Two conservative Supreme Court justices warned New York officials that if they try again to ration health care based on the patient’s race—as they did with COVID-19 treatments in 2021—they will vote to take a case challenging the policy on … Continue reading Supreme Court justices warn New York not to use race again to ration medical treatment
The Supreme Court’s recently concluded term represented the second year of a sharp change in course. After the court pointedly refused to intervene in the irregularity-plagued 2020 election and refused to curb the worst pandemic-era restrictions on personal freedoms, former … Continue reading The Supreme Court returns to the rule of law
The U.S. Supreme Court sent a redistricting case back to the Supreme Court of Ohio for reconsideration after it recently rejected a theory holding that state legislatures have sweeping authority to make the rules for federal elections in the states without … Continue reading Supreme Court rules in Ohio redistricting dispute
The Supreme Court resurrected two whistleblower lawsuits against companies for allegedly defrauding Medicare and Medicaid. The cases concern the federal False Claims Act (FCA), a key tool the government uses to combat health care fraud, and “scienter,” a legal term meaning prior intent or knowledge of wrongdoing. Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) has called the FCA “the centerpiece of the government’s anti-fraud arsenal.” The new orders followed the court’s unanimous decision on June 1 to reinstate whistleblower actions against pharmacy operators SuperValu and Safeway for allegedly overcharging the government by filing false Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement claims for prescription drugs they sold. That ruling, United … Continue reading Supreme Court revives whistleblowers’ Medicare, Medicaid fraud lawsuits
The Senate Judiciary Committee plans to vote soon on Supreme Court ethics reform legislation, its chairman announced on July 6. Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) said in a press release: “The highest court in the land should not have the lowest … Continue reading Supreme Court ethics reform bill moving forward, top Senate Democrat says
The Supreme Court has agreed to take up a case that could make 1.7 million post-9/11 veterans eligible for additional education benefits potentially worth billions of dollars. The case is about whether a veteran who qualifies for education benefits under multiple GI Bill programs is required to use up or abandon the benefits of one program in order to take advantage of benefits under another. The justices agreed to hear the case, Rudisill v. McDonough (court file 22-888), in an unsigned order issued in the final days of the court’s recent session that wrapped up on June 30. The court … Continue reading Supreme Court to hear veteran’s claim he was unfairly denied education benefits
In a fractured ruling that may invite a future constitutional challenge, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld by 5–4 a unique Pennsylvania law that requires companies to face litigants in its state courts when they register to do business in the … Continue reading Supreme Court rules against Norfolk Southern Railway in Pennsylvania case
The Supreme Court ruled on June 30 in favor of Christian bakers who said Oregon’s law requiring them to make cakes to celebrate same-sex weddings infringed on their constitutional rights. The decision came hours after the nation’s highest court issued a landmark 6–3 ruling in favor of Christian website designer Lorie Smith of 303 Creative, who said a Colorado law that punished her for refusing to create websites for same-sex weddings violated her First Amendment rights. “The First Amendment protects the rights of all Americans to speak freely and live according to their sincere religious beliefs,” said the bakers’ attorney, Trent McCotter of … Continue reading Supreme Court rules for Christian bakers in First Amendment case
The Supreme Court unanimously ruled on June 29 that a trademark law doesn’t regulate the use of U.S. trademarks outside the United States. At the same time, the justices split 5–4 on whether the holder of an infringed trademark could … Continue reading Supreme Court narrows trademark protections outside US
News Analysis The Supreme Court’s six-member conservative-leaning majority flexed its muscles in its recent term that wrapped up on June 30. It adopted a conservative or pro-limited government position in a series of closely watched rulings dealing with affirmative action, … Continue reading IN-DEPTH: Supreme Court made major conservative rulings this term
Over the objections of two conservative justices, the Supreme Court decided last week not to take up a case about whether individuals suffering from gender dysphoria are protected by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The June 30 decision to … Continue reading Supreme Court won’t disturb ruling recognizing gender dysphoria under disability law
The Supreme Court voted 6–3 on June 30 to strike down President Joe Biden’s controversial plan to partially forgive student loans. The six conservative justices voted to invalidate the program in the closely watched case, while the three liberal justices … Continue reading Supreme Court strikes down Biden student loan forgiveness program
The Supreme Court ruled 6–3 in favor of a Christian website designer who said Colorado’s law requiring her to create websites to celebrate same-sex weddings infringed on her constitutional rights. Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote the majority opinion (pdf) in 303 Creative … Continue reading Supreme Court rules for Christian web designer in forced speech case
The Supreme Court unanimously ruled on June 29 that a lower court applied the wrong standard in a case about whether the U.S. Postal Service violated the constitutional rights of an evangelical Christian mail carrier when the agency refused to … Continue reading Supreme Court rules for Christian postal worker
The Supreme Court struck down on June 29 the use of racially discriminatory admissions policies at U.S. colleges. The 6–3 decision ends the use of so-called affirmative action in higher education, a longtime goal of conservatives. The ruling will be felt immediately as a million high school students begin applying for fall acceptance at the nation’s colleges and universities. Students may reportedly avoid stating their race or ethnicity in the Common App, which many use to apply to multiple schools at once. Chief Justice John Roberts wrote (pdf) for the court that, for too long, universities have “concluded, wrongly, that … Continue reading Supreme Court strikes down race-based admissions at colleges
The Supreme Court threw out on June 27 by a 7–2 vote a Colorado man’s conviction for making threats online against an entertainer because his intent in trying to communicate with her was never considered. The case raised an important … Continue reading Supreme Court rules for convicted cyberstalker in First Amendment case
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6–3 on June 27 against North Carolina Republicans who argued that state legislatures have sweeping authority to make the rules for federal elections in the states without interference from the courts. At issue is the once-obscure independent state legislature doctrine, under which Republicans argue that the Constitution has always directly authorized state legislatures alone to make rules for conducting federal elections in their respective states. Democrats say it’s is a fringe conservative legal theory that could endanger voting rights, enable extreme partisan gerrymandering in the redistricting process, and cause upheaval in election administration. Conservatives point … Continue reading Supreme Court rejects Republican effort to empower state lawmakers in making election rules
The Supreme Court is poised this week to issue a series of rulings covering the hot-button issues of affirmative action, student loan forgiveness, the intersection of religious freedom with free speech and employment law, and how much power state legislatures … Continue reading IN-DEPTH: Supreme Court poised to issue blockbuster rulings this week
The Supreme Court agreed on June 26 to consider a challenge to a wealth tax that was levied on capital gains that a Washington state couple never received. The mandatory repatriation tax, also known as the Section 965 transition tax, was part of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act passed by the Republican-controlled Congress in 2017 and signed into law by then-President Donald Trump on Dec. 22, 2017. The provision taxes U.S. citizens on certain accumulated foreign earnings of foreign corporations going back 30 years, even if the earnings haven’t been distributed. This means taxing people on income that they … Continue reading Supreme Court to decide scope of Congress’s taxing power
The U.S. Supreme Court on June 26 dismissed an appeal over a long-running dispute between former President Donald Trump and congressional Democrats over the former Trump International Hotel in the nation’s capital. The dispute focused on documents related to the lease of the government property in downtown Washington that housed the hotel. Democrats claimed that Trump received a sweetheart deal and demanded documentation from the government, which refused their request. Trump left the presidency in January 2021, and The Trump Organization sold the lease to the property in May 2022 to CGI Merchant Group for an undisclosed sum. The hotel … Continue reading Supreme Court dismisses lawsuit over Trump’s former DC hotel