Good morning and welcome to Supreme Court Brief. The justices are in the middle of their first non-argument week. They did not grant review in any news cases Monday, but they did ask for the views of the U.S. solicitor general in a patent case involving something many travelers use today. We have details. And a vigorous lobbying effort to have the justices overrule the Insular Cases failed when the court denied review of a Tenth Circuit ruling. And, scroll down for some scholarly thoughts on what the justices might do in the term’s major affirmative action challenge scheduled for argument on Oct. 31.

Thanks for reading. We welcome feedback and tips. Contact Marcia Coyle at [email protected] and follow her on Twitter @MarciaCoyle. 

A A Transportation Security Agency checkpoint scans luggage. (Photo: Shutterstock.com)

Luggage Locks