Prison Guards Who Forced Naked Inmate To Sleep in Sewage and Urine Were Given Qualified Immunity. SCOTUS Disagreed.
The legal doctrine is a free pass for rampant government abuse.
Supreme Court
Cuomo's COVID-19 Rules Discriminate Against Religion
The case gives SCOTUS another chance to enforce constitutional limits on disease control measures.
House Judiciary Committtee Asks Supreme Court to Delay Arguments in Case Seeking Grand Jury Materials
The prospects of a new Congress and a new Administration justifies delaying the case.
The Supreme Court Won't Save Trump
The president’s increasingly desperate legal filings won’t change the ultimate result of the 2020 election.
Alito Rightly Slams Five Democratic Senators for 'Bullying' the Supreme Court
The senators warned that the Court might have to be "restructured" if it did not reach the conclusion they preferred in a Second Amendment case.
Justice Samuel Alito Highlights the Legal Issues Raised by 'Previously Unimaginable' COVID-19 Restrictions
When "fundamental rights are restricted" during an emergency, he says, the courts "cannot close their eyes."
Thoughts on Today's Oral Argument in California v. Texas - the Obamacare Severability Case
It is not clear how the Court will ultimately resolve the case. But it is obvious that a majority of justices oppose invalidating the entire Affordable Care Act.
The Supreme Court's Latest Obamacare Case Is a Massive Troll of Chief Justice Roberts
Democratic warnings that Amy Coney Barrett would threaten Obamacare were predictably overblown.
Live Blogging California v. Texas (Updated)
High points and low points of today's oral argument in the latest Affordable Care Act case. (Updated with some summary conclusions.)
On the Eve of Argument in California v. Texas
Some things to listen for when the Supreme Court hears oral argument in the latest Affordable Care Act case.
Standing to Challenge the Individual Mandate
Plaintiffs may have had standing in NFIB v. Sebelius, but they don't in California v. Texas.
SCOTUS Considers Whether James King Has Any Recourse Against the Cops Who Choked and Beat Him for No Good Reason
According to the government, a law aimed at helping victims like King prevents him from holding his assailants accountable.
SCOTUS Adds Another Appointments Clause Case to the Docket
When must claimants raise appointments-clause challenges?
Supreme Court Hears Arguments Over Whether Religious Agencies Can Reject Gay Foster Parents
New Justice Amy Coney Barrett expresses concerns about wider implications of antidiscrimination policies.
Trump Says 'We'll Be Going to the Supreme Court' Over Election Results
The legal fight over mail-in ballots may soon heat up at SCOTUS.
'Zero Accountability' for Cops Who Choked and Beat an Innocent Man
The federal government wants the Supreme Court to rule that the victim has no recourse.
Supreme Court Rejects Qualified Immunity Defense for the First Time in Years
The case doesn't make any change in legal doctrine. But it may be intended to send a message to lower courts.
Welcome to the New Roberts Court
How different will the newly constituted Court be from what has come before?
Why this Religious Freedom Case is Different From the Others [updated with an important qualification]
In Fulton v. City of Philadelphia, a key case currently before the Supreme Court, there is a strong reason to rule for the government that doesn't apply in most other religious-liberty disputes.
Why isn't Court-Packing Unconstitutional?
It is easy for originalists to reject challenges to court-packing; but the non-originalist arguments should be spelled out
Why Biden is a Lesser Evil than Trump
Both candidates have serious flaws. But a Trump victory would be a much greater evil than the alternative.
Motion for Justice Barrett to Recuse Is Withdrawn
Attorneys for Luzerne County are no longer asking the newest justice to recuse from Pennsylvania election litigation.
Supreme Court Ruling Means We Probably Won't Know Who Won Pennsylvania Until Days After Election
And maybe a lot longer, since the Supreme Court left the door open to re-hearing a Republican-led challenge seeking to discard late-arriving absentee ballots.
Invoking Scalia, Sotomayor Presses for Broad Fourth Amendment Protections
The Supreme Court weighs police shootings and unreasonable seizures in Torres v. Madrid.
Motion to Recuse Justice Barrett Filed, But County Wants It Withdrawn
The motion was submitted on behalf of the Luzerne County Board of Elections but Luzerne County has voted to have the motion withdrawn.
Does the Supreme Court Need Fixing? If So, Why and How?
Decisions that progressives don't like are not necessarily a sign that something has gone horribly wrong.
Think This Election Will End Up in Front of the Supreme Court? It's Already There.
Plus: Fewer Americans are watching sports, Milton Friedman's powerful TV series turns 40, Amy Coney Barrett joins the Supreme Court, and more...
Should Justice Barrett Recuse from 2020 Election Litigation? (Updated)
There's no precedent for a recusal, but there's also no precedent for the current situation.
Supreme Court Affirms Stay of District Court Injunction Against Wisconsin Election Law
This time, the justices explain themselves.
The Senate Has Confirmed Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court
All Democrats voted in opposition, making Barrett's confirmation the most partisan since Reconstruction.
Amy Coney Barrett on Lochner and the 14th Amendment
The Supreme Court nominee weighs in on a famous case.
Gray Center Administrative Law Supreme Court Preview - Today
A Supreme Court Preview panel that focuses on administrative law.
Biden's Proposed Bipartisan Commission on Court Reform Could be a Hopeful Sign for Opponents of Court-Packing
The implications of this move are far from clear. But it could well be a step to avoid court-packing, rather than promote it.
Joe Biden Would Create a Bipartisan Commission To Figure Out Whether He Should Pack the Supreme Court
In a preview of an interview that will air Sunday, Biden says he'd pick "Democrats, Republicans, liberals, conservatives" to serve on the body, which would make broad recommendations for reforming federal courts.
Courts Should Check 'Majority Rule'
Democrats and Republicans agree on that point, although they disagree about what it means in practice.
What Should Have Happened at the Amy Coney Barrett Hearings
"This is probably not about persuading each other unless something really dramatic happens," said Sen. Lindsey Graham (R–S.C.)
Supreme Court Denies Request for Stay in Pennsylvania Election Dispute
The court split 4-4 in what could have been a major election decision.
SCOTUS Takes a Border Wall Case
Among today's cert grants were a case concerning the border wall and another on the Trump Administration's Migrant Protection Protocols
Amy Coney Barrett's Confirmation Hearings Were a Master Class in Political Posturing
Americans likely learned very little about her judicial philosophy.
A Qualified Defense of Supreme Court Confirmation Hearings
They have serious flaws, many of which are on display this week. But we are still better off with them than without them.
These 7th Circuit Decisions Suggest Amy Coney Barrett Takes a Constrained View of Qualified Immunity
In several cases, the Supreme Court nominee voted to allow civil rights lawsuits against officers accused of misconduct.
Judging From His Grilling of Amy Coney Barrett, Sen. Richard Durbin Thinks Voting Is More Important Than Staying Alive
The senator thinks people with felony records should lose the right to armed self-defense but not the right to cast a ballot.
Does Owning a Gun Make a Judge's Second Amendment Rulings Suspect?
If that standard were applied to other constitutional rights, no one would be left to enforce them.
Trump Can End Census Now, Says Supreme Court in Ruling That Could Have Big Impact on House Seats
Plus: DOJ sues over Melania Trump adviser's book, Justice Clarence Thomas wants to limit Section 230, and more....
An Argument Against Supreme Court Term-Limits
Would regular SCOTUS confirmations produce too much volatility in the case law? I am unconvinced.
