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Supreme Court

Government seeks clarity on remedy after recent bankruptcy decision

The Petitions of the Week column highlights a selection of cert petitions recently filed in the Supreme Court. A list of all petitions we’re watching is available here.

Last summer, the Supreme Court ruled in Siegel v. Fitzgerald that a 2017 law permitting debtors in bankruptcy proceedings in North Carolina and Alabama to pay lower administrative fees than those paid by debtors in other states violated the Constitution’s requirement that Congress provide uniform bankruptcy laws nationwide. That decision … Read the rest

Supreme Court

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 racial preferences will no longer be necessary to further the interest approved today.” But during nearly five hours of oral arguments on Monday, the … Read the rest

Supreme Court

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac shareholders return to the court after Collins

The Petitions of the Week column highlights a selection of cert petitions recently filed in the Supreme Court. A list of all petitions we’re watching is available here.

Under the Fifth Amendment, “private property” cannot be “taken for public use” by the government “without just compensation.” This week, we highlight cert petitions that ask the court to consider, among other things, whether the federal government’s decision to essentially nationalize the country’s largest federal backed mortgage-securities companies in the … Read the rest

Supreme Court

Louisiana inmate returns to the court after 18-year delay in resentencing

The Petitions of the Week column highlights a selection of cert petitions recently filed in the Supreme Court. A list of all petitions we’re watching is available here.

Anyone charged with a crime has the right to a “speedy … trial” under the Sixth Amendment. If convicted, do they also have the right to a speedy sentence? The court held four years ago in Betterman v. Montana that the Constitution bars excessive sentencing delays, but under the due … Read the rest

Supreme Court

Domino’s delivery drivers challenge arbitration clauses after Southwest Airlines ruling

The Petitions of the Week column highlights a selection of cert petitions recently filed in the Supreme Court. A list of all petitions we’re watching is available here.

Over the past four decades, the Supreme Court has issued a long string of decisions interpreting the Federal Arbitration Act to provide extensive protection for arbitration agreements. This term, however, was more of a mixed bag. Although the court issued a number of opinions that were pro-arbitration, it also wrote … Read the rest

Supreme Court

Supreme Court ethics bill advances out of House committee after party-line vote

Recent controversies aside, efforts to pass Supreme Court reform legislation have been in the works for years. Now ethics reform is drawing national attention as polls show that public confidence in the court is plummeting. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., announced sweeping ethics legislationon Tuesday that would impose a code of conduct on the justices and would ban them from owning securities. And on Wednesday night, the House Judiciary Committee voted 22-16 along party lines … Read the rest

Supreme Court

Jackson’s confirmation expected by end of week after committee deadlocks along partisan lines

The Senate Judiciary Committee deadlocked 11-11 along party lines on the nomination of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to succeed Justice Stephen Breyer, who plans to retire from the Supreme Court this summer. Despite the tie vote on Monday, Jackson’s nomination can still go to the Senate floor using a procedure known as a discharge petition and a simple majority vote to place Jackson’s nomination on the calendar. Once there, Democrats expect to confirm Jackson before the Senate adjourns for … Read the rest

Consumer

Life After the Pandemic? Say what?

A year ago, we thought we were looking forward to life after the pandemic. Now we know that COVID will likely always be with us. So, is it time to party?
Legal Reader… Read the rest