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Archive: May 2019 (16 Posts)

Ornate red and ivory wall decoration, with plaque and symbols

On This Day: Everglades National Park Established

Posted by: Jennifer González

Eighty-five years ago today, on May 30, 1934, Congress established Everglades National Park. The park is one of the most unique national parks in the country. It is 1.5 million acres of what is commonly referred to as “swampland,” but actually contains at least eight different ecosystems, including freshwater sloughs, marl prairies, hardwood hammocks, pinelands, …

Ornate red and ivory wall decoration, with plaque and symbols

Congress.gov New, Tip and Top for May 2019, Part 2

Posted by: Margaret Wood

Earlier this month, Andrew shared the update to our committee schedule page, which launched in January 2019. With this month’s second release, we have enhanced the navigation of member profile pages.  When viewing a bill or resolution on a member profile page, you can use the navigation arrows to move from the next or previous …

Ornate red and ivory wall decoration, with plaque and symbols

The Homestead Act of 1862

Posted by: Jim Martin

Today marks the 157th anniversary of the Homestead Act becoming law.  For a number of years before the Civil War, there had been interest in allocating public lands in the trans-Mississippi west to individual settlers, but for a variety of reasons, including arguments over the status of slavery in the territories and concerns by Northern …

Ornate red and ivory wall decoration, with plaque and symbols

Happy World Whisky Day!

Posted by: Jenny Gesley

Tomorrow, May 18, 2019, is World Whisky Day, a day that “celebrates all types of whisky/whiskey and encourages everyone to enjoy whisky responsibly.” As a law blog, there is no better way to celebrate such a day than with a post on a whisky court case! On June 7, 2018, the European Court of Justice …

Ornate red and ivory wall decoration, with plaque and symbols

A Fish, a Baseball, a Song

Posted by: Jim Martin

The end of the baseball reserve clause came to major league baseball players as an early Christmas gift on December 23, 1975, when arbitrator Peter Seitz ruled that two players, Andy Messersmith and Dave McNally, were eligible to negotiate contracts with any team.  Prior to this time, major league players were bound under the reserve …

Ornate red and ivory wall decoration, with plaque and symbols

On This Day: Swedish Supreme Court Established 230 Years Ago

Posted by: Elin Hofverberg

Two hundred thirty years ago today, on May 15, 1789, the Swedish Supreme Court was created by a royal regulation (Kongl. Maj:ts Rådige Förordnande för Des Högste Domstol eller Justitiae Revision af den 15 maj 1789). The Swedish king, Gustav III (known as the Masquerade King), abolished the Council of the Realm (Riksråd) and created …