What Craigslist and Backpage Can Tell Us About the Meta Settlement
It doesn't matter if you're right. If you don't cave, the government might stop at nothing to destroy you.
Courts
The Freedom 250 IndyCar Race Only Looked Like MAGA Propaganda if You Already Hate Trump
Plus: Should the race happen again, or just be a one-off event? Also, NCAA eligibility is all messed up, and sports can teach us about immigration.
Lawsuit Argues That School Choice Is a First Amendment Issue
Nebraska plaintiffs say the state can’t mandate education and also control what kids are taught.
Trump's Assault on Judicial Review Undermines a Crucial Safeguard Against Tyranny
In one case after another, the president has tried to cut the courts out of the picture painted by the Framers.
Virginia Man Argues His 'FTP&ATF' License Plate Is Free Speech. The Supreme Court Might Hear His Case.
A federal appeals court ruled that Curtis Whateley's anti-police vanity plate was private speech protected by the First Amendment. Virginia says it will seek review from the Supreme Court.
Trump's Ballroom Fight Could Make Courts Rethink 'National Security' Deference
Appealing to national security is not a "get-out-of-law-free card," a federal court ruled last week.
Another Social Media 'Addiction' Trial Starts Today. Its Claims Are Weak—but Dangerous.
Meta is on trial for fomenting "FOMO," among other things. It sounds silly, but the playbook used here could work against religious groups, fast food, and much more.
D.C. Circuit Upholds Injunction Against Trump's Ballroom
The Constitution assigns control of federal property to Congress, which never approved the president's demolition and replacement of the East Wing.
Courts Say the Justice Department Is Shredding the 'Presumption of Regularity.' It Never Deserved Extra Trust.
Misconduct and misrepresentations by Justice Department lawyers have led some federal judges to question the traditional benefit of the doubt they give to the government.
A Federal Judge Rejects National Firearms Act Regulations, Saying Their Tax Rationale No Longer Applies
When Congress eliminated taxes on suppressors, short-barreled rifles, and short-barreled shotguns, it also eliminated the constitutional justification for regulating them.
Elena Kagan's Warning to Progressives
The liberal justice wants the Supreme Court’s harshest progressive critics to chill out.
A New Jersey News Outlet Asks the Courts To Stop a Judge's Censorship
The judge concluded that a high school student's privacy interests trumped freedom of the press.
A Serial Liar Likely Sent an Innocent Man to Florida's Death Row. Why Is He Still There?
Paul Skalnik was a career criminal and jailhouse snitch whose unbelievable testimony secured dozens of convictions—including that of Jim Dailey, who awaits execution.
In 39 States, People Can Be Sentenced to Life for Murders They Did Not Commit
The Sentencing Project highlights the perverse consequences of the felony murder rule, a vestige of British law that still prevails in federal courts and all but two states.
Will This Mississippi Man on Death Row Get a Chance To Prove His Innocence?
Recent court rulings in Louisiana and Texas give hope to Devin Bennett.
Supreme Court Agrees To Hear Case of Alaska Pilot Whose $95,000 Plane Was Seized Over a 6-Pack of Beer
Ken Jouppi's Eighth Amendment challenge asks the Court to decide whether a fine must be proportional to the gravity of the crime.
Is Court Packing Inevitable If Democrats Retake Congress and the White House?
Plus: a few words about The Odyssey
A Man Died of COVID at This California Detention Center. A Judge Just Ordered Sweeping Improvements There.
A federal judge ordered sweeping improvements to conditions at the Adelanto ICE Processing Center in California. Families say their loved ones died of neglect inside.
New Jersey's Bans on Commonly Owned Rifles and Magazines Are Unconstitutional, the 3rd Circuit Says
In a decision written by a Joe Biden nominee, the appeals court addresses a long-simmering issue that the Supreme Court will consider during its next term.
This Biotech Company Has Spent Nearly 3 Years in FDA Limbo
The FDA says it can't license Regenative Lab's overseas sales today because it might change its regulations tomorrow. Now, the company is suing.
4 Takeaways From the Supreme Court's 2025–2026 Term
From executive power to civil liberties, what to make of a momentous year at SCOTUS?
Police Used a Truck Inspection To Search for Drugs. The 7th Circuit Said the Fourth Amendment Forbids It.
Cops stopped a semitruck because of a drug tip, then tried to dress the illegal search up as a routine inspection.
In Europe, Just Reposting Russian Propaganda Can Land a Blogger in Jail
Don't assume this couldn't happen in America too.
Can the President Fire Anyone He Wants? Yes, Unless the Target Is Part of the Federal Reserve.
In a pair of decisions on Monday, the Supreme Court ruled that presidents have full authority to fire heads of executive branch agencies—but that the Fed is different.
Lawsuit Argues Hawaii's Harsh New Hemp Regulations Will Stifle Competition
A dispensary owner believes Hawaii’s hemp regulations are unconstitutional. He’s suing to stop their enforcement, but the law may not be on his side.
ICE Transfers Shouldn't Be Leaving Families in the Dark
Rapid transfers are cutting detainees off from their lawyers and families.
On Marijuana and Guns, Clarence Thomas Still Wants To Limit Federal Power
The conservative justice continues to wage a lonely legal crusade over the Commerce Clause.
Trump's Lawyers Insist There Is 'No Evidence' of 'Collusion or Fraud' in His 'Settlement With Myself'
The sweet deal that resolved the president's fatally flawed lawsuit against the IRS was business as usual at the DOJ, his attorneys told a federal judge.
Maryland Court Rules Against Unconstitutional Stop-and-Frisk in Victory for State's Gun Owners
In a unanimous opinion, the court ruled that it is unconstitutional for officers to stop and frisk someone based solely on suspicion that the person is carrying a gun.
2 Texas Grandmothers Who Overcame Addiction Wanted To Become Social Workers. The State Wouldn't Let Them.
Now Katherin Youniacutt and Tammy Thompson are taking their fight to become licensed master social workers to the Texas Supreme Court.
Gordon Wood's Enduring Defense of the American Revolution
Plus: When tattoos meet copyright law
This Attempt by the Trump Administration To Cripple Legal Immigration Is Illegal, Judge Rules
The government had imposed an indefinite pause on adjudicating asylum petitions and applications for green cards, work permits, and citizenship for legal immigrants from certain countries.
The Trump Administration Is Still Fighting To Keep Billions in Illegal Tariff Revenue
The administration has paid $20 billion in refunds. Now, it is asking a federal appeals court to limit which businesses will get the rest.
Lawsuit Says a Memphis Police Task Force Waged a Harassment Campaign Against People Who Filmed Them
The American Civil Liberties Union is asking a judge to block the Memphis Safe Task Force from retaliating against anyone who exercises their First Amendment right to record the police.
Trump's Corrupt 'Settlement' With the IRS Hits Two Judicial Roadblocks
One order temporarily blocks money for the president's "Anti-Weaponization Fund." The other asks whether the agreement is a fraudulent "product of collusion."
New York Legislators Seek Broader Anti-Shackling Protections Following Courtroom Birth in Brooklyn
New York lawmakers want to close loopholes in anti-shackling laws to protect incarcerated pregnant women.
Thomas and Alito Take a Regrettable Position in a Qualified Immunity Case
The two judicial conservatives continue to disappoint criminal justice reform advocates.
High Liquor Taxes and a Home Distillation Ban Guarantee a Thriving Booze Black Market
The courts have an opportunity to legalize small-scale distillation, but taxes remain a problem.
A SWAT Team Destroyed an Innocent Woman's Home. She's Been Waiting 6 Years for Justice.
Vicki Baker is more fortunate than several other similarly situated victims. But it took a very long time to get there.
SCOTUS Term Limits May Be a Good Idea. But They Still Require a Constitutional Amendment.
Lifetime tenure for federal judges has been the constitutional practice since ratification.
The Federal Government Tried To Spy on Your Financial Transactions. A Texas Court Just Said No.
The ruling is a victory not just for one Texas title company, but for the principle that agencies like FinCEN can only do what Congress actually authorized.
'Boneless Wings' Aren't Really Wings. Is That Fraud?
"Our boneless wings are all white meat chicken....Our buffalo wings are 0% buffalo," Buffalo Wild Wings quipped.
D.C. Circuit Seems Disinclined To Let Pete Hegseth Punish a Senator for His Speech
The defense secretary argues that military retirees like Sen. Mark Kelly are not allowed to say things he unilaterally deems "prejudicial to good order and discipline."
Federal Court: Trump's Newest Tariffs Are Also Illegal
Trump's use of Section 122 ignored the plain language of the law and invoked a broad executive power where Congress clearly provided a narrow one.
Justice Neil Gorsuch: 'Aspirations for Power Need To Be Checked'
The Supreme Court justice discusses the Declaration of Independence, how unchecked power threatens liberty, and what the Founders can teach future generations.
SCOTUS Narrows the Reach of the Voting Rights Act
Plus: The Supreme Court says “demands for a charity’s private member or donor information” raises First Amendment problems.
