INDIA – Jindal Global Law School Is Breaking New Ground In Placements On Campus

Sonipat, May 16 Jindal Global Law School (JGLS)’s 2019 graduating class has broken a new record with offers from more than 57 corporate law firms, 24 litigation offers, and 30 world-class universities higher education offers. Furthermore, JGLS students have secured positions in top think-tanks across the country, judicial clerkships, and in-house legal departments positions. O.P. Founding Vice Chancellor Prof. C. Raj Kumar. Dean of Jindal Global School and Jindal Global University said: “Felicitations to JGLS graduates. JGU and JGLS have reached this historic milestone in their 10th year, with so many of our graduates receiving excellent opportunities to pursue meaningful careers in India and abroad.”

 

INDIA – Co-Founders Of IndiGo In Dispute Rahul Bhatia And Rakesh Gangwal, Hire Law Firms

There have been differences between the two promoters and co-founders of India’s most successful and profitable airline IndiGo, sources said on Wednesday, May 15, 2019, adding to the string of negative news from the aviation industry. The two promoters, Rahul Bhatia and Rakesh Gangwal, have hired for dispute resolution law firms JSA Law and Khaitan & Co. However, the source of the airline industry said Bhatia-Gangwal duo might have taken action because of the string of incident that swept the airline.

 

INDIA – NCLAT Admits HUDCO’s Plea Of Intervention Claiming Vikram Bakshi’s Rs 195 Cr Dues

The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) rejected settlement approval between McDonald’s India and Vikram Bakshi in a six-year dispute after Hudco said they had a claim against the latter by Rs 195 crore. Housing and Urban Development Corp (Hudco) submitted an intervention in the NCLAT citing a debt recovery court (DRT) order preventing Bakshi from selling shares in Connaught Plaza Restaurants (CPRL), the McDonald’s North and East India franchise. “The debt recovery court’s order remains. We must respect the other court. We can’t cancel the order of the other tribunal,” said the bench.

 

USA – Indian Green Card Seekers Can Benefit From Trump’s New Immigration Plan

In a major policy speech on Thursday, May 16, 2019, US President Donald Trump announced a new proposal to revise the immigration policy of the country that would give preference to foreigners based on merit rather than the existing system that gives preference to family ties. Hundreds and thousands of Indian professionals on H-1B visa are likely to benefit from this move. The plan would help those immigrants who are outstanding students, officials said. However, the proposal faces an uphill task, mainly due to the bitterly divided partisan Congress, particularly on immigration reform issues.

 

INDIA – #MenToo: Mistreated By Law, Fouled By Society, Men Request For Their Revolution

The new breed of men’s rights activists and false accusation victims are now clamoring for the lack of legal assistance and emotional support. They are demanding the creation of a national commission that will entertain and address men’s complaints. Amit Lakhani, president of Men Welfare Trust, a Delhi-based NGO, said “#Mentoo’s movement is more about reforms in India’s laws and the judiciary. It’s more about letting the authorities know it’s time to amend those lopsided laws that are so widely misused in India.”

 

INDIA – Govt. Can’t Take Possession Of Citizens’ Private Land Without Buying or Giving Them Any Compensation: Allahabad HC 

The Uttar Pradesh has been reprimanded by Allahabad High Court for the “unsound” practice of seizing private land without acquisition or compensation. A judge’s bench Shashi Kant Gupta and Justice Pankaj Bhatia also reminded the government that the right to property might no longer be a fundamental right, but it is still a constitutional right and a human right as well. The court has therefore ordered the Chief Secretary to take action against all erring officials who take possession of private land without due process of law.

 

Austria – Austria Passes Laws To Ban Minority Girls’ Headscarves In Primary Schools

Austrian parliament passed a law to ban headscarves worn by minority girls in primary schools, with legislation now expected to be challenged in the top court of the nation. According to a parliamentary statement released on Wednesday, May 15, 2019, the law was proposed by the ruling right-wing coalition comprising the People’s Party and Freedom Party and later adopted with less than two-thirds of the vote, failing to obtain constitutional status.

 

INDIA – India Joins The Global Online Initiative To Fight Extremism

On Wednesday 15 May 2019, India joined France, New Zealand, Canada and several other countries in launching a major initiative in Paris to fight terrorism and extremism online and secure the Internet. The “Christchurch call for action” initiative was named after New Zealand city where 51 people were killed in a mosque attack, officials said. In order to avoid amplifying terrorist and violent extremist content, the initiative will encourage media outlets to apply ethical standards when depicting terrorist events online.

 

USA – “An Absolute Disgrace”: 2020 Democrats Denounce The Near-Total Ban On Abortion In Alabama

2020 Democratic presidential candidates hit hard against the near-total abortion ban on Alabama, which Gov. Kay Ivey signed into law on Wednesday 15 May 2019. Several of the hopefuls of the White House points to the need for improved health care and to defend the precedent set out in Roe v. Wade by the Supreme Court. President Donald Trump has yet to comment on state legislators’ recent bills. However, during recent rallies, he has repeatedly made misleading comments on the Democrats’ position on abortion.

 

INDIA – Odisha High Court Bar Association Disclaims The Promotion Of Lawyers

On Wednesday, May 15, 2019, the Orissa High Court Bar Association (OHCBA) passed a resolution against the recommendation for appointment as judges of lawyers who are not regular court practitioners. In response, on the very next day, the Supreme Court Advocate-on-Record Association (SCAORA) passed a resolution on it. The SCAORA passed a resolution requesting that the Supreme Court send a serious message to all high courts not to accede to unreasonable decisions such as that passed by the Orissa High Court Bar Association on April 25 against recommending an outsider lawyer as a judge of the high court.

 

INDIA – Only The Testimony Of The Rape Victim Is Not Always Reliable: Bombay High Court

In a rape case, the Bombay High Court quashed and dismissed a 19-year-old man’s conviction, arguing that only the victim’s testimony could not always be considered adequate evidence. In such cases, a single bench chaired by Justice Revati Mohite-Dere argued that the testimony of the victim must be cogent and reliable. The judgment was passed last month in the case, but only earlier this week, the details of the order were made public.

 

UNITED KINGDOM – The Competitive Edge of Legal Technology Knowledge, Top on the Mind, For U.K. Law Schools

Universities in England and Wales are continually realizing that the knowledge of legal technology is a skill necessary for any aspiring solicitor in the U.K. As the expectations of technology and clients evolve, so are the skill sets that lawyers need. It is a common adage repeated in the U.S. by legal educators and advocates of legal tech, but it is also being heard throughout the Atlantic recently.

 

INDIA – PG Medical Applicants Move Mumbai High Court, Challenge Withdrawal Of Admissions

On Wednesday, May 15 2019, a group of postgraduate (PG) medical aspirants filed a petition in the Bombay High Court (HC) Aurangabad Bench challenging the decision of the State Common Entrance Test (CET) cell to cancel seats in the first and second admission rounds and calling for fresh preferences from all students. The candidates claim in their petition that after seats were assigned, they had already taken loans and paid fees. The students have sought to restore the first two admission rounds by stating that they would suffer a loss if the process were to start afresh. The court issued state notices and posted the matter on May 17 for hearing.

 

INDIA – Madras HC Rejects The Plea For Rain In Temples Against Yagnas

A Madras High Court (HC) vacation bench has rejected a plea to quash an HR&CE department circular which directs the authorities of all temples in the State under its control to keep yagnas for rain. Religious beliefs and hopes cannot be interfered with by the court, Justice Bench CV Karthikeyan and Krishnan Ramasamy said on Wednesday, May 15, 2019, while dismissing the PIL petition from V Anbazhagan, who claimed to be a journalist and activist.

 

USA – MP Rail Against Plans To Define Islamophobia In Law That Would ‘Divide The Country’ After The Government Rejected It And Experts Warned That Freedom Of Speech Would Be Limited

The government rejected proposals for an official definition of Islamophobia on Wednesday, May 15, 2019. The idea’s supporters say formalizing the term will help counter Muslims ‘ hostility. However, Downing Street said the suggested definition was not widely accepted, adding: ‘This is an issue that needs to be considered further.’

 

INDIA – The Suggestion From The POCSO Act By Madras HC To Exclude Consensual Sex Between People Over 16 Reflects Ground Reality

In a recent judgment, the Madras High Court noted the growing number of adolescents and young adults unwittingly taking part in consensual sexual acts under the radar of child sexual abuse laws. The Madras High Court, therefore, not only recognizes the vast reality of young people’s sexual relationships in India but also calls on lawmakers and policymakers to develop a better understanding of adolescent sexuality. The law’s overly protectionist arm does not consider the development of children’s autonomy and the normality of adolescent sexual maturity. Rather than criminalizing adolescents and young people, the focus should be on ensuring that they can safely and informedly navigate this exploratory period.

 

Uganda – Implement The Human Trafficking Laws, Kadaga Says To Government

Parliament’s Speaker, Rebecca Kadaga, called on the government to domesticate international human trafficking and slavery conventions so that the country can fight the crime that has affected many Ugandans. Ms Kadaga, while opening the Anti-Slavery Bill 2018 consultative workshop at the Gold Tulip Hotel in Kampala yesterday, Wednesday, May 15, 2019, said it was not good for Uganda to sign and shelve international conversions.

 

IRAN – The Proposed Law Restricting Lawyer Access Would Be A Shocking Blow To Justice

According to Amnesty International, a contemptible amendment to Iran’s Code of Criminal Procedure could effectively strip prisoners facing punishments such as death penalty, life imprisonment and amputation of the right to access a lawyer while under investigation. An analysis of the bill published by the organization on Thursday 16 May 2019 details how, if passed, the amended law would allow the prosecution to immediately deprive persons arrested on “national security” and some other serious criminal charges of 20 days ‘ access to a lawyer, which could be extended to cover the entire phase of the investigation.

 

IRELAND – The Reputation Of Ireland As A Business Hub Attracts International Law Firms To Dublin

According to its emeritus chairman, former US senator George Mitchell, Ireland’s growth as an international business hub rather than Brexit was the driving force in attracting global law firm, DLA Piper. The Northern Ireland peace-deal broker officially opened the new Irish office of the law firm at an event in Dublin on Wednesday, May 15, 2019.