Crawford v. Marion County Election Board
U.S. Sup. Ct.
April 28, 2008
The Supreme Court affirmed a ruling of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit that considered the constitutionality of an Indiana state election law, known as the "Voter ID Law" or "SEA 483," that required a citizen voting in person to present government-issued photo identification.
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Virginia v. Moore
U.S. Sup. Ct.
April 23, 2008
The U.S. Supreme Court reversed the Virginia Supreme Court in a case considering whether a police officer violates the Fourth Amendment by making an arrest based on probable cause but prohibited by state law. The Supreme Court held that the police did not violate the Fourth Amendment either when they made an arrest that was based on probable cause, but prohibited by state law, or when they performed a search incident to the arrest.
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Baze v. Rees
U.S. Sup. Ct.
April 16, 2008
The Supreme Court upheld a decision by the Kentucky Supreme Court which found that the lethal injection protocol used by the commonwealth of Kentucky to administer the death penalty does not violate the Eighth Amendment because it does not create a substantial risk of wanton and unnecessary infliction of pain, torture, or lingering death.
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Begay v. United States
U.S. Sup. Ct.
April 16, 2008
The Supreme Court reversed and remanded a decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit regarding the Armed Career Criminal Act, which imposes a special mandatory 15-year prison term on a felon who unlawfully possesses a firearm and who has three or more prior convictions for committing certain drug crimes or "a violent felony."
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Burgess v. United States
U.S. Sup. Ct.
April 16, 2008
The Supreme Court affirmed a decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit that held that a misdemeanor state drug conviction punishable by more than one year imprisonment was a "felony drug offense" under the Controlled Substance Act, which, for certain drug offenses, mandates doubling the imprisonment term for defendants previously convicted of a "felony drug offense."
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United States v. Clintwood Elkhorn Mining Co.
U.S. Sup. Ct.
April 15, 2008
The Supreme Court reversed a decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in a tax case that raised the question of whether a taxpayer suing for a refund of taxes collected in violation of the export clause of the Constitution may proceed under the Tucker Act when his suit does not meet the time limits for refund actions in the Internal Revenue Code.
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Meadwestvaco Corp. v. Illinois Department of Revenue
U.S. Sup. Ct.
April 15, 2008
The Supreme Court vacated a decision of the Illinois appellate court in a case on whether the state of Illinois constitutionally taxed an apportioned share of the capital gain realized by an out-of-state corporation on the sale of one of its business divisions.
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New Jersey v. Delaware
U.S. Sup. Ct.
March 31, 2008
The Supreme Court accepted, in principal part, the recommendation of a special master appointed by the Court to resolve a dispute between the states of Delaware and New Jersey regarding the boundary along the Delaware River separating the two states. The dispute arose from the refusal of the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control to grant permission for the construction of a liquefied natural gas unloading terminal projected to extend from New Jersey into Delaware.
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Hall Street Associates, LLC, v. Mattel, Inc.
U.S. Sup. Ct.
March 25, 2008
The Supreme Court vacated a decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit in a case considering whether the statutory grounds for prompt vacatur and modification of arbitration awards, as provided for in the Federal Arbitration Act, may be supplemented by contract. Considering a landlord/tenant dispute in which the contract between the parties sought to alter these grounds, the Court held that the statutory grounds are exclusive.
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Medellin v. Texas
U.S. Sup. Ct.
March 25, 2008
The Supreme Court affirmed a dismissal by the Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas of an application for a writ of habeas corpus filed by the petitioner, a Mexican national convicted and sentenced in Texas of murder. The Texas court dismissed the application as an abuse of the writ under state law, given the petitioner's failure to timely raise his claim that his conviction had violated the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations.
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Snyder v. Louisiana
U.S. Sup. Ct.
March 19, 2008
The Supreme Court reversed a decision of the Louisiana Supreme Court in which the state court rejected a defendant's claim, following his conviction for first-degree murder and death sentence, that the prosecution exercised some of its preemptory jury challenges based on race in violation of Batson v. Kentucky (1986). The Supreme Court held that the trial court committed clear error in its ruling on a Batson objection.
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Washington State Grange v. Washington State Republican Party
U.S. Sup. Ct.
March 18, 2008
The Supreme Court reversed the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, which held that an initiative passed in the State of Washington changing the state's primary election system was facially invalid as imposing an unconstitutional burden on state political parties' First Amendment rights. The Supreme Court held that the initiative did not, on its face, impose a severe burden on political parties' associational rights.
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Boulware v. United States
U.S. Sup. Ct.
March 03, 2008
The Supreme Court vacated a decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit in which the issue was whether, under Sections 301 and 316(a) of the Internal Revenue Code that set the conditions for treating certain corporate distributions as returns of capital that are nontaxable to the recipient, a distributee accused of criminal tax evasion may claim return-of-capital treatment without producing evidence that either he or the corporation intended a capital return when the distribution occurred.
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Federal Express Corp. v. Holowecki
U.S. Sup. Ct.
February 27, 2008
The Supreme Court affirmed a decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit in a case considering what constitutes a "charge" under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967. Under the ADEA, a civil action cannot be initiated until 60 days after a "charge" alleging unlawful discrimination has been filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, but "charge" is not defined.
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Sprint/United Management Co. v. Mendelsohn
U.S. Sup. Ct.
February 26, 2008
The Supreme Court vacated a decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit in an age discrimination case in which the trial court excluded testimony by nonparties alleging discrimination by supervisors who had no role in the employment decision that the plaintiff challenged. The 10th Circuit disagreed and treated the trial court's ruling as applying a per se rule that evidence from employees of other supervisors was irrelevant in age discrimination cases.
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Riegel v. Medtronic, Inc.
U.S. Sup. Ct.
February 20, 2008
The Supreme Court affirmed the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit in a case in which the Court considered whether the pre-emption clause of the Medical Device Amendments of 1976 barred common-law claims challenging the safety and effectiveness of a medical device given pre-market approval by the Food and Drug Administration.
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Danforth v. Minnesota
U.S. Sup. Ct.
February 20, 2008
The Supreme Court reversed a decision of the Supreme Court of Minnesota in a case in which the petitioner sought post-conviction relief after the Supreme Court announced a "new rule" in Crawford v. Washington (2004) for evaluating the reliability of testimonial statements in criminal cases, arguing that his trial had violated the Crawford rule.
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Rowe v. New Hampshire Motor Transport Association
U.S. Sup. Ct.
February 20, 2008
The Supreme Court affirmed the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 1st Circuit in a case that considered whether the Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act of 1994, 49 U.S.C. 14501(c)(1), which prohibits states from enacting any law "related to" a motor carrier "price, route, or service," pre-empts two provisions of a Maine tobacco law that regulate the delivery of tobacco to customers within the state.
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Preston v. Ferrer
U.S. Sup. Ct.
February 20, 2008
The Supreme Court reversed a decision by the Court of Appeal of California in a case that considered whether the Federal Arbitration Act overrides not only state statutes that refer certain state law controversies initially to a judicial forum, but also state statutes that refer certain disputes initially to an administrative agency.
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LaRue v. DeWolff, Boberg & Associates, Inc.
U.S. Sup. Ct.
February 20, 2008
The Supreme Court vacated a decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit in which the appeals court held that Section 502(a)(2) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 provided remedies only for entire plans, not for individuals, and therefore granted the respondents a judgment on the pleadings.
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