Cases And Controversies

The Supreme Court will hear its final arguments of 2020, starting with a pair of cases seeking to reclaim Nazi-looted art. In those cases—Germany v. Philipp and Hungary v. Simon—the justices will consider whether Holocaust survivors and their families can sue former Axis countries in the U.S. or whether they must press their claims oversees. It's déjà vu for the remainder of the week, as the justices will consider issues—and in one instance, a case—that they've recently tackled in previous terms. In Facebook v. Duguid, the court will once again consider what counts as a prohibited "robocall" under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act. The arbitration case Henry Schein Inc. v. Archer and White Sales Inc. comes back to the court for a second time. This time the justices will consider when an arbitrator—not a court—gets to decide whether claims should go to arbitration or should they go to the judiciary in the first instance. Finally, the court considers another separation of powers challenge to a federal agenc

Despite decades of work to educate more Black lawyers, the percentage of Black associates and partners in firms across the U.S. remain very low, and well below those of other professional careers. Big Law firms across the board are ramping up social justice efforts as the nation engages in a renewed dialogue on race and equality. But some have accused firms of using minorities as “diversity props” to impress clients and misrepresent their inclusiveness to potential employees. So what are law firms doing to fix their lack of diversity? Hosts Adam Allington and Lisa Helem, along with reporters Ayanna Alexander, Ruiqi Chen, and Meghan Tribe, interviewed lawyers across the industry, from corporate general counsels to top Am Law 200 lawyers to current law students, each sharing their experience navigating the legal space as a person of color. We try to answer what law firms are doing to recruit more diverse classes of lawyers, and how they are addressing barriers to entry for Black lawyers.

The Supreme Court is set to hear arguments on a range of issues the week of Nov. 30, starting with a dispute over President Donald Trump’s attempt to keep non-citizens off the Census. The week will end with the latest appeal over non-unanimous jury verdicts. In between, the justices will hear an array of arguments over the scope of an anti-hacking law, the ability to sue the IRS to prevent enforcement, and corporate immunity from suits involving overseas atrocities. Bloomberg Law breaks down these cases in the latest episode of Cases and Controversies podcast.

The Supreme Court still has high-profile cases involving President Donald Trump on its docket as his tenure comes to a close, including disputes involving the Mueller Report and the Census. On the latest Cases and Controversies episode, Bloomberg Law reporters Kimberly Robinson and Jordan Rubin talk about how that Mueller case could be wiped from the docket. They also discuss the latest Census case, Trump v. New York, which deals with the administration’s attempt not to count non-citizens. The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund’s Mahogane Reed joins the hosts to break down the case and explain LDF’s support for New York’s position. Kimberly and Jordan also discuss the latest religion cases at the court involving challenges to Covid-prompted gathering restrictions, and how the justices may choose to avoid issuing sweeping rulings in both this and the Census case.

The justices wrapped up their remote November sitting with one of the most anticipated cases before the justices this term—the challenge to the Affordable Care Act. Akin Gump’s Pratik A. Shah joined “Cases and Controversies” podcast hosts Kimberly Robinson and Jordan Rubin to game out the likely outcomes that include the justices leaving most of the law intact. The case, California v. Texas, derives from a 2017 amendment to the landmark law known as Obamacare that zeroed out the penalty for failing to purchase health insurance, known as the individual mandate. GOP-led states and the federal government say the mandate was so integral to Obamacare that the rest of the law can’t stand without it. Shah, who filed an amicus brief in the case, explains why that’s unlikely to happen and why eyes should be on Chief Justice John Roberts and Brett Kavanaugh.

The Supreme Court will hear arguments over the fate of the Affordable Care Act—also known as Obamacare—on Nov. 10. It's a short argument week that also includes disputes over immigration and barriers to suing law enforcement. All ears will be on Justice Amy Coney Barrett in her second phone argument week as the justices remotely hear a Republican challenge to the healthcare law that dominated discussion during her confirmation hearings. On Nov. 9, the court will hear arguments on time rules surrounding immigration removal proceedings and whether federal law blocks a man’s suit against federal task force officers who beat him up.

In the latest episode of Cases and Controversies, Bloomberg Law reporters Kimberly Robinson and Jordan Rubin bring listeners up to speed on one of the next cases to be heard remotely by phone, Fulton v. City of Philadelphia. This will be one of the first cases new Supreme Court justice Amy Coney Barrett will hear. Also this week, the court will likely continue fielding emergency requests ahead of and after Election Day to sort out mail-in ballot and other disputes in the states over voting security and pandemic safety.

The Supreme Court is gearing up to hear a heated dispute pitting religious rights against LGBTQ rights the day after the election, in what could be an early test for Amy Coney Barrett. William Haun with the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty  joins Cases and Controversies hosts Kimberly Robinson and Jordan Rubin on this deep dive episode to break down Fulton v. City of Philadelphia. Haun’s group represents Sharonell Fulton, Toni Lynn Simms-Busch, and Catholic Social Services, which says the city is wrongly barring them from working in its foster care system because CSS won’t place children with same-sex couples. The hosts also catch up on Barrett’s almost certain confirmation, as well as the contentious voting cases that continue to divide the justices on their “shadow docket,” and some new appeals they agreed to hear argued later this term.

The Supreme Court’s first argument session of the October 2020 term is in the books and two of the lawyers who argued in it join the latest episode of Cases and Controversies to share their virtual experiences. Ramzi Kassem of CUNY law school and Sean Marotta of Hogan Lovells recount everything ranging from missing Justice Ginsburg to technical issues to what to eat for breakfast ahead of a pandemic-era remote argument. And Bloomberg Law judiciary reporter Madison Alder joins hosts Kimberly Robinson and Jordan Rubin to break down the latest in the high court confirmation process for Amy Coney Barrett, which appears secure for Republicans before the Nov. 3 elections are decided.

The Supreme Court continues to hear remote arguments in the second week of the term as confirmation hearings for Judge Amy Coney Barrett are set to begin. Barrett’s Senate Judiciary Committee hearings kick off Monday, a federal holiday. But in the second and final week of the October argument session, the justices will hear disputes in cases involving military justice, bankruptcy, Fourth Amendment civil suits against law enforcement, and immigration.

The Supreme Court term kicks off Monday after a shorter-than-usual summer break with only eight justices set to hear 10 cases this month. As in May, all arguments for the sitting will be conducted by phone due to social distancing demands of the coronavirus. A live audio feed will be provided by C-Span and other news outlets. This will be the first term in nearly three decades that the court will be without Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died Sept. 18, and the second time in the past three terms the court starts work with a prospective colleague in the confirmation process.

President Donald Trump nominated Seventh Circuit Judge Amy Coney Barrett on Sept. 26 to replace the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died Sept. 18. It's a move that could reshape the high court and the law for generations. On this special episode of Cases and Controversies, Bloomberg Law’s Kimberly Robinson, Jordan Rubin, and Madison Alder break down the nomination and what to expect in the weeks ahead. Republicans are pushing to seat Barrett before a winner is declared in the Nov. 3 election, raising questions of what Democrats can do to stop them, and, perhaps more importantly, what Democrats will do next if Republicans are successful.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s death has raised the Supreme Court’s profile as a confirmation fight over her successor and the presidential campaign converge. Kimberly Robinson and Jordan Rubin look at the future of the court, both in the near- and long-term, in this term preview episode featuring two guests. Weil’s Zack Tripp, a former Ginsburg clerk, joins the show to recount his experience at her memorial and share some of his memories clerking for the Notorious RBG. Then, the Pacific Legal Foundation’s Anastasia Boden talks about what Ginsburg meant to her and helps the hosts break down where the high court is headed.

Goodwin Liu, a California Supreme Court Justice, and former law clerk to Ruth Bader Ginsburg, remembers the late Supreme Court Justice on this special episode of Cases & Controversies. Liu talks about Ginsburg’s voracious editing style, and her most memorable opinions.

President Donald Trump announced 20 more potential Supreme Court justices for his "short" list, putting new attention on the high court as the 2020 election approaches. In the latest episode of Cases and Controversies, hosts Kimberly Robinson and Jordan Rubin discuss the list, which includes notable names in Republican political circles, like Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and former U.S. Solicitor General Paul Clement.  The hosts also bring on the Cato Institute's Ilya Shapiro, who has a new book coming out on the contentious Supreme Court confirmation process.

Challenges to election laws have poured into the Supreme Court and more are likely as the 2020 election season really heats up after Labor Day. Election law expert Rick Hasen, a professor at the University of California, Irvine, joins Cases and Controversies to discuss how the justices will approach these questions and what it may mean for voters. And check out this Bloomberg Law video on election safety with Hasen.

The Supreme Court keeps generating news despite it being in the thick of what should be a summer vacation. Some of that news involves yet more divided shadow docket orders related to Covid-19. On this episode of Cases and Controversies, hosts Kimberly Robinson and Jordan Rubin talk with Alliance Defending Freedom’s John Bursch. He’s one of the lawyers representing Calvary Chapel against the state of Nevada in one of the latest emergency cases that resulted in a 5-4 ruling. The church argues the state is unlawfully letting casinos operate at greater capacity than houses of worship during the pandemic. The hosts also run through the gamut of high court news, including some Supreme scoops, another Covid-related emergency order, Justice Ginsburg being back in the hospital, and Justice Stephen Breyer becoming an epic meme.

After a wild term, the Supreme Court is finally starting to settle down a bit, so the hosts of “Cases and Controversies” are going to the movies! On the latest episode, they interview ACLU attorneys starring in the forthcoming documentary “The Fight,” out July 31, which tracks several high-profile legal battles against the Trump administration over the last few years. The guests talk about their cases, their favorite film moments, and their thoughts on the just-completed high court term. Hosts Kimberly Robinson and Jordan Rubin also recap Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s latest health scare and the justices’ divergent—and unexplained—orders in the aftermath of the Trump financial subpoena litigation.

If you were excited about the new five-justice conservative majority, this just-completed term of the Supreme Court might have left you disappointed. But law professor Stephen Vladeck says that's not the full picture. A look at the so-called "shadow docket"—the work the court does without oral argument—suggests it was a much better term for conservatives and the Trump administration than it might seem. On the latest episode of Bloomberg Law's Cases and Controversies, hosts Kimberly Robinson and Jordan Rubin lift the veil on some of these consequential yet enigmatic actions. This includes green-lighting President Trump's border wall and refusing to revisit the doctrine of qualified immunity.

The Supreme Court wrapped up its term after issuing decisions in July for the first time in more than two decades. Chief Justice John Roberts continued to dominate the direction of the court he leads, authoring landmark opinions on presidential power in the cases over subpoenas for President Trump’s financial records. He was also in the majority for two big cases handing victories to religious employers seeking to avoid compliance with discrimination laws and provide contraception coverage to their employees. Hosts Kimberly Robinson and Jordan Rubin in the latest episode of Cases and Controversies break down the final week of the term, which also included a consequential ruling about American Indian land in Oklahoma. They also discuss Supreme Court retirement and health care news—but not the kind court watchers were bracing for.