All posts tagged: Sue

Republican-Led States Sue to Block Biden Protections for Transgender Students

Republican-Led States Sue to Block Biden Protections for Transgender Students

Published by skeptic

(Reuters) -Nine Republican-led states and several conservative groups on Monday filed lawsuits challenging new Biden administration regulations that bar schools and colleges that receive federal funding from discriminating against students based on their gender identity. The states and advocacy groups filed the lawsuits in federal courts in Alabama, Louisiana and Texas challenging new U.S. Department of Education regulations that extend sex discrimination protections in federal civil rights law to LGBTQ students. The department said the regulations issued on April 19 clarified that the prohibition against sex-based discrimination in schools and colleges that receive federal funding contained in Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 also includes discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. The department cited a 2020 U.S. Supreme Court decision holding that a ban against sex discrimination in the workplace contained in a different law, Title VII, covered gay and transgender workers. Courts often rely on interpretations of Title VII when analyzing Title IX as both laws bar discrimination on the basis of sex. The regulations also change how schools subject …

Tupac’s Estate Threatens to Sue Drake for Deepfaking Dead Rapper’s Voice

Tupac’s Estate Threatens to Sue Drake for Deepfaking Dead Rapper’s Voice

Published by skeptic

“Not only is the record a flagrant violation of Tupac’s publicity and the estate’s legal rights, it is also a blatant abuse of the legacy of one of the greatest hip-hop artists of all time.” The Worst After raising a stink last year when someone used AI to spoof his voice, noted teen drama star Aubrey “Drake” Graham is now in hot water for doing the same to the late, great Tupac. As Billboard reports, an attorney for Tupac Shakur’s estate sent a cease and desist letter to Drake, threatening a lawsuit if he doesn’t take down his new Kendrick Lamar diss track, “Taylor Made Freestyle.” The song, which deepfakes the voices of Shakur and Calvin “Snoop Dogg” Broadur Jr., is the latest forte in the Canadian rapper’s seemingly mostly one-sided beef with Lamar, which began with another, blessedly AI-less track titled “Push Ups.” In the latest song, Drake twice mentions Taylor Swift, who is also a victim of nonconsensual deepfakes, and its title may be a reference to her as well. Despite signing off on …

South Koreans sue government over climate change as human rights issue

South Koreans sue government over climate change as human rights issue

Published by skeptic

Plaintiffs, lawyers and activists gather outside South Korea’s constitutional court in Seoul ahead of a public hearing for a climate lawsuit on Tuesday, April 23, 2024. Anthony Kuhn/NPR hide caption toggle caption Anthony Kuhn/NPR Plaintiffs, lawyers and activists gather outside South Korea’s constitutional court in Seoul ahead of a public hearing for a climate lawsuit on Tuesday, April 23, 2024. Anthony Kuhn/NPR SEOUL — As plaintiffs, lawyers and activists chanted slogans outside South Korea’s constitutional court on Tuesday, 17-month-old Woodpecker giggled, sending ripples of laughter through the crowd. Woodpecker is the nickname of Choi Heewoo, the youngest among more than 250 plaintiffs involved in Woodpecker et. al. v. South Korea, one of four petitions filed since 2020 that the court is considering together in a landmark case. The plaintiffs argue that by not effectively tackling climate change, their government is violating its citizens’ human rights. While there are other cases in progress elsewhere, this is the first in Asia to have a public hearing and plaintiffs say that the court’s verdict, when it comes, is …

Japan doctors sue Google Maps over ‘punching bag’ reviews

Japan doctors sue Google Maps over ‘punching bag’ reviews

Published by skeptic

TOKYO: Around 60 doctors in Japan have accused Google Maps of ignoring vitriolic reviews of their clinics in a class-action lawsuit touted as the first of its kind. The medics are seeking 1.4 million yen (US$9,000) in total damages from Google in a bid to hold the US tech titan accountable for inaction over the reviews. They sued the company on Thursday (Apr 19), saying they are powerless to reply to, or refute, reputation-damaging reviews because of their obligation to patient confidentiality. “People who post online can say anything anonymously, even if it’s nothing but slander or verbal abuse,” one of the participating doctors told reporters. “It’s like I’m a punching bag,” he said under anonymity. The case at Tokyo District Court is believed to be the first class-action lawsuit in Japan to target a platform over negative online reviews, a lawyer for the plaintiffs said. “Despite the ease with which they are posted, it has become extremely difficult to get the reviews taken down,” lawyer Yuichi Nakazawa told AFP. “This can lead to doctors …

States Sue to Block US Rules Curbing Tailpipe Emissions in Cars, Light Trucks

States Sue to Block US Rules Curbing Tailpipe Emissions in Cars, Light Trucks

Published by skeptic

(Reuters) -Republican attorneys general from 25 states on Thursday sued the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to block rules intended to reduce planet-warming emissions from cars and light trucks and encourage electric vehicle manufacturing, arguing the agency exceeded its legal authority. The lawsuit challenging the regulations for passenger vehicles, finalized on March 20 by President Joe Biden’s administration, was filed by attorneys general from states led by Kentucky and West Virginia in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. The EPA rules aim to cut fleetwide tailpipe emissions for cars and light trucks by nearly 50% over 2026 levels in 2032, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 7.2 billion tons through 2055. Kentucky Attorney General Russell Coleman said the rules would harm the American economy, threaten jobs and raise prices while undermining the U.S. electricity grid. Coleman also said there is very little consumer interest in electric vehicles in his state. Republican state officials have said the rules amount to an attempt by the administration to transform the American passenger vehicle market …

Why San Francisco is considering a bill that would let shoppers sue closing grocery stores

Why San Francisco is considering a bill that would let shoppers sue closing grocery stores

Published by skeptic

In 1984, the managers of a Safeway supermarket located at Bush and Larkin Streets in San Francisco announced the abrupt closure of the store; they would be permanently shuttering within the week, leaving community members with few choices for places to get fresh groceries. In response, the city’s Board of Supervisors passed the Neighborhood Grocery Protection Act, a law that would require grocery stores to provide six-months advance notice — and a promise to engage in good-faith negotiations with community members — before closing.  However, then-Mayor Dianne Feinstein quickly vetoed the law and it was largely forgotten, until now.  Four decades on, an eerily similar situation is playing out in San Francisco. In January, another Safeway — this time at Webster and Ellis, in a historically Black area that serves many senior citizens — announced they would be closing. This prompted both protests from community members and for two city supervisors, Dean Preston and Aaron Peskin, to reintroduce the Neighborhood Grocery Protection Act. “It was a good idea in 1984, and it’s an even better …

Afrobeats star Davido to sue K24 TV over April Fool’s article about arrest

Afrobeats star Davido to sue K24 TV over April Fool’s article about arrest

Published by skeptic

Afrobeats musician Davido is seeking legal action against a media outlet that published a fake news report on April Fools’ Day claiming he had been “detained” after a “cocaine haul” was “found in his private jet.” The article was published on April 1 by K24, a TV station in Kenya. The report falsely claimed the three-time Grammy nominee was “apprehended by the Anti-Narcotics Police Unit” on March 31 after a search of his private jet at Nairobi’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport. Kenya’s directorate of criminal investigations took to X in an effort to dispel the false allegations, branding the story “fake news.” Davido said the untrue reports had led to “a barrage of calls,” and that while he had indeed been traveling — returning from his East African tour — “I have never been arrested by anyone in any country for any crime in the world.” The K24 report made several false, headline-grabbing claims about large amounts of cocaine being hidden on the aircraft and other allegations of illegal drug use. The news outlet updated …

New York inmates sue to watch solar eclipse after state orders prisons locked down

New York inmates sue to watch solar eclipse after state orders prisons locked down

Published by skeptic

Inmates in New York are suing the state corrections department over the decision to lock down prisons during next Monday’s total solar eclipse. The suit filed Friday in federal court in upstate New York argues that the April 8 lockdown violates inmates’ constitutional rights to practice their faiths by preventing them from taking part in a religiously significant event. The plaintiffs are six men with varying religious backgrounds who are incarcerated at the Woodbourne Correctional Facility in Woodbourne. They include a Baptist, a Muslim, a Seventh-Day Adventist and two practitioners of Santeria, as well as an atheist. FILE – The moon is seen blotting out 80 percent of the sun during a solar eclipse in Washington, D.C., Monday, Aug. 21, 2017. (Photo: Diaa Bekheet) “A solar eclipse is a rare, natural phenomenon with great religious significance to many,” the complaint reads, noting that Bible passages describe an eclipse-like phenomenon during Jesus’ crucifixion while sacred Islamic works describes a similar event when the Prophet Muhammad’s son died. The celestial event, which was last visible in the …

Canada schools sue social media giants for .5bn

Canada schools sue social media giants for $4.5bn

Published by skeptic

Schools in several major cities in Canada have initiated legal actions against social media corporations, including Meta Platforms Inc.’s Facebook, alleging that these platforms hurt children’s mental health and educational progress. On Wednesday, school districts from Toronto, Ottawa, and Peel Region launched individual lawsuits, collectively seeking damages amounting to approximately $4.5 billion. The legal actions against Meta, TikTok owner ByteDance Ltd., and Snapchat parent Snap Inc. allege that these firms intentionally target children with products designed to be addictive. This, in turn, leads to disturbances in classroom settings and increases the susceptibility of children to sexual abuse and exploitation. The Toronto District School Board said in a complaint filed in Ontario’s Superior Court: “Endemic social media use is causing an unprecedented youth mental health crisis within the Plaintiff’s schools and amongst its student population. “Students’ social media use is causing significantly increased rates of anxiety, depression, social media addiction, body dysmorphia, anorexia, low self-esteem, disordered eating, suicidal ideation, pervasive loneliness, self-harm, and suicide,” it continued. It claimed that the companies “capitalized on their knowledge that …

Arizona GOP leaders, Chamber sue EPA over new air pollution standard

Arizona GOP leaders, Chamber sue EPA over new air pollution standard

Published by skeptic

A group of prominent Arizona Republicans sued the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Tuesday over new air pollution regulations that they claim will hurt the economy. The Republican leaders of the state’s House and Senate joined with the state Chamber of Commerce and Industry in the suit, alleging the new standards for fine air pollutants known as PM 2.5 are “arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion.”  PM 2.5 are some of the finest air pollutants, just 2.5 microns in size, small enough to enter a person’s bloodstream. They have been long identified as harmful, and new EPA regulations announced this month reduce target levels from 12 micrograms per cubic meter to 9 micrograms. The EPA noted that Maricopa County, home to Phoenix, is one of the Arizona areas out of compliance with the new regulations, which it estimates could save $46 billion a year by 2042 nationwide by preventing premature deaths and sickness. The plaintiffs claim that making Arizona fall in line with the new regulations would cost billions and represents an overreach by the federal …