The Supreme Court heard oral argument on Tuesday morning on whether a federal law passed in 1993 to protect religious freedom allows three Muslim men who allege that they were placed on the “no fly” list after they refused to become FBI informants to sue FBI agents for money damages. Although the format of the… Read More
Justices reinstate witness requirements for absentee ballots
The Supreme Court on Monday gave election officials in South Carolina the green light to enforce a state law that requires voters to sign absentee-ballot envelopes in the presence of a witness. The lower courts had barred the state from imposing the witness requirement, concluding that doing so during the COVID-19 pandemic is likely to… Read More
Justices skeptical of challenge to Delaware rules on bipartisanship in judiciary
The Supreme Court heard the first oral argument of its new term on Monday morning. The scene was starkly different from the first Monday in October last year: Rather than meeting in the courtroom, the justices gathered by telephone because of the COVID-19 pandemic. And with the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Sept…. Read More
Justices issue new orders from last week’s conference; Thomas criticizes same-sex marriage ruling
After adding seven new cases to their docket on Friday, the Supreme Court issued more orders on Monday morning from last week’s “long” conference. The justices called for the views of the federal government in three new cases and set the latest chapter of a long-running water dispute between Florida and Georgia for oral argument… Read More
Justices to consider availability of money damages in religious freedom lawsuits
The Supreme Court will hear argument on Tuesday in a lawsuit filed by three Muslim men who contend that they were placed on the “no fly” list after they refused to become FBI informants. At issue in the case, known as Tanzin v. Tanvir, is whether a federal law passed in 1993 to protect religious… Read More
Case preview: Justices to consider Delaware rules on bipartisanship in judiciary
The justices start their new term on Monday, at a time when the Supreme Court is at the center of a bitter battle over President Donald Trump’s nominee to succeed Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died last month at the age of 87. If Judge Amy Coney Barrett is confirmed, it could cement a decisive… Read More
Justices add seven new cases to docket, including major voting-rights dispute
The Supreme Court officially begins its new term on Monday, but the unofficial start to the term came on Friday morning, when the justices issued an initial set of orders from their “long” conference – the first conference since mid-July, when they began their summer recess. The justices granted seven new cases, for a total… Read More
South Carolina election officials, GOP ask justices to reinstate witness requirement for absentee ballots
Election officials and South Carolina Republicans went to the Supreme Court on Thursday, asking the justices to reinstate a state law that requires voters to sign absentee-ballot envelopes in the presence of a witness. The dispute is the latest in a series of election-law battles to come to the Supreme Court since the COVID-19 pandemic… Read More
Pennsylvania GOP leaders ask justices to block order on counting absentee ballots after Election Day (updated)
Telling the Supreme Court that there is a “very real possibility that the final presidential election results” could rest on the outcome of voting in Pennsylvania, Republicans in the state asked the justices on Monday to block a ruling by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court that would require election officials to count absentee ballots received within… Read More
Trump nominates Barrett to Supreme Court
Shortly after he appointed then-Judge Brett Kavanaugh to fill the vacancy on the Supreme Court created by the retirement of Justice Anthony Kennedy, President Donald Trump reportedly told his advisers that he was “saving” Judge Amy Coney Barrett, another of the finalists for the Kennedy slot, in case Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg stepped down from… Read More