More Evidence that the Supreme Court Isn't Pro-Business
The Harlan Institute's Josh Blackman notes that the allegedly pro-business Supreme Court handed down two more decisions yesterday that won't make big business very happy:
In Kasten v. Saint-Gobain, Justice Breyer, writing for a 6 member majority, including Chief Justice Roberts and Justice Alito, expanded the ability of an employee to file a complaint under the FLSA [Fair Labor Standards Act]. Now the complaint can be in writing, or oral. Justice Scalia, joined by Justice Thomas dissented (Justice Kagan secured).
In Matrixx Initiatives v. Siracusano, Justice Sotomayor writing for a unanimous Court found that plaintiffs have stated a claim for securities fraud under the Securities and Exchange Act and SEC Rule 10b-5 based on a company's failure to disclose reports adverse events associated with a product, even if the reports do not disclose a statistically significant number of adverse events.
The Los Angeles Times' David Savage concurs:
The decisions continue a trend of late in which the high court has confounded its critics by siding with workers and plaintiffs in business cases. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has been on the winning side in only one case decided this year, while suffering five losses.
In recent years, liberal groups have labeled the high court pro-corporate, citing in particular last year's ruling that gave corporations and unions the right to spend freely on campaign ads. But this year, the justices have been sending a different message.
I challenged the simplistic myth of a pro-corporate Supreme Court last week.
