“Chicago gun lawsuit plaintiffs apply for permits; Lead plaintiff critical of $100 fee”: Today’s edition of The Chicago Tribune contains an article that begins, “Two years after filing a lawsuit that ultimately forced the city to dismantle its 28-year-old handgun ban, Otis McDonald walked into a police station Monday and applied for a permit allowing him to keep a gun at home.”

“What Next After Citizens United?” Lawrence Hurley has this article today in The Daily Journal of California.

“Welcome to the Tax Appellate Blog!” There have been tax blogs, and there have been appellate blogs. Now, thanks to the Miller & Chevalier law firm, you can enjoy the “Tax Appellate Blog.”

“Senator Lindsey Graham Puts Ideology Aside to Vote for Elena Kagan: His Stand is Honorable, But Is It Constitutionally-Required?” Michael C. Dorf has this essay online today at FindLaw.

“Courtroom plight aids others with disabilities; Man helped launch legal battle that led to Supreme Court win”: This article appears today in The Knoxville News Sentinel.

“20 years of problems at Arlington Cemetery”: The Washington Post today contains a front page article that begins, “From the graves of Supreme Court justices to a section for freed slaves, Arlington National Cemetery seems to have been egalitarian in its mistakes.”

“As Stevens retires from court, one final duel with Scalia”: Robert Barnes has this article today in The Washington Post.

“Key omission in memo to destroy CIA terror tapes”: The Associated Press has this report.

“The Use of Legal Scholarship by the Federal Courts of Appeals: An Empirical Study.” Law professors David L. Schwartz and Lee Petherbridge have posted this paper online at SSRN (via “Legal Theory Blog“).

“Chief justice nominee avoids hot-button issues; In her first interview since the nomination, Tani Cantil-Sakauye acknowledges that she has much to learn and expresses optimism about leading the California Supreme Court”: Maura Dolan has this article today in The Los Angeles Times.

“La. Chief Justice to return; Kimball has new appreciation for what matters most”: The Advocate of Baton Rouge, Louisiana contains this front page article today.

“Governor defies stereotypes, party labels in shaping California judiciary”: Howard Mintz has this article today in The San Jose Mercury News.

“Under the U.S. Supreme Court: Opening prison doors for healthcare.” Michael Kirkland of UPI has this report.

“When a Justice and a Case Are Too Close”: Adam Liptak has this article today in the Week in Review section of The New York Times.

“Court Under Roberts Is Most Conservative in Decades”: Adam Liptak has this lengthy front page article today in The New York Times. The article is the first in a series that the newspaper will publish about the first five years of the Roberts Court.

“Eight years later, pastry plot lawsuit settled; Top court vindicates lawyer who was held and strip-searched for an offence he didn’t commit”: The Vancouver Sun today contains an article that begins, “The Supreme Court of Canada has vindicated Vancouver lawyer Cameron Ward after an eight-year legal war over a Groucho Marxist pastry plot. The country’s highest court said Friday the celebrated defender of underdogs should not have been strip-searched over an alleged threat to throw a pie at former-prime minister Jean Chretien.”

The Toronto Globe and Mail reports today that “Supreme Court upholds compensation for breach of Charter rights; Ruling the first to say damages can be awarded even if authorities acting in good faith.”

The Toronto Sun reports that “Charter breaches worth money, top court says.”

And The Canadian Press reports that “Supreme Court says people can seek damages for charter breaches even if there’s no loss.”

You can access yesterday’s ruling of the Supreme Court of Canada at this link.

“Convicted killer Mack denied pension claim”: Friday’s edition of The Las Vegas Review-Journal contained this article.

The Las Vegas Sun has an article headlined “Judge: Killer can’t collect $500,000 pension fund.”

And the Metropolitan News-Enterprise reports that “Court Ends Fight Over Courthouse Sniper’s Retirement Funds.”

My earlier coverage of Thursday’s Ninth Circuit ruling appears at this link.

“Limiting ‘libel tourism’: Rachel Ehrenfeld has led a campaign to protect authors sued for libel in countries where freedom-of-speech protections are not as strong as those in the U.S.” This editorial appears today in The Los Angeles Times.

“Barry Bonds will probably go to trial in March”: Bob Egelko has this article today in The San Francisco Chronicle.

“New Names Emerge for 9th Circuit Seats”: Dan Levine of The Recorder has an article that begins, “A lawyer under serious consideration for the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals would, if picked, become the only American Indian currently in the federal judiciary and the first ever to serve on an appellate court, according to sources familiar with the search process.”

“Historic pick: Katherine Leonard is poised to become Hawaii’s first female chief justice.” This article appears today in The Honolulu Star-Advertiser.

“Maine Republican Sen. Collins to back Kagan”: The Associated Press has this report. According to the article, “Collins’ announcement makes her the third Republican to break with her party to back President Barack Obama’s nominee to succeed retired Justice John Paul Stevens.”

“An ‘Appealing’ Life: A Chat with Blogger, Lawyer Howard Bashman.” Ashby Jones has this post at WSJ.com’s “Law Blog.”

“Standing by Its Flexible Standards: The Bilski ruling will keep the patent bar churning.” Steven Seidenberg will have this article in the August 2010 issue of ABA Journal magazine.

“Federal court rules in Fla. smoker cases”: Today’s edition of The Richmond Times-Dispatch contains an article that begins, “Floridians suing cigarette-makers in federal courts can’t use a set of court-ordered findings to automatically make cases for damages against tobacco firms, a federal appeals court ruled yesterday.”

The Winston-Salem Journal reports today that “Tobacco suit rules change; Court says plaintiffs must prove 2 factors.”

Bloomberg News reports that “Altria Loses Bid to Set Aside Evidence in 4,000 Florida Sick Smoker Suits.”

“The Gavel” blog of The Florida Times-Union has a post titled “11th Circuit’s tobacco ruling leaves both sides claiming victory in Jacksonville cases.”

And at Forbes.com’s “On the Docket” blog, Daniel Fisher has a post titled “Cigarette Makers Win Big At 11th Circuit.”

Circuit Judge Ed Carnes is the author of yesterday’s ruling of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit.

“Supreme Court Nominations Join Partisan Battleground”: Naftali Bendavid has this article today in The Wall Street Journal.

You can freely access the full text of this article via Google News.

“Orie, Melvin sought guidance from ‘angel lady'”: The Associated Press has a report that begins, “A state senator and her sister, a Supreme Court justice, sought guidance from a woman who claims to hear whispered advice from angels in connection with an alleged–and unsuccessful–attempt to keep a western Pennsylvania prosecutor from investigating ethics allegations against them, court documents show.”

“Ex-bike champ’s BALCO convictions upheld”: Today in The San Francisco Chronicle, Bob Egelko has an article that begins, “A federal appeals court upheld the perjury convictions Thursday of champion cyclist Tammy Thomas, the first athlete charged with lying to a federal grand jury in the BALCO steroids investigation – the same charges now pending against former San Francisco Giants superstar Barry Bonds.”

My earlier coverage of yesterday’s Ninth Circuit ruling appears at this link.

“5th Circuit Refuses to Bar Judge From Deepwater Horizon Suits”: The Associated Press has this report.

“Pa. Supreme Court Refuses to Reconsider HRT Case”: Amaris Elliott-Engel of The Legal Intelligencer has this report.

“Bratz dolls maker wins appeal against Mattel; MGA Entertainment violated Mattel’s copyrights to some degree but is entitled to ‘sweat equity’ because it developed the dolls into a successful brand, court says”: Carol J. Williams and Andrea Chang have this article today in The Los Angeles Times.

Bloomberg News reports that “Mattel Loses Bratz Doll Appeals Court Ruling to MGA.”

And Dan Levine of The Recorder reports that “In Huge Loss for Mattel, 9th Circuit Sides With Bratz Over Barbie.”

My earlier coverage of yesterday’s Ninth Circuit ruling appears at this link.

“US appeals court blocks Pa. ethics panel gag rule”: The Associated Press has this report on a ruling that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit issued today.

“House OKs narrow bill on animal cruelty; The legislation was drafted to exclude selling videos of hunting or fishing in response to Supreme Court concerns about free speech”: This article appears today in The Los Angeles Times.

“New groups aim to spend big on election ads”: The Associated Press has a report that begins, “Two new groups – one Republican-leaning, the other pro-Democratic – seeking to capitalize on a Supreme Court ruling allowing the use of unlimited donations for ads targeting candidates have gotten the go-ahead from election officials.”

“Darren Mack murdered his wife, Charla Mack, and shot the state court judge overseeing their divorce proceedings before a final written divorce decree could be filed.” So begins an ERISA-related ruling that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued today.