The US Supreme Court [official website] heard oral arguments [day call, PDF] Tuesday in two cases. In Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith, Inc. v. Manning [transcript, PDF] the court will resolve the circuit split on whether Section 27 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 [text, PDF] provides federal jurisdiction over state-law claims based on violations or desired enforcement of the act. The US Courts of Appeal for the Fifth and Ninth Circuits have held that the act does provide federal jurisdiction, while the Second and Third Circuits have held that it does not.

In Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin v. United States [transcript, PDF] the court will decide whether the US Court of Appeals for the for the District of Columbia Circuit misapplied the Supreme Court’s Holland v. Florida [opinion] decision when it ruled that the Menominee Tribe was not entitled to tolling of the statute of limitations for filing of Indian Self-Determination Act [text] claims for unpaid contract support costs under the Contract Disputes Act [text].