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☆ The city of Malibu is taking a family to the state supreme court to stop them from building a tiny home in their backyard for their elderly parent
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-30 | by ( Eliza Relman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

But a Malibu couple's struggle to build an ADU shows how local governments are standing in the way. Jason and Elizabeth Riddick have been trying to build an ADU in their backyard in the pricey coastal enclave since July 2020. So they applied for a permit from the city to build a small ADU and a minor addition to their existing house. So the Riddicks sued the city and in July 2022, a Los Angeles County Superior Court judge sided with the couple. Again, the city appealed the decision, this time to the state supreme court this month.

Persons: —, Elizabeth Riddick, Elizabeth, they've, Elizabeth said, Jason, David Deerson, Deerson, they're, ADUs Organizations: Service, Business, Malibu Times, Pacific Legal Foundation, New, New York City Locations: California, Los Angeles, LA County, New York

☆ How the fortune of one of America’s biggest pharmaceutical families has quietly funded conservative causes
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-03 | by ( Casey Tolan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +21 min

From The Searle Freedom TrustThis year, the Searle trust is poised to play an even bigger role as it empties out its coffers. Researchers who study political nonprofits say that the Searle trust has had a major impact, even as the Searle family has stayed under the radar compared to more well-known conservative benefactors. The Searle trust is one of the most prolific funders of conservative groups among all private foundations, according to a CNN analysis of nonprofit tax data. The Searle trust has given millions to the Foundation for Government Accountability, which has worked behind the scenes to push conservative policies such as stricter voting laws. Dennis, the CEO of the Searle trust, is also the chair of DonorsTrust.

Persons: Searle, Daniel C, Trump, Donald Trump, ”, Galen Hall, who’s, Kimberly Dennis, ” Searle, “, Sarah Scaife, doesn’t, Michael B, Thomas, SPN, They’ve, ” Brendan Fischer, Brendan Fischer, “ They’ve, ” Hall, Caleb Rossiter, ” Galen Hall, movement’s MAGA, It’s, Mike Pence, that’s, Dennis, Henry Ford, John D, Rockefeller, ” Fischer, Gideon, Michael Searle, ” Dennis, “ We’re, Dan, Gideon Daniel Searle, Daniel Searle, Jonathan Eig, Jack Searle, Daniel Searle’s, Gregory Pincus, John Rock, Pincus, weren’t, –, Sue, Eig, Margaret Marsh, Enovid, misoprostol, Searle –, Pfizer –, ” Daniel Searle, Donald Rumsfeld, Searles, Biden, Wade, Dobbs, Kristen Batstone Organizations: CNN, Searle Freedom Trust, University of Michigan, Sarah Scaife Foundation, Searle, American Enterprise Institute, Reason Foundation, Tax Foundation, Manhattan Institute, Cato Institute, Foundation, Government, State Policy Network, American Legislative Exchange Council, Fair, Pacific Legal Foundation, Federalist Society, Competitive Enterprise Institute, Environment Research Center, CO2 Coalition, Heartland Institute, ”, CO2, Heartland, Republican Party, movement’s, America, Policy Institute, Trump, American Freedom Foundation, Everett, FDA, Rutgers University, Pfizer, Monsanto, Heritage Foundation, Reason, Affordable, New Civil Liberties Alliance, Public Policy Center, Claremont, National Women’s Health Network, Trust, IRS Locations: Missouri, St, Louis , Missouri, California, judgeships, ”, Omaha, Metamucil, Dramamine, Puerto, Brazil, Diet Coke, America

☆ Lawsuit Challenging University of California’s D.E.I. Statements Is Tossed
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-13 | by ( Vimal Patel | More About Vimal Patel | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

Behind the LawsuitDiversity statements — also known as diversity, equity and inclusion, or D.E.I., statements — ask candidates seeking a faculty job or promotion to describe how they would contribute to campus diversity. In his lawsuit, John Haltigan, who has a Ph.D. in developmental psychology, said he would have applied to a position at U.C. The Pacific Legal Foundation, a libertarian group that filed the lawsuit for Dr. Haltigan, did not make him available for an interview. They also say the statements are another tool that the savvy can use to hit the right buzzwords, rewarding performative dishonesty. requirements for faculty hiring — or the system’s diversity and inclusion efforts more broadly — but it defangs for now what experts say was among the first legal challenges to these university statements.

Persons: —, John Haltigan, “, ”, Haltigan, ‘, ” Erwin Chemerinsky, Wilson Freeman Organizations: Pacific Legal Foundation, University of California, Berkeley, Chronicle, Higher Education, Universities Locations: U.C, Santa Cruz, North Dakota, Florida, Texas, Arizona

The U.S. Supreme Court building is seen prior to the start of the court's 2022-2023 term in Washington, U.S. September 30, 2022. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsAug 21 (Reuters) - A parents group backed by a conservative legal organization asked the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday to consider whether an admissions policy aimed at diversifying an elite Virginia high school is racially discriminatory. But unlike the higher education cases, the admissions policy adopted in 2020 by Virginia's Fairfax County School Board for the state-chartered magnet high school was on its face race neutral. In February 2022, U.S. District Judge Claude Hilton sided with the parents' group lawyers at the libertarian Pacific Legal Foundation. Last year the Supreme Court declined an emergency request to block its policy, though three conservative justices dissented.

Persons: Kevin Lamarque, Thomas, Claude Hilton, Appeals, Nate Raymond, Clarence Fernandez Organizations: U.S, Supreme, REUTERS, Thomas Jefferson High School for Science & Technology, Fairfax, Fairfax County School Board, TJ, Coalition, District, Pacific Legal Foundation, Circuit, Thomson Locations: Washington , U.S, Virginia, Fairfax County, Alexandria, Constitution's, U.S, Richmond, Boston

In the latest challenge to the role race may play in school admissions, a legal activist group asked the Supreme Court on Monday to hear a case on how students are selected at one of the country’s top high schools, Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology. A divided three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit ruled in May that Thomas Jefferson, a public school in Alexandria, Va., did not discriminate in its admissions. The Pacific Legal Foundation, a libertarian law group, wants the Supreme Court to overturn that decision, arguing that the school’s new admissions policies disadvantaged Asian American applicants. At issue is the use of what the school board said were race-neutral criteria to achieve a diverse student body. “This is the next frontier,” Joshua P. Thompson, a lawyer with the Pacific Legal Foundation, has said of the litigation.

Persons: Thomas, Thomas Jefferson, Joshua P, Thompson Organizations: Thomas Jefferson High School for Science, Technology, U.S ., Appeals, Fourth Circuit, Pacific Legal Foundation, Harvard, University of North Locations: Alexandria, Va, University of North Carolina

☆ Supreme Court rules for homeowner in 'equity theft' dispute
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-25 | by ( Lawrence Hurley | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The Supreme Court of the United States building are seen in Washington D.C., United States on December 28, 2022. But the county sold the home for $40,000 and kept all the proceeds, Tyler's lawyers at the Pacific Legal Foundation say. The remaining states return the surplus proceeds when seized properties are sold. A year later, the county sold it for $40,000, keeping the $25,000 in profit. Owners have three years to pay the taxes and have an opportunity to repurchase the seized properties.

The dispute concerns Minnesota's tax regime under which the state takes "absolute title" of a property if an owner fails to pay property taxes for five years. Tyler's attorneys said in a court filing that 13 other states have similar policies that let government or private investors benefit when collecting delinquent property taxes. She owed $15,000, including roughly $2,300 in property taxes, as well as penalties, interests and costs. States have long permitted forfeitures of an entire property for neglecting to pay taxes, which are a reasonable condition of property ownership, the county said. Rulings in this case and any others not yet decided by the Supreme Court are due by the end of June.

☆ House Republicans target the CFPB as the agency takes aim at 'junk fees'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

WASHINGTON — Lawmakers discussed ways to reform, or altogether defund, the nation's foremost consumer protection agency on Thursday, as the regulator takes aim at illegal "junk fees" levied on consumers. GOP lawmakers in the hearing criticized the Biden administration's push to eradicate "junk fees," largely regulated by the CFPB. On Wednesday, the agency released a list of illegal junk fees encompassing deposit accounts; auto and mortgage loan servicing; and payday and title lending. Subcommittee member Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer, R-Mo., said Chopra has used junk fees as an excuse to expand his authority. The CFPB's working definition of junk fees is "any fee they don't like," argued Devin Watkins, an attorney at the conservative-leaning Competitive Enterprise Institute.

☆ Conservative groups are flooding the Supreme Court with calls to block Biden's student-loan forgiveness, arguing that borrowers are 'contractually bound to repay their loans'
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-03 | by ( Ayelet Sheffey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Nine conservative groups this week filed amicus briefs to the Supreme Court opposing Biden's student-debt relief. It comes after advocates and scholars filed over a dozen briefs supporting Biden's plan. Conservative groups are making sure the court hears their opinion: that student-loan forgiveness is illegal and should be blocked. Since October, Biden's debt relief plan has been paused due to two conservative-backed lawsuits seeking to permanently block the plan, and the Supreme Court will be taking on both cases on February 28. Still, the fate of student-loan forgiveness rests with the Supreme Court, and it remains to be seen how these briefs will influence its final decision on the legality of canceling student debt.

The justices will weigh a claim brought by Geraldine Tyler, a 93-year-old whose property in Minnesota was seized by Hennepin County because she owed $15,000 in property taxes and related costs. The state says that under Minnesota law it “provides ample opportunity for property owners to protect their interests” before a property is seized. The state’s lawyers point out that owners have three years to pay the taxes and have an opportunity to repurchase the seized property. The case was brought by the Pacific Legal Foundation, a conservative legal group that often brings property rights cases. The Supreme Court, which has a 6-3 conservative majority, is often sympathetic to property rights claims.

Here are four climate and environment lawsuits that are likely to make headlines in 2023. The oil companies in the nation's high court are hoping to upend a series of circuit court decisions saying the cases belong in state courts where they were filed. If the court takes the appeal and rules for the oil companies, then the cases would be moved to federal court, the preferred venue for the industry defendants. (Bellwether trials are chosen as test cases and are used to work through common legal and factual issues.) "I think it will be a huge year for this issue," Conroy said of 2023.

WASHINGTON — Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett on Friday rejected a second challenge to President Joe Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan, keeping the court out of the fight over the program that’s raging in the lower courts. The decision has little practical effect, as an appeals court ruling had already put implementation of the policy on hold. Garrison works for the Pacific Legal Foundation while Johnson works for another conservative group, the Public Interest Legal Foundation. The challengers argue they will be worse off because of the cancellation of student debt. Biden’s student debt relief program would provide up to $10,000 in debt cancellation for those earning less than $125,000 a year and couples who file taxes jointly and earn less than $250,000 annually.

Supreme Court nominee and U.S. Court of Appeals Judge Amy Coney Barrett on Capitol Hill in Washington, October 21, 2020. The Supreme Court on Friday rejected a second request to block the Biden administration's student loan debt relief program. For now, student loan forgiveness remains on hold from a challenge brought by six GOP-led states. Since the White House unveiled its loan relief plan in August to cancel $10,000 for most student loan borrowers, and up to $20,000 for those who received Pell Grants for low-income families, it has faced at least six lawsuits. Close to 26 million Americans have already applied for student loan forgiveness, and the Biden administration has approved 16 million of the requests, the White House said Thursday.

☆ The Supreme Court rejects a conservative attempt to block Biden's student-loan forgiveness for the second time
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-04 | by ( Ayelet Sheffey | Oma Seddiq | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A lawsuit seeking to block Biden's student-loan forgiveness landed at the Supreme Court on Tuesday. This comes as Biden's debt relief is on pause as it awaits a ruling from the 8th Circuit. download the app Email address By clicking ‘Sign up’, you agree to receive marketing emails from Insider as well as other partner offers and accept our Terms of Service and Privacy PolicyIt didn't take long for the Supreme Court to reject another attempt to block President Joe Biden's student-loan forgiveness. But on Friday — just three days later — Associate Justice Amy Coney Barrett denied the plaintiffs' emergency request to halt the debt relief. "That's 16 million Americans, so far, who should be seeing student debt relief in the coming days," Biden wrote.

Two student loan borrowers, represented by the conservative Pacific Legal Foundation, are asking the Supreme Court to step in and block student loan relief. The borrowers claim they will face a hefty tax bill for unwanted relief. The suit was dismissed by a lower court and now an appeal is headed to the high court. "The claim is baseless for a simple reason: No one will be forced to get debt relief. Because opponents of the debt relief plan are trying anything they can to stop this program that will provide needed relief to working families."

☆ Supreme Court could eliminate affirmative action in university admissions as it considers high-profile challenges against Harvard and University of North Carolina
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-29 | by ( Oma Seddiq | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Students for Fair Admissions wants the Supreme Court to eliminate race as a factor in university admissions. The Supreme Court will hear the two high-profile challenges on Monday. "I represent so many communities in which affirmative action benefits us all the time," Agustín León-Sáenz, a first-generation immigrant from Ecuador and a sophomore at Harvard, told Insider. The Supreme Court has over the years confronted the role of race in university admissions and repeatedly maintained the constitutionality of affirmative action. The Supreme Court is expected to hand down its decisions in the pair of cases by June.

Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett on Thursday denied a request by a Wisconsin taxpayers group to halt the implementation of President Joe Biden’s federal student loan forgiveness program. She did not provide an explanation for rejecting the emergency request, which is not uncommon. The taxpayers group had argued in a 29-page filing to the Supreme Court that Biden’s program would cost taxpayers more than $1 trillion and that it bypasses Congress, which oversees federal spending. Biden's student debt relief program would provide up to $10,000 in debt cancellation for borrowers earning less than $125,000 a year and couples who file taxes jointly and earn less than $250,000 annually. Pell Grant recipients, who comprise the majority of borrowers, would be eligible for an additional $10,000 in debt relief.

☆ Biden's student-loan forgiveness could be delayed as lawsuits mount. Here's where 6 major cases stand.
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-19 | by ( Ayelet Sheffey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Biden's student-loan forgiveness is facing at least six lawsuits from conservative groups. The administration faces at least six major lawsuits seeking to halt Biden's debt relief plan. For now, borrowers can still continue applying for debt relief on the studentaid.gov website that will close in December 2023. On September 27, the Pacific Legal Foundation — a conservative nonprofit legal organization — helmed the first major lawsuit against Biden's debt relief. On October 19, WILL asked the Supreme Court to halt Biden's debt relief will waiting for a decision on its appeal.

☆ Biden’s Student-Loan Forgiveness Faces Early Lawsuit
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-28 | by ( Jacob Gershman | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

President Biden’s plan to cancel student debt for tens of millions of borrowers has yet to be officially rolled out, but it is already facing a legal challenge. The Pacific Legal Foundation, a libertarian nonprofit law firm, has filed a lawsuit in federal court in Indiana asking a judge for an injunction to prevent the Biden administration’s loan cancellation from taking effect.

☆ What the first legal challenge to derail Biden's student loan forgiveness plan means for borrowers
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-28 | by ( Annie Nova | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

A lawyer working for a conservative legal group this week brought the first legal challenge to President Joe Biden's sweeping plan to cancel up to $20,000 in student debt for millions of Americans. "Nothing about loan cancellation is lawful or appropriate," Frank Garrison, an attorney at Pacific Legal Foundation, said in a complaint filed in federal court in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana. Garrison is asserting that he could be harmed by Biden's loan forgiveness in the form of a tax bill. Canceled student debt can be considered taxable income. Currently, Garrison is pursuing a government program that leads to tax-free debt cancellation, known as public service loan forgiveness, but he says Biden's plan could now cause him to get a $1,000 state tax bill.

☆ U.S. Education Department sued over Biden's student loan cancellation plan
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-27 | by ( Kanishka Singh | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, Sept 27 (Reuters) - Conservative group Pacific Legal Foundation filed a federal lawsuit Tuesday against the U.S. Department of Education with the intent of stopping President Joe Biden's student loan cancellation plan. The lawsuit, which was filed in the U.S. District Court for the South District of Indiana, comes a day after the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) said that Biden's plan to cancel some student loan debt will cost $400 billion. "Congress did not authorize the executive branch to unilaterally cancel student debt," said Caleb Kruckenberg, an attorney at Pacific Legal Foundation. As of June 30, 43 million borrowers held $1.6 trillion in federal student loans. "It (Biden's plan) will only lead to more calls for government intervention in education at taxpayers’ expense," said Steve Simpson, another attorney at Pacific Legal Foundation.

☆ A conservative group is suing to block Biden's student debt forgiveness, but it faces legal hurdles
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-27 | by ( Juliana Kaplan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The Pacific Legal Foundation announced Tuesday it was filing suit against student loan relief. "Congress did not authorize the executive branch to unilaterally cancel student debt," Caleb Kruckenberg, an attorney at Pacific Legal Foundation, said in a press release. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has estimated that, according to projections spanning the next 30 years, student loan relief will cost $400 billion. "The claim is baseless for a simple reason: No one will be forced to get debt relief. Because opponents of the debt relief plan are trying anything they can to stop this program that will provide needed relief to working families."

☆ The White House calls a lawsuit to block student loan forgiveness 'baseless' because anyone can opt out of relief
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-27 | by ( Juliana Kaplan | Jason Lalljee | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

A conservative legal organization sued the Education Department over Biden's debt relief plan. It's the first major lawsuit against the Biden administration's announcement that it would forgive up to $20,000 in student debt for federal borrowers making under $125,000. "The claim is baseless for a simple reason: No one will be forced to get debt relief. Anyone who does not want debt relief can choose to opt out," Abdullah Hassan, White House assistant press secretary, said in a statement to Insider. Because opponents of the debt relief plan are trying anything they can to stop this program that will provide needed relief to working families."

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