Doctor tells judge Indiana needs clearer medical exception to abortion ban, law clerks in rare move decry 'genocide' in Gaza, and more ??
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?? Indiana needs clearer medical exception to abortion ban, doctor tells judge
Indiana doctor Amy Caldwell, who is suing the state along with Planned Parenthood over its abortion ban, told a state judge that the exception for medical emergencies was unclear, and could prevent medically necessary abortions.
They are asking Monroe County Circuit Court Judge Kelsey Blake Hanlo for an order that the medical exception allows abortion if a patient has a health condition requiring treatment that would endanger the fetus, causes debilitating symptoms during pregnancy, or is likely to become life-threatening or cause lasting damage to her health.
Caldwell testified on May 29 that the language in the law, allowing abortion in the case of a "serious health risk," was not clear enough for doctors to know when it applied. She said she had treated patients for whom she believed an abortion was indicated, but could not perform them because of the law.
"If there's any doubt about whether it's not covered (by the exception), then we don't do it," she said.
The case is one of several nationwide over the scope of medical emergency exceptions to state abortion bans. Others are pending in Texas and before the U.S. Supreme Court, which is weighing whether Idaho's abortion ban conflicts with a federal law on emergency room care.
More on abortion:
?? US law clerks in rare anonymous statement decry 'genocide' in Gaza
Twenty-five federal law clerks issued a public statement, published by Balls & Strikes, criticizing restrictions the judiciary has placed on their ability to speak out against the treatment of Palestinians by Israel during its war with Hamas in Gaza and what they call "our government's complicity in that genocide."
The statement was published by Balls & Strikes, a court news and commentary site sponsored by Demand Justice, a progressive legal advocacy organization. It was signed anonymously by the clerks, who said they have been forced to be "passive observers of Israel’s assault on Gaza" or face being fired if they engaged publicly in political activity.
"Although the rules of the judiciary prevent us from publicly advocating at this time, we write this letter as a small gesture of our love and solidarity," the statement reads.
The statement marked a rare instance of clerks taking a public stance on an issue of public concern, albeit in an anonymous form. Judicial ethics rules prohibit judges and clerks alike from engaging in political activity, the clerks noted.
The clerks said they had been warned by judges against participating in protests or other activities related to the conflict.
"Some of us were even advised against discussing the conflict in our family group chats over concern that our words could be perceived as representing the opinion of the court for which we work," the clerks' statement said.
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?? Visa, Mastercard to pay $197 million to settle consumer ATM fee lawsuit
Visa agreed to pay $104.6 million and Mastercard will pay $92.8 million to resolve a class action by millions of consumers accusing the financial payment companies of keeping cash access fees artificially high. The settlement involves consumers who withdrew cash from bank-operated ATMs since 2007.
The proposed deal is subject to court approval. The defendants have all denied any wrongdoing.
Visa will pay $104.6 million in the accord, and Mastercard will pay $92.8 million, the settlement papers showed. The bank defendants earlier settled claims for $66 million.
The plaintiffs in the three cases said Visa and Mastercard's ATM network rules caused them to pay artificially higher amounts for access fees. Collectively, they were seeking damages of more than $9 billion.
The resolution comes after the U.S. Supreme Court in April turned down an appeal from Visa and Mastercard challenging a lower court judge’s ruling allowing the groups of plaintiffs to band together to sue as class actions.
The plaintiffs' attorneys said the settlement will "deliver immediate and assured relief."
??? Illinois adopts revamped bar exam, marking gain for new lawyer licensing test
Illinois became the 19th state or territory to commit to switching to the NextGen Bar Exam in 2028, making it the largest jurisdiction yet to adopt the revised version of the national attorney licensing exam.
Illinois officials haven’t determined whether the switch will occur in February or July 2028, the Supreme Court of Illinois said in its announcement.
The National Conference of Bar Examiners began developing the new test in 2021 with the goal of creating a test that emphasizes legal skills and relies less on the memorization of laws.
The new test does away with the three separate components of the current exam — the 200-mutliple-choice question Multistate Bar Exam, the Multistate Essay Exam and the Multistate Performance Test. The NextGen exam will also be shorter, at nine hours, compared with the current 12-hour test and will be given entirely on computers.
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