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Latest news, analysis and opinion on the law and legal issues, including Hong Kong extradition law. Follow the latest on trials, court cases and justice.
Activists wearing masks protest against deepfake porn in Seoul last year. The poster reads: “Repeated deepfake sex crimes, the state is an accomplice too”. Photo: AFP
South Korea

‘The law didn’t protect me’: South Korea’s losing battle against AI sex crimes

Victims lament a lack of police help to resolve their cases, while sex educators call for a change in gender attitudes to tackle the scourge.

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United States

LGBTQ book controversy in Maryland schools spills over to US Supreme Court

United States

US Supreme Court hits pause on deportations of Venezuelan migrants

Artificial intelligence

They sold their likenesses to AI companies. Now they regret it

Actors can make good money licensing their images to AI companies, but many are later shocked to see where their digital clones turn up.

Many actors license their likenesses to AI marketing firms, but some end up unpleasantly surprised by how their images are used. Photo: Shutterstock
Donald Trump

Supreme Court keeps hold on Trump’s restrictions on birthright citizenship

Trump said he is ‘so happy’ the Supreme Court will hear arguments in May. ‘I think the case has been so misunderstood,’ he said on Thursday.

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United States

US judge rules Google monopolised online ad markets in antitrust case

Google will now face the possibility of two different US courts ordering it to sell assets or change its business practices.

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Japan

Japan weighs new legislation to tackle illegal gambling via online casinos

High-profile scandals involving baseball stars and comedians have exposed a ‘shocking’ lack of public awareness about the law, observers say.

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A study by Japan’s National Police Agency shows online gamblers are mostly in their 20s and 30s, with about 40 per cent saying they did not know that online gambling is illegal. Photo: Shutterstock
Hong Kong Basic Law

Legal Tales | We should all speak up to defend judicial independence from any interference

It is unacceptable in any civilised society governed by the rule of law to seek to pressurise judges to reach a particular decision or to resign.

Ukraine war

Ukrainian lawmakers extend martial law until August

The extension allows Ukraine to continue mobilising troops and suspends the election cycle.

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Hong Kong courts

Hong Kong court rejects appeal by head of dissolved party over secession charge

Judges rule minimum sentences apply to all conspiracy offences under national security law even when penalty not explicitly provided.

The national security law stipulates a prison sentence of five to 10 years for a serious offence of inciting secession, but provides no express mechanism for penalising a conspiracy to commit the crime. Photo Dickson Lee
Indonesia

Indonesia’s new rule for foreign reporters raises concerns about press freedom

The introduction of police certification is yet another indication of the challenges of reporting in Indonesia, critics say.

Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto speaking to the local media. Photo: Reuters
Indonesia

US tourist deported from Bali after rampage at medical clinic

Footage depicts the 27-year-old man screaming and destroying property in the clinic in Badung despite attempts to stop him.

Cambodia

Cambodia’s tougher ban on genocide denial: ‘another tool to silence dissent’?

Critics fear the move to further criminalise denial of the Khmer Rouge’s horrors will stifle opposition to Hun Sen’s dynasty.

The Philippines

Majority of Filipinos want Duterte held to account in ICC drug war case: survey

Support for Duterte’s drug war once exceeded 80 per cent, but a new poll indicates 62 per cent now want him to stand trial for it.

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Demonstrators hold placards as Filipino students and activists demand the conviction and imprisonment of former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte during a protest in Quezon City, the Philippines, last month. Photo: Reuters
Hong Kong society

Editorial | Legal basketball bets in Hong Kong must come with warnings, education

Many in Hong Kong are already wagering on NBA games through bookmakers, so allowing the Jockey Club to step in offers a chance to properly regulate such activities.

The Hong Kong government has proposed the legalisation of betting on basketball. Photo: Shutterstock
Meta Platforms

Meta chief Mark Zuckerberg testifies at landmark US antitrust trial

Meta is accused by Federal Trade Commission of abusing its market power to acquire Instagram, WhatsApp before they could become competitors.

Indonesia

Indonesia’s Bali raises alarm over rise in sham marriages to evade legal curbs

Lawmakers urge action after viral social media posts alleging that foreigners are exploiting legal loopholes to acquire land and property.

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Hong Kong courts

Hong Kong activist in legal fight to allow women to wear shorts in prison

Women prisoners must wear trousers even in summer unless they have medical or religious reasons.

The applicant is on remand in Tai Lam Centre for Women. Photo: Handout
Indonesia

Indonesia’s Prabowo opens up but did interview help boost transparency?

Prabowo clarifies that recent reforms are misunderstood and promises greater communication but analysts say his responses are ‘misleading’.

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Malaysia

Controversial Malaysian series on Islamic cult tops 1 billion streams

‘Bidaah’ echoes a real-life case in Malaysia of a shadowy cult hit by allegations of human trafficking and abuse.

South Korea

‘Yoon again’: protesters call for ousted South Korean president’s return

Yoon Suk-yeol’s downfall seen among his supporters as not just a political misstep, but also a setback in country’s battle against communism.

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Former South Korean president Yoon Suk-yeol shakes hands with his supporters as he leaves the presidential residence on Friday, a week after the country’s top court upheld his impeachment. Photo: Kim Jung-yeop
Britain

UK jails former Russia minister for 40 months for violating sanctions

Dmitrii Ovsiannikov is the first person convicted of violating sanctions put in place after the illegal annexation of Crimea from Ukraine in 2014.

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Dmitry Ovsyannikov, governor of Sevastopol in Crimea from 2017 to 2019, arrives at a London court hearing in March. On Friday he was given a 40-month prison sentence. Photo: Reuters
Fame and celebrity

Who is The White Lotus star Parker Posey’s twin brother Christopher?

The twins grew up in Louisiana and Mississippi and Parker speaks fondly of her brother, who she says has a ‘creative thing going on inside of him’ despite his conservative job.

Malaysia

Surge in sex cases involving minors in Malaysia exposes child protection flaws

In one shocking case in Kelantan, a 15-year-old girl became pregnant after she had sex with her 11-year-old cousin.

Singapore

Diversity or detachment? Singapore’s civil service a political talent pool

From ex-army chief to clinical psychologist, the public sector has been a reliable hunting ground for new candidates for the PAP, and now the opposition.

People gather next to the Merlion statue at Marina Bay waterfront in Singapore. The city state is expected to hold a general election later this year. Photo: AFP
Thailand

US ‘alarmed’ at arrest of American academic in Thailand for alleged royal insult

The US State Department said Paul Chambers’ arrest ‘reinforces long-standing concerns about the use of lèse-majesté laws in Thailand’.

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US political science lecturer Paul Chambers, left, of Thailand’s Naresuan University, stands outside the police station in Phitsanulok, Thailand, where he was arrested on Tuesday, April 8, 2025, on charges of insulting the monarchy. Photo: AP
Thailand

US academic charged for insulting Thai king, raising concerns over free speech

Thailand’s strict royal defamation law is being increasingly used against dissenters, critics claim.

South Korea

Korean Air pilots fired after fighting over ex-president Yoon’s martial law call

The altercation is one of the more dramatic examples of the political polarisation triggered by Yoon’s impeachment, observers say.

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