“The Abortion Wars Get Technical: Women have few rights at all when doctors can legally misinform them or deny service entirely.” Dahlia Lithwick has this essay in the December 15, 2008 issue of Newsweek.

“Federal judge e-mailed jokes to ‘gag list’; The 9th Circuit’s Alex Kozinski, already under fire for keeping sexually explicit material on a publicly accessible website, says he sent them to stay in touch with friends”: Scott Glover has this article today in The Los Angeles Times.

“Supreme Court next battleground in Obama birth certificate battle”: This article will appear Monday in The Chicago Tribune.

“Supreme Court inferior to Lords, some judges say; In an unprecedented joint interview, two senior judges who will be joining the UK Supreme Court next year reveal that one or two of their fellow justices think we would be better off without it; Might it be something to do with the post code?” Monday’s edition of The Telegraph (UK) contains this article.

“Lakeland’s Canady Sworn In To Florida’s Supreme Court; He’s the second justice ever from Polk, and first of four appointments Crist is making”: This article appeared last Thursday in The Ledger of Lakeland, Florida.

“Justice Harry Blackmun is a touchy subject for metro-east town”: The Belleville (Ill.) News Democrat provides this report.

“U.S. courts due for left turn with Obama; Changes likely in conservative 4th Circuit, which includes Md.” This article appears today in The Baltimore Sun.

“Appeals court ruling favors movie theater operator AMC; A Department of Justice lawsuit over changes required at the company’s stadium-style movie theaters to accommodate wheelchair users is sent back to a lower court”: The Associated Press has this report on a ruling that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued on Friday.

“Posner and the Internet perverts”: Michael Doyle of McClatchy Newspapers’ Washington, DC bureau has this post at his “Suits and Sentences” blog about a ruling that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit issued on Friday.

“Phila. court blocks deporting Egyptian”: An article published Saturday in The Philadelphia Inquirer begins, “In a closely watched case with implications for U.S. diplomacy, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia yesterday blocked Bush administration efforts to deport an Egyptian Christian seeking asylum, who fears torture in prison if returned to Egypt where he was convicted in absentia for a murder he denies.”

Circuit Judge Marjorie O. Rendell was the author of Friday’s ruling of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.

“Child Abuse Central Index offers no way out, even for the innocent; An accusation is enough to land people on California’s list of child abusers, but only long legal battles can clear their names”: Carol J. Williams has this article today in The Los Angeles Times. The article focuses on a ruling that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued last month.

I covered that ruling on the day it issued in a post titled “Ninth Circuit holds that California’s maintenance of a database of known or suspected child abusers violates due process because identified individuals are not given a fair opportunity to challenge the allegations against them.”

“Gay marriage goes before Iowa high court this week”: Today’s edition of The Des Moines Register contains an article that begins, “The Iowa Supreme Court this week will hear a same-sex marriage case that could become a national victory for the gay rights movement or a chance to reinforce Iowa’s decade-old gay marriage ban. Oral arguments on Tuesday will pit six same-sex Iowa couples against Polk County and supporters of the state law that defines marriage as the union of a man and a woman.”

And The Associated Press reports that “Iowa Supreme court to hear gay marriage arguments.”

The Supreme Court of Iowa has created this web page devoted to the case. The Court plans to provide online access to a live broadcast of the oral argument on Tuesday morning beginning at 10 a.m. central time.

“Nevada child murderer’s death sentence overturned; The prosecutor in the 1983 Reno case falsely told a jury that the sentence was the only way to keep Ricky David Sechrest from being released, a federal appeals court rules”: Carol J. Williams has this article today in The Los Angeles Times.

And The Associated Press reports that “Death sentence overturned in ’83 killings of Reno girls.”

You can access yesterday’s ruling of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit at this link.

“Despite harsh words, Kline gets to keep abortion records”: The Kansas City Star contains this article today.

And The Topeka Capital-Journal reports today that “Kline abortion prosecution faulted; Justices order medical records turned over to state.”

Does Kline get to keep the records or must he turn them over? You can decide for yourself by reading yesterday’s ruling of the Supreme Court of Kansas.

“Justices to Decide Legality of Indefinite Detention; Case of Qatari National, Held Without Formal Charges, Is Test of Executive Power Asserted by Bush”: Robert Barnes has this article today in The Washington Post.

Today in The Los Angeles Times, David G. Savage reports that “Supreme Court to hear ‘enemy combatant’ case; It will hear the case of terror suspect Ali Saleh Kahlah al-Marri, who has been held without trial in a military brig since 2003, and rule on the validity of the administration’s controversial policy.”

Jess Bravin of The Wall Street Journal reports that “High Court to Take Up Enemy-Combatant Case.”

And The Peoria (Ill.) Journal Star reports that “High court to hear al-Marri’s case.”

“Exxon Valdez victims receive first payments; More than 32,000 people affected by the 1989 oil spill will collect shares of $507.5 million in punitive damages; The Supreme Court slashed the amount from $5 billion”: This article appears today in The Los Angeles Times.

“Legal Organization May Become Influential Beyond Its Dreams”: Sunday in The Washington Post, Michael A. Fletcher will have an article that begins, “The American Constitution Society for Law and Policy was founded seven years ago to counter a growing right-leaning legal philosophy that has reshaped the American legal landscape on issues from the reach of federal regulation to the separation of church and state. Now, as President-elect Barack Obama assembles his administration, the little-known legal organization stands on the brink of influence it once could only imagine.”

“Abortion Politics Didn’t Doom the G.O.P.” Ross Douthat will have this op-ed Sunday in The New York Times.

“Having a gun is a serious problem in New York City. Maybe in the 8th Circuit they worry about cow-tipping or something.” So said the Chief Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit recently at an en banc oral argument, according to a law.com article headlined “2nd Circuit Approves Sentencing Bump for Urban Weapons Trafficking.”

It’s good to see that Chief Judge Dennis Jacobs‘s provocative comments aren’t limited merely to the topic of lawyers’ pro bono work. Some might say that he needs to spend a little bit more time in St. Louis to see first hand whether the Eighth Circuit should be more concerned about cow tipping than gun crimes, while others might say that he needs to visit those parts of Connecticut, New York State, and Vermont where cow tipping is a much greater concern than gun violence.

In any event, should the Eighth Circuit approve a “sentencing bump” for cow tipping (assuming somehow it could be turned into a federal offense), Chief Judge Jacobs will seem even more prescient than usual.

My earlier coverage of yesterday’s en banc Second Circuit ruling appears at this link.

“Kennedy steps down from Judiciary panel”: The Associated Press provides a report that begins, “Sen. Edward Kennedy is stepping down from his Senate Judiciary Committee post.”

And The Boston Globe has a news update headlined “Source: Kennedy stepping down from Senate panel.”

“Justices Take Case on President’s Power to Detain”: Adam Liptak of The New York Times has this news update.

Robert Barnes and Jerry Markon of The Washington Post have a news update headlined “Supreme Court to Hear Case of Accused Al-Qaeda Member; Verdict May Have an Impact on Future Policies on Terror Detainees.”

David G. Savage of The Los Angeles Times has a news update headlined “The justices will hear the appeal of Ali Saleh Kahlah Marri; The case could decide if the president can order the military to hold a civilian in the U.S. based on suspected ties to terrorists.”

Michael Doyle of McClatchy Newspapers reports that “Supreme Court takes up another challenge to Bush terror strategy.”

And in hometown coverage, The Peoria (Ill.) Journal Star reports that “U.S. Supreme Court to hear al-Marri’s case.”

“A Taped Chat Between Richard Nixon and Warren Burger”: Tony Mauro has this interesting post today at “The BLT: The Blog of Legal Times.”

“High court to hear enemy combatant case”: Mark Sherman of The Associated Press has a report that begins, “The Supreme Court agreed Friday to decide whether the president may order that people picked up in the United States be detained indefinitely and without criminal charges.”

James Vicini of Reuters reports that “US justices to rule on terror suspect’s detention.”

Greg Stohr of Bloomberg News reports that “Al-Qaeda Suspect Held in U.S. Gets High Court Hearing.”

And at “SCOTUSblog,” Lyle Denniston has a post titled “Court to rule on domestic detention.”

The U.S. Supreme Court today granted review in two cases. You can access today’s Order List at this link. It may also be newsworthy that today’s Order List contains no mention of expanded review in Philip Morris USA Inc. v. Williams, No. 07-1216.

“The Early Brief Gets the Worm: Liberal groups are ceding a key way to influence the Supreme Court.” Adam Chandler has this jurisprudence essay online at Slate.

“Adoption ban targets gay couples, critics say; A new Arkansas law that bars unmarried adults from adopting or fostering children puts the spotlight on same-sex parenting”: The Los Angeles Times contains this article today.

“Colorado man faces criminal charge in libel case; J.P. Weichel is accused of writing defamatory comments about his former girlfriend on a Craigslist forum; Free-speech advocates are outraged”: This article appears today in The Los Angeles Times.

“UC professor under fire for White House memo”: The San Francisco Chronicle has a news update that begins, “Berkeley’s city council will delve into national policy again next week when it votes whether to demand the United States charge Berkeley resident and former Bush adviser John Yoo with war crimes. Yoo, a tenured professor at UC Berkeley’s Boalt Hall School of Law, wrote the memos offering legal justification for torture while he worked for the White House from 2001 to 2003.”

“The Constitution, Designed to Change, Rarely Does; Repeal of Prohibition Demonstrates the Flexibility Founders Intended — and the Infrequency With Which It Is Used”: The Wall Street Journal contains this article today.

“Catholic groups fear abortion rights bill; But it’s unclear if the Freedom of Choice Act imperils a doctor’s right not to perform the procedure”: This article will appear Friday in The Christian Science Monitor.

“‘Don’t ask, don’t tell’ suffers a blow in S.F. federal court”: Bob Egelko of The San Francisco Chronicle has a news update that begins, “A federal appeals court refused Thursday to reconsider a ruling that raised doubts about the constitutionality of the ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ policy for gays in the military, a decision that could give President-elect Barack Obama a chance to act quickly on his promise to repeal the policy. The Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco denied the Air Force’s request for a rehearing of a May 21 decision reviving a suit by a female officer in Washington state who was discharged because she had a relationship with another woman.”

And The Spokesman-Review of Spokane, Washington provides a news update headlined “Decision keeps ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ challenge alive.”

You can access today’s order of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit denying rehearing en banc, from which six judges have noted their dissent, at this link.

My earlier coverage of the three-judge panel’s ruling from May 2008 can be accessed here and here.

“Justice Hecht fined $29,000 for illegal contribution”: The Houston Chronicle has a news update that begins, “The Texas Ethics Commission today fined Texas Supreme Court Justice Nathan Hecht $29,000 for accepting and failing to report an illegal political contribution from a law firm. The case involves a discount Hecht received for personal legal services from Jackson Walker. Hecht said he is disappointed and will consider appealing the commission’s decision to state district court.”

Tony Mauro is reporting: Today at “The BLT: The Blog of Legal Times,” he has posts titled “The Supreme Court’s Big Bang, Explained” and “Re-enactment to Mark the 100th Birthday of the ‘Brandeis Brief.’”

“NYC court: Big city guns can equal stiff sentence.” The Associated Press provides a report that begins, “Federal judges can give harsher penalties to people who help bring illegal guns to big cities, a federal appeals court decided Thursday. The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals approved the practice in its ruling for the case of an illegal gun dealer who got two years in prison, which was six months more than federal sentencing guidelines recommended.”

You can access today’s en banc ruling of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit at this link.

In news of significance to appellate geeks everywhere, it appears that the Second Circuit has finally abandoned “in banc” in favor of “en banc,” as I recently advocated here.

In June 2007, a three-judge Second Circuit panel overturned the sentence as improper. You can access that ruling at this link, while my initial coverage of that ruling appears at this link. In October 2007, the same three-judge panel issued a revised decision reaching essentially the same result. You can access the revised ruling at this link, while my initial coverage of the revised ruling appears at this link. And the trial court’s opinion explaining the basis for the increased sentence can be accessed here.

“Alito jabs at Biden over long-ago plagiarism”: Mark Sherman of The Associated Press provides this report.

And at “The BLT: The Blog of Legal Times,” Tony Mauro has a post titled “Just In: Justice Stevens Will Swear In Biden as Vice President.”

Programming note: I’ll be participating in an appellate mediation this morning at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. Additional posts will appear here later today.