Category: Current

In Madison v Alabama, 586 U. S. ____ (2019), the U.S. Supreme Court held that the Eighth Amendment may permit executing a prisoner even if he cannot remember committing his crime. However, it may prohibit executing a prisoner even though he suffers ...

In Timbs v. Indiana, 586 U. S. ____ (2019), the U.S. Supreme Court held that the Eight Amendments’ ban on excessive fines is applicable to states. The Court’s decision was unanimous. Facts of Timbs v. Indiana Tyson Timbs pleaded guilty in ...

Next month, the U.S. Supreme Court will consider two cases involving partisan gerrymandering. One case, Benisek v Lamone, challenges a Maryland congressional district, while the other, Rucho v Common Cause, challenges North Carolina’s congressio...

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear its first major Second Amendment case in a decade. The case, New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v City of New York, involves a New York City gun-control law that prohibits transporting a...

In Helsinn Healthcare S.A. v Teva Pharmaceuticals USA Inc., 586 U. S. ____ (2019), the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously held that a commercial sale to a third party who is required to keep the invention confidential may place the invention “on sale�...

In Stokeling v United States, 586 U.S. ____ (2019), the U.S. Supreme Court held by a vote of 5-4 that the Armed Career Criminal Act’s (ACCA) elements clause encompasses a robbery offense that, like Florida’s law, requires the criminal to overcom...

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg missed oral arguments this week as she recovers from surgery to remove cancerous growths from her lungs. She will, however, still participate in the cases by reading the briefs and transcripts of oral arguments. The re...

The U.S. Supreme Court had a busy first week of the year as the justices returned to the bench to kick off 2019. The week’s oral arguments included two high-profile copyright cases. Below is a brief summary of issues before the Court last week:...

In United States v Stitt, decided on December 10, 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court held that the term “burglary,” as used in the federal Armed Career Criminal Act (ACCA), includes the burglary of any “structure or vehicle that has been adapted or ...

When they return to the bench in January, the justices of the U.S. Supreme Court will consider their first case involving the 21st Amendment in more than a decade. Tennessee Wine and Spirits Retailers Association v. Clayton Byrd involves the co...