Federal Circuit Judges Question Trump's Discovery of Vast Tariff Powers
The president is claiming "unbounded authority" to impose import taxes based on a law that does not mention them.
Statutory Interpretation
Hiking Tariffs on Canada, Trump Demands 'Adequate Steps' To Achieve an Impossible Drug War Goal
Canada accounts for a tiny percentage of fentanyl smuggling, which cannot be stopped by trying harder.
Appeals Court Briefs Say Trump's Tariffs Are Based on a Statute That Does Not Authorize Tariffs at All
The Cato Institute and the New Civil Liberties Alliance urge the Federal Circuit to extend the logic of a decision against the president's far-reaching import taxes.
A Broad Ruling Against Trump's Immigration Policies Illustrates Alternatives to Universal Injunctions
Class actions and Administrative Procedure Act claims can achieve much the same result as the nationwide orders that the Supreme Court rejected.
Trump Says the Courts Have No Business Questioning His Dubious Definition of 'Alien Enemies'
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit is considering whether the president properly invoked the Alien Enemies Act to deport alleged gang members.
The 9th Circuit Rejects Trump's Audacious Claim That He Can Use the National Guard However He Likes
Although the appeals court said the president probably complied with the law he invoked to justify his California deployment, it emphasized that such decisions are subject to judicial review.
Trump Argues That He Can Take Over a State's National Guard Whenever He Feels Like It
The government's lawyer told a 9th Circuit panel the president's deployments are "unreviewable," so he need not even pretend to comply with the statute on which he is relying.
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.
The FTC's Probe Into 'Potentially Illegal' Content Moderation Is a Blatant Assault on the First Amendment
In the name of "restoring freedom of speech," FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson wants to override the editorial judgments of social media platforms.
An Intelligence Memo Casts Further Doubt on Trump's Nonsensical Definition of 'Alien Enemies'
A declassified assessment contradicts the president's assertion that Tren de Aragua is "closely aligned with" the Venezuelan government and acts at its "direction."
N.C. Court on Compensation for (Apparently Unauthorized) Forced Vaccination by School
The court concludes that the federal 2005 Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness (PREP) Act preempts state battery claims, but not state constitutional law claims.
Trump's Reading of the Alien Enemies Act Defies the Usual Meaning of Its Terms
To justify the immediate deportation of suspected Venezuelan gang members, the president is invoking a rarely used statute that does not seem to apply in this context.
Decrying First Amendment Threat, FIRE Will Defend Pollster Whom Trump Sued for 'Consumer Fraud'
The president-elect frivolously claims that J. Ann Selzer and The Des Moines Register owe him damages because of an erroneous preelection poll.
Sixth Circuit Rejects FCC's Open Internet Order as Inconsistent with Statutory Text
The unanimous panel has little difficulty concluding the FCC sought to exercise authority it did not have.
2 Florida Men Who Thought They Were Freeing Illegally Caught Sharks Are Now Felons
Federal prosecutors argued that John Moore and Tanner Mansell stole property when they hauled in a fishing line they mistakenly believed had been set by poachers.
SCOTUS Rejects a Legal Interpretation Underlying Capitol Riot Charges
The decision also negates two counts of the federal indictment accusing Donald Trump of illegally interfering in the 2020 presidential election.
The Supreme Court's Decision Overruling Chevron is Important - But Less so than You Might Think
It won't end the administrative state or even significantly reduce the amount of federal regulation. But it's still a valuable step towards protecting the rule of law and curbing executive power.
Wisconsin Supreme Court Rules Sidewalks are not "Pedestrian Ways" - thus Allowing Local Governments to Use Eminent Domain to Take Property to Build Them
The close 4-3 decision might well become a staple of textbooks.
The Collective-Action Constitution in an Era of Polarization and Animosity: An Elegy?
Fifth in a series of guest-blogging posts.
A Texas Reporter Busted for Asking Questions Asks SCOTUS To Reject the Criminalization of Journalism
Priscilla Villarreal is appealing a 5th Circuit decision that dismissed her First Amendment lawsuit against Laredo police and prosecutors.
Most Justices Seem Skeptical of Charging Capitol Rioters With Obstructing an Official Proceeding
The Supreme Court's interpretation of the statute also could affect two charges against Donald Trump.
Critics of the Arizona Supreme Court's Abortion Ruling Seem Confused About What Judges Are Supposed To Do
The case hinged on statutory interpretation, not the merits of the state's 1864 ban.
Department of Transportation Lacks the Authority to Require States to Set Greenhouse Gas Reduction Targets for Highways
A district court concludes that the Department of Transportation lacks the authority to force states to try and reduce greenhouse gas emissions associated with highway use.
Vermeule and Casey Respond to Judge Rao on Textualism's Political Morality
Further debate on textualism, "common good constitutionalism," and the classical legal method.
The Major Questions Doctrine "Reflects a Deeply Held Impulse in Common Law Adjudication."
The idea that greater assertions of executive authority require greater support than ordinary acts is not a new one.
Codifiers' Errors and 42 U.S.C. 1983
with relevance to both a 1980 precedent and a recent article by Alex Reinert
En Banc Fifth Circuit Denies Chevron Deference to ATF in Bump Stock Case
A majority of judges concluded the plain language of the statute does not apply to bump stocks, but they also would have denied Chevron deference had they found the statute ambiguous.
Barrett v. Gorsuch
Justice Amy Coney Barrett and Neil Gorsuch are disagreeing more than you might think, but Justice Barrett appears to have the upper hand.
A Bee May Be A Fish (At Least in California) [Updated]
A state court rules that bumble bees may qualify as "fish" under the California Endangered Species Act
Should Courts Stop Using "Substantive" Canons of Construction?
A proposal from Justice Kagan.
Justices Spar Over How to Interpret the Armed Career Criminal Act
In Wooden v. United States, the justices were unanimous in the judgment, but expressed disagreement over the role of statutory history and the rule of lenity.
D.C. Circuit Concludes Trailers Are Not "Motor Vehicles"
A partially divided panel concludes the Environmental Protection Agency may not regulate trailers as “motor vehicles.”
The Parable of the Soldier at the Bank
on the proper role of legal corpus linguistics, by C'Zar Bernstein
Immigrant Seeking to Challenge Removal Prevails with Unusual Supreme Court Line-up
The Supreme Court's 6-3 decision in Niz-Chavez v. Garland is not what you might have expected, but it may be a sign of things to come.
Judge Amy Coney Barrett's Assorted Canards of Contemporary Legal Analysis: Redux
The Case Western Reserve Law Review has published Judge Barrett's 2019 Sumner Canary Memorial Lecture
Bostock v. Clayton County and the Debate over the Meaning of "Ordinary Meaning"
Both sides in the landmark employment discrimination decision agree that laws should generally be interpreted based on the "ordinary meaning" of their words. But they differ on what that entails.
Textualism and Purposivism in Today's Supreme Court Decision on Discrimination Against Gays, Lesbians, and Transsexuals
The decision in Bostock v. Clayton County is well-justified from the standpoint of textualism (a theory associated with conservatives), but less clearly so from the standpoint of purposivism (often associated with liberals).
The Ballad of FDA v. Brown & Williamson
How the FDA lost, and gained, jurisdiction over cigarettes -- to a Newfoundland fishing-boat tune
Antitrust standing and Kavanaugh-versus-Gorsuch textualism
The Supreme Court's dueling opinions in Apple, Inc. v. Pepper raise interesting questions about textualist statutory interpretation.
Dog Nips Cow, Cow Tramples Man
If a statute imposes strict liability for dog bites, does that extend to a herding dog nipping at a cow that then trampled the plaintiff?
