SCOTUS Seems Inclined To Reject Hawaii's Default Rule Against Guns on Private Property Open to the Public
The state requires carry permit holders to obtain advance permission before bringing firearms into businesses.
Supreme Court
ICE Agents Flouted DHS Policies That Could Have Prevented Renee Good's Death
DHS tells officers to use "de-escalation tactics," employ "a verbal warning" instead of force when feasible, and avoid "placing themselves in positions" that trigger the use of deadly force.
When Is a Corporation Also New Jersey?
A few thoughts on the oral argument in Galette v. N.J. Transit Corp.
Eyes on Gorsuch as SCOTUS Weighs Transgender Student Athlete Bans
Plus: Still waiting on the tariffs case.
Brett Kavanaugh Is Rightly Skeptical of a Nationwide Ruling on Trans Athletes
State lawmakers should be more skeptical of overly broad laws, too.
19 States That Legalized Marijuana Use Nevertheless Say It Should Disqualify People From Owning Guns
They are joining the Trump administration in urging the Supreme Court to uphold a federal law that disarms "unlawful" drug consumers.
No, ICE Agents Do Not Have 'Absolute Immunity' From State Prosecution
How J.D. Vance misstated the law.
Video of the Minneapolis ICE Shooting Does Not Resolve the Issue of Whether It Was Legally Justified
The crucial question is whether the agent reasonably believed the driver he killed posed a threat, even if she was not actually trying to run him over.
Justice Sotomayor Authors First Opinion of Supreme Court's October 2025 Term
Contrary to widespread speculation, the Court's first opinion of an argued case concerned neither Trump's tariffs nor voting rights.
Transgender Athletes, Guns, and the Federal Reserve: 3 SCOTUS Cases To Watch in January
The Supreme Court’s January docket is packed with big cases.
A School District Cop Allegedly Did Nothing To Stop the Uvalde Mass Shooting. Was That Failure a Crime?
Adrian Gonzales is on trial for acts of "omission" that prosecutors say amounted to 29 felony counts of child endangerment.
John Roberts Touts Judicial Independence, Subtly Rebukes Trump in 'Year End Report' on Federal Courts
The chief justice hails the judiciary as “a counter-majoritarian check on the political branches.”
Does the Supreme Court Favor the Rich?
The NYT profiles a sloppy and highly problematic empirical study of the Supreme Court.
California's Ban on Openly Carrying Guns Is Unconstitutional, 9th Circuit Says
The ruling, which emphasizes the lack of historical support for such a law, is unlikely to survive en banc review.
3 Areas Where the Courts Pushed Back Against Trump's Attempts To Avoid Judicial Review in 2025
The president asserted broad powers to deport people, impose tariffs, and deploy the National Guard based on his own unilateral determinations.
Did Brett Kavanaugh Just Apologize for Butchering the Fourth Amendment? Maybe.
Puzzling over a curious omission from the conservative justice.
If You Give a Bear a Badge, Will It Respect Your Rights?
Despite their general ignorance of constitutional law, bears pose a much less grave threat to your civil liberties than humans do.
How Politicians and Cops Tried To Dodge Responsibility in 2025
Presidents, legislators, and police officers were desperate to blame anyone but themselves.
These Progressives Seek to 'Disempower' the Courts
Is unfettered majority rule actually a good idea for the left to embrace?
Innocent Man Sues for Over $60,000 After Police Blew Up His Business. A Court Says He's Entitled to Nothing.
It is yet another ruling that shields the government from liability for damages caused by law enforcement.
The Fourth Amendment's Erratic Year at the Supreme Court
The right to be free from unreasonable search and seizure had a rocky 2025.
The DOJ Assails D.C.'s 'Assault Weapon' Ban As an Arbitrary, Historically Ungrounded Gun Law
The department's lawsuit notes that the prohibited firearms are "in common use" for "lawful purposes," meaning they are covered by the Second Amendment.
Refusing To Let Trump Deploy the National Guard in Chicago, SCOTUS Adds a New Wrinkle To the Debate
The justices suggested the president is misinterpreting "the regular forces," a key phrase in the statute on which he is relying.
Trump's Economic Adviser Says Tariff Refunds Would Be 'Very Complicated' and Unlikely
Oh, so now the Trump administration is worried about the complexity of its tariff polices?
What If Congress Limited Birthright Citizenship and Nobody Noticed?
A new study further undermines revisionist claims about birthright citizenship under the Fourteenth Amendment, noting a dog that did not bark.
The 9th Circuit Upholds a University of Washington Professor's Right to Mock 'Land Acknowledgments'
The appeals court ruled that administrators violated Stuart Reges' First Amendment rights when they investigated and threatened to punish him for constitutionally protected speech.
Yes, the First Amendment Applies to Non-Citizens Present in the United States
A conservative federal judge questions the reach of free speech.
A Texas News Vlogger Asks SCOTUS To Decide Whether Criminalizing Journalism Is 'Obviously Unconstitutional'
This is Priscilla Villarreal’s second trip to the Supreme Court, which last year revived her First Amendment lawsuit.
When Originalism Undermines Trump
From birthright citizenship to tariffs, many of the president’s key policies run counter to the Constitution’s original meaning.
A Judicial Solution for Presidential Overreach and Congressional Abdication
The Supreme Court should take a page from its own history.
The DOJ Says It Will Challenge Unconstitutional Gun Policies. Maybe It Should Stop Defending Them.
The Justice Department's litigation positions are at odds with its avowed intent to protect Second Amendment rights.
SCOTUS Sounds Ready To Let Trump Fire FTC Commissioner Rebecca Slaughter
Plus: It's the final day of Reason's webathon.
Our Amicus Brief in the Pung v. Isabella County Home Equity Theft Takings Case
I wrote it (with help from others) on behalf of the Cato Institute and a group of takings and property scholars.
Supreme Court Agrees to Consider Birthright Citizenship (This Time for Real)
The justices grant certiorari before judgment in one of the two cases challenging the Trump Administration's attempt to narrow birthright citizenship via executive order.
The Supreme Court Should Hear Case Seeking to Overturn Gonzales v. Raich
Raich is one of the Court's worst federalism decisions, holding that Congress's power to regulate interstate commerce allows it to ban possession of marijuana that never crossed state lines, and was never sold in any market.
SCOTUS Tackles Illegal File Sharing, Internet Music Piracy, and Copyright Law
Plus: It’s webathon time.
Solicitor General Urges Review of FIFRA Preemption
The Department of Justice sides with Monsanto on whether federal law preempts state-law duty-to-warn suits against pesticide manufacturers, setting up an important test of the Court's view of federal preemption.
No, SCOTUS Did Not 'Invent' Judicial Review in Marbury v. Madison
The Supreme Court’s power to nullify legislative and executive acts is inherent in the Constitution.
The Pentagon and the FBI Are Investigating 6 Legislators for Exercising Their First Amendment Rights
The Trump administration is desperately trying to criminalize a video noting that service members have no obligation to follow unlawful orders.
Trump's Habitual Charges of 'Treason' Reflect His Authoritarian Impulses
The president’s reaction to a supposedly "seditious" video illustrates his tendency to portray criticism of him as a crime.
A Case That Briefly United Clarence Thomas and Sonia Sotomayor
Plus: Jimmy Cliff, RIP.
Is the Fourth Circuit the New Ninth?
Could today's summary reversal be a sign of things to come?
Mike Johnson Wanted Congress To Reclaim Power Over Tariffs—in 2019
Now, under Johnson's leadership, the House has changed its rules to make it even harder for lawmakers to signal their opposition to Trump's tariffs.
The Supreme Court's Next Big Immigration Case
Plus: Ken Burns’ The American Revolution is worth your time.
The Forgotten Classical Liberal Who Fought Jim Crow and Championed Immigration
Remembering the legacy of a principled legal activist.
This Gun Case Harks Back to Constitutional Concerns About the Limits of Federal Power That Now Seem Quaint
Congress justified that National Firearms Act of 1934 as a revenue measure—a rationale undermined by the repeal of taxes on suppressors and short-barreled rifles.
Why Does SCOTUS Hear So Few Second Amendment Cases?
The right to keep and bear arms occupies a curious place in American legal history.
