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The article reports on the concerns regarding the appointment of Eric Holder as attorney general by President-elect Barack Obama in the U.S. This historic appointment had some potential political problems over a 2001 pardon. If Holder becomes the next chief law enforcement officer, he will try to win back the public's confidence in the Justice Department.

The article discusses the plan of administration of U.S President George W. Bush to push for legislation that would require prison time for all criminals. The Justice Department is said to offer the plan to open debate on whether sentences for crack cocaine are harsh and racially discriminatory. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales has reportedly urged Congress to reimpose the mandatory minimum prison sentences against federal convicts rather than let judges consider them as just suggestions.

The article reports on the decision by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to cover five million dollars of legal fees for the defense of psychologists Jim Mitchell and Bruce Jessen, who designed the CIA's interrogation program and conducted waterboarding sessions against terror prisoners.

The article focuses on the issues that arose after former U.S. President George W. Bush fired nine government attorneys. Accordingly, one of the most potent issues is whether the Bush administration illegally used prosecutors to go after political enemies. It cites the case of David Iglesias, a U.S. attorney from New Mexico, who was fired in 2006. The author then looks into the political issues affecting the U.S. Justice Department.

The article reports on the legal dispute between the Congress and the administration of President George W. Bush on the firing of federal prosecutors in the U.S. The House Judiciary Committee is demanding documents and testimony from Bush's closest advisers about the firing of federal prosecutors. The Bush administration responded to the demand of the Congress with legal documents of its own.

The article reports that the administration of U.S. President George W. Bush has defended the six-year detention of Huzaifa Parhat, a Chinese Muslim, who is part of an ethnic group known as Uighurs. The Bush administration is arguing that when the U.S. Congress authorized military action against the September 11, 2001, terrorists, it also gave Bush the power to detain people who never revolted against the U.S. In the case of Parhat, he says he considers China, not the U.S. as the enemy.

The article looks at the issues surrounding the coverage of the 1973 Rehabilitation Act which prohibits discrimination against the disabled in government programs. The U.S. Court of Appeals refused to make a decision immediately on the proposal to change the appearance of U.S. currency to accommodate the needs of the blind. The issue has divided even the advocacy groups as emphasized by Scott LaBarre, a blind attorney for the Baltimore-based National Federation of the Blind.

The article reports that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled that terminally ill patients do not have a constitutional right to be treated with experimental medical drugs. This concerns a lawsuit filed by Abigail Alliance for Better Access to Developmental Drugs and the Washington Legal Foundation against the Food and Drug Administration. The majority opinion of Judge Thomas Griffith is quoted. A comment from Judge Judith Rogers is presented.

The article reports that telecommunications entrepreneur Walter Anderson has been sentenced to nine years in prison and has been ordered to repay $23 million to Washington, D.C. Anderson has admitted hiding more than $100 million from the U.S. Internal Revenue Service and city tax collectors. U.S. District Judge Paul Friedman could not order Anderson to repay the federal government $100 million to $175 million because the binding plea agreement of the U.S. Department of Justice with Anderson listed the wrong statute.

The article reports on the guilty plea by Chiquita Brands International Co. to one count of doing business with a Colombian terrorist organization. The Cincinnati, Ohio-based banana company admitted in U.S. federal court that for years it paid the United Self- Defense Forces of Colombia to protect its most profitable banana-growing operation. The plea is part of a deal with prosecutors that calls for a $25 million fine.

The article reports on a lawsuit filed by widows of U.S. veterans against the government for not allowing Wiccan symbols on their husbands' military headstones. The Wiccan pentacle is not on the list of authorized headstone images issued by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. The opinion of Attorneys for Americans United, a group advocating separation of church and state, regarding the issue is cited.

The article reports that a landmark judgment against the tobacco industry was blocked by the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. The decision allows the companies to continue selling light and low tart cigarettes until their appeals can be reviewed. Judge Gladys Kessler has ruled that the companies violated racketeering laws and conspired to mislead the public about the health hazards of cigarette smoking.

This article reports on the decision of U.S. District Judge John Bates to dismiss a lawsuit filed by coal miners following the altered mine safety rules of the Congress. The changed rules was in response to the collapse of West Virginia's sago mine. The lawsuit sought to force the Mine Safety and Health Administration to conduct periodic checks of oxygen units and conduct emergency training for all underground coal miners.

The article announces that veterans can claim disability benefits for exposure to Agent Orange from the waters off Vietnam. The ruling was initiated on August 16 by the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims in relation with a former sailor who served on an ammunition ship during the Vietnam War but never came back.

The article focuses on the dispute between the U.S. Congress and President George W. Bush about the firing of federal prosecutors. The House Judiciary Committee is demanding documents and testimony from Bush's closest advisers about such matter. The Congress says that it is left with no other options but a court case. The White House argues that the hiring and firing of presidential appointees is the business of the executive branch and it objects to formal testimony under a subpoena.