Legal News
Reports on lawmaking, constitutional issues, and court cases. The Daily Signal combines news reporting with conservative commentary and legal analysis.
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- Opinion
A Look at Ketanji Brown Jackson’s Most Noteworthy Judicial Decisions
On March 21, Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson’s Supreme Court confirmation hearing will begin. Senators will be scrutinizing her past judicial opinions on critical issues from labor law to illegal immigration to presidential claims of executive privilege. This brief overview of several of those key opinions provides some insight into her general approach to resolving legal…John G. Malcolm -
- Opinion
High Court Nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson Argued Against Free Speech—Near Abortion Clinics
A woman walks up to you on a sidewalk in front of a department store—as you are headed into that store—and says she hopes you will not shop there because it sells products made in Communist China. She then hands you a brochure that lists all of the products sold in the store that are…Terence Jeffrey -
- Opinion
Performing ‘Sex-Change Procedures’ on Kids Is Child Abuse, Texas’ Attorney General Says. He’s Right, and I Should Know.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton released a formal legal opinion last week concluding that performing certain “sex-change procedures” on children—including surgeries, cross-sex hormones, and puberty blockers—constitutes child abuse under Texas law. As someone who identified as a woman for eight years, I agree. In his Feb. 18 statement, Paxton methodically builds the case for his…Walt Heyer -
- Opinion
Don’t Buy Democrats’ Cries of GOP ‘Racism’ and ‘Misogyny’ on Biden’s Supreme Court Pick
Even before Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson’s nomination to the Supreme Court, prominent Democrats began accusing Republican senators of being racists and misogynists for daring to question, for example, the pledge that President Joe Biden made as a candidate to nominate a black woman to the high court if elected. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., said such questions…John G. Malcolm -
- Opinion
Are Courts Properly Interpreting Supreme Court Precedent and Respecting Religious Employers’ Employment Decisions?
Supreme Court watchers learn a lot about the justices’ thinking on particular issues based on which cases they agree to accept. Court watchers can also learn a lot based on which cases the justices reject—especially when some of the justices take the relatively rare step of issuing a statement “respecting the denial of certiorari,” which…Zack Smith -
- News
EXCLUSIVE: Race Shouldn’t Be Sole Basis for Nominating a Supreme Court Justice, Ben Carson Says
ORLANDO, Fla.—Former presidential candidate and celebrated neurosurgeon Ben Carson says he is disappointed with how President Joe Biden selected Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson. “When we start making the criteria for public positions something that people have no control over—they have no control over their race … it goes against all the work, the…Virginia Allen -
- Opinion
What Senators Must Ask Supreme Court Nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson About Her Record, Judicial Philosophy
President Joe Biden has nominated U.S. Circuit Court Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to replace retiring Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer. Who is Jackson? What is her judicial philosophy? And how should senators evaluate her nomination? Here’s what you need to know. Jackson’s rulings and previous comments offer clues as to why Biden nominated her to…John G. Malcolm -
- News
Does a Teacher Have a Right to Refuse to Call a Girl a Boy? Virginia’s Supreme Court May Decide
A Virginia teacher was fired for refusing to call a girl a boy. Now, the state’s Supreme Court has the opportunity to decide whether a local school board violated the teacher’s legal rights. A lawyer for French teacher Peter Vlaming asked Tuesday that the Virginia Supreme Court take up the case, Vlaming v. West Point…Virginia Allen -
- News
4 Things to Know About Dark Money Interests Behind Biden’s Supreme Court Choice
Before becoming a White House official helping President Joe Biden pick his first Supreme Court nominee, Paige Herwig was a founding member of a legal group—bankrolled by a liberal political consulting firm—that drafted a list of possible justices for the Biden campaign. Herwig’s presence on the White House legal team is just one example of…Fred Lucas -
- Opinion
First Black Woman Supreme Court Justice Could Be… a Man?
President Joe Biden has made clear he will keep his promise to elect the first black woman to the Supreme Court, following Justice Stephen Breyer’s retirement. But in a curious tweet announcing he will pick someone with excellent qualifications, he said, “And they will be the first black woman nominated to the United States Supreme Court.” They? …Mario Diaz -
- Opinion
What Justice Stephen Breyer Brought to the Supreme Court
Although he did not heed the myriad calls for him to step down by liberal groups at the end of last term, Justice Stephen G. Breyer, 83, reportedly will retire from the U.S. Supreme Court at the end of this term, leaving a vacancy for President Joe Biden to fill as Democrats maintain a slim…John G. Malcolm -
- Opinion
NPR’s Fake News From Supreme Court
CNN anchor Brianna Keilar is hosting a temporary program pompously titled “Democracy in Peril.” On Jan. 18, Keilar huffed: “We can’t discuss the tsunami of disinformation, jeopardizing American democracy, without talking about the mothership, Fox.” On the very same day, NPR Supreme Court reporter Nina Totenberg aired a story claiming that Supreme Court Justice Neil…Tim Graham -
- Opinion
Sotomayor’s Ignorance of COVID-19 Facts
Justice Sonia Sotomayor’s ludicrous claim before her Supreme Court peers during Jan. 7 oral arguments that 100,000 children were “in serious condition” from COVID-19, when 3,000 would have been more accurate, is far more than just an embarrassment to the justice. How could such an ill-informed person be a justice of our highest court? What else…Roger Simon -
- Opinion
Supreme Court Can and Should Resolve ‘Waters of the United States’ Issue
For decades, there has been major confusion regarding what waters are regulated under the Clean Water Act. The United States Supreme Court can change this by agreeing to hear a case brought by the Pacific Legal Foundation. In its petition asking the court to hear the case, Sackett v. Environmental Protection Agency, the Pacific Legal…Daren Bakst -
- Opinion
Supreme Court Ponders Whether Parents May Use Tuition Aid for Religious Instruction
A prohibition on distributing government funds to “sectarian,” or religious, schools is written into the constitutions of 36 states. Such provisions are known as Blaine Amendments. Last year, the Supreme Court considered and then invalidated the specific prohibition contained in the Montana Constitution. In Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue, the high court ruled that…Sarah Parshall Perry -
- Opinion
Biden’s Supreme Court Commission Does What He Intended: Nothing
Most of us know the old philosophical chestnut: If a tree falls in the woods but no one is around to hear it, does it actually make a sound? The Presidential Commission on the Supreme Court’s release Monday of its draft final report offers this variation: If the president creates a commission but it doesn’t…Thomas Jipping -
- Opinion
Why It’s Likely That Supreme Court Will Overturn Roe v. Wade
The days of abortion on demand could be numbered. The Supreme Court heard oral arguments Wednesday in a case in which the high court could overturn its 1973 decision in Roe v. Wade and send power back to the states to determine their own abortion laws. “I feel like the Supreme Court right now has…Virginia Allen -
- News
Why These 21 Americans Say Supreme Court Should Overturn Roe v. Wade
A pro-life crowd including students, mothers, feminists, conservatives, liberals, and Democrats as well as Republicans gathered outside the Supreme Court building Wednesday as the sun rose over Washington. Americans traveled to the Supreme Court from across the country to express their views on abortion and call for the nine justices to overturn the court's 1973…Virginia Allen -
- Opinion
Supreme Court Takes Up Challenges to Near Limitless Power of EPA
This term the Supreme Court will hear four consolidated cases challenging the Environmental Protection Agency’s power to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from power plants. That question will impact all electricity consumers, but the cases may have larger implications for the ever-expanding reach of the administrative state. The lead case—West Virginia v. EPA—questions the constitutionality of…Katie Tubb -
- News
Virginia Attorney General-Elect Commits to Investigating Sexual Assaults in Loudoun Schools
Virginia’s Attorney General-elect Jason Miyares, a Republican, said during a press conference Thursday that he plans to investigate Loudoun County Public Schools and the recent sexual assaults that took place on its campuses. “Do you plan to investigate Loudoun County Public Schools and the recent sexual assaults that have happened there?” a journalist asked during the press…Kendall Tietz