Are We Witnessing "Appeasement"? A Reply to Steve Vladeck
A defense to Steve Vladeck's critique and a brief comment on Adrian Vermeule's related op-ed in the New York Times.
Supreme Court
Justice Kavanaugh on the Peril of Writing Shadow Docket Opinions
Rushing out opinions can lock in erroneous conclusions and create problematic precedent.
On Sanctuary Cities, It's Trump vs. the 10th Amendment
The anticommandeering doctrine stands in the way of Trump’s immigration crackdown.
The Government Took Their Home Equity Over Modest Debts. Michigan's Supreme Court Just Threw Them a Lifeline.
Years after home equity theft was ruled unconstitutional, Michigan keeps looking for ways around the ruling.
The ACLU Says a New York Official Violated the NRA's First Amendment Rights. They Still Can't Sue Her.
A federal court concluded the official was entitled to qualified immunity in a case that united two unlikely allies.
An Arkansas Town Agrees To Remove a License Plate Camera Aimed at a Couple's Home
Local officials initially were unfazed by complaints that the constant surveillance raised serious privacy concerns.
Mistaking Adherence to Formalist Principle for Appeasement
The Supreme Court's critics are too quick to assume the Court's orders are motivated by political considerations as opposed to principle.
Environmental Protection Agency
Why Is the Army Corps Still Harassing Idaho Landowners?
Idaho landowners are facing ruinous fines because the Army Corps of Engineers refuses to follow the Supreme Court’s Clean Water Act ruling in Sackett v. EPA.
Trump's Birthright Citizenship Order Is Unconstitutional, Says the First Appeals Court to Consider the Issue
The judgment is not surprising, since the president's reading of the 14th Amendment contradicts its text and history, plus 127 years of Supreme Court precedent.
What Neil Gorsuch Gets Wrong About Judges and Government Power
Plus: Ozzy Osbourne, RIP.
SCOTUS Stays Injunction Against Removal of CPSC Commissioners
Further indication that independent agencies will not be "independent" much longer.
Universal Injunctions Are Dead; Long Live Universal Remedies?
Trump v. CASA was important, but it is not clear district courts have gotten the message.
The Problem With the Supreme Court's 'Shadow Docket'
Plus: Did Mario Vargas Llosa write the world’s greatest political novel?
Hunter Biden Walks Free While This Iowa Man Serves 4 Years for the Same 'Crime'
The contrast between the two cases illustrates the haphazard impact of an arbitrary, constitutionally dubious gun law.
For Years, Oregon Stole People's Home Equity Over Modest Tax Debts. A New Law Puts an End to That.
The state just cracked down on a form of state-sanctioned robbery, where governments seized and sold homes over minor tax delinquencies—and then pocketed the profits.
The Trump Administration Defends the Federal Ban on Interstate Handgun Sales
In response to a Second Amendment lawsuit, the government says the restriction "serves legitimate objectives" and "only modestly burdens" the right to arms.
Why a Trump-Appointed Judge Is Torching His Own Court's Approach to Qualified Immunity
Judge James C. Ho recently described a troubling phenomenon on the 5th Circuit and the government abuse it enables.
Will Trump Actually Close the Education Department?
Plus: Cuomo has a hard time taking no for an answer, a pro-party manifesto, Trump's about-face on Ukraine, and more...
The Class Action Threat to Trump's Birthright Citizenship Order
Plus: A fond farewell to Black Sabbath.
What Do Progressives Want for the Courts?
There's a tension between Progressives' efforts to delegitimize the courts and hopes the judiciary to constrain executive power.
2 New Jersey Journalists Face Criminal Charges for Publishing Information From a Police Blotter
The prosecution, the latest example of local attempts to criminalize news reporting, is blatantly at odds with First Amendment principles.
Justice Jackson Wants People to Focus on "What Is Happening in Our Country and in Our Government" (Updated)
Justice Jackson Sees Her Colleagues' Rulings As Threats to Democracy and the Rule of Law
The Trump Administration Says Its Speech-Based Deportation Policy 'Does Not Exist'
The government’s lawyers also say that supposedly nonexistent policy is perfectly consistent with the First Amendment.
NIMBY Lawsuit Accidentally Abolishes City's Entire Zoning Code
Plus: The Supreme Court declines to hear major eviction moratorium case, Maine passes zoning reform, and why tourist traps are good, actually.
There's No Good Reason for Cities and States To Build or Subsidize Sports Stadiums
“There's no such thing as a free stadium,” says J.C. Bradbury. “You can't just pull revenue out of thin air.”
Gun Rights Groups Welcome the Demise of Illogical and Constitutionally Dubious Federal Firearm Taxes
The taxes on sound suppressors, short-barreled rifles, and short-barreled shotguns, originally enacted in 1934, were meant to be prohibitive, imposing bans in the guise of raising revenue.
A Broad Ruling Against Trump's Immigration Policies Illustrates Alternatives to Universal Injunctions
Class actions and Administrative Procedure Act claims can achieve much the same result as the nationwide orders that the Supreme Court rejected.
Federal Prison Guards Allegedly Beat an Inmate to a Pulp. The Supreme Court Says He Can't Sue.
The ruling tells an interesting story about how the very body that created a cause of action for victims of federal abuse has since worked to undermine that right.
Trump's 'Giant Win' Does Not Validate His Unconstitutional Birthright Citizenship Order
Tellingly, the president avoided defending his dubious interpretation of the 14th Amendment at the Supreme Court.
Trump Says the Courts Have No Business Questioning His Dubious Definition of 'Alien Enemies'
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit is considering whether the president properly invoked the Alien Enemies Act to deport alleged gang members.
Trump Is Now More Powerful Thanks to the Supreme Court. But Will It Last?
Plus: Conservatives won big overall this year at the Supreme Court.
School Choice Could Fix the Conflicts That Led to the Supreme Court's Mahmoud Decision
There’s no need to fight over lessons if you’re not forced to learn in government-run battlegrounds.
Justice Kagan on Universal Injunctions in 2022
Justice Kagan said "it just can't be right" that a single court judge can stop a federal policy in its tracks nationwide.
Bray and Bagley on Trump v. CASA
Two worthwhile commentaries on the Supreme Court's decision to curtail universal injunctions.
Clarence Thomas Undermines Free Speech in Porn Site Age-Verification Case
The Supreme Court's decision in Free Speech Coalition v. Paxton weakens the First Amendment rights of adults everywhere.
Criminal Justice Reformers Should Welcome Pam Bondi's Gun Rights Restoration Initiative
Democratic critics of the new program overlook the injustice of permanently disarming Americans who pose no threat to public safety.
Supreme Court Rules 6–3 for Trump, Limits 'Nationwide Injunctions' in Birthright Citizenship Case
“Federal courts do not exercise general oversight of the Executive Branch,” declared Justice Amy Coney Barrett.
A Bad Decision on Nationwide Injunctions
Today's Supreme Court ruling barring nationwide injunctions could empower the federal government to engage in large-scale violations of the Constitution. Exactly how bad the consequences will be depends on the extent to which other remedies can be used to forestall them.
Why Did Justice Kagan Write So Little This Term?
Other than the Chief, Justice Kagan wrote the fewest opinions.
Justice Barrett on Justice Jackson in Trump v. CASA
The two newest justices spar over universal injunctions.
Supreme Court Nukes Universal Injunctions (UPDATED)
Justice Barrett writes for the Court's majority that universal injunctions likely exceed the equitable power of federal courts.
Pride Is a Triumph of the First Amendment
Free speech, assembly, and protest—not government action—have powered LGBTQ+ progress in America.
Reflections on the 10th Anniversary of Obergefell v. Hodges - A Great Civil Rights Milestone that Could be Even Better
The Supreme Court's ruling striking down laws banning same-sex marriage was a great victory for liberty and equality. But it should have been based on better legal reasoning.
A Supreme Court Course Correction for NEPA
The significance of the Supreme Court's decision in Seven County Infrastructure Coalition v. Eagle County
Sotomayor Is Right. Trump's 'Third Country Removals' Raise Serious Due Process Worries.
The liberal justice faults the majority for leaving deportees to “suffer violence in far-flung locales.”
Trump's Unconstitutional Act of War
Plus: A criminal justice case that managed to unite Alito and Gorsuch.
The 9th Circuit Says California's One-Per-Month Limit on Gun Purchases Is Unconstitutional
The appeals court concluded that the restriction impinges on the right to arms and is not consistent with the historical tradition of firearm regulation.
Abortion Rates Keep Rising After Dobbs
Strict abortion bans do not seem to be seriously stopping abortions.
