Person Is Guilty Of Scandalising Contempt Even If There Was No Intention To Scandalise The Court: Singapore SC Upholds Constitutional Validity Of Contempt Law [Read Judgment]

The Supreme Court of Singapore recently upheld the constitutionality of section 3(1)(a)of the Administration of Justice (Protection) Act, 2016.Wham and Tan who were facing charges of contempt for their Facebook posts had challenged the validity of the provision in contempt law on the ground that it violates a Singapore citizen’s right to freedom of speech and expression under Art 14 of...

Capital Prisoners Entitled To Humane Death: Justice Sotomayor Terms ‘Three-Drug Cocktail’ Execution Method In Tennessee As ‘State-Sponsored Brutality’

“The longer we stand silent amid growing evidence of inhumanity in execution methods like Tennessee’s, the longer we extend our own complicity in state-sponsored brutality.”Justice Sonia Sotomayor, once again, dissented with SCOTUS that denied a stay of execution of a death row convict who had challenged the execution process of injecting lethal three-drug cocktail followed in...

Washington State Supreme Court Strikes Down Death Penalty; Says It was Being Imposed In An “Arbitrary & Racially Biased Manner” [Read Judgment]

Washington, on Thursday, became the 20th U.S. state to abolish capital punishment when its Supreme Court struck down the death penalty in a unanimous decision.The Bench declared the punishment invalid “because it is imposed in an arbitrary and racially biased manner”, and directed all death sentences to be converted to life imprisonment.“…the use of death penalty is...

UK SC Vindicates Christian Baker Family Who Refused To Make Cake With Message ‘Support Gay Marriage’

“The important message from the Masterpiece Bakery case is that there is a clear distinction between refusing to produce a cake conveying a particular message, for any customer who wants such a cake, and refusing to produce a cake for the particular customer who wants it because of that customer’s characteristics.”Owners of Cake shops, one in Colorado (US) and the other in Ireland...

Private Use Of Cannabis Decriminalized By South African Apex Court On Grounds Of Privacy Right [Read Judgment]

"Prohibition of the performance of any activity in connection with the cultivation and possession of cannabis by an adult in private for his or her personal consumption in private is inconsistent with the right to privacy entrenched in the Constitution and is constitutionally invalid".The Constitutional Court of South Africa has declared that penalizing possession, use and cultivation...

Pak Supreme Court Restores Bar Entrance Examination; Bans 3 Year LLB Courses [Read Order]

“An independent, competent, honest and industrious Judicature requires an equally independent, dynamic, honest and dedicated Bar in order to effectively provide justice in accordance with law to all members of the society.”Pakistan Supreme court has issued significant directives in the realm of legal education including restoration of Bar Entrance Examination and banning three years...

US Court Prevents Release Of 3D Gun Printing Blueprints Which Enable Production Of Undetectable Firearms[Read Order]

The Court held that release of blueprints enabling production of  3D printed guns, which are undetectable, was against public interest.U.S. District Court in Seattle has passed an injunction order preventing the publication of 3D printed gun blueprints until litigation is resolved. This is a temporary win for a group of 19 U.S. states and the District of Columbia who have challenged...

“We Have Stopped Being A Civilized Nation And Accepted Barbarism. I Dissent”: SCOTUS Justice Sotamayor Refuses To Join ‘Rush To Execute’ A Rape-Murder Convict

“I cannot in good conscience join in this “rush to execute” without first seeking every assurance that our precedent permits such a result... If the law permits this execution to go forward in spite of the horrific final minutes that Irick may well experience, then we have stopped being a civilized nation and accepted barbarism. I dissent.”Billy Ray Irick, who was convicted for 1985...

Justice Syeda Tahira Safdar To Be The First Woman High Court Chief Justice In Pakistan

Justice Syeda Tahira Safdar is set to be appointed as the Chief Justice of Balochistan High Court, paving way for her to become the first woman Chief Justice of any High Court in the country.The current Chief Justice of Balochistan High Court, Justice Muhammad Noor Meskanzai is scheduled to retire on August 31. Justice Tahira will then take charge as the Chief Justice till October 5 next...

Indian American Amul Thapar On Trump’s List Of Supreme Court Nominees

With Justice Anthony M. Kennedy announcing last week that he would retire from the Supreme Court, we’re heading to a showdown for a crucial replacement that is expected to change the course of the highest court of the United States of America for generations to come.Justice Kennedy, 81, has been a critical swing vote on the sharply polarised court for nearly three decades as he embraced...

Restricting Civil Partnerships Only to Same-Sex Couples Discriminatory: UK Supreme Court [Read Judgment]

The United Kingdom Supreme Court on Wednesday declared that restricting civil partnerships to only same-sex couples is “discriminatory”, and is incompatible with Articles 14 and 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).Article 14 of the ECHR provides that the enjoyment of the rights and freedoms set forth in the Convention shall be secured without discrimination on any of...

Cannot Compel Pro-Life Pregnancy Centers To Promote Abortion: SCOTUS Stays California Law [Read Judgment]

The Supreme Court of the United States of America (SCOTUS) on Tuesday ruled in favour of a preliminary injunction against a California law that required all pregnancy centers, including pro-life ones, to post referrals to state-funded abortion providers and birth control resources, forcing them to promote services that violate their beliefs.The Court, with a 5-4 majority, ruled that...