Independent Online reports that Equatorial Guinea's President Obiang Nguema Mbasogo said the trial of four men sentenced to death for an attack on the presidential palace was "open" and "fair."

According to Independent Online, in statement released by the government based on a speech when he opened parliament, President Obiang said "the laws governing Equatorial Guinea were respected and implemented, as well as the procedures of a legal, open and fair trial, with all guarantees of a defense team and recourse that might have been necessary."

"The verdict handed down" at the end of the trial that began on August 13 "is no different from in trials that take place in other parts of the world," President Obiang said according to Independent Online.

Independent Online also states that President Obiang said the main purpose of laws and courts was to keep the peace and security, with "a political and social balance, and economic development for the well-being of the people. If for this, we need to take exceptional measures, we will do it whenever's called for."

"The death penalty has not been abolished," he stressed as reported by Independent Online. "Pardons and reductions in sentences do not signify a weakness or tolerance in our judicial system, but rather an effort to rehabilitate those who have violated the principles that underpin the state of law in Equatorial Guinea."

About Equatorial Guinea

The Republic of Equatorial Guinea (Republica de Guinea Ecuatorial) is the only Spanish-speaking country in Africa, and one of the smallest nations on the continent. In the late-1990s, American companies helped discover the country's oil and natural gas resources, which only within the last five years began contributing to the global energy supply. Equatorial Guinea is now working to serve as a pillar of stability and security in its region of West Central Africa. The country will host the 2011 Summit of the African Union. For more information, visit http://www.guineaecuatorialpress.com.

This has been distributed by Qorvis Communications, LLC on behalf of the Republic of Equatorial Guinea. More information on this relationship is on file at the United States Department of Justice, Washington, DC.

SOURCE Republic of Equatorial Guinea

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AppTech Corp. (Pink Sheets: APCX) www.apptechglobal.com announced today that it has acquired the assets of Legal Logistics to expand the operations of its finance subsidiary, CSI Business Finance, Inc.  Legal Logistics was engaged in the business of financing litigation and the collections of judgments on behalf of their owners.  As part of the all stock transaction, AppTech acquired $600,000 in judgments, the rights to the Legal Logistics name, and all plans and systems of Legal Logistics.  Eric Ottens, CEO of AppTech, commented, "CSI Business Finance has been a financier to micro cap companies for many years, and we have seen a dire need in the market for financing to help small companies collect debts, sue for damages and provide financing for law firms in pursuing legitimate substantial damages on behalf of their clients.  We are proud to announce our expansion in this area and look forward to providing a much needed service in litigation financing for law firms and their small business clients."

About AppTech Global, Inc.

AppTech Global, Inc. is a subsidiary of AppTech Corp. and is developing mobile application market places serving emerging countries throughout the world, including Latin America, Brazil, China, India, Japan and the USA. AppTech is focused on multi-platform mobile apps designed to run on device operating systems such as Apple iPhone, Google Android Nexus One, Research In Motion, Microsoft Mobile, Palm, Verizon Droid, the O-Phone in China, and others.

Forward-Looking Statements

This release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and such forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. "Forward-looking statements" describe future expectations, plans, results, or strategies and are generally preceded by words such as "may," "future," "plan" or "planned," "will" or "should," "expected," "anticipates," "draft," "eventually" or "projected." You are cautioned that such statements are subject to a multitude of risks and uncertainties that could cause future circumstances, events, or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements, including the risks that actual results may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, and other risks identified in a company's annual report.

SOURCE AppTech Global, Inc.

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Skilled Healthcare Group, Inc. (NYSE: SKH) announced today that further court proceedings in the case entitled VINNIE LAVENDER, by and through her Conservator, WANDA BAKER; WALTER SIMON; JACQUELYN VILCHINSKY vs. SKILLED HEALTHCARE GROUP, INC., et al (and 22 individually-named California nursing facilities receiving administrative services from Skilled Healthcare, LLC) have been postponed one additional day and are now scheduled to begin on September 3, 2010. Settlement discussions in the case are ongoing.

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About Skilled Healthcare Group

Skilled Healthcare Group, Inc., based in Foothill Ranch, California, is a holding company with subsidiary healthcare services companies, which in the aggregate had trailing twelve month revenue of approximately $768 million and approximately 14,500 employees as of June 30, 2010. Skilled Healthcare Group and its wholly-owned companies, collectively referred to as the "Company", operate long-term care facilities and provide a wide range of post-acute care services, with a strategic emphasis on sub-acute specialty health care. The Company operates long-term care facilities in California, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nevada, New Mexico and Texas, including 79 skilled nursing facilities that offer sub-acute care and rehabilitative and specialty health skilled nursing care, and 22 assisted living facilities that provide room and board and social services. In addition, the Company provides physical, occupational and speech therapy in Company-operated facilities and unaffiliated facilities. Furthermore, the Company provides hospice and home health care in Arizona, California, Idaho, Nevada, Montana and New Mexico. References made in this release to "Skilled Healthcare", "the Company", "we", "us" and "our" refer to Skilled Healthcare Group, Inc. and each of its wholly-owned companies. More information about Skilled Healthcare is available at its Web site -- www.skilledhealthcaregroup.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This release includes "forward-looking statements". You can identify these statements by the fact that they do not relate strictly to historical or current facts. These statements contain words such as "may," "will," "project," "might," "expect," "believe," "anticipate," "intend," "could," "would," "estimate," "continue" or "pursue," or the negative or other variations thereof or comparable terminology. In particular, they include the forward looking statements regarding court proceedings and settlement discussions relating to the Lavender case. These forward-looking statements are based on current expectations and projections about future events, including the assumptions stated in this release.

Investors are cautioned that forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance or results and involve risks and uncertainties that cannot be predicted or quantified and, consequently, the actual performance of Skilled Healthcare may differ materially from that expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the risk that the parties in the Lavender case do not reach a settlement before the plaintiffs seek to convert the jury verdict to a judgment and the factors described in Skilled Healthcare's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2009 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (including the sections entitled "Risk Factors" and "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" contained therein) and in our subsequent reports on Form 10-Q and Form 8-K.

Any forward-looking statements are made only as of the date of this release. Skilled Healthcare disclaims any obligation to update the forward-looking statements. Investors are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements.

SOURCE Skilled Healthcare Group, Inc.

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Leading securities and corporate governance law firm, Grant & Eisenhofer P.A., today announced that it has expanded its Antitrust practice with the appointment of Linda P. Nussbaum as a Director and John D. Radice as a Senior Counsel.  They will be based in the firm's New York office.

"The top-level antitrust expertise that Linda and John bring to the firm significantly enhances the existing practice group and will be a tremendous asset to our clients," said Jay Eisenhofer, managing director and co-founder of Grant & Eisenhofer. 

Grant & Eisenhofer broadened its practice groups to include antitrust litigation in June of this year.  

"Together, Linda and John bring decades of successful experience in class and individual antitrust litigation, particularly in the pharmaceutical field," said Stuart Grant, the firm's managing director and co-founder. "As we continue to expand our complex litigation offerings, Linda and John are a terrific addition to our antitrust group."

Susan R. Schwaiger, an antitrust attorney with nearly two decades of experience, also will be joining the firm as associate.  Ms. Schwaiger previously was Of Counsel with several leading New York-based antitrust firms representing plaintiffs in class and individual actions.

Linda P. Nussbaum

Linda Nussbaum's practice focuses on plaintiff's antitrust litigation in both class and individual actions. Ms. Nussbaum has served as sole or co-lead counsel in many significant antitrust class actions which have resulted in substantial recoveries, many in the realm of hundreds of millions of dollars.  Ms. Nussbaum recently conducted a five-week jury trial on behalf of Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc. and Kaiser Foundation Hospitals in Boston before Justice Saris resulting in a RICO verdict against Pfizer of $47 million before trebling.

Ms. Nussbaum presently serves in a lead counsel position in:  In re Puerto Rican Cabotage Antitrust Litigation; In re DDAVP Direct Purchaser Antitrust Litigation; In re Wellbutrin XL Antitrust Litigation; Meijer, Inc., et al. v. Astrazeneca Pharmaceuticals Lp, et al (Torprol Direct Purchaser Antitrust Litigation); In re Miralax Direct Purchaser Antitrust Litigation and Meijer, Inc., et al. v. Abbott Laboratories (Norvir Direct Purchaser Antitrust Litigation).  In addition, Ms. Nussbaum represents large corporate entities in individual actions in In re Payment Card Interchange Fee and Merchant Discount Antitrust Litigation; In re Neurontin Marketing and Sales Practices Litigation; In re Chocolate Confectionary Antitrust Litigation; and CVS Pharmacy v. American Express Travel Related Services, et al.

Ms. Nussbaum is admitted to practice in New York and DC, as well as various district courts and the Supreme Court of the United States.  Ms. Nussbaum earned her law degree from George Washington University in 1977 and her LL.M in Taxation from New York University School of Law in 1984.  She graduated with honors from Brooklyn College in 1974.  

John D. Radice

John D. Radice practices in the areas of antitrust, False Claims Act, and other areas of complex civil litigation.  Representative cases include: In re Tricor Direct Purchaser Antitrust Litig., In re Neurontin Marketing & Sales Litig., United States ex rel. Piacentile v. Bristol-Myers Squibb Co., United States ex rel. Marchese v. Cell Therapeutics, Inc.,.  Prior to joining the firm, Mr. Radice was associated with major plaintiffs' class action firms in New York and Philadelphia, where he primarily represented clients pursuing antitrust, False Claims Act, and international human rights cases.

Mr. Radice is admitted to practice in New York and New Jersey, as well as various district courts.  Mr. Radice clerked for Judge Edith Brown Clement in the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in New Orleans following his graduation from New York University School of Law in 2003. He graduated magna cum laude from Princeton University in 1997.

Note:  In addition to its antitrust practice, Grant & Eisenhofer P.A. represents institutional investors, both domestic and foreign,  in securities class actions, corporate governance actions and derivative litigation.  The firm has recovered approximately $12 billion for shareholders in the last five years and was cited by RiskMetrics for securing the highest average investor recovery in securities class actions of any U.S. law firm in 2008.  Grant & Eisenhofer has also been named one of the country's top plaintiffs' law firms by the National Law Journal for the past four years.  For more information, visit www.gelaw.com

SOURCE Grant & Eisenhofer P.A.

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Ambassador at large CdeBaca, Senior Advisor to the Secretary of State and Director, Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking In Persons, U.S. Department of State, will join Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen Monday, September 13, 2010 at Miami's St. Thomas University School of Law for a unique dialogue on the important role of the public/private partnership in combating human trafficking.

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Reverend Monsignor Franklyn M. Casale, President of St. Thomas University, as well as Dr. Roza Pati, Professor and Executive Director of STU School of Law's Graduate Program in Intercultural Human Rights, have been actively involved for the past few years with efforts combating human trafficking. Monsignor Casale testified before the Congressional Foreign Relations Committee during the process of the enactment of the Wilberforce Act. Professor Pati has been working on human trafficking issues in various capacities since the mid 1990s. Her presentations and research focus on issues of state responsibilities in fighting human trafficking, human rights approach to trafficking vis a vis criminal law approach, issues of prevention and the role of academia as part of civil society's combat on human trafficking.

Invited by the Bicameral Congressional Intelligence Oversight Committee of the Argentinean Congress of the Nation, Pati had joined teams of governmental, intergovernmental and non-governmental experts on human trafficking coming from various parts of the Western hemisphere, discussing, among other topics, the new draft law on human trafficking presented to the Congress of Argentina.  Other symposia and international conferences, panels and dialogues have been launched through St. Thomas' academic endeavor. Dr. Pati had also facilitated the formulation of The Miami Declaration of Principles on Human Trafficking, a consensus document of policies drawn up by global experts at St. Thomas University on February 10, 2005 designed to combat human trafficking from a victim-oriented perspective.  She also drew on her experience in the field gained as the Secretary of State for Youth and Women in the Cabinet of her homeland Albania.

"Anyone who is involved in the world-wide fight against modern-day slavery is well aware of the three 'P's approach to addressing this issue: prevention, prosecution, protection. 'The Fourth P'--effective partnerships -- amongst governmental agencies inter se, as well as amongst these institutions with the NGO sector will be the driving force in tipping the balance to eradicate the lingering phenomenon of modern-day slavery. A phenomenon as insidious as trafficking in persons and of that magnitude can only be confronted through the mobilization of the whole community in all its layers: public and private," says Dr. Pati.

The Forum features government and private sector representatives in a meaningful discussion on partnership. The event takes place from 9AM-12PM, in St. Thomas University's Moot Court Room. For additional information on the academic conference and/or the Intercultural Human Rights program, LL.M and J.S.D., please call 305-474-2403 or email HUMANRIGHTS@STU.EDU. Attendance to the September event is free and open to the community.

SOURCE St. Thomas University

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