News from July 2009
Blumenthal calls on insurance commissioner to reject request
Blumenthal HARTFORD, Conn. (Legal Newsline) - Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal wants his state's insurance commissioner to reject a premium rate increase from a health insurance company.
Ayotte steps down, prepares for run at U.S. Senate
Ayotte CONCORD, N.H. (Legal Newsline) - Only four months after being approved for another term, New Hampshire Attorney General Kelly Ayotte has decided to resign.
Judge rules against Colo. professor in 9/11 controversy
Ward Churchill BOULDER, Colo. (Legal Newsline)-The controversial University of Colorado professor who was fired after he likened victims of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks to a Nazi leader will not get his job back, a judge ruled Tuesday.
AG hopeful seeks to boost penalties for hazardous spills
Pedro Nava (D) SACRAMENTO, Calif. (Legal Newsline)-Legislation by a Democratic candidate for California attorney general aimed at cracking down on polluters is winding its way through the state Legislature.
State pays $335k over senator's erratic driving, accident
Carole Migden (D) SACRAMENTO, Calif. (Legal Newsline)-Cash-strapped California will pay $335,000 to settle a lawsuit filed by a woman after then-state Sen. Carole Migden rear-ended her, the attorney general's office said.
AGs hail GM bankruptcy agreement
Greg Abbott (R-Texas) NEW YORK (Legal Newsline)-A bankruptcy court's decision in the General Motors Corp. case this week that disputes between the automaker and its dealers will be up to state authorities to settle has drawn praise from state attorneys general.
McCollum urging public to participate in rate hike hearings
Bill McCollum (R) TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (Legal Newsline)- Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum, along with the state's Public Counsel J.R Kelly, is urging consumers to participate in an upcoming hearing which will determine if utility costs will go up.
Koster's office defends Mo. judges' firings
Chris Koster (D) JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (Legal Newsline) - Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster's office is defending the firing of three administrative law judges who decide workers' compensation claims.
Brown sues over mortgage foreclosure scam
Jerry Brown (D) LOS ANGELES (Legal Newsline) - Two thousand California homeowners were allegedly conned by a foreclosure consultant and an attorney who are now being sued by the state's attorney general.
Stenehjem: No public funds for ballot campaigns
Wayne Stenehjem (R) BISMARCK, N.D. (Legal Newsline) -State money cannot be spent in a campaign on a ballot measure in North Dakota, state Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem said in an opinion.
Cuomo: Appointment of Lt. Gov. not the answer to Senate controversy
Cuomo ALBANY, N.Y. (Legal Newsline) - New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo said Monday that appointing a lieutenant governor to help break the state Senate's stalemate would cause unnecessary litigation.
Conway reaches $2M settlement with drug company
Jack Conway (D) FRANKFORT, Ky. (Legal Newsline) - Kentucky Attorney General Jack Conway has announced a $2 million settlement with a pharmaceutical manufacturer accused of inflating prices.
Hood blames Entergy for legislative delay
Hood JACKSON, Miss. (Legal Newsline) - Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood recently said the power provider he has been battling for months is "kind of like the mafia."
Alaska AG could remain on job despite Palin's resignation
Sarah Palin (R) JUNEAU, Alaska (Legal Newsline) - Despite the governor's pending resignation, Alaska Attorney General Dan Sullivan will remain on the job unless the new governor chooses to appoint someone else to the position, a spokeswoman said Monday.
Van Hollen to throw out Brewers' first pitch
J.B. Van Hollen (R) MADISON, Wis. (Legal Newsline) - Wisconsin Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen will throw out the first pitch at the Milwaukee Brewers game Tuesday, his office said.
Villaraigosa's endorsement would be a boost for AG Brown
Jerry Brown (D) SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. (Legal Newsline)-California Attorney General Jerry Brown's chances of winning the Democratic nomination for governor next year is closely tied to his ability to capture the state's large Latino vote, two political observers say.
Judge rules AG's poultry lawsuit to proceed to trial as scheduled
Drew Edmondson (D) TULSA, Okla. (Legal Newsline) - A federal judge says the case Oklahoma Attorney General Drew Edmondson filed against a group of large-scale poultry producers will go to trial as scheduled.
Powell: Sotomayor nomination should not be derailed
Colin Powell (R) WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline) -The U.S. Supreme Court nomination of appellate Judge Sonia Sotomayor should not be derailed because of a ruling she endorsed in a race bias case that the high court overturned, Colin Powell, one of the nation's most prominent African-Americans, said Sunday.
Senate Republicans question Sotomayor's views on racial bias
Sonia Sotomayor WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline)-Republicans on Capitol Hill say they are wondering what role U.S. Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor played in lawsuits filed by a Latino legal advocacy group when she sat on the group's board.
Calif. judge orders release of public pension data
MARTINEZ, Calif. (Legal Newsline)-California's leading taxpayers' rights group says the public scored a major legal victory this week when a judge ruled that a county's pension records are not entirely confidential.