As the October 2017 term winds down, all eyes are on Justice Kennedy for any indications that he will announce his retirement from the bench. While there have been no new rumors or public signs that he intends to retire, both Republicans and Democrats have been monitoring the situation closely as a vacancy would likely [...]
The Supreme Court receives many types of documents each day for its review. Appeals to the Supreme Court alone encompass a lot of different types of briefs, including petitions, briefs in opposition, amicus curiae briefs, and reply and supplemental briefs, to name a few. Less frequently, but equally important, are original actions, which are governed [...]
The Supreme Court receives thousands of filings. These include various types of briefs, motions, and applications. The motions and applications the Court receives may include issues such as motions to file amicus curiae briefs, motions or applications for filing date extensions, and applications for stays of orders from the lower courts. Stay applications are frequently [...]
While the rules for the Supreme Court provide the guidance necessary for producing a compliant brief, there are some unwritten requirements that every filer should be aware of when preparing their Petition and Petition Stage Reply brief. Failure to comply with these unwritten rules may result in having your filing rejected by the Court. Petitions [...]
Two of the most common pitfalls when drafting an amicus brief in the Supreme Court can be found on the first page: Interest of Amicus Curiae section and the required Footnote 1 information. Fortunately, these errors are easily remedied and can often be avoided. In this post, we will discuss how to best handle your [...]
The Court closed out OT 2016 on a high note by granting two highly anticipated cases. On June 26th, the oft-relisted (14 times to be precise), Masterpiece Cakeshop, Ltd. v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission was granted certiorari along with the consolidated cases of Trump v. Hawaii and Trump v. International Refugee Assistance Project. As we [...]
Rumors of Justice Anthony Kennedy’s possible retirement have shifted to 2018 after news of him telling applicants for the 2018 term that he is considering retirement began circulating in early July. Kennedy is the most senior Associate Justice on the Court and is often the swing vote on the Court’s 5-4 decisions, meaning his retirement [...]
Amicus Briefs are submitted by non-parties to a case as a way of introducing information and concerns to the Court, demonstrating that a case’s outcome may have wider effects beyond the immediate parties to the suit. They can provide valuable assistance to the Court in its deliberations by presenting an argument or citing authorities not [...]
The Court released the final decisions of the 2016 Term on Monday, June 26th, bringing the total number of opinions issued by the mostly short-handed bench to 69. In contrast, the 2015 term saw the release of 80 merits opinions, indicating the empty seat did have a significant effect on justices as they filled the [...]
On this day in Supreme Court history, Congress enacted the Supreme Court Case Selections Act of 1988. The Act was designed to “improve the administration of justice by providing greater discretion to the Supreme Court in selecting the cases it will review, and for other purposes.” The Act amended 28 U.S.C. § 1257 to eliminate [...]