/access-to-justice?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=section Latest articles for: Access to Justice Copyright 2025 ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵ. en-US Fri, 16 May 2025 20:53:14 +0000 /access-to-justice/articles/2341480?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=section /access-to-justice/articles/2341480 The Ninth Circuit ruled Friday that two Oakland police officers violated the rights of innocent bystanders and are not entitled to qualified immunity following a high-speed pursuit that left one person dead and several others injured. Thu, 15 May 2025 10:40:33 +0000 /access-to-justice/articles/2322136?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=section /access-to-justice/articles/2322136 The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday cleared the way for a civil rights lawsuit against a Houston-area traffic officer who shot and killed a fleeing man, ruling that courts must weigh the full sequence of events — not just the instant a threat arises — when deciding if police used excessive force. Thu, 15 May 2025 07:01:29 +0000 /access-to-justice/articles/2339650?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=section /access-to-justice/articles/2339650 People who were wrongfully detained too long by immigration authorities have three additional months to file claims under a $92.5 million settlement, one of the largest immigration-related civil rights deals in New York City history, according to an announcement Thursday by the law firm that won the deal.  Tue, 13 May 2025 23:37:53 +0000 /access-to-justice/articles/2339469?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=section /access-to-justice/articles/2339469 A Manhattan federal judge on Tuesday stopped short of ordering a receiver to take control of Rikers Island in an effort to clamp down on incidents of excessive force against the jail population, instead opting for a "remediation manager" with more narrow powers to work in collaboration with city officials to reform the notorious jail complex. Fri, 09 May 2025 19:01:28 +0000 /access-to-justice/articles/2337621?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=section /access-to-justice/articles/2337621 Prisoners returning from a farm detail are escorted by a prison guard mounted on a horse that had been broken by the prisoners at Louisiana State Penitentiary in Angola, Louisiana. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert) Fri, 09 May 2025 19:01:28 +0000 /access-to-justice/articles/2336259?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=section /access-to-justice/articles/2336259 Immigration detainees are bringing about a sea change in workers’ rights behind bars, chipping away at the assumption that people in civil detention or in prison fall outside the reach of minimum wage laws and protections against forced labor. Fri, 09 May 2025 19:01:27 +0000 /access-to-justice/articles/2336225?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=section /access-to-justice/articles/2336225 Inmates battling wildfires are just the tip of the iceberg in a largely invisible workforce of more than 800,000 people who work for meager pay while incarcerated. Civil rights lawyers, advocates and some elected officials are pushing to change the legal framework that enables prison labor practices, which many trace back to American slavery and the 13th Amendment. Fri, 09 May 2025 17:14:39 +0000 /access-to-justice/articles/2337614?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=section /access-to-justice/articles/2337614 Though several states have changed their constitutions to close the 13th Amendment’s carveout that allows slavery as punishment for a crime, it is now incumbent on the legal profession to transform the amendments into effectuated rights, says Adam Davidson at University of Chicago Law School. Thu, 08 May 2025 19:22:33 +0000 /access-to-justice/articles/2337737?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=section /access-to-justice/articles/2337737 The debate regarding whether incarcerated people who perform work are employees and thus entitled to federal wage and hour protections is set to continue to develop. Listen to Law360 Explores: Subminimum Wage Part 2. Thu, 08 May 2025 18:38:26 +0000 /access-to-justice/articles/2337750?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=section /access-to-justice/articles/2337750 Despite a growing body of case law laying out a blueprint for determining whether incarcerated workers are employees — which would legally entitle them to minimum wage and other protections — there is no definitive way to classify workers behind bars. Thu, 08 May 2025 18:04:56 +0000 /access-to-justice/articles/2336510?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=section /access-to-justice/articles/2336510 Sonia Kumar has spent her 17-year legal career representing people who have spent decades behind bars in Maryland prisons. As a senior staff attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union, Kumar has fought for racial justice and combated abuses within the prison system. Thu, 08 May 2025 18:04:11 +0000 /access-to-justice/articles/2335169?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=section /access-to-justice/articles/2335169 While courts grapple with whether incarcerated workers are employees under the Fair Labor Standards Act and thus entitled to minimum wage and other protections, congressional Democrats plan to make another attempt to update the statute to answer that question. Mon, 05 May 2025 16:47:37 +0000 /access-to-justice/articles/2335643?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=section /access-to-justice/articles/2335643 The Connecticut Superior Court's rules committee on Monday advanced a plan that could allow attorneys to earn minimum continuing legal education credits by providing pro bono legal services, potentially placing the state among just three that allow lawyers to earn half their yearly requirements through volunteering. Fri, 02 May 2025 17:37:48 +0000 /access-to-justice/articles/2334942?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=section /access-to-justice/articles/2334942 A murder exoneree who spent three decades in prison has asked a federal judge to reject a Connecticut town's attempt to escape a $5.7 million evidence fabrication award, saying a limited post-verdict review weighs in his favor and that the town's prior Second Circuit loss supports his win. Wed, 30 Apr 2025 22:11:13 +0000 /access-to-justice/articles/2332641?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=section /access-to-justice/articles/2332641 Three men on a New York Police Department list of criminal gang members filed a putative class action alleging officers unconstitutionally surveil, detain and harass Black and Latino people on the list, civil rights groups said Wednesday. Tue, 29 Apr 2025 19:54:58 +0000 /access-to-justice/articles/2331705?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=section /access-to-justice/articles/2331705 President Donald Trump has issued an executive order directing the attorney general to help defend police officers from misconduct lawsuits, including arranging private-sector pro bono aid for them. Tue, 29 Apr 2025 18:14:14 +0000 /access-to-justice/articles/2331804?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=section /access-to-justice/articles/2331804 A federal judge ruled Tuesday that high-ranking officials from Pennsylvania's Department of Human Services must face a lawsuit filed by former inmates at a Delaware County juvenile correctional facility alleging widespread abuse, at least for now.  Tue, 29 Apr 2025 15:23:40 +0000 /access-to-justice/articles/2332012?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=section /access-to-justice/articles/2332012 Staff members at the Federal Defenders of New York have announced their plans to join their attorney colleagues as members of the Association of Legal Advocates and Attorneys. Mon, 28 Apr 2025 20:15:07 +0000 /access-to-justice/articles/2331344?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=section /access-to-justice/articles/2331344 Five states, 17 cities and one county enacted laws between 2017 and 2024 guaranteeing tenants the right to legal counsel in eviction proceedings, but uneven implementation, chronic underfunding and persistent court barriers have sharply limited the programs' effectiveness, according to a new national study published Friday. Fri, 25 Apr 2025 23:48:39 +0000 /access-to-justice/articles/2330490?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=section /access-to-justice/articles/2330490 The former North Carolina governor's decision to commute a Black man's death sentence last year rendered moot the trial court's later landmark decision finding racial bias tainted his trial, his defense counsel conceded in a state supreme court brief.