Judicial council tosses misconduct claims against Brett Kavanaugh

The judges said the complaints of misconduct, including accusations that Kavanaugh made false, unduly partisan and disrespectful statements to senators, must be dismissed because he has been confirmed to the supreme court and the federal law governing judicial conduct applies only to lower court judges.

Scores of complaints accusing US supreme court justice Brett Kavanaugh of improperly conducting himself during his contentious Senate confirmation process have been thrown out by a panel of eight federal judges.

Alfonso Ribeiro of ‘Fresh Prince’ sues Fortnite, NBA 2K over Carlton dance

Alfonso Ribeiro, who famously played beloved loser Carlton Banks on ’90s sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, is suing the creators of Fortnite and NBA 2K for using the dance he made popular — aptly termed “The Carlton” in popular lexicon — without his permission or credit.

In separate lawsuits filed Monday in federal court, Ribeiro alleges that Fortnite-maker Epic Games and 2K Sports-creator Take-Two Interactive used his dance without consulting him.

Secret Santa claims co-worker Googled cost of present, asked for an additional one

The co-worker fires back that $120 is out of the budget for a Secret Santa gift, causing the woman to call them “disgusting” and then asks for the $20 — which the co-worker now refuses.

According to an anonymous post on Reddit, a mother allegedly reached out to her Secret Santa gifter to both say thank you for the presents, and ask for another one. Christmas is all about getting presents — at least that seems to be the case for one woman.

Pushback Derails Company That Thrived on Patent Lawsuits

Shipping & Transit LLC sued more than 100 mostly small companies in 2016, making it the largest filer of patent lawsuits that year.

The challenges to its patent claims and the fee awards were “really the death knell for the company” because they increased the chances that other companies facing patent lawsuits from Shipping & Transit would fight back rather than settle, Mr. Nazer said. In one ruling, a U.S. district judge in Santa Ana, Calif., called Shipping & Transit’s patent claims “objectively unreasonable” in light of a 2014 Supreme Court decision that held that certain kinds of abstract ideas weren’t patentable.

Reporter who broke news of Steele dossier used to surveil ex-Trump aide calls its claims largely 'false'

The salacious and unverified opposition research dossier cited by the FBI as its main justification to surveil a top Trump aide contains many claims that are "likely false," according to the Yahoo News reporter who was among the first to break the news of the dossier's existence.

Federal authorities used both the Steele dossier and Yahoo News article to convince the FISA court to authorize a surveillance warrant for Page.

'It's time for significant changes': civil rights groups call for Facebook leaders to step down

Dozens of civil rights groups are calling for Mark Zuckerberg and Sheryl Sandberg to step down from Facebook’s board of directors following what they described as years of the company’s role in “generating bigotry and hatred towards vulnerable communities”.

“Though Facebook has had significant time, opportunity and the benefit of input from experts and advocacy groups to address the problems on the platform, your company chose to target civil rights groups and our allies instead of changing the way you do business.”

Nigeria concerned over Amnesty International's 'damaging' activities

Nigeria is “concerned” about Amnesty International’s activities, a spokesman for President Muhammadu Buhari has said, just days after the government briefly banned Unicef over claims it was training “spies” sympathetic to Boko Haram. “The federal government is increasingly concerned about the role that Amnesty International is playing in the war against terror in Nigeria,” Garba Shehu said in a statement.

Irregular migrant claims drop to lowest levels since 2017, but backlogs remain

As the number of irregular asylum seekers arriving in Canada appears to be slowing, work is quietly underway to speed up refugee processing and address a major backlog of asylum claims that has been growing steadily since early 2017.

Of the 34,854 irregular migrant claims that have been referred to the IRB, less than one quarter of them have been finalized. A total of just over 64,000 refugee claims — including irregular arrivals and those from various other streams — are awaiting a decision at the IRB.

Texas ruling over Obamacare is wrong to claim that without the insurance mandate, the health-care law can’t survive

The ruling by a federal judge in Texas that the individual mandate in the Affordable Care Act is unconstitutional — and therefore the entire law is invalid — whistles past a new economic reality.

With or without the mandate, the insurance markets created by the ACA are stable and providing coverage for millions of Americans who otherwise would be courting financial ruin when a health crisis strikes.

Children who fled Nazis to get compensation from Germany

Germany has agreed to pay compensation to survivors who were evacuated from the country as children during the Nazi regime, the organization negotiating the deal announced on Monday.

The Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany revealed the German government would pay €2,500 ($2,800) to the people still alive who fled from the Nazis as part of the so-called "Kindertransport." The compensation is a "symbolic recognition of their suffering," Claims Conference negotiator Greg Schneider said, after most of the children never saw their parents or other family members again.

Russia to deploy warplanes to Crimea amid Ukraine standoff

The incident has further strained relations between Ukraine and Russia, which have been in tatters a revolution in Ukraine was followed by Moscow launching a military intervention in Crimea and subsequently annexing the Ukrainian territory under an internationally-condemned referendum four years ago.

The announcement comes after Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov claimed in an interview that Ukraine was preparing an "armed provocation with Russia on the border with Crimea during the last ten days of December." In comments carried by the state-run TASS news agency, Lavrov said Moscow would not allow the Ukrainian government to act on those plans, saying "they will regret it."

Woody Allen’s alleged former lover claims affair started when she was 16

A former model says she was 16 when she started sleeping with Woody Allen, and later had threesomes with the Hollywood filmmaker and Mia Farrow.

Engelhardt believed her alleged affair with Allen may have inspired 1979’s “Manhattan,” which starred Mariel Hemingway as Allen’s 17-year-old love interest. However, she noted Hemingway’s character may have been a composite of numerous young women Allen may have been seeing.

EXCLUSIVE: Family set to be deported Christmas Eve will be allowed to stay in Canada

A family of seven, including two small children, that was set for deportation to Colombia on Christmas Eve will be allowed to remain in Canada, Global News has learned.

'I was devastated,' Family in Canada for 6 years set to be deported Christmas Eve. Hussen’s intervention also gives Canadian immigration officials time to hear the family’s pending applications to remain in Canada on a permanent basis.

Octomom says manager forced her into porn, fertility doctor lied to her

Nadya Suleman, known to the world as "Octomom," doesn't appreciate the moniker — and sees herself as "a classic victim" of the media, of her doctors and of her management team, Suleman said in a new interview.

Suleman's doctor, Michael Kamrava, who worked with her on her six pregnancies prior to "the eight," has since lost his medical license and left the United States. Suleman alleged that she only wanted twins and that Kamrava convinced her to implant the extra embryos when she was high on narcotics and strapped to a gurney.

Johnson & Johnson shares slip after talc asbestos claims

Shares of health products giant Johnson & Johnson slipped a further 2% on Monday, extending steep losses suffered on Friday following an investigation by the Reuters news agency alleging that the company knew for decades that cancer-causing asbestos lurked in its bestselling Baby Powder talc.

Johnson & Johnson shares had closed down 10% on Friday, wiping out about $40bn from the company’s market capitalization.