The Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties

Chairman Goodlatte: From 1933, when Hitler took power in Germany, until 1945, when the Allied Forces liberated Europe, the Nazis and their collaborators stole countless works of art and cultural objects from museums and private collections throughout Europe. Indeed, according to the American Alliance of Museums, “the Nazi regime orchestrated a system of theft, confiscation, coercive transfer, looting, pillage, and destruction of objects of art and other cultural property in Europe on a massive and unprecedented scale.  Millions of such objects were unlawfully and often f

Washington, D.C. — House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) and Constitution and Civil Justice Subcommittee Chairman Trent Franks (R-Ariz.) released the following statement following today’s Committee passage of the Judgment Fund Transparency Act of 2015 (H.R.

Chairman Goodlatte:  The topic of this hearing today, federal court diversity jurisdiction, might seem dry and technical at first blush, but it’s actually near the heart of the Founder’s vision of the body politic -- namely their understanding that federal courts should hear cases between citizens of different states, especially when those lawsuits involved commercial or other subjects integral to the national economy. Currently, when a citizen from one state sues a defendant from another state, the inter-state nature of that lawsuit gives federal courts jurisdictio

Washington, D.C. – The House Judiciary Committee has announced its schedule for the week of September 12-16, 2016. TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 1311:00 a.m. | Subcommittee on the Constitution and Civil JusticeHearing on: Exploring Federal Diversity Jurisdiction Witnesses:

• Mr. Charles Cooper, Partner, Cooper & Kirk, PLLC
• Ms. Joanna Shepherd, Professor of Law, Emory Law School
• Mr.

Washington, D.C. – The House Judiciary Committee has announced its schedule for the week of September 6-9, 2016.  WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 710:30 a.m. | Subcommittee on the Constitution and Civil JusticeHearing on: Oversight of the Judgment Fund: Iran, Big Settlements, and the Lack of Transparency Witnesses:

• Professor Paul Figley, Associate Director of Le

Subcommittee Will Examine Transparency and Application of the Judgment FundWashington, D.C. — On Wednesday, September 7, 2016, at 10:30 A.M., the Subcommittee on the Constitution and Civil Justice will hold an oversight hearing entitled, “Oversight of the Judgment Fund: Iran, Big Settlements, and the Lack of Transparency.” The hearing will examine the history and use of the government’s Judgment Fund, which is a permanent and indefinite appropriation for the Department of Justice to pay settlements and judgments made against the United States. The use of the J