Welcome

January 9, 2024 Uncategorized No Comments
This page is primarily for recommending Supreme Court cases to my undergraduate students. I won’t mention all cases (see scotusblog for that), but rather will highlight days when at least one case is likely to be interesting and accessible to a casual observer with interests that coincide with my course themes.…

January 2026 arguments

January 2, 2026 case suggestions No Comments
Apologies for the brief hiatus on this blog, as other obligations prevented me from making posts for the November and December arguments. But we are back in January with arguments concerning oil company operations off the Louisiana coast, trans student-athletes, state sovereign immunity, concealed weapons on private property, and the…

October 2025 cases

August 29, 2025 case suggestions No Comments
The traditional “First Monday” opening of the regular October 2025 Term is October 6 this year, although the court has been particularly active on the “shadow docket” even during the summer recess. See below for tips about preparing for some of the major cases concerning the right to counsel for…

Know Your Rights – Washington, DC

August 22, 2025 commentary No Comments
I am making this post with my students in mind — especially those who are moving to Washington, DC, for the first time in the coming days or who are now returning to the city after a summer away and are wondering what to expect and how to contextualize the…

October 2025 term – lottery opens

August 13, 2025 case suggestions No Comments
Yesterday afternoon, the Court released the argument calendar for the first two months of the October 2025 term. (This seems later in the summer than usual but I haven’t checked my memory on that.) Amy Howe has a highlight of some of the major cases and I will offer more…

Thoughts on LA and the differences between power and authority

June 10, 2025 commentary No Comments
In federalizing the California National Guard, President Trump colored his declaration with the language of federal law to declare that certain “protests or acts of violence . . . constitute a form of rebellion against the authority of the Government of the United States.” This has been properly labeled a…

Decision Days

May 22, 2025 case suggestions No Comments
The Court has now heard arguments in all cases scheduled for this term, so all that remains is the issuance of opinions. Currently, the Court has set “non-argument days” for Thursdays, in addition to “order list issuance days” on Mondays (except for one on Tuesday, May 27, in lieu of…

May 15 – Birthright Citizenship

May 14, 2025 case suggestions commentary No Comments
The Court will sit for a very unusual set of oral arguments tomorrow (Thursday, May 15) to review the Trump Administration’s request to stay the preliminary injunctions that have been issued in three cases (Trump v. CASA, Trump v. Washington, and Trump v. New Jersey), blocking implementation of the Executive…

Late February and early March cases

February 23, 2025 case suggestions No Comments
The next block of SCOTUS arguments includes some extremely important issues that have not received much public attention: among others, the right to demand DNA testing after being sentenced to death, “reverse discrimination” standards and showings, and gun-maker liability. Monday, February 24 A really interesting death penalty case involving DNA…

January 2025 Cases

January 5, 2025 case suggestions 1 Comment
The January argument calendar includes some very high-profile cases — the TikTok ban and age verification on porn sites — as well as some very important cases that have received less public attention involving police shootings, ADA coverage, the First Step Act, false versus misleading statements (by a Daley family…