World news about “Law” published by euronews.
Does the ECI give EU citizens a voice? Question from Georges in Brussels: “The European citizens’ initiative or ECI was launched a year ago. Would you say it has enabled ordinay people to make… 17/05/2013
Neo-Nazi trial makes mockery of security authorities Germany has not seen a trial receive this much media attention in decades, not since the 1970s, with the left-wing militant group Red Army Faction. Germans… 14/05/2013
Maastricht to get less strict on cannabis sales to foreigners?Foreign visitors to the Dutch town of Maastricht may find it easier to get their hands on cannabis, a week after a court ruled a ban on selling it to… 03/05/2013
Portugal drinking ban stops teenagers getting too spirited In a bid to prevent excess teenage drinking, Portugal’s government has introduced a ban on the sale of spirits to anyone under 18 years old. Those under… 02/05/2013
Russia may change France adoption agreement following gay marriage bill Three days after France became the 14th country in the world to legalise gay marriage, Vladimir Putin has signaled that Russia might change its adoption… 26/04/2013
France: Battle over gay marriage continues It is an issue which has sparked some of the largest protests in the French capital in years. As the National Assembly votes on the gay marriage bill… 23/04/2013
Pakistan’s Musharraf avoids treason trial Pervez Musharraf has appeared before an anti-terrorism court over the murder of Pakistan’s former prime minister Benazir Bhutto. The former president was… 23/04/2013
Internet rights activists launch #CISPABlackout over ‘Big Brother law’The US House of Representatives may have voted in favour of the controversial online security law Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA) on… 22/04/2013
US hermit arrested for theft Accustomed to sleeping under the stars, Christopher Knight – the man dubbed the ‘North Pond Hermit’ – is now behind bars in the US following his arrest for… 11/04/2013
Spain: New law protects Andalusia’s vulnerable from eviction A left wing regional government in Spain has approved a law that will stop banks from repossessing homes from the most needy people, even if there is an… 11/04/2013
Yoko Ono tweets picture of John Lennon’s blood-spattered glassesIf a picture paints a thousand words then Yoko Ono’s contribution to America’s gun law debate will be difficult for the firearms lobby to counter. She has… 21/03/2013
Top French lawyer found dead One of the most high-profile lawyers in France has been found dead on a beach in Brittany. Among his clients, 63-year-old Olivier Metzner defended the… 17/03/2013
Tehran’s top human rights official says some Iranian laws need reforming Iran has continued to make headlines in recent weeks partly because of yet another round of futile international negotiations over its nuclear programme, and… 15/03/2013
EU ruling to help Spain’s evicted homeowners A new ruling by Europe’s highest court could make it harder for Spanish banks to evict homeowners. The European Court of Justice says the country’s… 15/03/2013
Judge scuppers New York soda ban at the last minute One day before it was due to go into come into effect, a ban on large sugary drinks in New York has been thrown out. Certain places would have had to stop… 12/03/2013
Violence continues in Egypt following sentence of football fans Unrest is continuing in Egypt after a court in Cairo upheld the death sentences handed down to 21 fans over football riots in Port Said in February 2012… 09/03/2013
Silvio Berlusconi sentenced to jail over wiretap scandal Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has been sentenced to one year in jail over illegal wiretapping. The prosecution accused the owner of … 07/03/2013
Accused Bolshoi dancer’s shock at acid attack on artistic director A dancer at the Bolshoi ballet has told a court in Moscow that although he wanted the theatre’s artistic director to be assaulted he never intended him to be… 07/03/2013
Police suspended after South Africa taxi driver death South Africa has suspended eight police officers after the death of a man they had bound to a vehicle and dragged through a busy street. The incident was… 01/03/2013
Hungary court overturns ban on Nazi and Communist symbols The decision by Hungary’s Constitutional Court to reject a ban on Nazi and Communist symbols has been deemed unworkable by several political groups. Some… 20/02/2013
South Africa in shock over Pistorius murder case South Africa has been stunned by the arrest and prosecution for murder of the country’s star Olympian, Oscar Pistorius. The athlete has appeared in court… 15/02/2013
Pistorius to contest murder charge ‘in strongest terms’ An agent for Oscar Pistorius says the athlete disputes the accusation of murder against him “in the strongest possible terms”. The world famous amputee… 15/02/2013
French assembly passes gay marriage bill The French national assembly, the lower house of parliament, has approved a bill to legalise homosexual marriages. There were 329 votes for, 229 against… 12/02/2013
France divided over gay marriage Demonstrators in favour, demonstrators against, both sides in the debates surrounding gay marriage in France have been promoting and defending their views… 29/01/2013
Arrests in Argentina after international paedophilia probe Dozens of people have been arrested in Argentina after 61 raids in 11 provinces targeting a paedophile ring. The operation by Argentine police and Interpol… 12/01/2013
Same-sex marriage evolving in Europe Legal freedom to marry is far from globally guaranteed, including in Europe. France for instance, is years behind others in the debate. We’ll focus on that in… 11/01/2013
‘Tax the rich’ rethink in Paris With a top French court having thrown out a proposed supertax on the rich, the Paris government is looking at how it can be changed. The law has to be… 03/01/2013
Leveson exposes dark acts of press Testimony from Sally Dowler brought back intense moments: “I rang her phone and it clicked through onto voicemail, so I heard her voice. And it was just… 29/11/2012
Cross-border divorce rules in the EU A question from Rosy in Paris: “We are a German couple living separately in Italy and France. We would like to file a joint divorce application. What is the… 19/10/2012
Political fight over voter-ID laws ahead of US electionPicture this, it could happen in Indiana, Texas or many other states in the US: An old couple in their eighties going to vote in November’s presidential… 14/07/2012
The European Ombudsman at your service In this edition of U-talk, our question comes from Franck, in Toulouse, France, who wants to ask the European Ombudsman what his role is and how people can… 06/07/2012
UN global arms treaty debate launched Negotiations for a first binding treaty to regulate the global weapons market have begun at the United Nations headquarters in New York – planned to run for… 03/07/2012
Duma adopts controversial anti-protest law Russian deputies debated long and hard on Tuesday over a Kremlin-backed draft anti-protest bill. In the end, the new law designed to raise fines for… 06/06/2012
What is the European Citizens’ Initiative? In this edition of U-talk, Damien, from Lyon, France, poses this question: “I was recently approached in the street and asked to sign a European Citizens’… 06/04/2012
Hungarian central bank row still unresolved Hungary is continuing on a collision course with Brussels over the independence of its central bank. The European Commission wants Budapest to change a… 17/02/2012
Spain steps up jobless fight Spain’s cabinet has approved further moves to try and reduced unemployment rates that are the highest in Europe. They include labour law changes giving… 10/02/2012
EU reaction to French ‘genocide’ bill French President Nicolas Sarkozy has never hidden his hostility to Turkey joining the European Union, adding another layer of tension between the countries… 25/01/2012
Turkish protest over French ‘genocide’ bill – nocomment A crowd gathered outside the French Embassy in Ankara, Turkey, to protest the controversial vote in Paris on whether to penalise those who deny a “genocide”… 23/12/2011
Sharia law and the Arab Spring More democracy is bringing more political Islam in the countries of the Arab Spring. The strong showing of Tunisia’s moderate Islamists in Sunday’s election… 26/10/2011
Libya ponders Sharia law The new Libya is considering how it will live by Islamic Sharia law, which includes some traditional practices which some countries consider inhumane. Many… 25/10/2011
Towards a new Common Agricultural Policy Roman, from Kalisz, in Poland, asks the EU Commissioner in charge of agriculture and rural development, Dacian Ciolos: “Will reform of the Common Agricultural… 14/10/2011
Exclusive: Woman defies Belgian Burka ban The life of Selema has changed drastically in the last few days. Since Saturday July 23, she began breaking the law after a ban on wearing the full Islamic… 26/07/2011
What is the role of the European Parliament? “I’m Julia from Alicante. If each member state has its own government, what’s the role of the European Parliament, and what’s the job of an MEP?” MEP Joseph… 01/07/2011
Facebook chat means jail for jurorIt was a first in legal history: a juror who contacted a defendant through Facebook, causing the collapse of a 6 million pound (6.8 million euros) drug trial… 16/06/2011
Russian students protest against education lawStudents take part in a picket to protest against the project of a new education law, proposed by Russian authorities, in front of the regional government… 11/04/2011
Paris G20 files in cyber attack The French finance ministry has confirmed it came under a cyber attack in December. The target was information related to its presidency of the G20 group of… 07/03/2011
Coach passengers rights to increase A new EU law on coach passengers’ rights will come into effect in 2013. The rules cover all long-distance scheduled passenger services, whether national or… 15/02/2011
Highly toxic substance found in animal feed in GermanyAuthorities say thousands of farms in northern Germany have been supplied with corn feed contaminated by a highly toxic substance. Aflatoxin B1 is a… 01/03/2013
Ex-Haiti leader Baby Doc fights possibility of human rights chargesAfter ignoring three previous summons, former Haiti leader Jean-Claude Duvalier, has appeared in a Port-au-Prince court explaining why he should not be… 01/03/2013
Hague court acquits Perisic of Yugoslavia conflict war crimesFormer head of the Yugoslav army Momcilo Perisic has been acquitted of ordering troops to carry out war crimes during the wars in the 1990s. Judges at the… 01/03/2013
Women at centre of US gun control showdownWomen have jumped to the centre of the gun control debate in the USA. While the White House continues to push for tougher legislation, the National Rifle… 27/02/2013
Reports of arrests over Belaid killing in TunisiaSecurity sources have reportedly arrested three hardline orthodox muslims in connection with the killing of a high-profile Tunisian opposition politician… 26/02/2013
A short history of theftStealing, although forbidden almost everywhere in the world, is probably the most prosperous way of spending your time. It is rather lazy but if you think… 20/02/2013
New platform tracks lobbyists copy-pasting their way into EU legislationA team of German journalists and developers concerned about data protection legislation have launched an online platform to expose the copy-pasting of… 14/02/2013
Olympic sprinter Pistorius charged with girlfriend’s murderSouth African Olympic and Paralympic sprinter Oscar Pistorius has been charged with murdering his girlfriend. Reeva Steenkamp, a 30-year-old model, was… 14/02/2013
UK police raid two firms in horsemeat scandalBritish police have raided a slaughterhouse and a meat processor suspected of selling horsemeat as beef. It is the latest development on the widening… 13/02/2013
French Assembly green light for gay marriageSame-sex marriage in France took a major step towards becoming legal when the National Assembly approved a controversial draft law. It is the most divisive… 12/02/2013
‘Conspiracy’ and ‘mafia’ claims in horsemeat scandalGovernment ministers in Britain are claiming a complex conspiracy lies behind the widening horsemeat scandal which they say has its roots in… 11/02/2013
Romania investigates abattoirs over EU horsemeat scandalThe head of a British parliamentary commission on the food industry has called for all meat imports from the European Union to be suspended while… 10/02/2013
Russian opposition activist under house arrestFor the first time Russia has placed an opposition activist under house arrest. Sergei Udaltsov is charged with organising “mass disorder” ahead of… 10/02/2013
Major manhunt for former LAPD officer suspected of killingsThe murder of three people in California has led to a major manhunt. An ex-Los Angeles police officer is suspected of going on a killing spree in revenge for… 08/02/2013
French MPs approve key part of gay marriage billFrance has taken an big step towards allowing same-sex marriage and giving gay couples the right to adopt children. The Assembly in Paris approved a clause… 03/02/2013
Spanish police make fifth arrest in Russian money laundering ringThe deputy mayor of a Spanish coastal resort has been arrested as part of expanding inquiry into money laundering. Josep Valls was taken into custody over… 30/01/2013
Ex-police general gets life sentence for killing Ukrainian journalistA former Ukrainian police officer has been jailed for life for the murder of an investigative journalist 12 years ago. Police General Oleksiy Pukach is the… 29/01/2013
French parliament kicks off debate on gay marriage billFollowing weeks of mass demonstrations both for and against legalising gay marriage and adoptions, the French parliament has started debating the proposed… 29/01/2013
Spanish doctor in the dock for cyclists’ dopingSpanish doctor Eufemiano Fuentas’s trial has started in Madrid in a doping case set to rock cycling. It has reached court nearly seven years after police… 28/01/2013
Russia’s Duma leaves gay activists kissing in the windA controversial new plan in Russia that could punish gay couples for public shows of affection has cleared the first stage towards becoming law. Gay rights… 25/01/2013
Russian parliament mulls over ‘gay propaganda’ billClose to Russia’s parliament – the Duma – a gay and lesbian “kissing protest” has been held as the controversial issue of gay rights in Russia is thrust into… 25/01/2013
Obama reveals his plans for gun controlUS President Barack Obama has announced his proposals for new gun control measures a month after 26 people were shot dead at Sandy Hook elementary school in… 16/01/2013
Tough new gun laws for New YorkIn Kentucky, USA, two people have been shot in a car park of a college. The killings came a day before President Barack Obama is expected to unveil… 16/01/2013
Paris not the city of loveParis is bracing for huge crowds to descend on the city for tomorrow’s anti gay marriage demonstration. Legalising same-sex marriage and adoption by… 12/01/2013
Mr. Teeth, the drug-guarding alligatorAuthorities in California have discovered 34 kilos of marijuana despite the stash being guarded by a 1.5-metre long alligator. Sheriff’s deputies in Castro… 11/01/2013
Cash only at the VaticanIn St. Peters Square and throughout the Vatican it is cash only. All electronic payments by bank cards have been suspended and the ‘hole in the wall’ machines… 03/01/2013
Indian protests increase over violence against womenHundreds of women have been demonstrating in the Indian capital in memory of the victim of a brutal gang rape. The silent march was one of several protests… 02/01/2013
Russia upper house approved US adoptions banThe upper chamber of Russia’s parliament has unanimously approved a bill banning Americans from adopting Russian children. The law is widely seen as a… 26/12/2012
Duma passes law blocking Americans from adopting Russian childrenThe Duma, Russia’s lower house of parliament, has approved a law banning Americans from adopting Russian children. Diplomats say the move is a tit-for-tat… 21/12/2012
Russia imposes tit-for-tat ban after Magnitski billRussia has responded to America’s passing a new law called the Magnitski Act by hitting out at certain named Americans, forbidding them from entering Russian… 07/12/2012
Austrian group makes cash call to poke FacebookAn Austrian group calling itself “Europe versus Facebook”, which has filed a privacy law suit against the American social network, is launching a crowdfunding… 04/12/2012
Leveson report prompts divisions in UK coalitionA report proposing the toughest regulation for Britain’s newspapers in 300 years has divided the country’s coalition government. Just hours after Lord… 30/11/2012
Leveson report: Cameron warns against harming free pressAn inquiry into the British newspaper industry has recommended tougher self-regulation underpinned by law. The far-reaching report by Lord Justice Leveson… 29/11/2012
Leveson Report calls for new body to curb press “excesses”In Britain Lord Leveson has released the results of his nine-month inquiry into the British newspaper industry. The senior judge has called for a new… 29/11/2012
UK press inquiry report due to be publishedThe results of a far-reaching inquiry into the standards, practices and ethics of the British press will be published today. Lord Justice Leveson’s… 29/11/2012
Spain suspends home evictions in face of protestsSpain is to introduce measures to help the most needy families from being evicted. It follows a growing protests over the problem which is blamed for the… 15/11/2012
Catholic church mobilises against gay marriage in FranceThe French Roman Catholic Church has voiced its opposition to government plans to legalise same-sex marriage. The country’s left-wing government is to… 03/11/2012
Twitter blocks neo-Nazi group’s messages in GermanyTwitter has blocked messages in Germany from a group banned by local authorities over right-wing extremism, using its powers to withhold content in one… 18/10/2012
Argentina lowers voting ageArgentina has approved a bill to lower the voting age to 16 from 18 in a move criticised by some as a political tactic. President Cristina Fernandez says the… 18/10/2012
France close to adopting EU fiscal pactFrance’s lower house has overwhelmingly approved ratification of the EU fiscal pact despite opposition from left-wing lawmakers. The treaty, which should… 09/10/2012
Landmark law set for Ukraine to ban promotion of homosexualityA law to ban the promotion of homosexuality in Ukraine has passed its first reading with the support of the majority and opposition in the… 03/10/2012
Outlawing the promotion of homosexuality is a step closer in UkraineUkraine’s parliament has taken the first step towards making it illegal to promote homosexuality as a way of life.The draft bill, which has passed its first… 03/10/2012
Czech Republic eases alcohol banThe Czech government has agreed to relax a ban on the sale of some spirits after 26 people died in a spate of poisonings. Beverages with more than 20 percent… 27/09/2012
Brussels outlaws insultsA new law has been introduced in Brussels making it illegal to insult someone in public. The fine for doing so is 250 euros. It follows the broadcast of a… 06/09/2012
Branding banned – Australia gets tough on tobaccoThe High Court in Australia has handed down a landmark ruling that forces tobacco companies to ditch branding on cigarette packets. From December, all… 15/08/2012
Ukraine: President signs Russian language bill into lawPresident Viktor Yanukovich has signed a controversial law which will make Russian the official language in parts of Ukraine. There have already been brawls… 09/08/2012
Man executed despite doubtful mental stateThe US state of Texas has executed a man by lethal injection despite protests that his IQ was too low to qualify for the death penalty. Marvin Wilson was… 08/08/2012
Web protests over Russia’s new internet lawRussian-based websites have reacted with alarm to the State Duma’s approval of a new information law blacklisting some sites. Opponents say it amounts to a… 12/07/2012
Russia parliament accused of fascism with ‘foreign agents’ NGO billCloser monitoring of non-governmental organisations working in Russia is a step nearer after the lower house of Russia’s parliament gave preliminary approval… 07/07/2012
Russia NGO vote brings fear of protest clampdownCloser monitoring of non-governmental organisations working in Russia is a step closer after the lower house of Russia’s parliament gave preliminary approval… 06/07/2012
Ukraine Russian-language bill row rumbles onProtests continue in Kiev and in smaller towns and cities across Ukraine, as the draft Russian-language bill causes divisions. Near the office of… 05/07/2012
‘Veto Russian language law’ – Ukraine protesters tell YanukovichUkrainian police have fired teargas and used batons on protesters after parliament voted to make Russian the main language in schools and local government in… 04/07/2012
