On Monday the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) made a rare request of the Supreme Court. The department filed a petition for a writ of certiorari before judgment in the case U.S. Department of Homeland Security v. Regents of the University of California, which the Ninth U.S Circuit Court of Appeals is currently deciding. That court … Continue reading DACA Filings and the Terms’s First Opinion
In addition to the Supreme Court’s latest session of oral arguments and its announcement that it had granted certiorari in some new cases (see here), there was other news as well last week. Term Limits for the Court The Hill’s Lydia Wheeler wrote in an article this week about a new poll conducted by Fix … Continue reading News Roundup: Week of October 29, 2018
When the Supreme Court goes to work on Tuesday, it will be back to its full nine-member strength. Justice Brett Kavanaugh was confirmed on Saturday and sworn in the same day. But for the first week of the Term, the Court had only eight members, and aspects of its new dynamics were on display. In … Continue reading Weekly Roundup: Week of October 1
On Wednesday, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments on two cases, Knick v. Township of Scott, Pennsylvania and New Prime v. Oliveira. In New Prime, the Court must decide whether the Federal Arbitration Act (“FAA”) applies to independent contractors in the trucking industry. Specifically, the FAA exempts from enforcement those arbitration clauses in “contracts of … Continue reading October 3 Oral Arguments: Arbitration for Workers?
Arguments Oct_02_2018 The Court heard arguments in two cases on Tuesday: Gundy v. United States and Madison v. Alabama. In Gundy, the Court was asked to consider whether the non-delegation doctrine (which says that Congress cannot hand its legislative powers to agencies) is violated by the federal Sex Offender Notification and Registration Act’s (SORNA) delegation … Continue reading October 2 Arguments: Delegation and Dementia
Even with most courtwatchers’ eyes on the Kavanaugh nomination, the Supreme Court heard arguments this past week. On Monday, October 1, the first day of the Term, the Court first heard argument in Mount Lemmon Fire Dist. v. Guido an age discrimination case, addressing the narrow issue of whether the Age Discrimination in Employment Act … Continue reading October 1 Arguments: Dusky Gopher Frog Goes to Court
The Court issued two opinions this week, and it disposed of one more case without a decision. In Collins v. Virginia, the Court considered the scope of the Fourth Amendment’s “automobile exception,” which allows a police officer to search a vehicle without first getting a warrant under some circumstances. The rationale for this exception is … Continue reading Opinions: Searching Vehicles Next to a Home and Restitution
Justice Gorsuch wrote the two opinions announced earlier this week. The first, Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis, was a 5-4 decision, and it upheld the ability of employers to require their workers to settle employment disputes through individual arbitration rather than by collective suits or arbitrations. This holding reversed the National Labor Relations Board’s determination … Continue reading Opinions: Arbitration Agreements in Employment Contracts and Sovereign Immunity for Indian Tribes
On April 23, the Court heard oral arguments in Lucia v. Securities and Exchange Commission, a case about whether Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) administrative law judges (“ALJs”) are “Officers of the United States” within the meaning of the Appointments Clause of the Constitution or merely employees of the SEC. Alison Frankel of Reuters explains … Continue reading April Argument Review V – Administrative Law, Deference to Foreign Courts, and More
On April 24, the Court heard arguments in Abbott v. Perez, the third redistricting case that the justices have heard this Term. Unlike the other cases, Gill v. Whitford and Benisek v. Lamone, which involved partisan gerrymandering, this case involves allegations of racially discriminatory redistricting in violation of the Voting Rights Act and/or the Equal Protection Clause. … Continue reading April Argument Review IV – Race Discrimination and Voting