Unions in both cases contended that mandatory agency fees are needed in order to eliminate the problem of what they call "free riders" ― non-members who benefit from union representation, for example through salary and working conditions obtained in collective bargaining ― without actually paying for it.
Backers of the SEC proposal, who include unions, investor rights advocates as well as "socially conscious" mutual fund companies such as Domini Social Investments and Pax World Funds, contend that mandatory disclosure will eliminate conflicts of interest, increase transparency and help investors hold corporations accountable.
Critics have long contended that draconian mandatory minimum sentence laws for low-level drug offenses, as well as stop-and-frisk police policies that target higher-crime and minority neighborhoods, have a disproportionate impact on members of minority groups.
Some administration officials contend that Kyoto, which required mandatory emission reductions, is something the president would never accept and that it would be bad for the American economy.
But Mr. Blakely, supported in his appeal by the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers and the advocacy group Families Against Mandatory Minimums, contends that the Apprendi ruling does apply because it is only by finding additional factors, of the sort the Supreme Court said must be determined by a jury, that a judge can exceed the top sentence of the guidelines.
The Chargers, through spokesman Mark Fabiani, contend it is not mandatory and say City Hall and the Port District never truly considered an alternative.
Lewis sued when he heard that Rahman was going to China, as did Tyson, who contended that Rahman owed him a fight because the World Boxing Council had designated Tyson the mandatory title challenger.
But Julie Stewart, the president of Families Against Mandatory Minimums, a group that advocates for judicial discretion in sentencing decisions, contended that the commission should make its crack cocaine guidelines retroactive without any exceptions because criminal histories and any gun possession were already factored into sentences under a separate part of the guidelines.
"I got duped," she contended.
I contended with powerful men.
