Supreme Court hears arguments in tribal rights, criminal appeals cases
The US Supreme Court continued the November term, hearing oral arguments in one case concerning Indian tribal rights and a second regarding a criminal defendant’s right to appeal after guilty plea. The first case, Washington State Department of Licensing v. Cougar Den Inc., asks the court to determine whether a 2006 state tax imposed on fuel [...]
The US Supreme Court heard oral arguments on Monday in two separate cases regarding the Federal Arbitration Act. At issue in the first case, Henry Schein Inc. v. Archer and White Sales Inc., is whether a court must submit a matter to arbitration if the court determines that the claim is “wholly groundless.” The petitioner argued, “A court does not have [...]
US Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor issued a statement on Monday conveying “deep concern” over an Alabama court’s failure to preserve an original recording of jury instructions for a capital murder case. Sotomayor concurred with the US Supreme Court’s denial of certiorari in the case of Tawuan Townes because without the tape Townes could not show [...]
Supreme Court hears arguments in immigration, maritime asbestos cases
The US Supreme Court on Wednesday heard arguments in two cases, one of which challenges the detention provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) and the other concerning maritime asbestos injuries. In the first case, Nielson v. Preap, the court is asked to determine: “Whether a criminal alien becomes exempt from mandatory detention under if, after the [...]
Supreme Court hears cases challenging mandatory sentencing provisions
Justice Brett Kavanaugh joined the US Supreme Court Tuesday to hear oral argument in two cases challenging the mandatory sentencing enhancement provision of the Armed Career Criminal Act (ACCA). Both cases concern the “mandatory minimum 15-year prison sentence on any federal firearms offender who previously has been convicted of three ‘violent’ felonies.” The previous provision imposed a [...]
Supreme Court hears arguments in Fifth Amendment takings and arbitration cases
The US Supreme Court heard oral arguments Wednesday in two cases: Knick v. Township of Scott, Pennsylvania, and New Prime Inc. v. Oliveira . In Knick v. Scott Township , petitioner challenges a doctrine that requires state remedies to be exhausted in constitutional takings before being allowed to file a federal lawsuit. Knick, the owner of land in [...]
The US Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear an appeal from a group of Tennessee voters regarding Amendment 1 to the state’s constitution, a 2014 ballot measure that eliminated the right to an abortion from the document. The petitioners argued that the vote counting method was fundamentally unfair and skewed the voting in support [...]
The US Supreme Court heard oral arguments Tuesday over whether the state can execute an individual who suffers from dementia and cannot remember the crime. Madison v. Alabama is before the Supreme Court for a second time. This time, the court seeks to answer the question : “onsistent with the Eighth Amendment … may the State [...]
The US Supreme Court heard oral arguments in two cases on Monday, marking the beginning of its 2018 term. At issue in Weyerhaeuser Company v. United States Fish and Wildlife Service is whether the Endangered Species Act forbids an agency to designate private property as an “unoccupied critical habitat” if the land is not essential to species conservation. There is [...]
India Supreme Court partially upholds world's largest biometric data system
The Supreme Court of India on Wednesday upheld in-part the constitutionality of the world’s largest biometric database system, which contains personal information of more than a billion Indians, saying the benefits of the system outweigh the costs to individual freedoms. The system is called the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIAI). The court explained the [...]
