A new settlement has been reached among the parties in the thousands of cases alleging that people who responded to the 9/11 World Trade Center attacks and helped to clean up the debris sustained respiratory and other illnesses, according to a source familiar with the matter.

The U.S. Chemical Safety Board has agreed to investigate the "root causes" of the April 20 blast on the Deepwater Horizon oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico -- the third BP incident the board will have investigated since 2005. The request came in a letter from Reps. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., chairman of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, and Bart Stupak, D-Mich., who chairs the subcommittee on oversight and investigations. The CSB has been asked to find answers to five questions about the explosion.

In a new twist to the congressional response to the Gulf Coast oil spill, legislation introduced Wednesday would mandate restitution for victims of some environmental crimes. The bill is separate from other efforts to increase civil liability for spills. It would amend the section of the U.S. Code relating to when judges must impose restitution during sentencing. And it would direct the U.S. Sentencing Commission to review and amend the sentencing guidelines for crimes under the Clean Water Act.

With a growing number of companies using social media to promote their products and services, employers are finding it increasingly difficult to limit their employees' use of social networks. And that's creating legal challenges, said in-house and outside counsel at a panel discussion.

A 76-year-old former Akron con man has been indicted for the 1977 murder of a Wayne County couple. Edward Wayne Edwards is expected to plead guilty to two counts of aggravated murder on Friday.

Housing advocates warned Wednesday that mortgage rescue scams are on the rise in Ohio, particularly against minorities, the elderly and others struggling to pay their monthly bills.

Death-penalty proceedings are scheduled to begin today against the man convicted of aggravated murder in the 2008 shooting of Twinsburg police officer Joshua Miktarian.