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Greetings, Court fans!

Welcome back for Part III, which will cover three significant decisions: Gross v. FBL Financial Services, Inc. (08-441), resolving the burden of proof in a “mixed motives” case under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (“ADEA”); Forest Grove School District v. T.A. (08-305), discussing the circumstances under which reimbursement of private school expenses is permitted under the Individuals with Disabilities…

Read More Gross v. FBL Financial Services, Inc. (08-441), Forest Grove School District v. T.A. (08-305) and Yeager v. United States (08-67)
Greetings, Court fans!
The Court issued two decisions today and an order list, before going on recess for the summer. Justice Kennedy authored the Court’s 5-4 decision in Ricci v. DeStefano (07-1428), where the Court found in favor of the white and Hispanic firefighters that were denied promotions when New Haven threw out the results of an exam that would have promoted no black

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Read More Safford Unified School District v. Redding (08-479), Horne v. Flores (08-289) and Travelers Indemnity Co. v. Bailey (08-295)

Greetings, Court fans!

The Court issued its final order list yesterday before going on recess for the summer. (Don’t you wish you still had a summer recess? Makes me pine for those good old school days.) The Court added seven more cases to its October 2009 docket. Here they are:

Abbott v. Abbott (08-645), presents the question of whether a “ne exeat” clause –…

Read More Final Order List
Greetings, Court fans!
The Term is, for practical purposes, over, but I’m still working my way through the backlog. This Update will bring you a complete discussion of Ricci v. DeStefano (07-1428) and Cuomo v. Clearing House Association, L.L.C. (08-453), both mentioned in Monday’s Update, as well as Melendez-Diaz v. Massachusetts (07-591), where the Court held that defendants in drug cases have a

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Read More Ricci v. DeStefano (07-1428), Cuomo v. Clearing House Association, L.L.C. (07-591) and Melendez-Diaz v. Massachusetts (07-591)

Greetings, Court fans!
This will be my final Update of the Term and will bring you summaries of the following cases: Polar Tankers, Inc. v. City of Valdez (08-310), involving a constitutional challenge to a tax on vessels; Atlantic Sounding Co., Inc. v. Townsend (08-214), addressing the availability of punitive damages in a maritime action by a seaman for “maintenance and cure”; and

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Read More Polar Tankers, Inc. v. City of Valdez (08-310), Atlantic Sounding Co., Inc. v. Townsend (08-214) and District Attorney’s Office v. Osborne (08-6)

Greetings, Court fans!

We’re catching up on the Court’s four decisions issued last week – two civil and two habeas. I’ll start with the civil cases, including a highly divided per curiam decision blocking broadcasting of a California trial regarding the constitutionality of Proposition 8 (the ballot initiative that amended California’s constitution to bar same sex marriage), and a nearly unanimous decision regarding the scope…

Read More Hollingsworth v. Perry (09A648), NRG Power Marketing, LLC et al. v. Maine Public Utilities Commission et al. (08-764), McDaniel v. Brown (08-559) and Smith v. Spisak (08-724)