Supreme Court Upholds State Law Limiting the Use of the Insanity Defense
Kansas “will not wholly exonerate a defendant on the ground that his illness prevented him from recognizing his criminal act as morally wrong.”
Judiciary
Supreme Court Postpones Oral Arguments Over COVID-19, Some Justices Will Work From Home
The coronavirus upends business as usual at SCOTUS.
A Qualified Immunity Case That the Federal Courts Got Right
Fatal police shootings and the Fourth Amendment
Did Louisiana Enact a Bogus Health Law as a Pretext for Banning Abortion?
The Supreme Court weighs abortion regulation in June Medical Services v. Russo.
Gorsuch Throws Shade at Trump Administration for Rewriting Federal Gun Laws Without Congressional Approval
“Why should courts, charged with the independent and neutral interpretation of the laws Congress has enacted, defer to such bureaucratic pirouetting?”
This New Deal Precedent May Decide the Fate of Elizabeth Warren's Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
What’s at stake in Seila Law v. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
This Crackdown on a Jury Nullification Activist Violates the First Amendment
What’s at stake in Michigan v. Wood
Precedent Matters at the Supreme Court—Until It Doesn't
A new abortion case raises an old question.
Uber's Lawsuit Against California's Anti-Freelancer Law Is Missing a Key Constitutional Element
It's crucial to get the constitutional text and history straight.
Gun Control Returns to the Supreme Court
The justices will hear oral arguments today in a major Second Amendment case.
Bill Barr is Wrong to Claim Courts Cannot Examine Government Motives
Assessment of motives is often an essential tool for protecting our constitutional rights.
Kavanaugh Joins Gorsuch in Fight To Revive Nondelegation Doctrine
An important development in the legal wrangling over the separation of powers.
Buttigieg and Sanders Clash Over the Supreme Court
Progressive purity tests and Supreme Court wish lists
Kagan and Gorsuch Clash Over Judicial Deference to the Administrative State
Who will rein in the ever-expanding administrative state?
Antonin Scalia's Surprising Role in the Latest Supreme Court Fight Over Legal Protections for Gays
Understanding what’s at stake in Bostock v. Clayton County, Georgia
Judge Don Willett Butts Heads With Fellow Trump Appointees Over Qualified Immunity for Cops
“Modern immunity practice—essentially 'heads government wins, tails plaintiffs lose'—leaves many victims violated but not vindicated."
Another Federal Court Allows Warrantless Cellphone Searches at U.S. Border
It’s time for SCOTUS to revisit the "border search exception" to the Fourth Amendment.
Gun Control Cases to Watch at the Supreme Court
What’s next for the Second Amendment at SCOTUS?
Ruth Bader Ginsburg Calls Court Packing a 'Bad Idea'
The liberal jurist puts judicial integrity before partisan politics.
Gorsuch and Kagan Clash Over Judicial Deference to the Administrative State
“It should have been easy for the Court to say goodbye to Auer.”
How Justice John Paul Stevens Shaped—and Misshaped—American Law
The retired Supreme Court justice has died at 99.
Neil Gorsuch Disappoints Libertarians, Votes To Uphold Protectionist Liquor Law
The conservative justice would have permitted a nakedly anti-competitive regulation.
Gorsuch and Alito Fight Over Criminal Sentencing and the Right to Trial by Jury
Another day, another conflict between the Supreme Court’s Republican appointees in a criminal justice case.
Kavanaugh Accuses Gorsuch of Judicial Activism in Criminal Justice Case
“The Court usually reads statutes with a presumption of rationality and a presumption of constitutionality.”
Clarence Thomas Benchslaps the Federal Government in a Property Rights Case
“Our role is to enforce the Takings Clause as written.”
In Sharp Dissent, Neil Gorsuch Faults SCOTUS for Letting the Attorney General 'Write His Own Criminal Code'
The conservative justice comes out swinging on behalf of the non-delegation doctrine.
Gorsuch, Thomas, and Kavanaugh Clash With Roberts and Alito Over Federal Preemption of State Regulation
Understanding today’s Supreme Court decision in Virginia Uranium, Inc. v. Warren
Neil Gorsuch and Stephen Breyer Butt Heads Over Judicial Deference to Federal Agencies
Understanding what's at stake in the important case of Kisor v. Wilkie.
What to Make of the Supreme Court's Latest Abortion Case
SCOTUS sidesteps the hard questions in Box v. Planned Parenthood of Indiana and Kentucky.
Utah State Trial Judge Disciplined for Anti-Trump Remarks in Courtroom
The Utah Supreme Court upheld a six-month suspension without pay, based in part (though not entirely) on these remarks; the judge has a history of past discipline on other grounds as well.
John Paul Stevens Is Still Trying To Defend the Kelo Debacle
In his new memoir, the retired justice seeks to justify his awful eminent domain ruling.
Court-Packing Plans Threaten Civil Liberties and the Separation of Powers
Ilya Somin of "The Volokh Conspiracy" discusses the dangers of liberal proposals to pack the Supreme Court.
A Leftist Makes the Case for Originalism
What’s worse for the left, a conservative originalist or a conservative living constitutionalist?
Brett Kavanaugh Flunks His First Test as an Originalist
Unlike Thomas and Gorsuch, Kavanaugh stayed mum on originalism in a major constitutional case.
A Libertarian Litigator Dons the Judge's Robes
Clint Bolick, a co-founder of the Institute for Justice, was for years one of the libertarian movement's most successful trial lawyers.
Harris County, Texas, Flashpoint of Bail Reform Battles, Will Mostly Eliminate Cash Demands in Minor Cases
Lawsuits playing out for three years spotlight how poor people end up trapped in jail even before being convicted.
Liberty Has a New Champion on the Federal Bench
Don Willett has championed economic freedom and accountability for cops.
Hail to the Chief!
We really should, as Chief Justice Roberts suggests, be thankful for the "independent judiciary" on this Thanksgiving Day.
Clint Bolick, Arizona's Libertarian Supreme Court Justice, Wins Judicial Retention Election
The justice prevailed by a lopsided margin of 71 percent to 29 percent.
Arizona Liberals Are Working Hard to Unseat This Libertarian Justice
Clint Bolick faces a judicial retention fight.
Judge Don Willett Stands Out on Criminal Justice Reform
The 5th Circuit judge weighs in on qualified immunity, criminal sentencing, and false imprisonment.
Judge Willett and Justice Sotomayor Attack Qualified Immunity for Cops
A libertarian-leaning federal judge and a liberal Supreme Court justice both make the case against qualified immunity.
Brett Kavanaugh Dodges Question About the 9th Amendment and Unenumerated Rights
The Supreme Court nominee recites precedent instead of explaining his views.
5 Questions for SCOTUS Nominee Brett Kavanaugh
What the Senate Judiciary Committee should ask the Supreme Court nominee.
Some Reluctant Skepticism About the New Law Clerk Hiring Plan
An important post by Professor Aaron Nielson asks whether the new law clerk hiring plan is broken, and worse than no plan at all.
Trump Picks Record Number of New Judges
Assessing the president's lower-court selections.
SCOTUS Shortlister Brett Kavanaugh on Obamacare and Judicial Restraint
Reviewing the record of a possible replacement for Justice Anthony Kennedy.
