On Tuesday, March 27, the Court heard oral arguments in Hughes v. United States. The underlying legal issue in Hughes involves certain criminal defendants’ eligibility for sentence reductions. That fairly technical legal issue was previously considered by the Court in Freeman v. United States, which had no majority opinion. Instead, there was a four-justice plurality … Continue reading Argument Review: March 27, 2018 — When the Supreme Court Can’t Agree →

During the last week of March, the Supreme Court heard oral argument in five cases. Two of those cases involved questions about access to courts, albeit in extremely different contexts. In United States v. Sanchez-Gomez, argued on March 26, involves a challenge to a policy of shackling the arms and feet of criminal defendants during … Continue reading Argument Review: March 26, 2018 — Access to Courts →

For the first time in a quarter century, the Contract Clause was the central issue in oral arguments at the Supreme Court. In Sveen v. Melin, the issue is whether a Minnesota law nullifying an ex-spouse’s beneficiary status in a life insurance policy violates the Contract Clause, which prohibits states from passing laws “impairing the … Continue reading Argument Review: Contract Clause and Tribal Sovereign Immunity →

This week, the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in three cases, the most high-profile of which involves both free speech and reproductive rights. National Institute of Family and Life Advocates (NIFLA) v. Becerra, to be argued on Tuesday, is a challenge to Caifornnia’s Reproductive FACT (Freedom, Accountability, Comprehensive Care, and Transparency) Act, which passed … Continue reading Arguments: Week of March 19, 2018 →

The Court had two days of oral argument last week. Tuesday, January 16 On Tuesday, the Court heard arguments in Dalmazzi v. United States and Hall v. Hall. In Dalmazzi (consolidated with Ortiz v. United States and Cox v. United States), the justices considered whether a military judge is statutorily or constitutionally precluded from serving … Continue reading Oral Arguments Review: Week of January 16 →

Last week’s Supreme Court arguments featured the Fourth Amendment, voting rights, and disputes between states over water. On Monday, the Court heard arguments about two Fourth Amendment cases involving vehicles. First, the Court heard Byrd v. United States in which the issue was whether, under the Fourth Amendment, the driver of a rental car whose … Continue reading Oral Arguments Review: Week of January 8, 2018 →

On Tuesday, the Supreme Court heard oral argument in one of the biggest cases of the Term: Masterpiece Cakeshop Ltd. v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission. In this case, a baker who makes custom wedding cakes refused to provide a cake for a same-sex couple celebrating their marriage. The Colorado Civil Rights Commission found that he … Continue reading Oral Arguments Review: Week of December 4, 2017 →