Thanks to the help of Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP, the IndyBar Legislative Committee is currently monitoring various legislation that could impact areas of practice or the practice of law. These reports can be viewed at indybar.org/billwatch.
A final surprise for 2020 emerged from December’s marathon omnibus spending and COVID-19 relief negotiations. Congress included a trio of notable and hotly debated intellectual property measures in its multi-trillion-dollar spending and relief package which could fundamentally alter the manner in which intellectual property owners protect and enforce their rights.
Adult guardians will soon be part of the statutory scheme for making decisions about disposition of a deceased ward after Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb signed a bill extending their authority.
Described as a “model of the nation,” an Indiana juvenile justice reform bill passed the Indiana House of Representatives with Democrats and Republicans all voting in support of the measure.
A bill to enhance criminal justice reform efforts at the local level is now law in Indiana. Gov. Eric Holcomb on Thursday signed legislation calling for the creation of county or regional justice reinvestment advisory councils.
Indiana lawmakers won’t be done for the year when their regular legislative session ends later this month. Legislative leaders are laying the groundwork for a return by all 150 lawmakers to Indianapolis months from now to approve new congressional and General Assembly districts based on data from last year’s census.
The Indiana Legislature passed a bill Thursday that allows the state to withhold funding to cities that fail to protect public monuments and memorials from vandalism, part of an attempt by Republican lawmakers to deter protests that have elevated since the death of George Floyd.
The Indiana Senate approved a bill Thursday that designates religious activities as essential services and prohibits any restrictions on them during a declared emergency.
A legislative committee has overhauled a contentious proposal to require Indiana voters to submit identification numbers with mail-in ballot applications.
The South Bend city attorney has been selected to fill a vacancy on the St. Joseph Superior Court. Stephanie Steele will fill the seat vacated by now-Senior Judge Jane Woodward Miller, Gov. Eric Holcomb announced Wednesday.
Indiana legislators gave final approval to a bill that won’t require businesses to make accommodations for pregnant workers, despite an appeal from Gov. Eric Holcomb for a law requiring more protections.
Indiana’s Republican-dominated Legislature on Tuesday voted to advance a bill that tightens state abortion laws despite objections that it would force doctors to provide dubious information to their patients.
The Republican-dominated Indiana Senate is blocking a bill that would repeal the state’s permit requirement for carrying a handgun in public. The measure previously easily passed the House but was opposed by law enforcement organizations.
Four magistrates and one lawyer have been named as finalists to fill an upcoming vacancy on the St. Joseph Superior Court. The finalists were announced by a judicial selection panel that was reduced to five members after two were disqualified.
The juvenile justice bill that national organizations say Indiana needs to ensure its children can move past the “poor decisions made during their childhood” is scheduled to arrive Tuesday on the Indiana House floor after two committees in the lower chamber voted unanimously in support of the measure.
Gov. Eric Holcomb will now get the chance to follow through on his pledge to veto a bill that would give state lawmakers the power to call themselves into session during public emergencies. The Indiana House and Senate on Monday gave their final approval to the measure that ultimately may end up in court.
One of Indiana’s most prominent corporations is criticizing an Indiana proposal that opponents maintain will make mail-in voting more difficult by requiring voters to submit identification numbers with their ballot applications.
The Indiana Senate approved a bill reducing local attorney input into who serves on the judicial nominating commissions for Lake and St. Joseph counties Monday despite objections from Democratic senators, one of whom insinuated the changes were triggered by anonymous complaints from candidates who had lost out on judge appointments.
Dozens of amendments to bills affecting Indiana environmental policy have sparked debate among lawmakers as the Legislature enters its final stretch of the session. The proposed changes arrive as members of the General Assembly decide whether the state should adopt greener initiatives or scale back current policy protecting water, energy and other resources.
State legislators across the country who have pushed for new voting restrictions, and also seized on former President Donald Trump’s baseless claims of election fraud, have reaped more than $50 million in corporate donations in recent years, according to a new report.