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
Flake Continues to Hold Judicial Confirmations Hostage to Vote on Mueller Protection Bill
Retiring Sen. Jeff Flake is staying true to his pledge to not advance judicial nominees in the Senate Judiciary Committee, unless a bill that would prevent President Donald Trump from firing special counsel Robert Mueller gets a Senate vote. “It is not productive,” said Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, per Politico. “One of the greatest substantive…Rachel del Guidice -
- Opinion
Where Trump’s Judicial Picks Stand at the End of This Congress
The 115th Congress is almost finished, with the Senate expected to adjourn by Dec. 14. What does that mean for the process of filling positions in the judicial and executive branches? First, here’s how it usually works. The majority and minority typically agree to confirm a group of nominees in the last few days of…Thomas Jipping -
- Opinion
The Supreme Court Signals It May Rein in Abusive Property Seizures
This week, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral argument in a case that may rein in abusive property seizures by state and local governments through the highly controversial legal tool known as civil asset forfeiture. The case at issue involves a man named Tyson Timbs, who sold $225 worth of heroin to undercover police officers…Jason Snead -
- Opinion
Frequent 5-4 Supreme Court Rulings Belie Chief Justice Roberts’ Argument Justices Are Unbiased
Chief Justice John Roberts has been drawn into President Donald Trump’s web. Last week the president criticized the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, based in San Francisco, calling it “a lawless disgrace.” The New York Times writes, “Trump’s remarks came after a federal trial judge ordered the administration to resume accepting asylum…Cal Thomas -
- Opinion
3 Upcoming Supreme Court Cases to Watch
After a two-week break, the Supreme Court has returned to hear its final round of cases for 2018. Among the issues that the court will address are whether half of Oklahoma is an Indian reservation, excessive fines, and double jeopardy. The following are three cases to watch in the Supreme Court’s last sitting of the…Elizabeth Slattery -
- News
Justice Sonia Sotomayor Shares How She Welcomed Brett Kavanaugh After His Confirmation
Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor related one of her first exchanges with Justice Brett Kavanaugh following his bitter confirmation during a wide-ranging interview Saturday with CNN. In welcoming Kavanaugh, Sotomayor recounted a story about Justice Clarence Thomas’ arrival at the Supreme Court in 1991. “It was Justice Thomas who tells me that when he first came to…Kevin Daley -
- News
Trump Taps Regulatory Czar to Succeed Kavanaugh on DC Circuit
President Donald Trump will nominate Neomi Rao, administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, for a seat on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. Speaking at the White House’s Diwali celebration Tuesday, the president said he was slated to make the announcement on Wednesday, but was so delighted by the…Kevin Daley -
- Opinion
A New Way of Tracking Trump’s Judicial Nominees
Addressing a convention of labor commissioners in 1889, prominent government statistician Carroll D. Wright reminded his audience that “figures will not lie,” but warned that “liars will figure.” He urged them to “prevent the liar from figuring”—that is, from “perverting the truth, in the interest of some theory he is trying to establish.” To that…Thomas Jipping -
- News
12 Potential Trump Nominees for Attorney General
Attorney General Jeff Sessions resigned Wednesday, creating a vacancy in President Donald Trump’s Cabinet and the opportunity to confirm a new leader at the Department of Justice. The question facing Trump is whom he might pick as the next attorney general. The Heritage Foundation’s John Malcolm, vice president of the Institute for Constitutional Government and…Troy Worden -
- News
Democrats Protest Trump’s Naming Critic of Mueller Probe as Acting Attorney General
With Jeff Sessions’ resignation Wednesday as attorney general, Democrats immediately began attacking his interim replacement. President Donald Trump tapped Sessions’ chief of staff, Matt Whitaker, a former U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Iowa, to be acting attorney general. Sessions, a former Alabama senator and early Trump supporter who angered the president by recusing…Fred Lucas -
- News
Brett Kavanaugh Won’t Collect $600,000 GoFundMe Award Raised to Support Him
Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh will not accept a $600,000 award from a GoFundMe page established to support him as he faced allegations of sexual misconduct from several women. Conservative blogger John Hawkins, who launched the GoFundMe effort on Sept. 24, received a statement from former Kavanaugh law clerk Travis Lenkner indicating that the justice…Kevin Daley -
- News
Student Cancels Petition Seeking Removal of Clarence Thomas’ Name From Campus Building
An alumna of a Georgia college has canceled her petition demanding that the college remove Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas’ name from a campus building. More than 2,400 people had signed an online petition calling on the Savannah College of Art and Design to rename its Clarence Thomas Center for Historic Preservation. The petition webpage…Troy Worden -
- Opinion
Here Are 3 Cases to Watch at the Supreme Court
The Supreme Court is back in session after a two-week break. The justices will hear arguments in a number of important cases, including ones dealing with coercive class-action settlements, using hovercrafts for moose hunting in Alaska, and Virginia’s ban on uranium mining. Here are three cases to watch closely in the coming weeks. Frank v….Elizabeth Slattery -
- News
Ruth Bader Ginsburg Calls Congress the ‘Culprit’ in Polarizing Judicial Confirmation Process
Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg points the finger at an increasingly partisan Congress for polarizing the judicial confirmation process. Speaking at the federal courthouse in Washington on Wednesday, Ginsburg said a lack of collegiality and bipartisanship among lawmakers was to blame for polarizing the confirmation process for federal judges, The Washington Post reported. Ginsburg…Tristan Justice -
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Judiciary Chairman Refers Avenatti and His Client to Justice Department Over Kavanaugh Claims
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley has referred attorney Michael Avenatti and his client, Julie Swetnick, to the Justice Department and FBI for investigation into their claims about Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh. “I am writing to refer Mr. Michael Avenatti and Ms. Julie Swetnick for investigation,” Grassley, an Iowa Republican, wrote in a letter to Attorney…Chuck Ross -
- Opinion
Why Democratic Senators Won’t Succeed in Attempt to Block Judicial Nominee
Even with just two months left in this Congress, the Senate Judiciary Committee is still holding hearings for judicial nominations. A hearing Wednesday will include Eric Miller, nominated to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, even though his home-state senators, Democrats Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell of Washington, oppose him. Murray and…Thomas Jipping -
- News
Fellow Alumni Seek to Rescind Sen. Susan Collins’ Honorary Degree for Kavanaugh Vote
Hundreds of alumni and faculty are calling on a university to take back an honorary degree it gave to Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, in retaliation for her vote to confirm Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court. Graduates and professors of St. Lawrence University in New York published letters–addressed to the school’s president, board of trustees,…Troy Worden -
- Opinion
4 Scenarios for the Cases Kavanaugh Missed
Justice Brett Kavanaugh was sworn in and joined the Supreme Court on Oct. 6, after the court had completed the first week of its 2018-2019 term. By that time, the court had already heard arguments in six cases with only eight justices. These cases dealt with age discrimination in employment, Congress delegating lawmaking authority to…Elizabeth Slattery -
- News
Bakers Fined $135K Over Wedding Cake Appeal to Supreme Court
The former owners of an Oregon bakery, ordered to pay $135,000 in damages for declining to make a cake for a same-sex wedding, are appealing their case to the Supreme Court. Lawyers for Aaron and Melissa Klein filed a petition Monday asking the Supreme Court to reverse an earlier decision handed down by the state…Kelsey Bolar -
- News
The American Legion Is Asking Supreme Court to Protect Cross-Shaped War Memorial
The American Legion and a Maryland planning commission are asking the U.S. Supreme Court to protect a cross-shaped World War I memorial, after the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found the monument violates the Constitution. Supporters of the petition say the 4th Circuit’s decision compromises war memorials across the country, including those at Arlington National Cemetery….Kevin Daley