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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- News
Supreme Court Refuses to Hear Appeal of Christian Florist in Same-Sex Wedding Case
The Supreme Court on Friday announced it had declined to review the case of a Christian florist in Washington state involving same-sex marriage, again punting on major constitutional questions involving religious freedom. Justices Neil Gorsuch, Clarence Thomas, and Samuel Alito expressed support for hearing the case, but to take a case requires the votes of at…Fred Lucas -
- Opinion
What You Need to Know About Supreme Court Rulings on Faith-Based Foster Care, Student Speech, and More
The Supreme Court has issued a number of significant rulings this term that affect everything from collegiate athletics to adoption agencies. Among the most notable decisions, the high court ruled 9-0 in favor of religious liberty in the case of Fulton v. City of Philadelphia. The case gives a Catholic social service agency in Philadelphia…Virginia Allen -
- Opinion
Supreme Court: Religious Liberty Prevails in Fulton v. City of Philadelphia
Saturday is the six-year anniversary of the Obergefell v. Hodges ruling, in which the Supreme Court redefined marriage to include same-sex couples. The Supreme Court’s decision has created questions of how it will treat discrimination claims by same-sex couples and supporters of traditional marriage between one man and one woman. Critics of proponents of traditional…Julea Pehl -
- Opinion
Unanimous Supreme Court Gives Win to Religious Foster Care Agency
In a unanimous judgment Thursday, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of a faith-based foster care agency, saying the city of Philadelphia could not disqualify it because of its religious beliefs. The high court noted that Catholic Social Services has “long been a point of light in the city’s foster-care system” and that the agency simply wishes to be allowed to “continue serving the children of Philadelphia in a manner consistent…Kassie Dulin -
- Opinion
The Real Reason These Democrats Want to Expand Supreme Court
Four Democratic members of Congress have introduced legislation to expand the Supreme Court from nine justices to 13. Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., and Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., introduced the bill April 15 with Reps. Hank Johnson, D-Ga., and Mondaire Jones, D-N.Y. Markey said he supports expanding the high court because it “is broken.” GianCarlo Canaparo,…Virginia Allen -
- News
‘A Pure Political Ploy’: Sen. Rubio Accuses Democrats of Trying to Pack Courts for Their Own Agenda
Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., criticized legislation introduced by Democratic members of Congress intended to add four justices to the Supreme Court. Rubio told Fox News Thursday that the bill is a “political ploy” that serves the Democratic Party’s political agenda. He added that issues with the court sprang up once the conservatives made up a…Nicole Silverio -
- Opinion
Left Is Using Supreme Court Commission to Change Court’s Decisions, Not to Improve It
Today, President Joe Biden signed an executive order creating the Presidential Commission on the Supreme Court of the United States. The White House announcement and the members chosen for this commission raise serious questions about its real purpose and concerns about its impact on the independence of the judiciary. The most obvious question is why…Thomas Jipping -
- Opinion
Supreme Court Punted on Protections for Religion in Workplace. Justice Gorsuch Wasn’t Having It.
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday released various opinions and orders, as it does in the flurry of activity in the spring season that precedes the court’s summer recess. While most orders are released without commentary, among this week’s batch was a denial of a petition for writ of certiorari that included a strongly worded…Sarah Parshall Perry -
- News
Democrat Senator Calls for Biden’s New AG to Examine ‘Fake’ Kavanaugh Investigation
Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., called on the nation's new attorney general, Merrick Garland, to examine the FBI’s “fake” investigation into allegations that Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh sexually assaulted a fellow high school student. The Rhode Island Democrat suggested that the FBI's investigation into Kavanaugh’s conduct had been incomplete, and asked Garland to examine how…Mary Margaret Olohan -
- Opinion
Justices’ Title VII ‘on Basis of Sex’ Ruling Spawning Unintended Consequences in Lower Courts
A Supreme Court case decided last year is a cautionary tale of the legal equivalent of the law of unintended consequences. The high court issued a decision last June in Bostock v. Clayton County, a landmark 6-3 opinion holding that discrimination “on the basis of sex” for the purposes of Title VII (which forbids discrimination…GianCarlo Canaparo -
- Opinion
In Pivotal Ruling, Supreme Court Removes Barrier to Protecting First Amendment
A near-unanimous Supreme Court decided Monday that two Christian students have the right to sue the Georgia college that violated their free speech rights in the past. The impact of the ruling is far greater than what at first sounds like a run-of-the-mill decision on a procedural issue that might prompt non-lawyers to take a…Sarah Parshall Perry -
- News
7 Takeaways as Merrick Garland Gets Hearing for Attorney General
Merrick Garland, whose nomination five years ago to the Supreme Court was doomed, finally got a hearing Monday before the Senate Judiciary Committee—as President Joe Biden’s nominee for attorney general. Judging from their statements, the panel’s Republican senators seemed likely to confirm Garland. After President Barack Obama nominated Garland for the Supreme Court in March…Fred Lucas -
- News
Smithsonian’s Clarence Thomas Exhibit Guilty of ‘Irresponsible Bias,’ Black Conservatives Say
A group of black conservative leaders has called on the National Museum of African American History and Culture to update its exhibit on Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas to correct what it calls “irresponsible bias” in the display. "Black history cannot and should not be political," Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., wrote in a letter last week…Virginia Allen -
- Opinion
Federal Judge Is Right to Enjoin Biden’s Plan to Halt Deportations
In his first few days in office, President Joe Biden has issued a flurry of executive orders and memorandums. And according to one federal judge, not all of them are lawful. Judge Drew Tipton of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas has enjoined the Biden administration’s Jan. 20 memorandum that would have suspended…Lora Ries -
- Opinion
The Left’s Push to ‘Reform’ the Courts Only Will Politicize Them
President Joe Biden has announced the creation of a commission to examine “reforming” the courts. This move is not only a “solution” in search of a problem, but will itself likely damage the rule of law and the independence of the judiciary. It is based on the dangerous idea that the political branches should manipulate…Thomas Jipping -
- Opinion
As Biden Attorney General, Merrick Garland Will Face Political Pressures
With President-elect Joe Biden’s choice of federal Judge Merrick Garland as his new attorney general last week, the question arises: Will Garland carry out his responsibilities in a nonpartisan manner, or will he return the Justice Department to the days of the Obama-Biden administration — when, as I have argued, Eric Holder politicized the department more than…Hans von Spakovsky -
- Opinion
Discrimination Against Churches Didn’t Have a Prayer at the Supreme Court
COVID-19 made 2020 an incredibly hard year for Americans. Governors and mayors made it worse by shrinking religious freedom. It didn’t have to be this way. Most Americans have shown that they’re willing to take sensible precautions. But some of those in leadership positions have overreacted, to put it mildly. As Supreme Court Justice Samuel…Emilie Kao -
- Opinion
Supreme Court’s 5-4 Ruling Shows How Religious Liberty Hangs by a Thread
In totalitarian societies, governments suppress the church and religious worship. That’s because dictators think citizens should worship them as the highest authority—and not a Higher Authority, which they view as a threat to their power and position. In the United States, religious liberty has been under siege for some time. Last week’s Thanksgiving gift to…Cal Thomas -
- Opinion
Justice Alito’s Important Warning
Everywhere one looks there are warning signs, from labels on cigarette packs warning that smoking causes cancer to ridiculous labels on thermometers that read, “Once used rectally, the thermometer should not be used orally.” Justice Samuel Alito has delivered some serious warnings that too often are ignored by many who believe the freedoms we enjoy…Cal Thomas -
- Opinion
5 Key Takeaways From Justice Samuel Alito’s Speech to the Federalist Society
Last week, Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito gave a blistering keynote speech on a range of topics for the Federalist Society’s national convention, held virtually this year. The speech, which conservatives applauded for Alito’s forthrightness, was also controversial. Alito did not shy away from offering his professional perspective on law and commenting on cultural issues,…Nicole Russell