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Recent Articles from Scott Forsyth
Commentary: Domestic violence victims are not public nuisances
Public nuisance ordinances are becoming the rage among municipalities. The City of Rochester has one. The Borough of Norristown, just outside Philadelphia, had one. Hopefully, Rochester does not follow the example of Norristown. In the words of the Rochester ordinance, there exist “flagrant violation(s) of certain Penal Laws and Municipal Code provisions” in the use […]
Commentary: NY’s public defender system on trial
On Tuesday, the trial in Hurrell-Haring v. New York was to begin. In the case, the NYCLU is challenging the adequacy of the public defense system for the poor in New York. Commenced in 2007, the case really goes back to 1963. In that year, the Supreme Court held a state must provide a lawyer […]
Commentary: When Being an Unknown Air Traveler is Not Good
In August I flew to Jackson Hole, Wyoming, departing at 7 a.m. Knowing how busy the security screening gets early, I arrived at 5:30 a.m. The pens were full, but at the mouth a TSA employee looked at my ticket and directed me to a line marked “Pre Check.” I was puzzled but sailed through […]
Commentary: Who poses a greater threat to your privacy?
Last week we learned the federal government threatened Yahoo with massive fines in 2007 if Yahoo did not turn over the communications to and from certain persons located abroad of interest to the NSA. The government had obtained an order from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, pursuant to a section, now known as Section 702, […]
Commentary: Wedding venue can’t discriminate on basis of sexual orientation
Last month the Division of Human Rights handed down a significant decision in favor of a same-sex couple wanting to marry whom a wedding venue refused to accommodate on the grounds of their sexual orientation. The decision is significant for what it said and did not say. Melisa McCarthy is bisexual. Jennifer McCarthy is a […]
Commentary: What to make of the ‘Hobby Lobby’ decision
“A great victory for religious liberty,” “stunningly bad for women’s health” and a “win-win.” Take your pick; there is a wide range of opinion about the Supreme Court’s decision in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby, Inc., 573 U.S. __, 2014 WL 2921709 (2014). A lot of the opinions miss the mark, so let me clear the […]
Commentary: Amending the Constitution is not campaign finance reform
What to do about the influence of money over elections and in policymaking is an immense topic. There are as many different reforms being proposed as there are critics of the existing system. Some critics blame the Supreme Court for widening the floodgates of money when it decided Citizens United v. Fed. Election Comm’n, 558 […]
Commentary: Sexual orientation may not be the basis for a peremptory challenge
Over the past 12 months, a slew of district courts and one circuit court of appeals have struck down state bans on same-sex marriage. They are relying on the reasoning of United States v. Windsor, 133 S.Ct. 2675 (2013), principally what the Supreme Court said about treating gays and lesbians different from heterosexual persons […]
Commentary: Immigrant detainers can be a liability to counties
Normally the decision of a federal magistrate does not make waves among sheriffs, but Magistrate Janice Stewart of Portland, Oregon, is the exception. Ten weeks ago she ruled a county just outside Portland committed an illegal seizure when it detained Maria Miranda-Olivares following a request from the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Miranda-Olivares v. […]
Commentary: Filming traffic stops: do’s and don’ts
Meet Carla Gericke. She lives in Lebanon, New Hampshire, and is a social activist. Some persons in New Hampshire do not look kindly on Gericke. Count the leaders of the town of Weare, population 8,785, among them. Gericke sued the town and several of its police officers for violating her Free Speech rights. So far […]
Commentary: International communications not subject to 4th Amendment
In February, I referred to a criminal prosecution in Colorado with enormous constitutional consequences. Unfortunately the case has not gotten the media attention it deserves. Let me explain. Following 9/11, President Bush secretly authorized the NSA to collect, retain and mine the content of international electronic communications to, from and about suspected terrorists residing abroad, […[...]
Commentary: The significance of Greece v. Galloway
Several folks have asked me what I thought about the Supreme Court upholding the practice of the Greece Town Board opening its meetings with a prayer, Greece v. Galloway, No. 12-696, 2014 WL 1757828 (2014). Let me expand on those thoughts. First a brief summary of the facts. In 1999, the board switched from opening […]
Case Digests
- Fourth Department – Negligent performance: Rosenthal v. Syracuse University, et al.
- Second Circuit – Visual Artists Rights Act: Kerson v. Vermont Law School Inc.
- NYS Advisory Committee on Judicial Ethics – Former foreclosure referee: Opinion 22-157
- NYS Advisory Committee on Judicial Ethics – College honorarium: Opinion 22-156
- Second Circuit – Reasonable accommodation: Tafolla v. Heilig
- Fourth Department – Labor Law: Primisch v. Peroxychem LLC
- NYS Advisory Committee on Judicial Ethics – Judicial candidacy: Opinion 22-155
- Fourth Department – Defamation: Lavine v. Glavin
- NYS Advisory Committee on Judicial Ethics – Law clerk: Opinion 22-154
- NYS Advisory Committee on Judicial Ethics – Review of another judge’s actions: Opinion 22-153
- NYS Advisory Committee on Judicial Ethics – Charitable contributions: Opinion 22-150
- Second Circuit – Class action settlement: Moses v. The New York Times Company
Law News
- Appeals court upholds conviction
- Federal lawsuit reinstated against jail officer over strip search, delayed release
- Hyzon to pay $25M penalty to settle alleged fraud charges by SEC
- NY appeals court reinstates lawsuit over contract to remove snow
- Fourth Department affirms $400K judgment in contract dispute
- Fourth Department affirms decision in NY property dispute
- Greenlight Networks selects Buffalo-based attorney as general counsel
- Barclay Damon hires attorney Matt Smith
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