Author: DONALD SCARINCI

U.S. District Court for the District of Missouri Judge James H. Peck was the third judicial officer impeached by the U.S. House of Representatives. The Senate, however, found him not guilty of the abuse of power charges. Federal Judgeship  Born in...

In McLane v. EEOC, 581 U. S. ____ (2017), the U.S. Supreme Court held that a district court’s decision whether to enforce or quash a subpoena issued by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) should be reviewed for abuse of discretion ra...

In a unanimous decision, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that a New York law prohibiting merchants from charging surcharges for paying via credit card is subject to scrutiny under the First Amendment. The Court’s narrow decision in Expressions Hair De...

In Moore v Texas, 581 U. S. ____ (2017), the U.S. Supreme Court held that the standard used by the State of Texas to determine whether a mentally disabled defendant can be subjected to the death penalty violated the Constitution. By a vote of 5-3, th...

John Pickering served as chief justice of the New Hampshire Superior Court of Judicature and as a judge for the U.S. District Court for the District of New Hampshire. However, he is most remembered as the first federal officer to be impeached. Earl...

In National Labor Relations Board v. SW General, the Supreme Court limited the President’s ability to fill vacancies under the Federal Vacancies Reform Act of 1998 (FVRA). By a vote of 7-2, the Court held that a person can’t serve in an acting ca...

In Endrew F v Douglas County School District, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that public schools have an obligation to provide a special education program that will allow a disabled student to make progress that is appropriate in light of the child’s...

In Beckles v United States, 580 U. S. ____ (2017), the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the country’s federal sentencing guidelines. By a vote of 7-0, the Court held that the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, including Section 4B1.2...

The U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in six cases last week. The most noteworthy case is Murr v. Wisconsin, which involves the Takings Clause of the Fifth Amendment. The specific question before the Court in Murr is whether physically contiguo...

A divided U.S. Supreme Court recently held that while jury deliberations should normally be kept secret, racial or ethnic bias mandates an exception to the rule. The court decided Pena-Rodriguez v Colorado, 580 U. S. ____ (2017) by a vote of 5-3. Fa...