Legal minds on legal matters and whatever else strikes our fancy.
Yesterday, the Supreme Court granted three cert petitions and called for the Solicitor General’s view on another. In City of Ontario v. Quon, No. 08-1332, the Court will determine whether government employers may monitor employees’ text messages transmitted with a government-issued pager. The questions presented are: 1. Whether a SWAT team member has a reasonable [...]
Yesterday, the Court granted two cert petitions. The first questions whether it is unconstitutional for a public college to deny school funding to a student religious group that limits its officers and voting members to those who accept its religious beliefs. Christian Legal Society v. Martinez (08-1371). The second petition involves another aspect of the [...]
Yesterday, the Petitioner’s merits brief and joint appendix were filed in perhaps the most watched case of this young Supreme Court Term. In McDonald v. City of Chicago, No. 08-1521, the Court will determine whether the Second Amendment right to bear arms is applicable against the states. The case has drawn notable interest from both [...]
On Monday, the Supreme Court granted three cert petitions. One of those petitions involves what evidence bankruptcy courts must use in determining a debtor’s “projected disposable income” before calculating a Chapter 13 bankruptcy plan. Hamilton Chapter 13 Trustee v. Lanning, No. 08-998. The second petition asks the Court to determine whether the National Labor Relations [...]
The Supreme Court granted three cases yesterday. One of those cases (Kiyemba, et al., v. Obama, et al. No. 08-1234) will decide whether courts possess the authority to release Guantanamo Bay detainees to live on United States soil. Additionally, the Court vided two cases together for argument. The cases Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha v. Regal-Beloit, No. [...]
Today, the Supreme Court granted four cases including a petition filed by former-Enron executive Jeffrey Skilling. Skilling v. United States, No. 08-1394. The Skilling petition presents the Court with both constitutional and statutory questions relating to the trial and conviction of Skilling in 2006. The Court also granted a petition filed by the Solicitor General [...]
In 2008, Paul “Pete” Palmer—a sophomore at Waxahachie High School in Texas—wore a shirt supporting presidential candidate John Edwards. The shirt displayed the innocuous message “John Edwards 08.” Although the message was neither disruptive, nor offensive, the Waxahachie Independent School District informed Pete that the shirt contained “unapproved words” violating school district policy. That policy [...]
Last week, William H. Campbell and Professor Orin S. Kerr filed a petition for writ of certiorari in McCane v. United States, No. 09-402, asking for the Supreme Court’s guidance on a three-way split among lower courts on the scope of the good-faith exception to the exclusionary rule. The petition can be viewed here. Beginning [...]
There is a large media and blog buzz over the Supreme Court’s decision to hear McDonald v. Chicago, No. 08-1521 (note: the petition was printed by Cockle). HowAppealing, SCOTUS Blog, and Sentencing Law and Policy and Policy all posted links to various media articles prognosticating the Court’s outcome in this Second Amendment case. The media [...]
The Supreme Court issued an order list today granting review on ten cert. petitions. The so-called “long conference” was heavy with cases involving criminal law. Six petitions covering a range of issues from the Miranda rule to terrorism were granted. The order list can be viewed here The long conference also advanced a case testing [...]