An intermediate state appeals court in Albany, N.Y., has ruled that neither a California animal rights group nor a New York resident has standing to compel the state to halt commercial production of foie gras. The petitioners contended that force-fed ducks or geese produce pâté that is potentially dangerous to consumers, but a unanimous panel of the Appellate Division, Third Department, dismissed the petition as based on “conjecture or speculation.”
EQUAL RIGHTS ORDER
President Obama on July 21 signed an executive order barring discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered employees of the federal government or of federal contractors. Over objections from some quarters, the order did not include a religious exemption for employers. An estimated 24,000 companies have federal contractor designation, comprising around one-fifth of U.S. workers. Of the top 50 federal contractors, 86 percent prohibit sexual-orientation discrimination and 61 percent ban discrimination based on gender identity, according to the White House.
