SCOTUS NEWS

Justices appoint former clerk to argue First Step Act cases 

The Supreme Court on Friday afternoon appointed a former clerk to Justice Samuel Alito (who also served as a clerk to then-Judge Neil Gorsuch on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit) to defend a ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit in a pair of cases involving the interpretation of the First Step Act, a 2018 law that — among other things – reduced the mandatory minimum sentences for some drug and gun crimes. The cases have not yet been scheduled for oral argument.

In a brief unsigned order, the justices appointed Michael McGinley, a partner in the Dechert law firm, to brief and argue Hewitt v. United States and Duffey v. United States, in which the court granted review on July 2. Although it agreed with the defendants that the lower court’s interpretation of the First Step Act was “incorrect,” the federal government had nonetheless urged the Supreme Court to deny both cases. It emphasized that the question presented by the two cases was of only “modest importance,” and it noted that Congress was currently considering legislation that would eliminate the need for the court to step in.

WHAT WE'RE READING

The morning read for Friday, July 26

Each weekday, we select a short list of news articles, commentary, and other noteworthy links related to the Supreme Court. Here’s the Friday morning read:

• Elena Kagan calls for better enforcement of Supreme Court’s ethics code (Josh Gerstein, Politico)
• Newsom Orders California Officials to Remove Homeless Encampments (Shawn Hubler, The New York Times)
• West Virginia is asking the US Supreme Court to consider transgender surgery Medicaid coverage case (Leah Willingham, The Associated Press)
• New York urges Supreme Court not to intervene in Trump’s hush money criminal case (Devan Cole, CNN)
• Biden’s Supreme Court-Smacking Plan (Editorial Board, The Wall Street Journal)

WHAT WE'RE READING

The morning read for Thursday, July 25

Each weekday, we select a short list of news articles, commentary, and other noteworthy links related to the Supreme Court. Here’s the Thursday morning read:

• Republicans ask Supreme Court to pause new EPA rules limiting planet-warming pollutants (Ella Nilsen & Devan Cole, CNN)
• How the most right-wing appeals court was reined in by the Supreme Court this term (Maureen Groppe, USA Today)
• Four Major Rulings That Could Come Before October (Katherine Fung, Newsweek)
• How the Supreme Court’s immunity ruling could really backfire (James Petrila & John Sipher, The Washington Post)
• Constitutional warning shot for social media “deplatforming” laws (Damon Root, Freethink)

WHAT WE'RE READING

The morning read for Wednesday, July 24

Each weekday, we select a short list of news articles, commentary, and other noteworthy links related to the Supreme Court. Here’s the Wednesday morning read:

• Trump allies crush misinformation research despite Supreme Court loss (Cat Zakrzewski & Naomi Nix, The Washington Post)
• Bears, Fish, and Wolves’ New Predator: the Supreme Court? (Jackie Flynn Mogensen, Mother Jones)
• Democrats push US Senate bill to reverse Supreme Court ruling curbing agency power (Nate Raymond, Reuters)
• Supreme Court decisions will hurt Utah and its neighbors (Brian Moench, The Salt Lake Tribune)
• The Supreme Court Fools Itself (Adam Serwer, The Atlantic) 

WHAT WE'RE READING

The morning read for Tuesday, July 23

Each weekday, we select a short list of news articles, commentary, and other noteworthy links related to the Supreme Court. Here’s the Tuesday morning read:

• US Asks Supreme Court to Unblock Transgender Student Protections (Lydia Wheeler, Bloomberg Law)
• Democratic senators seek to reverse Supreme Court ruling that restricts federal agency power (Lawrence Hurley, NBC News)
• Corporate America revels in Supreme Court windfall (Gabriel Rubin, Reuters) 
• Supreme Court’s Hand-Picked Advocate Argues In Favor Of Killing Richard Glossip (Liliana Segura & Jordan Smith, The Intercept)
• Amicus Citations in OT 2022 and 2023 (Adam Feldman, Empirical SCOTUS)