The significant role of law school Supreme Court clinics has been an important development in the dynamics of the Supreme Court bar in the last decade. In the January 2013 issue of the Stanford Law Review, Jeffrey Fisher has a fascinating article on the clinics and their roles. The final version is available on Westlaw […]
Archive | Supreme Court
Fourth Circuit Piracy Ruling Won’t Be Revisited
The Supreme Court has denied certiori in a pair of Fourth Circuit piracy cases, which raised questions about the Define and Punish power and how federal courts determine international law when incorporated into a federal statute. I had previously argued that the decisions below were clearly correct.
The Supreme Court and Partisanship
I was recently asked to participate in a Zocalo Public Square forum on the Supreme Court and partisanship, which asked participants whether “the Supreme Court[is] any less partisan than the two other branches of government?” The other participants were former congressman Mickey Edwards, political scientists Tom Clark (Emory) and Timothy Johnson (Minnesota), and Talking Points […]
Koontz v. St. Johns River Water Management District
By Jonathan H. Adler on January 14, 2013 10:52 pm in Property Rights, Regulatory Takings, Supreme Court
Tomorrow the Supreme Court will hear oral argument in a potentially important takings case, Koontz v. St. Johns River Water Management District. In this case, a landowner is challenging the state’s refusal to grant a permit to develop wetlands unless the landowner agreed to various conditions, including the performance of off-site mitigation. When the landowner […]
Are Liberal or Conservative Justices More Likely to Protect “Hate Speech”?
By Eugene Volokh on November 19, 2012 6:02 pm in "Hate Speech", Liberal vs. Conservative Attitudes on Free Speech, Supreme Court
I blogged yesterday about whether liberal or conservative Americans are more likely to support protections for various kinds of speech, including speech arguing that blacks are genetically inferior — the General Social Survey question that’s most relevant to the debate about protection for supposed “hate speech.” It turns out that liberals are somewhat more likely […]
The Incomparable Emily Spadoni
It is the end of an era in the Solicitor General’s office. Earlier this year I emailed Emily Spadoni of the OSG staff and got an error message. Because I had checked the address before sending, I knew it meant the worst: Emily had retired. I knew it would have to happen sooner or later, […]
Alito on Citizens United
By Jonathan H. Adler on November 17, 2012 11:12 am in Freedom of Speech, Restrictions on Campaign Contrbs. and Expenses, Supreme Court
BLT reports that Justice Samuel Alito addressed criticisms of the Supreme Court’s Citzens United decision in a speech at the Federalist Society’s annual lawyers’ convention in Washington, D.C. on Thursday night. Alito said arguments can be made for overturning Citizens United, but not the popular one that boils down to one line: Corporations shouldn’t get […]
Judicial Minimalism, the Mandate, and Mr. Roberts
In July, I suggested that Chief Justice Roberts’ decision to uphold the individual mandate as a tax in NFIB v. Sebelius was largely consistent with the overall judicial approach he’s demonstrated since joining the Court. I have expanded this argument into an essay that will be included as a chapter in the forthcoming book The […]
If there were any doubt that this is another blockbuster Supreme Court Term . . .
. . . it just ended. Today the Supreme Court granted cert in Shelby County v. Holder, 12-96, which will address the following question (as mildly reformulated by the Court): Whether Congress’ decision in 2006 to reauthorize Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act under the pre-existing coverage formula of Section 4(b) of the Voting Rights Act exceeded […]
Is the Supreme Court “Pro-Business”?
Stephen Richer of Forbes has a good summary of the reasons why claims that the Supreme Court has a “pro-business” bias are misplaced. He also provides numerous links to articles and blog posts on both sides of the issue, including one by co-blogger Jonathan Adler. I summarized my own thoughts on the issue in this […]
Why the Presidential Race Should Not Ignore Judicial Nominations
In this post, I complained about the total lack of discussion of judicial nominations in last week’s presidential debate. Tonight’s vice presidential debate was only slightly better. The only mention of the courts was a brief reference by Joe Biden while discussing the issue of abortion. In reality, as I explained here, there are many […]
Supreme Court to Reconsider Role of Juries in Mandatory Minimum Sentencing
The Supreme Court just granted cert in Alleyne v. United States, 11-9335, which asks the Court to reconsider Harris v. United States. There, Justice Kennedy (writing for a plurality), plus Justice Breyer (who concurred only in the judgment), held that facts that increased the mandatory minimum sentence need not be decided by the jury. Two members […]
Does the Supremacy Clause mean that the federal government always wins?
By David Kopel on October 2, 2012 6:05 pm in Constitutional Law, Criminal Procedure, Federalism, Habeas, Supreme Court
Last week, I filed an amicus brief on behalf of petitions for certiorari in Chafee v. United States and Pleau v. United States. These related cases could be among the most important federalism cases before the Court this term. The amici are the Cato Institute and the Independence Institute. The State of Rhode Island and […]
What If the Supreme Court Doesn’t Accept Cert in the Prop 8 Case?
The question whether to accept certiorari in the Prop 8 case will come up at the Justices’ conference on September 24. I think the Court will accept cert, so there won’t be any new same-sex marriages in California in the immediate future. But what if the Court refuses to review the Ninth Circuit’s decision striking […]
Constitutional Law Professors: 87% Support Same-Sex Marriage, But Only 54% Believe It Is Constitutionally Mandated
By Dale Carpenter on September 7, 2012 11:08 am in Academia, California, Constitutional Law, Sexual Orientation, Supreme Court
Eighty-seven percent of constitutional law professors back marriage for same-sex couples, and 7 out of 10 believe the federal Defense of Marriage Act is unconstitutional, but only a slight majority of 54% think the federal Constitution requires states to recognize same-sex marriages. That’s the result of a survey of 485 constitutional law professors that I […]