Free Republic

A prominent pro-life group won a decisive victory against an Ohio state law that blocked a series of campaign ads during the 2010 election. The Supreme Court unanimously ruled that Susan B. Anthony List (SBA List), a non-profit organization that supports pro-life candidates, had every right to establish billboards stating that a vote for Obamacare meant a vote for taxpayer funded abortion during the 2010 midterm elections. The target of those billboards, Democratic Rep. Steve Driehaus, sued the group using an Ohio law that prohibits “false statements” in political campaigns. Driehaus lost the election by 7 points. The court’s 9-0...

A federal lawsuit filed Wednesday challenges Seattle’s adoption of what would be the nation’s highest minimum wage as unfair to small franchises. […] In a lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Seattle, the International Franchise Association, a Washington, D.C.-based business group, said the ordinance “unfairly and irrationally discriminates against interstate commerce generally, and small businesses that operate under the franchise business model specifically.” …

These Onionheads were a bunch of knuckleheads. The feds are suing a Long Island company that employees say they were forced to leave because they refused to participate in religious rites in the workplace called Onionhead — which included praying, thanking God for their jobs, and saying "I love you" to management and co-workers — a lawsuit charges. Three former employees complained to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and federal investigators confirmed that United Health Programs of America in Syosset and its parent company, Cost Containment Group, had discriminated against them based on religion.

Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling has pulled his support from a deal to sell the team to former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer and will pursue his $1 billion federal lawsuit against the NBA, his attorney said Monday. "We have been instructed to prosecute the lawsuit," said attorney Maxwell Blecher. He said co-owner Donald Sterling would not be signing off on the deal to sell.

Imagine that someone broadcast your very personal secret on Facebook. Unfortunately for one Ohio woman, that’s exactly what happened when several hospital employees leaked her medical records that revealed she had an STD to the social networking site. She’s now suing the hospital for more than $25,000 in damages. Back in September, the woman, who remains anonymous and lives in the town of Winton Hills, was being treated for Syphilis at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center. Shortly after, hospital employees snapped a photo of her records, including her name and diagnosis, and posted it to the Facebook page “Team...

A Southwest Virginia public school has violated the First Amendment according to the American Civil Liberties Union. On May 22nd the A.C.L.U. sent Superintendent of Lee County Schools Mark Carter a letter saying immediate action needed to be taken after the A.C.L.U. received "a disturbing report of multiple First Amendment violations at Thomas Walker High School". According to the letter sent by the A.C.L.U. it says based on the information they have received "school officials, including teachers and administrators, are actively promoting religious practices during school hours on school grounds as a part of official school activities". (snip) The A.C.L.U....

The city of Chicago has filed a lawsuit against five pharmaceutical manufacturers, accusing the companies of deceptively marketing addictive painkillers. The lawsuit against five of the nation’s largest opioid manufacturers—Purdue Pharma, Cephalon, Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Endo Health Solutions, and Actavis—was filed in state court, according to a statement from the mayor’s office. The suit alleges the companies misrepresented the benefits of opioids while concealing the serious health risks associated with “highly addictive narcotics painkillers,” according to the statement. The suit claims the companies target marketing to the elderly and veterans, promising the drugs would improve their quality of life. The city’s...

Dan Marino has sued the NFL, claiming that playing professional football left him suffering from concussion-related injuries, Nathan Fenno reports for the Los Angeles Times. The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court in Philadelphia last week, according to the Times. Fourteen other players joined Marino in the suit.

Legal papers claim Oprah took part in a ‘conspiracy’ to force her father to divorce Barbara and kick her out of her home or she would cut him off. Vernon denied those claims Vernon complained about Barbara being controlling. 'I was wearing the britches or pants, but she was the head. She was running everything. I didn't like that Barbara imposed a three-year sex ban on Vernon, 81, after obtaining a video of him having sex with a crack addicted prostitute in his Nashville barbershop

The owner of a bakery in Lakewood said he will no longer sell wedding cakes after the Colorado Civil Rights Commission ruled he did discriminate against a gay couple when he refused to sell them a cake. "We would close down the bakery before we would complicate our beliefs," Phillips said after the hearing, according to CBS Denver. Phillips also admitted he had refused service to other same-sex couples. The commission also ordered the baker to submit quarterly reports about the customers he refuses to serve and retrain employees to serve everyone.

A lawsuit alleging that the IRS discriminates against pro-Israel groups will be allowed to move forward, a federal judge ruled this week in Washington, D.C. The IRS has been fighting to quash the lawsuit filed in 2009 by pro-Israel group Z Street, claiming the court does not have jurisdiction to hear the matter. However, Judge Ketanje Brown Jackson rejected the agency’s request to dismiss the case on Wednesday and ordered the IRS to respond to Z Street’s complaint within the next 30 days. Z Street says its constitutional rights were violated by an IRS policy that allegedly singles pro-Israel groups...

The attack after an April 2011 opening day game left Bryan Stow in need of life-time care and outraged sports fansLawyers for the Dodgers and former owner Frank McCourt argued beating victim Bryan Stow was aggressive, intoxicated prior to incident. Patrick Healy reports live from downtown LA for the NBC4 News at Noon on Thursday, May 29, 2014. Opening statements began Thursday in a civil lawsuit brought against the Los Angeles Dodgers and former owner Frank McCourt by a San Francisco Giants fan who was attacked in a stadium parking lot after an opening day game. During opening statements, a...

Today, Governor Rick Scott announced plans to file a lawsuit establishing the state’s Agency for Health Care Administration’s (AHCA) authority to inspect federal VA hospitals in Florida, and to stop the federal veterans affairs agency from obstructing state actions. Governor Scott said, “As the chief health policy and planning entity for the state that licenses, inspects, and investigates consumer complaints, AHCA should be allowed access to federal VA hospitals to inspect their processes and their facilities. On seven separate occasions at six federal VA hospitals, however, state inspectors have been blocked by federal officials from carrying out their mission of...

The widow of a Florida police officer killed while escorting President Barack Obama's motorcade has sued the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office, saying it was negligent in her husband's death. Jupiter Police Officer Bruce St. Laurent died Sept. 9, 2012, after being struck by a pickup truck while he prepared to shut down a stretch of Interstate 95 ahead of the motorcade as Obama campaigned in Florida. His wife, Brenda St. Laurent, sued the sheriff's office for unspecified damages, claiming it "negligently allowed" the driver of the truck to enter the highway.

It was less than a year ago that the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) — which in 1996 barred same-sex marriages from being recognized under federal law – was unconstitutional. Justice Antonin Scalia, in his dissenting opinion in United States v. Windsor, wrote: As far as this Court is concerned, no one should be fooled; it is just a matter of listening and waiting for the other shoe. By formally declaring anyone opposed to same-sex marriage an enemy of human decency, the majority arms well every challenger to a state law...

A motion to dismiss a lawsuit against Eastside Catholic School by an administrator fired in December after his same-sex marriage came to light has been rejected by King County Superior Court in Seattle. In a ruling read from the bench Friday, Judge Catherine Shaffer said it did not appear that proceeding with the case would interfere with the school's First Amendment rights, and that if facts outlined in the complaint by Mark Zmuda could be proven, "it looks like we would be entitled to relief," Zmuda attorney Rick Friedman told NCR. In a statement emailed to NCR, the law firm...

HARRISBURG, Pa. — Pennsylvania's governor says he won't appeal a court decision that struck down the state's gay marriage ban. Gov. Tom Corbett's decision Wednesday means that same-sex marriage will remain legal in Pennsylvania, without the threat that a higher court will reinstate the ban. "I have thoroughly reviewed Judge Jones' opinion in the Whitewood case. Given the high legal threshold set forth by Judge Jones in this case, the case is extremely unlikely to succeed on appeal. Therefore, after review of the opinion and on the advice of my Commonwealth legal team, I have decided not to appeal Judge...

This may just be the biggest lawsuit of all time. Anton Purisima, 62, filed a lawsuit last month in Manhattan for $2 undecillion. That’s the number 2 followed by 36 zeros — otherwise known as more money than there is on Earth. The suit involves a series of events, including allegedly being bitten by a rabid dog on a city bus and a couple taking unauthorized photos of him while being treated at a local hospital. In addition to suing the city and the MTA, Purisima is also suing two New York hospitals, Kmart, LaGuardia Airport, a bakery and even...

A 14-year battle over the care of Feld Entertainment's circus elephants ended Thursday with the Humane Society of the United States and others paying a $15.75 million settlement.The lawsuit was filed by a company the Humane Society acquired, along with other animal rights groups, against Feld, parent company of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, over the care of its 43 Asian elephants.The settlement follows $9.3 million that the American Society of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals paid in 2012 for its connection to false claims against Feld in U.S. District Court in Washington."We hope this settlement payment,...