senator Sam Brownback (R-KS) had an op-ed in The Grand Rapids Press entitled “Assurance needed Neff won’t be an activist judge.”

And The Kalamazoo Gazette published a related editorial entitled “Senate should honor deal on federal judges.”

“Kansas Judge Lets AG Press Abortion Case”: The Associated Press provides a report that begins, “A judge agreed Tuesday to let Kansas’ attorney general, a vocal abortion opponent, try to persuade him to reinstate charges against a well-known abortion provider.”

“Court Upholds Saddam’s Death Sentence”: The Washington Post provides this news update.

And The New York Times provides a news update headlined “Court Upholds Death Penalty for Hussein.”

D.C. Circuit grants panel rehearing in Murphy v. IRS: “TaxProf Blog” provides a post titled “D.C. Circuit Panel Agrees to Rehear Murphy.” Because rehearing has been granted before the original three-judge panel, the en banc D.C. Circuit has dismissed the federal government’s petition for rehearing en banc as moot. “TaxProf Blog” links to the orders granting panel rehearing and denying rehearing en banc as moot.

In Murphy, a unanimous three-judge D.C. Circuit panel held that “insofar as §104(a)(2) permits the taxation of compensation for a personal injury, which compensation is unrelated to lost wages or earnings, that provision is unconstitutional.” You can access the now-vacated three-judge panel’s ruling at this link. My initial coverage of that ruling appears here.

“Rising near the top of U.S. judicial hierarchy; Supreme Court goal in Easterbrook reach”: The Buffalo News yesterday published an article that begins, “When Frank H. Easterbrook was a teenager, winning awards for playing the French horn and acting in plays at Kenmore West High School, his father could tell there was something special about him.”

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit reinstates attorney Geoffrey N. Fieger’s challenge to the constitutionality of the recusal rules applicable to the Justices serving on the Supreme Court of Michigan: Last night, in a post you can access here, I noted some remarkably acrimonious developments last week among the Justices on Michigan’s highest court in a case involving disciplinary sanctions against attorney Geoffrey N. Fieger. As last night’s post notes, the state court proceedings from Michigan are now the subject of Fieger’s petition for writ of certiorari pending before the U.S. Supreme Court at No. 06-596.

Today, a related aspect of attorney Fieger’s recusal-related battle against various Justices on Michigan’s highest court produced a ruling from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. And today, Fieger achieved a significant if partial victory, as the Sixth Circuit has reinstated his challenge to the constitutionality of the recusal rules applicable to the Justices serving on the Supreme Court of Michigan.

“Court Upholds Saddam’s Death Sentence”: The Associated Press provides a report that begins, “An Iraqi appeals court has upheld the death sentence for Saddam Hussein, Iraq’s national security adviser said Tuesday.”

Reuters provides a report headlined “Saddam loses death sentence appeal: govt official.”

BBC News reports that “Death sentence for Saddam upheld; An Iraqi appeals court has upheld the death sentence against ousted President Saddam Hussein, Iraq’s national security adviser has said.”

And CNN.com reports that “Iraqi court upholds Hussein death sentence.”

“2006 Appellate Year in Review”: Today’s installment of my “On Appeal” column for law.com can be accessed at this link.

“Anonymous testimony pushes limits; Defense lawyers say justice isn’t served if they can’t know the identities of the Israeli agents”: The Los Angeles Times today contains an article that begins, “In three current high-profile criminal cases, federal prosecutors have asked that the identities of Israeli government witnesses be withheld from defendants and their attorneys — a move some legal scholars see as a highly unusual end run around the 6th Amendment.”

“St. Louis judge’s outspoken book causing controversy”: The St. Louis Post-Dispatch today contains an article that begins, “A liberal-bashing book by a veteran St. Louis judge is to become available publicly this week, but it is already causing a stir in political and legal circles — and prompting some to say it could cost him his job.”

“A Delusional System of Justice”: Today in The Washington Post, columnist Richard Cohen has an op-ed in which he writes, “My person of the year is Gregory Thompson. I choose him to call attention to the madness of the death penalty.”

“Justice Dept. Database Stirs Privacy Fears; Size and Scope of the Interagency Investigative Tool Worry Civil Libertarians”: This article appears today in The Washington Post.

“Courts Side With NSA On Wiretaps”: Today in The New York Sun, Joseph Goldstein has an article that begins, “Defense lawyers who had hoped that the public disclosure a year ago of the National Security Agency’s wiretapping program would yield information favorable to their clients are being rebuffed by the federal judiciary, which in a series of unusually consistent rulings has rejected efforts by terrorism suspects to access the records.”

“All But the Name of Marriage: New Jersey Adopts ‘Civil Unions’ for Same-Sex Couples.” Joanna Grossman has this essay online at FindLaw.