Press Releases

Today, U.S. House Judiciary Chairman Bob Goodlatte announced the Markup of H.R. 3309, the "Innovation Act," this Wednesday, November 20^th. In announcing the Markup, Chairman Goodlatte released a Manager's Amendment making changes to H.R. 3309. In addition, this afternoon Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Senator Mike Lee (R-Utah) introduced the "Patent Transparency and Improvements Act of 2013" to curb patent abuse, without infringing the independence of the federal judiciary and harming small inventors. In response to these developments, U.S.

This Monday, the United States Senate will consider the nomination of Judge Robert L. Wilkins to the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Over the course of the last month, Senate Republicans have derailed the nominations of two other well-qualified appointees to the same court, considered the second highest in the land, leaving three vacancies in place. In light of the upcoming vote, House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member John Conyers, Jr. (D-Mich.) issued the following statement:

Today, the U.S. House Judiciary Subcommittee on Regulatory Reform, Commercial and Antitrust Law held a hearing entitled, "Oversight of the Antitrust Enforcement Agencies." Specifically, this oversight hearing focused on the Department of Justice's Antitrust Division and the Federal Trade Commission's Bureau of Competition's antitrust efforts. During his opening remarks, Ranking Member John Conyers, Jr. (D-Mich.) delivered the following statement:

Today, the U.S. House Judiciary Committee Overcriminalization Task Force held a hearing entitled, "Regulatory Crime: Solutions." At the hearing, Mr. John S. Baker, Jr., Ph.D. - a visiting professor at Georgetown Law School - and Mr. Lucian E. Dervan - an assistant professor at Southern Illinois University School of Law - testified, advocating for a rethink in the United States' criminal justice system. After the task force hearing, Ranking Member John Conyers, Jr. (D-Mich.) issued the following statement:

Today, the House of Representatives voted 221 to 199 to pass H.R. 982, the "Furthering Asbestos Claim Transparency Act (FACT) of 2013." This legislation requires an asbestos trust to file quarterly reports with a bankruptcy court that includes asbestos victim's personally identifying information. After passage of the bill, Congressman John Conyers, Jr. (D-Mich.) issued the following statement:

Today, House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member John Conyers, Jr. (D-Mich.), Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security, and Investigations Chairman F. James Sensenbrenner, Jr. (R-Wisc.), Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property and the Internet Chairman Howard Coble (R-N.C.), and Congressman Danny K. Davis (D-Ill.) introduced H.R. 3465, the Second Chance Reauthorization Act.

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.), Ranking Member John Conyers, Jr. (D-Mich.), and Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet Subcommittee Chairman Howard Coble (R-N.C.) today announced the next round of hearings in the House Judiciary Committee's ongoing review of U.S. copyright law. The next round of hearings, which will be held over the coming months and into next year, will focus on digital business models, the scope of copyright protection (Section 102 and 106), the scope of fair use (Section 107), and the notice and takedown provisions (Section 512).

Today, Congressman John Conyers, Jr. (D-Mich.), Ranking Member of the U.S. House Judiciary Committee, and Congresswoman Loretta Sanchez (D-Calif.) wrote a letter to Congressman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.), Chairman of the U.S. House Judiciary Committee, requesting a hearing on the unresolved case of Alex Odeh, who was murdered in 1985. The U.S. House Judiciary Subcommittee on Criminal Justice originally held a hearing on this matter in 1986.

The full text of this letter can be found below:

November 6, 2013