The Washington Post reports that the Senate is willing to relinquish some of its authority to block minor executive appointments. Yesterday the Senate voted to reduce the number of executive appointments subject to Senate confirmation. The resolution affects approximately 170 of the 1,400 or so positions currently subject to Senate confirmation. The Senate is also […]
Author Archive | Jonathan H. Adler
Is the Debt Limit Constitutional?
The Huffington Post reports that some Democrats are urging the White House to ignore the debt ceiling on the grounds that it is unconstitutional. The basis for this argument is Section 4 of the Fourteenth Amendment, which provides “The validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law, . . . shall […]
Re: Facial vs. As-Applied Challenges to the Individual Mandate
Ilya’s post below addresses an important issue in commerce clause litigation: Whether commerce clause challenges should be treated as facial or as-applied challenges and, if the former, how such challenges should be addressed. I largely agree with Ilya’s post. Indeed, if anything, Ilya understates the point, particularly with regard to United States v. Lopez. Further, […]
Divided Sixth Circuit Panel Upholds Individual Mandate
A divided panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, in an opinion by Judge Martin, has upheld the individual mandate against a Commerce Clause challenge. The same panel, in an opinion by Judge Sutton, rejected the argument that the mandate can be sustained as an exercise of the federal government’s taxing […]
Which Justices Vote Together?
It’s commonly assumed that Justices Scalia and Thomas are the two Supreme Court justices who are most likely to vote together. However much that may have been true during Justice Thomas’ first several years on the Court, it is becoming less true over time. This past term, according to statistics collected by the folks […]
The Roberts Court and Business Revisited
Tomorrow morning the Senate Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing on “Barriers to Justice and Accountability: How the Supreme Court’s Recent Rulings Will Affect Corporate Behavior.” According to Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT), the hearing is the latest in a series examining “how the Court has misinterpreted laws meant to protect consumers and employees, shielded […]
Wisconsin Supreme Court or WWE?
The Journal-Sentinel reports that there are now two official inquiries into the physical confrontation between Justices Prosser and Bradley, one by the Wisconsin Judicial Commission, the other by the Dane County Sheriff’s office. The Journal-Sentinel also reports that Dane County Sheriff Dave Mahoney endorsed Justice Prosser’s opponent, JoAnne Kloppenberg, in the just-concluded election contest. Meanwhile, […]
Choosing a Property Casebook
Next Spring I’ll be teaching the introductory 1L Property Law class for the first time. Although it’s still a ways off, I’ve begun thinking about what to cover and how to structure the course and, inevitably, which casebook to use. Dukeminier, Krier, et al., appears to be the market leader (as it was when I […]
Scalia Dissents from Denial in Four More ACCA Cases
The Supreme Court denied certiorari in four cases in which criminal defendants challenged lower court decisions that their crimes constituted “violent felonies” under the Armed Career Criminal Act (ACCA). The justices apparently had enough of the ACCA (at least for now) in Sykes v. United States, but not Justice Scalia. He dissented in Sykes, arguing […]
Is Proposed Ohio Voter ID Bill Too Restrictive?
Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted has created some waves within the state by releasing a statement opposing a proposed Voter ID bill under consideration in the state legislature. As TPM reports, Husted has expressed concern that the bill’s requirement that voters provide a state-issued photo ID would result in the rejection of valid votes. […]
Court Takes Public Employee Union Dues Case
Among the eleven (!) cases upon which the Court granted cert this morning is Knox v. Service Employees Int’l Union, Local 1000 in which the Court will consider the constitutionality of a state conditioning employment on the payment of a special union assessment intended for political purposes without providing notice and an opportunity for an […]
Interesting Split in California Video Game Case
In Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Association, the Supreme Court struck down Cailfornia’s law restricting the sale of violent video games to minors, 7-2. Justice Scalia wrote the opinion for the Court, joined by Justices Kennedy, Ginsburg, Kagan and Sotomayor. The Chief Justice and Justice Alito concurred in the judgment, and Justice Thomas dissented, as did […]
The Final Four
This morning, the Supreme Court is expected to issue merits opinions in the four remaining cases from the October 2010 term. Don’t expect unanimous opinions. Some of these cases have been under consideration for some time. Two were argued in January, and one last November. The last four cases are: Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Association […]
Monday Bear Blogging
Bear sightings are on the rise in Ohio. The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports there were 119 sightings in 2009 and 164 in 2010. Official estimates of Ohio’s black bear population remain quite low. Increased sightings, if evidence of growing bear numbers, would be a positive sign. On the other hand, increased sightings could also be […]
Alito v. Sotomayor?
Last Sunday, the Washington Post ran a story comparing Justice Alito with Justice Sotomayor. The comparison is interesting as they are the only justices on the court with prosecutorial experience and much direct experience with trial court proceedings (although Sotomayor has substantially more than Alito). The Supreme Court’s two former prosecutors sit on opposite ends […]