In Americans for Prosperity Foundation v. Bonta the U.S. Supreme Court held 6-3 that California violated the First Amendment by requiring charitable organizations to disclose their major donors to the state attorney general.
Continue readingSCOTUS Uphold Arizona’s Voting Requirements
In Brnovich v. Democratic National Committee the U.S. Supreme Court held 6-3 that Arizona’s requirement that ballots cast in the wrong precinct and ballots collected by anyone other than a limited group of people not be counted didn’t violate §2 of the Voting Rights Act.
Continue readingStates’ Rights Lose at SCOTUS
In PennEast Pipeline v. New Jersey the U.S. Supreme Court held 5-4 that the federal government may constitutionally grant pipeline companies the authority to condemn necessary rights-of-way in which a state has an interest.
Continue readingSupreme Court to Decide First Amendment Billboard Case
The City of Austin allows on-premises billboards to be digitized but not off-premises billboards. In City of Austin, Texas v. Reagan National Advertising of Texas Inc. two outdoor advertising companies claim that this distinction is “content-based” under the First Amendment. The City of Austin disagrees.
Continue readingSCOTUS Reverse Excessive Force Case Officers Won before Lower Court
In a per curiam (unauthored) opinion in Lombardo v. City of St. Louis, Missouri the U.S. Supreme Court ordered the Eighth Circuit to decide again whether police officers used excessive force when restraining Nicholas Gilbert on his stomach for 15-minutes and/or should receive qualified immunity.
Continue readingSCOTUS Adopts Case-by-Case Approach to Warrantless Pursuit of Fleeing Misdemeanants into Homes
In Lange v. California, the U.S. Supreme Court held that pursuit of a fleeing misdemeanor suspect does not always justify entry into a home without a warrant.
Continue readingStudent Wins SCOTUS Off-Campus Free Speech Case
In Mahanoy Area School District v. B.L., the U.S. Supreme Court held 8-1 that a public school could not discipline a student who transmitted to her Snapchat friends, outside of school hours and away from the school’s campus, vulgar language and gestures criticizing the school and the school’s cheerleading team.
Continue readingSupreme Court Takings Ruling Could Have Been Worse for States and Local Governments
In Cedar Point Nursery v. Hassid the Supreme Court held 6-3 that a California regulation allowing union organizers access to agriculture employers’ property to solicit support for unionization up to three hours a day, 120 days a year is a per se physical taking under the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments.
Continue readingNCAA Loses SCOTUS Student-Athlete Compensation Case
In NCAA v. Alston, the U.S. Supreme Court held unanimously that the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) cannot restrict certain education-related benefits schools may offer student-athletes.
Continue readingSupreme Court Rules Against City in Same-sex Foster Family Case
The U.S. Supreme Court held unanimously in Fulton v. Philadelphia that the City of Philadelphia violated the First Amendment when it refused to contract with Catholic Social Service (CSS) to certify foster care families because CSS refuses to work with same-sex couples.
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