Court skeptical of federal anti-fraud law
Lawyer Blogs
The Supreme Court appeared inclined Tuesday to limit federal prosecutors' use of a fraud law that has helped win convictions of high-profile corporate executives and public officials, or throw out the law altogether.
The justices, hearing two challenges to the honest services fraud law, seemed to be in broad agreement that the law is vague and has been used to make a crime out of mistakes, minor transgressions and mere ethical violations.
Justice Stephen Breyer said he worries that the Obama administration's reading of the law makes criminals out of vast numbers of U.S. workers, including possibly employees who read The Daily Racing Form on the job.
"There are 150 million workers in the United States. I think 140 of them would flunk the test," Breyer said.
The vagueness of the honest services statute "is the working problem here," Justice Anthony Kennedy said.
Justice Antonin Scalia called the law "a mush of language" and pointed out that federal prosecutors have used it different ways in different prosecutions. If the Justice Department can't figure out what is embraced by this law, "I don't know how you expect the average citizen to," Scalia said.
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Is Now the Time to Really Call a Special Education Lawyer?
IDEA, FAPE, CHILD FIND and IEPs: The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) guarantees all children with disabilities to a free appropriate public education (FAPE). FAPE starts with a school’s responsibility to identify that a child has a disability (Child Find) and create an Individualized Education Program (IEP) to suit the needs of the child.
Forte Law Group is one of only a very few law firms within the state of Connecticut that is dedicated to exclusively representing families and children with special needs.
Parents need to be persistent, dedicated and above all else aware of the many services and accommodations that their child is entitled to under the law. As early as this point within your child’s special education, many parents will often find themselves in the situation asking, “is now the time to really call a special education lawyer?” Here are a few things to consider when asking yourself that question.