Law & Government
Is the Supreme Court Really That Divided? The Facts Say No.
Unanimous rulings on discrimination, guns, and religion once again challenge the common media narrative that the Court is hopelessly polarized.
Florida Woman Fined $165,000 for Trivial Code Violations Takes Her Case to the Florida Supreme Court
Sandy Martinez was fined for a parking violation on her own property, driveway cracks, and a storm-damaged fence.
A Federal Judge Orders Relief for Alleged Gang Members Deported and Imprisoned Without Due Process
Without such intervention, he warns, the government "could snatch anyone off the street, turn him over to a foreign country, and then effectively foreclose any corrective course of action."
Overruling Trump's Tariffs Should Be an Easy Decision for SCOTUS
Plus: A love letter to the heavy metal band Slayer.
Michael McConnell on the Tariff Cases and their Significance
A leading conservative legal scholar explains why striking down Trump's IEEPA tariffs is vital to protecting the separation of powers.
The 'Big Beautiful Bill' Will Add $2.4 Trillion to the Deficit
That total will rise to about $3 trillion once the interest costs of more borrowing are included.
Belated Republican Objections to the One Big Beautiful Bill Glide Over Its Blatant Fiscal Irresponsibility
House members who discovered objectionable elements only after voting for the package nevertheless underline the unseemly haste of the legislative process.
New Ruling Moves Oregon Closer to Legal In-Home Psilocybin Use
Plaintiffs’ argument that access to in-home psilocybin services for those with disabilities is required under the ADA survives motion to dismiss.
Trump's Haste Begets Lawlessness
The president treats legal constraints as inconveniences that can be overridden by executive fiat.
It's Rand Paul and Elon Musk vs. Donald Trump Over the 'Big Beautiful Bill'
Paul said he refuses to support "maintaining Biden spending levels," and Musk said the Trump-backed tax bill is "a disgusting abomination."
Female Nude Spa in Washington Can't Bar Transgender Clients With Male Genitalia, Federal Court Rules
Olympus Spa had sued on First Amendment grounds.
Elizabeth Warren and Jim Banks Attack Nvidia for Expanding Its Chinese Facility
Complying with export regulations should build trust between Nvidia and Congress, not erode it.
The Taliban Banned Chess
Since retaking power, the Taliban has banned certain music, barred women from parks, and now outlawed chess. Authoritarians don’t just crush dissent—they criminalize joy.
Washington Post Article Stresses the Library of Congress's Name, but Largely Ignores Judicial Precedent …
that treats the Library of Congress as an Executive Branch department as to Presidential removal of the Librarian.
Our Fifth Circuit Alien Enemies Act Amicus Brief
The brief was filed on behalf of the Brennan Center, the Cato Institute, law-of-war scholar Prof. John Dehn, and myself.
Trump's Attack on the Federalist Society Is a Bad Omen for Originalism
The MAGA loyalty that Trump demands is anathema to everything that originalism is supposed to be about.
Is the American Bar Association's Accreditation Monopoly about to End?
My latest Civitas Outlook column looks at the growing pressure on the ABA's role in law school accreditation.
Permitting the Future
A symposium looking at the need to permit the construction and deployment of energy infrastructure in order to meet environmental goals.
Is Justice Barrett "Solidifying Herself as the Swing Justice"?
Claims that Justice Amy Coney Barrett is at the center for the Court are not supported by the data. The truth is more complicated.
Hub and UnPopulist Podcasts About the Tariff Case
The podcasts cover the case and its relationship to the more general problem of abuse of emergency powers.
Bob Menendez Does Not Deserve a Pardon
The disgraced former Democratic senator was convicted of accepting almost $1 million in bribes in exchange for, among other things, favors benefiting foreign governments.
Do Lower Court Judges Time Their Decisions to Take Senior Status (or Retire) Based on Who May Replace Them?
This question can be informed by more than anecdote and intuition.
Texas Ten Commandments Bill Is the Latest Example of Forcing Religious Texts In Public Schools
The Lone Star State's bill is already facing legal challenges.
Trump Wants $25 Million To Settle His Meritless 60 Minutes Lawsuit
In a legal filing this week, Trump argued that routine edits to a CBS News interview he did not participate in caused him "confusion and mental anguish."
Two Courts Have Ruled Against Trump's Tariffs—but Not for the Same Reasons
Both are wins for free trade, but only one vindicates the separation of powers.
Congress Must Vote on Tariffs
For both practical and constitutional reasons, this is the obvious way out of the chaos Trump's tariffs have created.
What J.D. Vance Gets Wrong About Judicial Deference to Executive Power
The federal courts are supposed to be a bulwark against presidential overreach, not a rubber stamp.
My New Atlantic Article on the Tariff Case and its Significance
It explains how the ruling is a win for separation of powers and the rule of law.
How Our Tariff Case Came About
The Wall Street Journal, CBC, and Time published good articles on the story behind the case filed by the Liberty Justice Center and myself.
Some Interviews About Our Tariff Case
Some of the more informative interviews I have done about our win in the case against Trump's tariffs, in lawsuit filed by the Liberty Justice Center and myself.
Federal District Court Issues Another Ruling Against Trump's IEEPA Tariffs
The decision by Judge Rudolph Contreras of the US District Court for the District Columbia holds IEEPA doesn't authorize the president to impose tariffs at all.
'Banal Horror': Asylum Case Deals Trump Yet Another Loss on Due Process
President Trump is entitled to try to execute his immigration policy. He is not entitled, however, to violate the Constitution.
"The Central Principle of Judicial Review in NEPA Cases Is Deference"
Some additional thoughts on today's Supreme Court decision in Seven County Infrastructure Coalition.
Did 'Activist Judges' Derail Trump's Tariffs?
No. One of the judges in Wednesday's unanimous ruling was a Trump appointee, and the ruling rested on important legal and constitutional principles.
Trump Rightly Pardons 2 Florida Divers Who Became Federal Felons Because of an Honest Mistake
John Moore and Tanner Mansell were convicted of theft after they freed sharks they erroneously thought had been caught illegally.
Supreme Court Narrows Scope of NEPA Review
Environmental Impact Statements do not have to consider upstream and downstream effects.
We Won Our Tariff Case!
The Court of International Trade just issued a decision striking down Trump's "Liberation Day" tariffs and other IEEPA tariffs.
A Federal Court Just Blocked Trump's Tariffs
The Court of International Trade ruled that Trump's emergency economic powers do not include the authority to impose tariffs on nearly all imports.
A Federal Judge Lists 8 Ways That Trump Violated the Constitution by Punishing a Disfavored Law Firm
The president's crusade against attorneys whose work offends him, which defies the First Amendment and undermines the right to counsel, has provoked several judicial rebukes.
Elon Musk Is Right. The 'Big Beautiful Bill' Is a Bad Deal.
Musk's opinion about the bill matters, since he is one of the few people in conservative politics who can get away with defying Trump.
