Lawsuit

Britain’s Prince Andrew plans to challenge a US court’s jurisdiction over a civil lawsuit by a woman who accused him of sexually assaulting and battering her two decades ago, according to a Monday (Sept 13) court filing. In the filing with the US District Court in Manhattan, a lawyer for Andrew said the prince also plans to contest that he was properly served with the lawsuit by Virginia Giuffre, who has said she was also abused by the financier Jeffrey Epstein. Lawyers for Giuffre did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Andrew, 61, is one of the most prominent people linked to Epstein, who US prosecutors charged in July 2019 with sexually exploiting dozens of girls and women. [[nid:544187]] Prince Andrew served with papers in US sex assault lawsuit by Epstein accuser Virginia Giuffre Epstein, a registered sex offender, killed himself at age 66 in a Manhattan jail on Aug 10, 2019. Giuffre has accused Andrew of forcing her in 2001, when she was 17, to have ... » Learn More about Prince Andrew to challenge US court’s jurisdiction in accuser’s sexual assault and battery lawsuit

A group of Malaysian mothers won a legal battle on Thursday (Sept 9) for the right to pass their nationality to children born overseas - a landmark ruling that campaigners said could spur efforts to reform discriminatory citizenship laws in other countries. Malaysia allows men to confer citizenship to children born abroad, but women have been denied the same right as the constitution only refers to the “father” passing on his nationality. In a lawsuit filed at the High Court, six mothers and campaign group Family Frontiers argued that the provision violated Article 8 of the constitution which bans gender discrimination. The High Court ruled on Thursday that the word “father” must be read to include mothers, and said their overseas-born children were entitled to Malaysian citizenship. “I’m so thrilled. It’s a big win,” one of the mothers - former squash champion Choong Wai Li - told the Thomson Reuters Foundation by phone. Choong said that she had dressed her seven-year-old ... » Learn More about Malaysian mothers win lawsuit in ‘sexist’ citizenship case

Singer Rihanna has dropped a lawsuit against her father, having reached a settlement behind closed doors. This decision was made just two weeks before both parties were due to appear in court on Sept 22. Her relationship with her dad, Ronald Fenty, has been rough following his divorce with her mother when Rihanna was 14 years old, but events escalated in 2019 when the singer sued her father and his company Fenty Entertainment. It was disclosed that Fenty and his business partner, Moses Joktan Perkins, had been booking shows on Rihanna's behalf despite not being her agent. This included a US$15mil tour overseas that she had no knowledge about. The 33-year-old filed a lawsuit in 2019 stating: "Although Mr Fenty is Rihanna's father, he does not have, and never has had, authority to act on Rihanna's behalf." The billionaire singer, whose real name is Robyn Rihanna Fenty, also stated that her father, who has had past issues with alcohol and ... » Learn More about Singer Rihanna drops lawsuit against her father

In this file photo taken on January 19, 2020, Britain’s Prince Andrew, Duke of York, arrives to attend a church service at St Mary the Virgin Church in Hillington, Norfolk, eastern England. AFP FILE PHOTO Britain’s Prince Andrew has been served legal papers in a US lawsuit brought by a woman who says he sexually abused her when she was a teenager, a court filing showed Friday. The complaint was delivered to the royal’s home in Windsor, England, on August 27, according to an affidavit filed in the Southern District of New York. Virginia Giuffre says she was “lent out” for underage sex by late US financier Jeffrey Epstein who killed himself in a New York prison in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking minors. Giuffre sued Andrew last month, alleging he sexually abused her at the London home of socialite Ghislaine Maxwell more than 20 years ago, when she was under 18. Giuffre also claims Andrew abused her at Epstein’s New York mansion and on Little St. James, Epstein’s ... » Learn More about Prince Andrew served with papers in US sexual assault lawsuit

JAKARTA - Indonesian President Joko Widodo and several other senior government officials have been found guilty of environmental negligence in a civil lawsuit for failing to tackle chronic air pollution, a Jakarta court ruled yesterday. The citizen lawsuit was filed in 2019 against Mr Joko, the Ministers of Health, Environment and Home Affairs, as well as other prominent local leaders. The 32 plaintiffs said the lawsuit was a last-ditch attempt to compel the authorities to take action against severe air pollution in Jakarta and its surroundings, an area that is home to more than 30 million people. In its verdict, judges at the Central Jakarta District Court said the actions of the five defendants had contravened the law. The ruling obliges Mr Joko to establish national ambient air quality standards to protect human health, and the Health Minister and Jakarta governor to devise strategies to control air pollution. Presidential spokesman Fadjroel Rahman said decisions regarding ... » Learn More about Indonesia court finds President, officials negligent in pollution case

KUALA LUMPUR - Malaysia said audit firm KPMG has agreed to pay a US$80 million ($108 million) settlement to resolve all claims related to their fiduciary duties on auditing of 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) accounts from 2010 to 2012. The Finance Ministry said in a statement on Thursday (Sept 16) that the settlement will conclude a lawsuit filed against the auditor in July, and that KPMG will expedite the payment. KPMG confirmed to Reuters in an email that a settlement has been reached in the claim filed against a number of current and former partners at the audit firm in Malaysia. "This settlement represents a collective agreement by all the parties, including the Malaysian government," it said. The outcome, it said, will enable all involved to "move forward", and for the firm to focus on building public trust. The Finance Ministry said the settlement was valued at more than 800 times the audit fees earned by KPMG, which "represents one of the largest 1MDB-related ... » Learn More about Malaysia says auditor KPMG to pay $108 million in 1MDB settlement

An exam room at the Planned Parenthood South Austin Health Center is shown in Austin, Texas, U.S. June 27, 2016. (REUTERS) WASHINGTON  – President Joe Biden’s administration on Thursday sued Texas, seeking to block enforcement of a new law almost entirely banning abortion in the state, as Democrats fear the right to abortion established almost 50 years ago may be at risk. The U.S. Supreme Court last week let stand the Texas law banning abortion after about six weeks of pregnancy, before many woman realize they are pregnant. Although that decision did not address the constitutionality of the Texas law, it nevertheless represented a major victory for social conservatives who have been trying to ban abortion since the court’s 1973 Roe v. Wade decision established the constitutional right to the procedure. Attorney General Merrick Garland called the Texas law “clearly unconstitutional.” “This kind of scheme to nullify the Constitution of the United States is one that all ... » Learn More about Biden administration sues Texas, seeking to block new abortion ban

KUCHING: The landmark decision by the Kuala Lumpur High Court that Malaysian mothers have the right to confer citizenship on their children born overseas will help improve these children's wellbeing and future, says a Sarawak minister. Welcoming the ruling, state Welfare, Community Well-being, Women, Family and Childhood Development Minister Datuk Seri Fatimah Abdullah ( pic ) said it would resolve many problems faced by the children as they waited for their citizenship to be approved. "I can feel the bitterness and stress of the affected mothers and children in the long time it takes to obtain citizenship. "During the waiting period, the children face many difficulties, such as getting access to education and government health facilities enjoyed by Malaysian children. "If they can’t access education and health facilities, they will have to pay high fees charged to non-Malaysians," she said in a statement Friday (Sept 10). Fatimah said this would affect the children's ... » Learn More about Allowing M’sian mums to confer citizenship on children born overseas will improve their wellbeing, future, says S’wak minister

Follow us on Telegram for the latest updates: https://t.me/mothershipsg As Singapore's vaccination rate grows steadily and the economy gradually reopens — a slew of Covid-19 restrictions were eased in early August allowing people to dine in and other businesses like gyms and fitness studios to operate again — one can say that a sense of normalcy has returned. For most people in Singapore, that is. Singapore's entertainment industry is still in shambles, and for the many family karaoke operators here, the indefinite nightmare brought about by the pandemic is far from over. In their last bid to fight for survival, several KTV operators crafted an appeal letter to request for a reopening on September 15, which they sent to their Members of Parliament (MPs), these include the Multi-Ministry Taskforce co-chairs Gan Kim Yong, Lawrence Wong, and Ong Ye Kung. Hoping for some clarity Since March 2020, all nightlife establishments were not permitted to operate. In ... » Learn More about ‘I really can’t hang on’: S’pore’s family KTV operators craft appeal letter & take grievances to Meet-the-People sessions

GUTSY JOURNOS WatchDoc’s unorthodox approach to data gathering and narrative building has been rewarded with a large online viewership. —CONTRIBUTED PHOTO Sometimes all it takes is a bag heavy with cameras, a motorcycle and about a year on the road to capture and draw attention to longstanding social ills through a fresh, critical lens. That’s how WatchDoc—a 10-year-old production house in Indonesia that specializes in investigative journalism—put together “Expedisi Indonesia Biru” (Blue Indonesia Expedition), a hard-hitting 12-part documentary about rural poverty, labor and environmental issues, and the unchecked corruption that pervades them all. For a year, WatchDoc founder Dandhy Laksono and fellow filmmaker Suparta Arz motorbiked across the archipelago to document the lives of farmers, fishermen and indigenous communities. Their 10,000-kilometer journey unearthed, among others, stories of injustice and exploitation that led to the doorstep of ranking public officials. ... » Learn More about Indonesian media team casts unflinching eye on issues