Justices | Judiciary.org

Justices take up disputes over terrorism damages suits and habeas filings

The Supreme Court on Friday afternoon agreed to decide whether a 2019 law that seeks to give U.S. courts the power to hear claims by victims of terrorism against the Palestine Liberation Organization and the Palestinian Authority violates the Fifth Amendment’s guarantee of fair treatment.

Fuld v. Palestine Liberation Organization and United States v. Palestine Liberation Organization, which will be argued together in the spring, were two of the three petitions for review that the justices granted after … Read the rest

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Justices skeptical about Facebook’s data breach disclosure to investors

The justices heard arguments Wednesday in Facebook v. Amalgamated Bank, their first securities case of the year. The case involves the 2015 Cambridge Analytica-Facebook data breach, and considers whether Facebook’s disclosures to investors before the breach was public improperly downplayed the risks that data breaches posed to the company and its stock price.

Shareholders sued Facebook in 2018 after they learned that Cambridge Analytica had obtained the personal data of 30 million Facebook users. The shareholders conted that … Read the rest

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Anti-abortion activists ask justices to overrule ban on expressive activity outside clinics

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

In its 2000 decision in Hill v. Colorado, the Supreme Court upheld a Colorado law enacted to prevent groups or individuals who oppose abortion from protesting, handing out materials, or speaking to patients, doctors, or staff outside of medical facilities that offer the procedure. Two years ago, when the … Read the rest

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Justices to hear challenge to regulation of unserialized ‘ghost guns’

The Supreme Court will hear oral argument next week in a challenge to a 2022 federal rule that seeks to regulate “ghost guns” – firearms without serial numbers that, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives says, almost anyone can quickly assemble with parts that they purchase, often in a kit online or through the mail. Serial numbers are used by law enforcement to track guns used in crime.

Defending the rule, the ATF argues that it is … Read the rest

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Justices allow Arizona to enforce proof-of-citizenship law for 2024 voter registration

A divided Supreme Court on Thursday afternoon granted a request from the Republican National Committee and the Republican leaders of Arizona’s legislature to reinstate a state law that requires residents to provide proof of citizenship to register to vote using a form provided by the state. The court turned down a request, however, to reinstate the portion of the same law that would bar voters who register using a standard federal form from voting for president or by mail … Read the rest

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Justices appoint former clerk to argue First Step Act cases

The Supreme Court on Friday afternoon appointed a former clerk to Justice Samuel Alito (who also served as a clerk to then-Judge Neil Gorsuch on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit) to defend a ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit in a pair of cases involving the interpretation of the First Step Act, a 2018 law that — among other things – reduced the mandatory minimum sentences for some drug and … Read the rest

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Justices send expert witness question back to state court

The Supreme Court on Friday sent the case of an Arizona man convicted of drug possession back to the state courts. Jason Smith argued that when an expert witness testified for the prosecution about drug analysis performed by another forensic scientist, it violated his right under the Sixth Amendment “to be confronted with the witnesses against him.”

In an opinion by Justice Elena Kagan, the court agreed with Smith that the requirements of the Sixth Amendment’s confrontation clause normally … Read the rest

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Justices refuse to force refund of excessive bankruptcy fees

Two years after the court ruled that a disparity in bankrupt debtors’ fees between judicial districts was impermissible, the justices on Friday ruled 6-3 that charging equal fees going forward is an adequate remedy for that disparity. The government will not have to pay back debtors who paid more than they would have in another district.

In most districts (88 out of the 94 federal judicial districts), Chapter 11 bankruptcy cases are administered by the Office of the … Read the rest