Entries tagged: supreme court

Amicus curiae briefs, also known as “friend of the court” briefs, are often filed in appellate cases heard by the United States Supreme Court (as well as state appellate courts and intermediate federal courts of appeal). Amicus briefs provide non-parties who have a strong interest in the subject matter of a case – sometimes referred […]

The political drama surrounding Justice Kavanaugh’s confirmation captivated the public this fall. Across the country, people were glued to their screens watching the proceedings. But why? Fierce ideological debates and even allegations of sexual assault are not new to confirmation hearings. Throughout history, confirmation hearings have involved sexual assault allegations (Justice Thomas) and ideological disagreements […]

What do a baker and the President of the United States have in common? After reading two of the most highly anticipated opinions of the October 2017 term, Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission and Trump v. Hawaii, some might say the ability to restrict access based on religion. In these opinions, the Court […]

Laws constantly evolve to adapt to modern society. Situations that were once impossible to imagine (such as buying hand soap from a distant warehouse at the click of a button and having it appear on your doorstep the next day) are now routine. As such, it is impossible to craft legal rules to anticipate the […]

Nine unelected Supreme Court Justices are tasked with deciding the most important issues confronting our country. For better or for worse, we the people are beholden to the jurisprudence of nine politically unaccountable legal minds.  However, the minds of Supreme Court Justices are neither infallible nor uniformly programmed. Justices come to the bench with different […]

On April 24, 2018, Justice Kennedy, writing the plurality opinion in Jesner et al. v. Arab Bank, Plc., 584 U.S. __ (2018), placed what might be the final nail in the coffin of the Alien Tort Statute (ATS).  In Jesner, the Court affirmed the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit’s dismissal, which held […]

On June 23, 2017, in Murr v. Wisconsin, the U.S. Supreme Court addressed whether adjacent properties owned by the same owner may be combined for purposes of determining if there has been a regulatory taking without compensation. The Court ruled that a Wisconsin regulation preventing the owners of two adjacent parcels from selling or developing […]

The Dodd-Frank Act, signed into law in 2010, established a program for whistleblowing related to securities and commodities law violations.  It created a private cause of action for whistleblowers to sue their employers for retaliation after reporting company misconduct.  However, federal circuit courts are split as to when employees are eligible for anti-retaliation protection under […]

The U.S. Supreme Court recently issued a unanimous decision that will limit the controversial practice of “venue shopping” by plaintiffs who pick court locations they believe will be more favorable to their case, and who unnecessarily drag defendants into patent disputes in a faraway venue in the process.  The decision has important implications for businesses […]

“End the unnecessary exclusion of persons with handicaps from the American mainstream”[1]: Safe Harbor Retreat’s Efforts to Ensure Uniform Application of the Fair Housing Act Editor-in-Chief: Patricia E. Salkin, Esq. Managing Editor: Emily Howard, Esq. Under the Fair Housing Act, when does the denial of an applicant’s request for a reasonable accommodation become justiciable?  The answer […]