Legal minds on legal matters and whatever else strikes our fancy.
A petition for writ of certiorari filed in Robinson v. United States, No. 08-1374, asks the Supreme Court to clear up a circuit split over the meaning of a federal narcotics statutory provision. The petition and reply brief can be viewed here and here. The Solicitor General’s brief in opposition can be viewed here. The [...]
· Tony Mauro at The BLT: a post on Justice Sotomayor’s decision to join the cert pool. · Howard Bashman at HowAppealing: a post discussing an important environmental decision from the Second Circuit Court of Appeals. · Eugene Volokh of The Volokh Conspiracy: a post discussing whether and to what extent corporations possess constitutional rights. [...]
There is often a haze of confusion regarding the timing and procedure for filing a reply brief on the petition stage. The Supreme Court’s Rules on this subject are somewhat vague on the timing and provide little guidance on the procedure for printing and filing reply briefs. This post aims to clear up any confusion [...]
In a case implicating judicial review of arbitration awards under the Federal Arbitration Act (“FAA”), a Michigan company has petitioned the Supreme Court to settle the question of whether the doctrine of manifest disregard of law remains viable after the Court’s ruling in Hall Street Associates, L.L.C. v. Mattel, Inc., 552 U.S. __, 128 S. [...]
The Court’s argument calendar is set for the first two months of the 2009 Term. In October, the Court’s schedule is heavy with criminal issues which make up six of the thirteen cases. And another case (Alvarez v. Smith, No. 08-351) presents a civil forfeiture issue that mainly arises during criminal proceedings. In November, the [...]
There is a strong prospect of Supreme Court review in Heneford v. Castaneda, et al. (No. 08-1547) according to an article posted today in SCOTUS blog. Given that there is a direct conflict among federal courts of appeals on the question of immunity for U.S. Public Health Service personnel, and because the Solicitor General also [...]
Recently, SCOTUS blog posted an article on Brown, et al., v. Hovatter, et al., No. 09-231. The case could provide the Supreme Court with an opportunity to clarify a little known part of the Constitution—the Dormant Commerce Clause. The post (and a PDF version of the brief that Cockle printed) can be viewed here.
Cockle Law Brief Printing Company is proud to announce that a legal web blog will be launched in conjunction with the new Cockle website. Cockle Blog will provide Supreme Court news, articles on Supreme Court practice and filing rules, postings of briefs printed at Cockle, and links to other legal blogs providing Supreme Court developments.
Karen Torre was the attorney who had the difficult task of convincing the Supreme Court to review a one-paragraph summary ruling by the Second Circuit Court of Appeals. But convince them she did. On June 29, 2009, the Supreme Court ruled that Frank Ricci and 17 other New Haven, Connecticut, firefighters were illegally discriminated against [...]