Cases and Controversies

The Supreme Court term was limited in its blockbusters this year, but the decision to limit the power of lower court judges to issue nationwide injunctions will have the biggest impact, attorneys and legal scholars say. “It affects how cases get litigated in a big way,” said Anastasia Boden, a senior attorney at the Pacific Legal Foundation, a libertarian public interest law firm. "I saw someone say 'We're all class action attorneys now, right?' because that's all we've got." Boden joins “Cases and Controversies,” along with Georgia State University College of Law professor Eric Segall to discuss the recent term, its rulings, and the justices that stood out the most. Hosts Kimberly Robinson and Lydia Wheeler also talk about the court’s recent emergency order that allows President Donald Trump to move forward with plans to reduce the size of the federal workforce. Do you have feedback on this episode of Cases and Controversies? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

Transgender rights suffered a major loss at the US Supreme Court after its opinion in the Skrmetti case. But some advocates for transgender rights found reasons within the opinion to believe their cause might fare better in future cases. Cases and Controversies hosts Kimberly Robinson and Lydia Wheeler get into the details of this opinion on the latest episode of their podcast. They also talk about the other opinions we got from the court this week, including one in which Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson issued an impassioned dissent on the issue of standing. Do you have feedback on this episode of Cases & Controversies? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

The justices have already had a deluge of emergency requests from the Trump administration, and another is likely to land before them soon involving the president's tariffs. Lower courts have temporarily ruled against the tariffs using doctrines recently revived by the Supreme Court's conservative majority to frustrate policies of Democratic administrations. The Trump administration has signaled it will bring the case to the high court. Cases and Controversies hosts Kimberly Robinson and Greg Stohr discuss those cases as well as other actions by the court. Do you have feedback on this episode of Cases and Controversies? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

The practicalities of birthright citizenship being restricted in some states but not others appeared to be a concern of key justices on the US Supreme Court. President Donald Trump has asked the justices to narrow lower court rulings that blocked his executive order limiting automatic citizenship to babies born with at least one parent who’s a citizen or permanent resident. Cases and Controversies hosts Greg Stohr and Lydia Wheeler discuss Thursday's arguments and highlight the exchanges that seemed to show the justices are wary of letting Trump start enforcing his restrictions. Do you have feedback on this episode of Cases and Controversies? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

The Supreme Court heard the last in a trio of cases over religious rights with the justices appearing to split long largely ideological lines. During arguments April 30 in Oklahoma Statewide Charter School Board v. Drummond, the justices considered a virtual school's bid to become the nation's first religious charter school. Cases and Controversies hosts Lydia Wheeler and Kimberly Robinson say the case seems to turn on Chief Justice John Roberts. Do you have feedback on this episode of Cases and Controversies? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

Obamacare is back before the Supreme Court in a challenge to its no-cost coverage requirements for certain preventive health services. The justices will weigh the constitutionality of the US Preventive Services Task Force, which recommends the tests and treatments insurers should cover, when they return to the bench on Monday for the April sitting. If the lower court's decision is upheld, "it is possible, given the posture of the case, that over 150 million Americans lose free coverage of hundreds of benefits," said Sara Rosenbaum, an emerita professor of health law and policy at George Washington University. Rosenbaum joins Cases and Controversies hosts Greg Stohr and Lydia Wheeler to talk about why the case is more about power than it is public health and what's at stake if the court does away with the insurance coverage that’s caught in its crosshairs. Do you have feedback on this episode of Cases & Controversies, Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

Supreme Court justices from across the ideological spectrum appeared ready to side with a religious group seeking an unemployment tax exemption, in the first of three church-state disputes on tap in coming weeks. "I thought it was pretty fundamental that we don't treat some religions better than other religions," Justice Elena Kagan said. "And we certainly don't do it based on the content of the religious doctrine that those religions preach." Cases and Controversies hosts Kimberly Robinson and Lydia Wheeler break down arguments in Catholic Charities Bureau v. Wisconsin Labor & Indus., and take a look of some of the court's recent opinions. Do you have feedback on this episode of Cases and Controversies? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

The Supreme Court will consider a case at the end of March that could limit Congress’ ability to let federal regulators determine what public health and safety standards are necessary. Depending on what the court decides, any statute that grants discretion to an agency could be open for re-review, said Jessica Ellsworth, a partner at Hogan Lovells. "There's probably hundreds of thousands of places in the US code that there are terms used like 'in the public interest,' whether something is 'necessary' and 'appropriate,' whether something is 'reasonable,' whether something is 'fair' or 'unfair,' whether it's 'essential,'" she said. Ellsworth joins Cases and Controversies hosts Greg Stohr and Lydia Wheeler to discuss the nondelegation doctrine and how this legal principle, which the court has been asked to revive, could impact the federal telecom subsidy program at issue and other regulations more broadly. The hosts also chat about a social media post from President Donald Trump that garnered a rare response from Chief Justice John Roberts. Do you have feedback on this episode of Cases and Controversies? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

A fight over plans for a privately owned nuclear waste storage facility in Texas seemed to divide the US Supreme Court as the justices wrestled with a federal agency’s regulatory authority and who can challenge it. Cases and Controversies hosts Greg Stohr and Lydia Wheeler unpack Wednesday’s arguments in the dispute over a Nuclear Regulatory Commission license that would have moved as much as 40,000 tons of spent nuclear fuel to a privately owned facility. The US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ruled the agency didn’t have the authority to grant the license after Texas and neighboring landowners challenged it in court. It's unclear if the court will affirm that ruling. A decision is due by the end of June or early July. The hosts also chat about the most significant ruling to come from the Supreme Court so far in litigation against actions President Donald Trump has taken since returning to office. A divided court rejected his request to toss out a district court order that forced him to pay $2 billion in federal foreign aid. Do you have feedback on this episode of Cases & Controversies? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

The Supreme Court- has been pulled into its first dispute over a Trump administration action with more cases likely coming its way. Acting Solicitor General Sarah Harris asked the justices in an emergency request to toss out a temporary restraining order that stopped President Donald Trump from firing the head of the US Office of Special Counsel. Lower courts have issued TROs in response to Trump’s executive actions now testing presidential authority to reshape the federal workforce, government spending, and citizenship rights. Thomas Berry, the director of the Center for Constitutional Studies at the libertarian Cato Institute, joins Cases and Controversies hosts Kimberly Robinson and Lydia Wheeler to discuss the first case before the high court. Guest: Thomas Berry, Cato Institute Hosts: Kimberly Robinson and Lydia Wheeler Producer: Mo Barrow Do you have feedback on this episode of Cases & Controversies, Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

The US Supreme Court will hear arguments in a reverse discrimination case when the justices return to the bench at the end of the month. A heterosexual woman is asking the court to revive her lawsuit against the Ohio Department of Youth Services where she's worked since 2004 after the US Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit said she hadn't shown the "background circumstances" necessary to take her case to trial. The court didn't just ask for a little bit more evidence, it asked for a lot more, said Xiao Wang, director of the University of Virginia's Supreme Court Litigation Clinic, who's representing Marlean Ames in her case. Wang and co-counsel Edward Gilbert join Cases and Controversies to discuss the case and what's at stake. Hosts Greg Stohr and Lydia Wheeler also chat about Trump's impending trade war and look at the legal doctrine that could stand in the way of his planned tariffs on China, Mexico, and Canada. Hosts: Lydia Wheeler and Greg Stohr Produce: Mo Barrow Do you have feedback on this episode of Cases & Controversies, Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

Supreme Court justices seemed to agree courts should look at the totality of circumstances when analyzing whether a police officer's use of deadly force was reasonable. During arguments Wednesday, the US Supreme Court appeared ready to rule the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit had used the wrong test when it considered the claims of a mother who argues a Texas police officer unjustly shot and killed her son during a traffic stop in 2016. Cases and Controversies hosts Kimberly Robinson and Lydia Wheeler discuss the arguments in that dispute over the officer’s use of deadly force and the likelihood of a future Supreme Court case over President Donald Trump’s executive order on birthright citizenship. The order, which deems denies automatic citizenship to children born of immigrants in the US, was temporarily blocked by a federal judge on Thursday. Hosts: Kimberly Robinson and Lydia Wheeler Producer: Mo Barrow Do you have feedback on this episode of Cases and Controversies? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690

The much-anticipated argument of the future of TikTok in the US will be heard by the Supreme Court on Friday. Cases and Controversies hosts Kimberly Robinson and Lydia Wheeler preview the case with Knight First Amendment Institute staff attorney Xiangnong (George) Wang. The Biden administration says the law, which effectively bans the social media site in the US unless sold by its Chinese owner, is necessary for national security. But the social media site and its users say its censorship. Do you have feedback on this episode of Cases and Controversies? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.