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Big Changes in Child Protection Policies?
On September 23rd, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit certified to the New York Court of Appeals three questions for clarification whose answer could become of major importance to New York child-welfare professionals and the families they work with. The responses to these questions and the ultimate decision in this case could have a significant impact on the way in which children can be removed from homes where one adult has domestically abused another.
In this interlocutory appeal in the case of Nicholson v. Scoppetta, N.Y.L.J. 9/23/03, DOI Pg. 26, the City of New York and its chief child-welfare administrator challenged the determination of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York (Weinstein, J.) that the manner in which they have chosen to carry out the task of protecting children against those who would harm them, intentionally or not, violates the U.S. Constitution. The District Court had found below that the city was at least inattentive to the custom or practice of its officers in removing children from the custody of a parent who had been battered by a spouse or paramour, based on the theory that the battered parent's failure to protect the child from witnessing the abuse was itself a form of child neglect. This practice, the District Court concluded, contravened protected substantive due process and procedural due process liberty interests of parents and children in staying together as a family. That court also held that the removals were unreasonable seizures, contrary to the safeguards of the Fourth Amendment.
The DOJ's Corporate Enforcement Policy: One Year Later
The DOJ's Criminal Division issued three declinations since the issuance of the revised CEP a year ago. Review of these cases gives insight into DOJ's implementation of the new policy in practice.
Use of Deferred Prosecution Agreements In White Collar Investigations
This article discusses the practical and policy reasons for the use of DPAs and NPAs in white-collar criminal investigations, and considers the NDAA's new reporting provision and its relationship with other efforts to enhance transparency in DOJ decision-making.
The DOJ's New Parameters for Evaluating Corporate Compliance Programs
The parameters set forth in the DOJ's memorandum have implications not only for the government's evaluation of compliance programs in the context of criminal charging decisions, but also for how defense counsel structure their conference-room advocacy seeking declinations or lesser sanctions in both criminal and civil investigations.
CLE Shouldn't Be the Only Mandatory Training for Attorneys
Each stage of an attorney's career offers opportunities for a curriculum that addresses both the individual's and the firm's need to drive success.
Discovery of Claim Construction and Infringement Analysis May be Compelled Prior to a Markman Hearing
A defendant in a patent infringement suit may, during discovery and prior to a <i>Markman</i> hearing, compel the plaintiff to produce claim charts, claim constructions, and element-by-element infringement analyses.