Sweden's international prosecutor, Magnus Elving, announced June 21 that he would investigate the possible role of Lundin Petroleum in crimes against humanity committed in Sudan from 1997 to 2003. The investigation will examine allegations made in a report released by the European Coalition on Oil in Sudan (ECOS), which alleged that Sudanese troops attacked and displaced civilians so that Lundin could have access to land for oil drilling.

Two Sudanese rebel leaders suspected of committing war crimes related to the ongoing Darfur violence surrendered June 16 to the International Criminal Court (ICC). Abdallah Banda Abakaer Nourain (Banda) and Saleh Mohammed Jerbo Jamus (Jerbo) are suspected in connection with the September 2007 attack on African Union (AU) peacekeeping troops at Haskanita, which resulted in the death of 12 peacekeepers. Summonses for Banda and Jerbo were issued under seal by Pre-Trial Chamber I last August and include charges of murder, intentionally attacking a peacekeeping mission, and "pillaging."

A panel of the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit on June 9 ruled that New York City can withhold documents related to the arrest of 1,800 protesters during the 2004 Republican National Convention. The appeals court held that the lower court had abused its discretion in ordering the release of the documents. The city alleged that the documents were not discoverable due to law enforcement privilege.

New York City reached a settlement June 10 with the 10,000 rescue and cleanup workers who became sick or injured from responding to the 9-11 attacks. The agreement follows two failed settlement attempts between the parties. The city's insurer, WTC Captive Insurance Company, has agreed to pay the plaintiffs $712.5 million, up from its previous offers of $575 million and $657.5 million. Also, the plaintiffs' lawyers will reduce their legal fees from 33.33% to a maximum of 25%, giving their clients an extra $50 million.

The Bolivian National Congress on June 8 advanced legislation that would create an independent justice system for indigenous communities. The Law of Judicial Authority, passed by the Chamber of Deputies, the lower house of Congress, would create a system of "communal justice" that would expedite the settlement of disputes and end the "colonization of justice," according to supporters.

A Chinese appeals court on June 9 upheld the conviction of earthquake activist Tan Zuoren who was sentenced in February to five years in prison on subversion charges. Tan was charged with and convicted of inciting subversion to state power, allegations stemming from e-mails critical of the government's 1989 policy toward the Tiananmen Square pro-democracy demonstrators. Advocacy groups and Tan's supporters maintain that he was arrested after he sought to release an independent report documenting the lethal consequences of substandard construction in the Sichuan province's 2008 earthquake, which left some 90,000 dead.

Amnesty International on June 7 urged European leaders to stop the upcoming deportation of asylum seekers to Iraq because their human rights may be violated in unsafe regions of the country. Authorities in the UK, Belgium, Sweden, Norway, and the Netherlands are taking part in a joint effort to return the refugees to Iraq after the asylum petitions of many of the refugees were denied. Amnesty contends that the planned deportations violate the rules of the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), which oppose forced returns to specific areas in Iraq considered too dangerous for civilians. The International Federation of Iraqi Refugees (IFIR) also condemned the return of refugees to high-risk areas in Iraq, alleging that more than 100 Iraqi refugees in the UK will be deported this week.

The US Navy announced June 7 that it will appeal an appeals court ruling overturning the conviction of US Marine Sgt. Lawrence Hutchins III. Hutchins, who was convicted in 2007 for the 2006 kidnapping and murder of an Iraqi civilian in Hamdania, remains in the brig at Camp Pendleton while the Navy appeals to the US Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces. Hutchins' defense attorney Marine Capt. Babu Kaza has described the appeal as without merit, and has called it politically motivated. The appeal comes despite a recommendation to the contrary by a legal adviser that it would not likely yield a different result. If the appeal fails, the case would be returned to Camp Pendleton where a general will decide whether to retry the case.