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On December 8, 2025, the Justices heard oral argument in Trump v. Slaughter (No. 25-332). The Supreme Court plans to decide (1) whether the statutory removal protections for independent, multi-member federal agencies violate the separation of powers (and, if so, whether the Supreme Court should sack its 1935 decision in Humphrey’s Executor v. United States) and (2) whether the judiciary has the power to prevent one’s removal from public office.

Continue Reading Supreme Court To Determine Whether the President Can Remove Members of Multi-Member Federal Agencies
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Trump v. Barbara / Trump v. Washington

The Supreme Court granted review of President Trump’s Executive Order No. 14160, addressing the application of birthright citizenship. The grant follows—and has drawn heightened attention because of—the Court’s earlier decision staying a lower court’s nationwide injunction of the Executive Order. Although courts have long interpreted the Fourteenth Amendment to extend citizenship to all individuals born on U.S. soil—with some limited exceptions—this case asks the Court to revisit that issue. The Court’s eventual decision is expected to have far-reaching implications for both the scope of executive power and the constitutional rights of individuals born in the United States.

Montgomery v. Caribe Transport II, LLC

The Supreme Court will decide whether the Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act, 49 U.S.C. § 14501(c), preempts a state common-law claim against a freight broker for negligent selection of a motor carrier or driver in Montgomery v. Caribe Transport II, LLC. Montgomery, a driver injured during an auto accident, sued C.H. Robinson Worldwide Inc., a freight broker, for negligently hiring the contractors who had caused Montgomery’s injuries. The Seventh Circuit held that the statute bars such state-law claims against freight brokers. The Supreme Court’s review will directly affect the allocation of liability in the shipping and logistics industries.

Jules v. Andre Balazs Properties et al.

The Supreme Court will consider federal court jurisdiction over certain cases filed under the Federal Arbitration Act. The Second Circuit determined that a federal court that orders arbitration retains jurisdiction to decide a later application to confirm or vacate the arbitration award, even where the application does not show a basis for subject matter jurisdiction. The Supreme Court is poised to clarify what jurisdictional showing parties must make when seeking judicial review of arbitration awards.

T.M. v. University of Maryland Medical Systems

Subject matter jurisdiction remains center stage on the docket in T.M. v. University of Maryland Medical Systems, a case that invites review of the Fourth Circuit’s determination that it lacked jurisdiction to hear a case challenging a state district court’s consent order. The appellants argue federal jurisdiction is proper because the Rooker-Feldman doctrine should be strictly limited to judgments issued by a state’s highest court. Historically, the Rooker-Feldman doctrine has prevented lower federal courts from hearing cases that function as appeals or challenges to final state court judgments. Thus, the Supreme Court’s forthcoming decision will likely clarify whether the doctrine applies to judgments rendered by any state court or only those issued by a state’s highest court.

For more information, contact Chantel Febus, James Azadian, Monika Harris, or Sadie Betting.

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On November 5, 2025, the Supreme Court heard oral argument in Learning Resources v. Trump, consolidated with Trump v. VOS Selections (consolidated as No. 24-1287) to consider whether the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) authorizes the President to impose trade tariffs pursuant to declared national emergencies. If the Court concludes that the tariffs are statutorily authorized, the Justices will then decide whether the tariffs constitute an unconstitutional delegation of legislative authority to the President. So far, this is the most important case the Justices have agreed to hear this term.

Continue Reading Supreme Court Weighs Extent of President’s Authority to Impose Tariffs During Proclaimed National Emergencies
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In Hain Celestial Group, Inc. v. Palmquist (No. 24-724), the Supreme Court will determine (1) whether a district court’s judgment resolving litigation between completely diverse parties must later be vacated for lack of subject matter jurisdiction if an appellate court subsequently concludes that, at the time the case was removed from state court, the case did not have complete diversity jurisdiction, and (2) whether a plaintiff may block diversity jurisdiction by updating the complaint after removal to include a valid claim against a nondiverse defendant.

Continue Reading Supreme Court Considers Whether “Final” Judgment Really Means “Final”
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On November 4, 2025, the Supreme Court heard oral argument in Coney Island Auto Parts Unlimited, Inc. v. Burton (24-808) to consider whether Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 60(c)(1) imposes a time limit on motions seeking to set aside a void default judgment for lack of personal jurisdiction.

Continue Reading Supreme Court Debates Applicability of Federal Rule to Void Default Judgments
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On October 6, 2025, the Supreme Court heard oral argument in Villarreal v. Texas (No. 24-557) to consider a constitutional question that could significantly affect criminal defendants’ Sixth Amendment protections. The Justices are poised to decide whether a trial court violates the Sixth Amendment right to counsel by prohibiting the defendant from discussing his or her own testimony with counsel during an overnight trial recess before being dismissed as a witness.

Continue Reading Supreme Court Weighs Prohibition on Criminal Defense Attorney-Client Communication
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Little v. Hecox

The Court will consider whether Idaho’s Fairness in Women’s Sports Act, which limits participation in female athletic teams to biological females, violates the Equal Protection Clause and Title IX. The Ninth Circuit’s injunction preserved participation rights for a transgender athlete pending trial, deepening a nationwide split over the intersection of gender identity, sex-based classifications, and the federal statutory scheme governing school athletics. The Court’s resolution may have far-reaching implications not only for educational institutions and athletic associations, but also for corporate sponsors, universities, and compliance frameworks navigating federal nondiscrimination mandates amid rapidly evolving social policy. Because the case sits at the crossroads of civil rights law and gender policy, its outcome may reshape how public and private institutions define and administer sex-based categories under Title IX and related statutes.

West Virginia v. B.P.J.

West Virginia’s petition presents a parallel challenge to the Fourth Circuit’s ruling that permitted a transgender student’s participation on a girls’ track team, asserting that state authority to define eligibility by biological sex does not contravene Title IX or equal protection principles. The Court’s simultaneous review with Little v. Hecox may signal a comprehensive examination of the constitutional and statutory boundaries of gender-based classifications in education. The outcome may standardize—or upend—how states, schools, and governing bodies reconcile inclusivity policies with long-standing legal concepts of sex equality. A decision in either direction could also inform corporate diversity frameworks and compliance standards tied to gender identity and equal opportunity mandates.

Trump v. Slaughter

In a rare move granting certiorari before judgment—agreeing to hear the case directly from the district court without waiting for the court of appeals to rule—the Justices are set to address whether statutory limits on removing FTC Commissioners unconstitutionally restrict presidential control and whether Article III courts may enjoin the President from effecting such removal. The case invites a direct reexamination of Humphrey’s Executor v. United States—a New Deal-era precedent anchoring the modern administrative state. A decision narrowing or overturning that framework may recalibrate the separation-of-powers architecture across the alphabet soup of independent agencies, potentially altering how corporate entities assess regulatory exposure, enforcement predictability, and strategic engagement with administrative bodies.

Flowers Foods, Inc. v. Brock

The Court will resolve the circuit conflict over the scope of the Federal Arbitration Act’s § 1 “transportation worker” exemption, which some courts have extended to last-mile delivery drivers who never cross state lines but handle goods that do. The decision will be pivotal for businesses reliant on logistics, e-commerce distribution, and contractor-based delivery models, determining whether such workers can be compelled to arbitrate employment disputes. For corporate America, the ruling may either cement arbitration’s dominance in the gig-economy context or significantly expand the reach of judicial litigation for a class of workers critical to national supply chains. Its reasoning could influence arbitration enforceability clauses across industries, prompting companies to revisit risk allocations and dispute-resolution provisions in service and logistics contracts.

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On October 7, 2025, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Chiles v. Salazar, a case that tests the extent of First Amendment protections for regulated professionals. After a divided Tenth Circuit panel rejected a challenge to Colorado’s so-called Minor Conversion Therapy Law (MCTL), C.R.S. §§ 12-245-101, 12-245-202, the Court is now positioned to decide “whether a law that censors certain conversations between counselors and their clients based on the viewpoints expressed regulates conduct or violates the Free Speech Clause.”

Continue Reading Supreme Court Hears First Amendment Challenge to Colorado Conversion Therapy Ban
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A divided Ninth Circuit panel declined to push the pause button on a San Francisco-based district court’s nationwide injunction blocking the government from carrying out President Trump’s executive order aimed to reign in the size of the federal government through large-scale reductions in its workforce, with special focus on those federal agency “offices that perform functions not mandated by statute or other law.” A coalition of unions, nonprofits, and local governments brought the lawsuit to challenge the president’s authority to reorganize the agencies, absent congressional approval. Undeterred, the government promptly applied to the Supreme Court to freeze the injunction while its appeal before the Ninth Circuit moves forward. In arguing for the emergency relief, Solicitor General D. John Sauer called the district court’s order “flawed” and resting on an “indefensible premise” that the president needs authorization from Congress to oversee personnel decisions within the Executive Branch. In an unsigned, one-page order issued July 8, the Supreme Court seemingly had no difficulty staying the injunction, reasoning that “the Government is likely to succeed on its argument that the Executive Order… [is] lawful.”

Continue Reading Decision Alert: Supreme Court Clears the Way for Executive Control