The Supreme Court heard oral argument on Tuesday in a challenge to a Pennsylvania law that allows any company doing business in the state to be sued there – even if the corporation is not headquartered there and the conduct at the center of the lawsuit occurred somewhere else. During nearly two hours of oral… Read More
In challenge to Indian Child Welfare Act, court will weigh the rights of states and the role of race
In 2012, the late Justice Antonin Scalia called a dispute arising from the adoption of Native American twins in a Mississippi state court the most difficult case he had encountered in his time on the Supreme Court. In that case, the Supreme Court ruled that under the Indian Child Welfare Act, a 1978 federal law… Read More
Denials of review in five cases draw dissents from various justices
The Supreme Court on Monday issued orders from the justices’ private conference last week. After granting four petitions for review on Friday afternoon, the court – as expected – did not add any new cases to its docket for the 2022-23 term. But with five different dissents from the denial of review, spanning 48 pages,… Read More
Originalist arguments and business interests clash in a dispute over where companies can be sued
The Supreme Court will hear oral argument on Tuesday in a major dispute over personal jurisdiction – a court’s power to hear a lawsuit against a defendant. The question in Mallory v. Norfolk Southern Railway Co. is whether a Pennsylvania court can hear a lawsuit brought against a Virginia-based railroad company by a Virginia man… Read More
Justices grant review in cases on patents, trademarks, and water rights for Native Americans
The Supreme Court on Friday added four new cases to its docket for the 2022-23 term. The new grants include a patent-law dispute, a case involving the applicability of U.S. trademark laws outside the United States, and a pair of cases – which will be argued together – involving the Navajo Nation’s rights to water… Read More
Protesters supporting abortion rights briefly interrupt oral argument
It has been just over four months since the Supreme Court issued its decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, overturning the court’s landmark rulings recognizing a right to an abortion. But Dobbs once again took center stage on Wednesday – at least for a few minutes – as three protesters interrupted oral argument… Read More
Justices reject Graham’s bid to avoid testifying in grand-jury inquiry on election interference
The Supreme Court on Tuesday cleared the way for a Georgia grand jury to question Sen. Lindsey Graham, a Republican from South Carolina, about his phone calls after the 2020 election to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger and his staff. In an unsigned one-page order, the justices rejected Graham’s plea to block a subpoena… Read More
Affirmative action appears in jeopardy after marathon arguments
In 2003, a divided Supreme Court ruled in Grutter v. Bollinger that the University of Michigan Law School could consider race in its admissions process as part of its efforts to assemble a diverse student body. In her opinion for the majority, now-retired Justice Sandra Day O’Connor suggested that, in 25 years, “the use of… Read More
Trump asks court to block House committee from obtaining his tax returns
Former President Donald Trump asked the Supreme Court on Monday to block the disclosure of his federal income tax returns to a congressional committee. Without the court’s intervention, the House Committee on Ways and Means is poised to obtain six years of tax returns for Trump and the companies he owns. Trump’s legal team told… Read More
In cases challenging affirmative action, court will confront wide-ranging arguments on history, diversity, and the role of race in America
In 2003, the Supreme Court ruled in Grutter v. Bollinger that universities may consider race in their admissions processes as part of their efforts to achieve diversity on campus. On Oct. 31, the justices will hear oral arguments in a pair of cases asking them to overturn Grutter and outlaw race-based affirmative action in higher… Read More