lawsuits

7Mar

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

ENVIRONMENT, IN OTHER NEWS

Under The Threat Of Lawsuits – SEC Is Considering Climate Disclosure Rules For U.S. Companies

Better information leads to better decisions – this is the idea behind a regulatory device known as “mandated disclosure.” Mandated disclosures are all around you, from calorie counts on fast food restaurant menus to conversations with doctors around informed consent. But the biggest experiment yet in mandated disclosure may be an expected U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission proposal to extend these ideas to climate impacts facing U.S.-listed companies. The disclosure rule, expected to be proposed soon, would require publicly traded companies to release information to investors about their emissions and how they are managing risks related to climate change and future climate regulations. While it is easy to spot risks facing companies like ExxonMobil, which produces and sells fossil ...

Upending Sexist School Dress Codes – Lawsuits, Complaints And Protests

12Jan

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

EDUCATION

Upending Sexist School Dress Codes – Lawsuits, Complaints And Protests

One reason Riley O’Keefe prefers 10th grade to ninth is that she can dress more comfortably. That includes wearing tank tops, a style of clothing that was, until recently, off limits to girls at her high school in St. Johns County, Florida. “School’s a lot better this year because I love wearing tank tops,” said O’Keefe, 16. “I love wearing shorts. It’s hot in Florida. Freshman year, it would be burning hot outside, and I would be in jeans and a big T-shirt, and I was burning up because half of us eat lunch outside because there’s not enough space inside, and especially with COVID, I don’t want to be inside eating lunch; no one’s wearing a mask, and everyone’s squished together at tables.” Last year, Bartram Trail High School’s dress code banned girls from wearing “revealing” or “distr...

Here’s What Won’t Work, And What Might – Lawsuits Over Bans On Teaching Critical Race Theory Are Coming

2Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

EDUCATION, VIDEO REELS

Here’s What Won’t Work, And What Might – Lawsuits Over Bans On Teaching Critical Race Theory Are Coming

Frank LoMonte, University of Florida As states and school districts started threatening teachers with disciplinary action for teaching about systemic racism, the question naturally arose: Does this violate the teachers’ First Amendment rights? The First Amendment protects free speech against government punishment, outside of something as extreme as a threat of violence. A school district is a government agency. So anyone punished by a school district for nonthreatening speech seems to have the makings of a First Amendment case. But from years of teaching and researching First Amendment case law, I know that this is where things get complicated. Public school teachers are government employees. And thanks to a much-disputed Supreme Court decision from 15 years ago, government employees, ...

Freedom Of The Press: Why Lawsuits Against The Media May Not Hurt

3Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

BUSINESS

Freedom Of The Press: Why Lawsuits Against The Media May Not Hurt

Free speech advocates have long believed that suing a news organization threatens free speech. Democracy needs a press to be free to report, without fear or favor, the facts as it sees them. But two recent legal actions against news organizations indicate that the First Amendment provides sufficient free speech protection, even when punishing lawsuits are filed against the press. Falsehoods have flooded public discourse in recent years through outlets including talk radio, cable TV channels and social media such as Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Reddit and Instagram. The proliferation of these falsehoods has seemingly normalized the practice of spreading lies. Earlier this year Smartmatic, a little-known voter technology firm, sued cable channel Fox News for US$2.7 billion alleging defamat...