AFJ Press Releases | Alliance for Justice

We serve as a resource for both traditional and new media and produce groundbreaking research on a wide variety of topics related to our mission of advancing justice and democracy for all Americans. Download our most recent press releases, media advisories, and statements below.

For more information, contact Richard Wexler, Media Relations Manager, at richard.wexler@afj.org or (202) 464-7371.

Grassley deserves "A" for creativity, "F" for content on "pre-emptive filibuster" of D.C. Circuit nominees

05/16/13

Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) deserves “an ‘A’ for creativity but an ‘F’ for content” for his scheme to obstruct future nominees to the nation’s second most important court, Alliance for Justice President Nan Aron said Thursday. Aron was referring to Grassley’s plan to eliminate three of the four vacant judgeships on the United States Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, a plan he raised again at a Senate Judiciary Committee meeting Thursday.

Alliance for Justice Responds to IRS Controversy

05/15/13

For years, nonprofit advocacy groups have called for the IRS to provide clear guidance around the “facts and circumstances” test because the current standard is so vague. The test, which has been the standard for what constitutes election-related activity, has created a compliance and enforcement nightmare for the advocacy organizations, as well as IRS staff.

AFJ Blasts "Give Them an Inch and They Take a Mile" Republicans on Perez Nomination

05/08/13

The “give them an inch and they take a mile” Senate Republicans, after being given the courtesy of a two-week delay on Tom Perez’s committee vote to serve as Secretary of Labor, today invoked an arcane procedural maneuver to delay that vote for yet another week.

AFJ: Arbitration Fairness Act Would "Reopen the Courthouse Doors to Millions of Americans"

05/08/13

Federal legislation introduced Tuesday to ban the increasingly common practice of forced arbitration “is urgently needed to reopen the courthouse doors to millions of Americans,” according to Alliance for Justice President Nan Aron.

Statement of Nan Aron, President, Alliance for Justice, in Response to Today’s Decision of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in National Association of Manufacturers et. al. v. National Labor Relations Board et. al.

05/07/13

This decision illustrates how, years after leaving office, Republican presidents are reaping rewards from loading the nation’s second most important court with extreme ideologues. That’s why Senate Republicans have been desperate to prevent President Obama from filling vacancies on the D.C Circuit. It is urgent to restore balance to the D.C. Circuit by filling its four vacancies with judges who will stand up for the rights of working Americans.

AFJ PRAISES CONFIRMATION OF JANE KELLY FOR THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE EIGHTH CIRCUIT

04/24/13

We applaud the Senate both for confirming Jane Kelly and for doing it quickly. This is how the process should work – and we hope it is a sign of things to come. Jane Kelly will bring much-needed gender and professional diversity to the Eighth Circuit. She is only the second woman to serve on the court in its 120-year history. As a career federal defender, she will bring both a commitment to public service and an important perspective on criminal justice to the Eighth Circuit.

STATEMENT OF NAN ARON IN RESPONSE TO THE SUPREME COURT DECISION IN KIOBEL V. ROYAL DUTCH PETROLEUM

04/17/13

Our nation prides itself on being a champion of human rights. Yet a majority of our highest court has chosen to make it easier for big corporations complicit in human rights abuses to evade responsibility, and vastly more difficult for their victims to get justice.

AFJ CONDEMNS GRASSLEY “COURT-PACKING SCHEME”

04/11/13

Legislation sponsored by Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) to reduce the number of judges on what is widely viewed as the nation’s second most important federal court is a “court-packing scheme” to keep the court in the hands of staunch conservatives, according to Alliance for Justice.

“IT’S ABOUT TIME”

04/09/13

Alliance for Justice President Nan Aron issued the following statement in response to the vote by the Senate to confirm Judge Patty Shwartz for the United States Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit.

THE TIME FOR EQUALITY IS NOW

03/27/13

My name is Nan Aron. I am the president of Alliance for Justice and I am here on behalf of our over 100 member organizations to stand with you, and the vast majority of the American people, in support of marriage equality. Our Constitution rests on the simple but profound idea that every single one of us is entitled to the equal protection of the law, no matter who we are, or who we love. In a nation truly dedicated to liberty and equality, there is no place for discrimination based on sexual orientation.

STATEMENT OF NAN ARON, PRESIDENT, ALLIANCE FOR JUSTICE, ON THE DECISION OF THE WHITE HOUSE TO WITHDRAW THE NOMINATION OF CAITLIN HALLIGAN FOR THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA CIRCUIT

03/22/13

The withdrawal of this highly-qualified nominee is one more illustration of the extent to which Republicans have used unprecedented, partisan obstruction to hijack the United States Senate. It is still another indication, as if any were needed, that Senate Democrats need to revisit Senate rules reform, and stand up to the tyranny of the minority. We are confident that President Obama now will press ahead with nominating individuals to fill all three D.C. Circuit vacancies still without nominees – and will make the fight for these nominees a top priority.

PROPOSED N.Y. REGULATIONS ON NONPROFITS AND ELECTIONS “RISK CHILLING LEGITIMATE ADVOCACY”

03/08/13

Proposed regulations from the New York State Attorney General aimed at exposing a few “sham” nonprofits involved in electioneering risk chilling legitimate advocacy by nonprofits that represent tens of thousands of New Yorkers, the Alliance for Justice said Friday. “We commend the Attorney General for taking a swing at the wrongdoers,” said Abby Levine, Legal Director of the Alliance for Justice Bolder Advocacy initiative. “But in their current form, the regulations risk impeding legitimate advocacy by groups ranging from the Sierra Club to AARP. Fortunately, some modest changes are all that are needed to allow these regulations to accomplish their important purpose without the collateral damage.”

AFJ: HALLIGAN CLOTURE VOTE SHOWS REPUBLICAN SENATORS ARE “ADDICTED TO OBSTRUCTION”

03/06/13

Today, Republican Senators proved themselves to be addicted to obstruction, and utterly uninterested in putting the needs of the American people ahead of partisan posturing. As a result, for the second time in two years, Americans have been denied the services of a highly qualified nominee to serve on what is widely considered the nation’s second most important court.

AFJ REPORT: OBAMA PICKS UP THE PACE FOR JUDICIAL NOMINATIONS, BUT FEDERAL COURTS REMAIN IN CRISIS

03/05/13

President Obama has “significantly increased” the pace for sending the Senate nominees for federal judgeships, but the nation’s federal courts remain in crisis, according to a new report from Alliance for Justice. Due largely to Republican stalling, both before nominations are submitted to the Senate and after, the number of vacancies on federal courts is nearly double the rate when President Obama first took office.

NOW WE FIND OUT IF RULES REFORM IS FOR REAL

03/04/13

This week, we find out if the agreement reached at the start of the current session to reform Senate rules has any real meaning. Without question, Caitlin Halligan is extraordinarily well qualified for a seat on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. Her nomination has strong bipartisan support.The fact that a minority of senators could stop a highly-qualified nominee like Caitlin Halligan in 2011 is a classic example of the misuse of the filibuster for partisan gain that has characterized the current Senate minority. President Obama has renominated Halligan, but Republicans are threatening a filibuster once again.

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