Nina Totenberg

Supreme Court Sides With Monsanto In Seed Patent Case

Nina Totenberg — Mon, 13 May 2013 22:47:00 +0000

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled unanimously Monday that when farmers use patented seed for more than one planting in violation of their licensing agreements, they are liable for damages.

Billed as David vs. Goliath, the case pitted an Indiana farmer against the agribusiness behemoth Monsanto.

Almost all the soybean farmers in the U.S. use seed that is genetically altered to be resistant to weed killers like Roundup. That allows farmers to spray for weeds without killing the soybeans.

'Show Boat' Steams On, Eternally American

Nina Totenberg — Tue, 07 May 2013 21:01:00 +0000

It's been more than eight decades since Show Boat -- the seminal masterpiece of the American musical theater — premiered on a stage in Washington, D.C. Now the sprawling classic is back, in a lush production put on by the Washington National Opera.

Based on Edna Ferber's epic best-selling novel, Show Boat was nothing like the frothy musicals and scantily clad Broadway revues of its time.

Justices Say U.S. Improperly Deported Man Over Marijuana

Nina Totenberg — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 21:53:00 +0000

The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that a longtime legal resident of the United States was improperly deported for possession of a small amount of marijuana. By a 7-2 vote, the justices said that it defies common sense to treat an offense like this as an "aggravated felony" justifying mandatory deportation.

Adrian Moncrieffe immigrated with his parents to the United States from Jamaica in 1984. He was 3 years old at the time. He and his family were all legal residents.

High Court Grapples With Free Speech And AIDS Organizations

Nina Totenberg — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 21:25:00 +0000

The U.S. Supreme Court grappled with a tough First Amendment issue on Monday that pits congressional priorities against free speech rights. At issue: what speech limitations may be placed on private groups that receive federal grant money to fight HIV/AIDS abroad.

The justices' questions revealed a court closely divided, and not along the usual liberal/conservative lines.

Federal law provides billions of dollars to private nongovernmental organizations to fight AIDS and other diseases.

Supreme Court Backs Warrants For Blood Tests In DUI Cases

Nina Totenberg — Wed, 17 Apr 2013 23:10:00 +0000

The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that police must generally obtain a warrant before subjecting a drunken-driving suspect to a blood test. The vote was 8-to-1, with Justice Clarence Thomas the lone dissenter.

Tyler McNeely was pulled over late at night after a state trooper observed him driving erratically. When McNeely refused to take a Breathalyzer test, the officer drove him to a local hospital and ordered blood drawn for an alcohol test.

Supreme Court Decision A Blow To Human Rights Advocates

Nina Totenberg — Wed, 17 Apr 2013 21:37:00 +0000

The U.S. Supreme Court dealt a blow to human-rights advocates Wednesday, in a case that was closely watched globally by human-rights groups and foreign governments.

The court limited the reach of a 224-year-old federal law that in recent decades has been used to hold foreign corporations and individuals accountable in U.S.

Adoption Case Brings Rare Family Law Dispute To High Court

Nina Totenberg — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 07:52:00 +0000

Take the usual agony of an adoption dispute. Add in the disgraceful U.S. history of ripping Indian children from their Native American families. Mix in a dose of initial fatherly abandonment. And there you have it — a poisonous and painful legal cocktail that goes before the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday.

At issue is the reach of the Indian Child Welfare Act, known as ICWA.

Supreme Court Weighs Patenting Of Human Genes

Nina Totenberg — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 22:06:00 +0000

In a case considered pivotal to the future of science and medicine, the justices of the U.S. Supreme Court seemed skeptical Monday about a claim that human genes can be patented.

Contending that genes can be patented are the biotech and pharmaceutical industries, which see patents as the keys to new scientific exploration.

Supreme Court Asks: Can Human Genes Be Patented?

Nina Totenberg — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 07:01:00 +0000

Same-sex marriage got huge headlines at the Supreme Court last month, but in the world of science and medicine, the case being argued on Monday is far more important. The lawsuit deals with a truly 21st century issue — whether human genes may be patented.

Myriad Genetics, a Utah biotechnology company, discovered and isolated two genes — BRCA 1 and BRCA 2 — that are highly associated with hereditary breast and ovarian cancer. Myriad patented its discovery, giving it a 20-year monopoly over use of the genes for research, diagnostics and treatment.

Supreme Court Notes: Bugs, Pumps And Stolen Credit Card Numbers

Nina Totenberg — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 22:44:00 +0000

NPR's Legal Affairs Correspondent Nina Totenberg sends us some odds and ends from a very momentous week in the Supreme Court.

Hear all that sneezing, wheezing, coughing, and nose blowing during this week's same-sex oral arguments at the U.S. Supreme Court?

That was Justice Antonin Scalia, apparently sick as a dog but reporting for duty nonetheless. Last week it was Justice Sonia Sotomayor who looked like hell and was sniffling her way through oral arguments.

Justices Cast Doubt On Federal Defense Of Marriage Act

Nina Totenberg — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 23:52:00 +0000

In the wake of the Supreme Court arguments Wednesday on the Defense of Marriage Act, same-sex marriage supporters have reason to be optimistic. Known as DOMA, the law bars federal benefits for legally married same-sex couples, even though those same benefits are automatically given to heterosexual married couples.

The second same-sex marriage case to be argued in as many days, the DOMA challenge was brought by Edith Windsor, whose marriage to Thea Spyer was legal in New York.

Justice Kennedy May Be Deciding Vote In Defense Of Marriage Act Case

Nina Totenberg — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 21:58:00 +0000

The Supreme Court heard oral arguments Wednesday in a case challenging whether the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) means the federal government can deny marriage benefits to same sex couples in states that allow gay marriage. Same-sex couples had reason to be optimistic afterward. Assuming the court can overcome procedural concerns, it looked as if a majority of justices was ready to strike down DOMA.

DOMA Challenge Tests Federal Definition Of Marriage

Nina Totenberg — Tue, 26 Mar 2013 23:49:00 +0000

After weeks and months of public debate and speculation about the legal fate of same-sex marriage, the second round of arguments takes place at the U.S.

At Arguments, Supreme Court Takes Halting Steps Into Gay Marriage Issue

Nina Totenberg — Tue, 26 Mar 2013 23:29:00 +0000

At the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday, the moment had finally arrived. After four years of litigation in the lower courts, the Supreme Court was hearing a challenge to California's ban on same-sex marriage. But minutes into oral arguments, it became clear that the justices may not give either side the clear-cut victory it wants.

All eyes were on Justice Anthony Kennedy, widely viewed as a swing vote and very possibly the deciding vote in the case, but he seemed reticent about the court dealing with the California case at all.

In First Of 2 Gay-Marriage Cases, Court Turns To Proposition 8

Nina Totenberg — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 23:39:00 +0000

Outside the Supreme Court, lines began forming nearly a week ago. By Monday, the line had snaked down the court steps and to the corner, with people braving freezing temperatures and snow in anticipation of the historic arguments on same-sex marriage on Tuesday and Wednesday.

The justices are first hearing a constitutional challenge to California's ban on same-sex marriage.

Supreme Court To Examine State Ban On Affirmative Action

Nina Totenberg — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 21:12:00 +0000

As the national spotlight turns to the U.S. Supreme Court this week with two historic arguments on same-sex marriage, the court on Monday made headlines on another high-profile issue: affirmative action.

Just 10 years ago a narrow court majority upheld affirmative action programs in higher education in an opinion written by Justice Sandra Day O'Connor.

Supreme Court Hears 'Pay To Delay' Pharmaceutical Case

Nina Totenberg — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 07:15:00 +0000

The U.S. Supreme Court hears arguments Monday in a case worth billions of dollars to pharmaceutical companies and American consumers. The issue is whether brand-name drug manufacturers may pay generic drug manufacturers to keep generics off the market. These payments — a form of settlement in patent litigation — began to blossom about a decade ago when the courts, for the first time, appeared to bless them.

Consumer advocates, health care organizations and retail outlets call these payments "pay to delay." The drugmakers hate that term and have a different name.

Former Bush Aide Pushes 'Conservative Case' For Gay Marriage

Nina Totenberg — Sun, 24 Mar 2013 09:33:00 +0000

One hundred thirty-one prominent Republicans have signed a pro-same-sex marriage legal brief that is clearly at odds with the House GOP leadership and the party's platform in the most recent election. Because of the prominence of the signers, the brief stands out among the more than 150 friend-of-the-court briefs filed in two same-sex marriage cases to be argued at the U.S. Supreme Court this week.

The man who rounded up the group is Ken Mehlman, the former political director for the George W.

Meet The 83-Year-Old Taking On The U.S. Over Same-Sex Marriage

Nina Totenberg — Thu, 21 Mar 2013 21:03:00 +0000

The tiny dynamo asking the U.S. Supreme Court to turn the world upside down looks nothing like a fearless pioneer. At age 83, Edith Windsor dresses in classic, tailored clothes, usually with a long string of pearls, and she sports a well-coiffed, shoulder-length flip. She looks, for all the world, like a proper New York City lady.

Proper she may be, and a lady, but Windsor, who likes to be called Edie, is making history, challenging the federal Defense of Marriage Act, known as DOMA.

Supreme Court OKs Discounted Resale Of 'Gray Market' Goods

Nina Totenberg — Tue, 19 Mar 2013 19:43:00 +0000

The Supreme Court ruled on Tuesday that U.S. companies that make and sell products abroad cannot prevent those items from being resold in the U.S.

The 6-3 decision — likely worth billions, even trillions of dollars — could have repercussions that extend from U.S. trade policy to local yard sales.

The case involves a part of the copyright law that was aimed at so-called gray market goods. These are U.S.

High Court Case Tests Strength Of Voter Registration Law

Nina Totenberg — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 20:43:00 +0000

The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments Monday in a case that seeks to redefine a federal law aimed at streamlining the nation's voter registration process.

Congress enacted the law 20 years ago after it found that 40 percent of eligible voters were not registered to vote. Under the 1993 National Voter Registration Act, people can register by mail to vote in federal elections using a standard federal form. The form, among other things, asks prospective voters whether they are U.S.

Can States Go Beyond Federal Law On Voter Registration?

Nina Totenberg — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 07:19:00 +0000

The U.S. Supreme Court hears arguments Monday in a case that could upend the federal effort to spur and streamline voter registration.

At issue is an Arizona law that requires prospective voters to provide proof of citizenship when they register to vote. A federal appeals court ruled last year that the state law must fall because it conflicts with federal law.

The 1993 National Voter Registration Act, known as the NVRA, allows voters to register by mail using a federal form on a postcard. The form asks, among other things: Are you a citizen of the United States?

Administration Asks Supreme Court To End Calif. Gay-Marriage Ban

Nina Totenberg — Fri, 01 Mar 2013 08:00:00 +0000

The Obama administration has filed a friend of the court brief urging the U.S.

Obama Administration Brief Doesn't Call For End To Bans On Gay Marriage

Nina Totenberg — Fri, 01 Mar 2013 00:29:00 +0000

Transcript

AUDIE CORNISH, HOST:

From NPR News, this is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED. I'm Audie Cornish. This evening, the Obama administration filed a friend of the court brief urging the U.S. Supreme Court to strike down California's ban on gay marriage, but the brief does not call for abolition of bans on same-sex marriage across the country. NPR legal affairs correspondent Nina Totenberg joins us in the studio.

Conservative Justices Doubt Ongoing Validity Of 1965 Voting Rights Act

Nina Totenberg — Wed, 27 Feb 2013 22:19:00 +0000

A majority of Supreme Court justices seemed prepared on Wednesday to invalidate a key section of the 1965 Voting Rights Act. The law is considered the most effective piece of civil rights legislation in the nation's history.

The provision at issue applies to specific parts of the country, mainly in the South, where discriminatory voting procedures were once routine. It requires that any changes in voting procedures have to be approved in advance by the Justice Department or a federal court in Washington before they can go into effect.

Supreme Court Weighs Future Of Voting Rights Act

Nina Totenberg — Wed, 27 Feb 2013 08:03:00 +0000

Once again, race is front and center at the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday. And once again, the bull's eye is the 1965 Voting Rights Act, widely viewed as the most effective and successful civil rights legislation in American history. Upheld five times by the court, the law now appears to be on life support.

The provision at issue in Wednesday's case applies only to specific parts of the country where discriminatory voting procedures were once rampant. It covers all of nine states, mainly in the South, plus parts of seven other states.

Supreme Court Makes It Harder To Challenge Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act

Nina Totenberg — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 22:25:00 +0000

A sharply divided Supreme Court has made it practically impossible for American citizens to challenge the constitutionality of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act.

FISA is the federal law that authorizes large-scale electronic surveillance of phone calls and emails to and from targets abroad and individuals in the United States.

Supreme Court Considers If Warrantless DNA Swab Violates Constitution

Nina Totenberg — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 08:23:00 +0000

The U.S. Supreme Court hears arguments on Tuesday in a case that could throw a monkey wrench into the widespread use of DNA testing — a case that pits modern technology against notions of personal privacy.

Twenty-eight states and the federal government have enacted laws that provide for automatic DNA collection from people at the time of their arrest.

States Take Sides As Court Revisits Voting Rights Act

Nina Totenberg and Angela Chang — Sat, 23 Feb 2013 10:13:00 +0000

The U.S. Supreme Court hears arguments next week in a case that tests the constitutionality of the 1965 Voting Rights Act, the law considered the most effective civil rights statute in American history. At issue is whether a key provision of the statute has outlived its usefulness.

A staggering 49 friend of the court briefs have been filed, among them briefs from 11 states urging the court to either strike down or uphold the law.

Prisoner's Handwritten Petition Prompts Justices To Weigh Government Immunity

Nina Totenberg — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 08:17:00 +0000

This year marks the 50th anniversary of Gideon v. Wainwright, the Supreme Court's landmark decision requiring the states to provide lawyers for poor people accused of committing crimes. Clarence Gideon, the defendant in that case, wrote his own petition to the high court in longhand, and Tuesday, the Supreme Court is hearing the case of another defendant who, in the longest of long shots, filed a handwritten petition from prison asking the justices for their help.

Kim Millbrook, the defendant in the case, is not nearly as sympathetic a figure as Gideon.