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
There’s a New Push to Review Judicial Misconduct Complaints Against Brett Kavanaugh
A judicial ethics panel has been asked to review orders dismissing misconduct complaints against Justice Brett Kavanaugh relating to his emotionally charged testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee. The petition, from a New York attorney called Jeremy C. Bates, was sent to the Judicial Conference of the United States, the policymaking entity of the federal… -
opinion
Snowflake Students Tried to Block Kavanaugh From Teaching. Thankfully, They Failed.
George Mason University’s Antonin Scalia Law School hired Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh to co-teach a course this summer called “Creation of the Constitution.” The course will be held 3,668 miles away, in Runnymede, England, where the Magna Carta was sealed 800 years ago. Some George Mason University students and faculty have become triggered. One… -
opinion
This Supreme Court Case Threatens the Left’s View of Group Identity, Victimhood
Oral arguments heard at the Supreme Court Tuesday were ostensibly about whether the 2020 census could include a question about citizenship. But don’t be fooled. The reason this case rocketed to the Supreme Court and has been so hotly contested is that the debate hinges, at bottom, on two starkly different visions of America. In… -
news
Supreme Court to Hear Cases Involving Firings of Gay, Transgender Employees
The Supreme Court agreed Monday to hear three cases centered on whether federal law against discrimination in employment applies to sexual orientation and gender identity. After hearing Bostock v. Clayton County, Georgia, the high court will decide whether the words “because of … sex,” found in Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964,… -
opinion
The Fight Over Trump’s Tax Returns Will End Up in the Supreme Court. Here’s Why.
Should elected officials be allowed to gain access to the federal income tax returns of American taxpayers? When President Richard Nixon tried to do this to get dirt on his political opponents he was deservedly condemned and Congress passed a law in 1976 to bar the practice. But now Democrats want to ignore that law to get… -
news
Attorney General Says Mueller Found No Collusion, but 10 Instances of Possible Obstruction
Special counsel Robert Mueller’s report highlights 10 episodes that could be construed as obstruction of justice, although his investigation found no underlying conspiracy between the Trump campaign and the Russian government to affect the outcome of the 2016 presidential election. Attorney General William Barr held a press conference Thursday morning to lay out the conclusions… -
news
3 Keys to Understanding the Attorney General’s Move to Limit ‘Catch and Release’
Attorney General William Barr has announced a new asylum policy to curb the government’s practice of catching illegal immigrants and then releasing them into the nation’s interior. The American Civil Liberties Union already has vowed to challenge the change in court even as President Donald Trump seeks to use all legal tools at his disposal… -
opinion
2 Key Cases the Supreme Court Will Hear in April
Conversations about the Supreme Court this spring have been dominated by discussion of conspiracy theories about Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s health, Democratic presidential hopefuls’ plans to “pack the Supreme Court,” and a manufactured “controversy” over Justice Brett Kavanaugh teaching at George Mason University’s Scalia Law School. But on Monday, the justices will begin their final… -
news
Clarence Thomas Speaks Out on Amy Coney Barrett, ‘Dogma’ Charge
Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas told a friendly audience in California that religious belief does not compromise the work of the courts, and he expressed regret that religion featured prominently in a 2017 judicial confirmation. Speaking on April 4 at Pepperdine University School of Law’s annual banquet, Thomas was asked whether it is ever legitimate… -
opinion
Students Who Want to ‘Kick Kavanaugh Off Campus’ Should Take a Hike
George Mason University’s Antonin Scalia Law School recently announced Justice Brett Kavanaugh will teach a class during its summer term on the creation of the Constitution. Students will travel to Runnymede, England, the location where Magna Carta was sealed more than 800 years ago. Naturally, this led a student group from the undergraduate university called… -
news
4 Big Issues in Attorney General’s First Hearing After Getting Mueller Report
The special counsel’s report on Russia’s election meddling will be released with redactions within a week, and the results of a separate probe into alleged Justice Department misconduct is coming within two months, Attorney General William Barr told a House panel Tuesday. House Democrats, who weren’t happy to hear about redactions in special counsel Robert… -
news
College Students Push University to Cancel Class Taught by Kavanaugh
Students at George Mason University are advocating the termination of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who is scheduled to teach a George Mason law class in England this summer. Kavanaugh is currently scheduled to teach the class “Creation of the Constitution” to George Mason University’s Antonin Scalia Law School students in Runnymede, England, where the Magna… -
opinion
We Hear You: Jussie Smollett, Judicial Activism, and Abortion Survivors
Editor's note: We begin with some reaction from The Daily Signal's audience to Chicago's about-face in the strange case of a TV actor, then on to some responses to news not covered elsewhere. Join in by writing to [email protected].—Ken McIntyre Dear Daily Signal: I look at the photo of actor Jussie Smollett accompanying your podcast… -
news
Amid Rumors, Clarence Thomas Says ‘I’m Not Retiring’
Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas denied any interest in retirement this weekend, telling a friendly audience in Beverly Hills, California, that he has no plans to leave judicial service in the near future. Speaking at Pepperdine University School of Law’s annual dinner, the 70-year-old Thomas emphatically denied speculation that he will leave the Supreme Court,… -
news
Supreme Court Turns Down Bids to Stop Trump’s Bump Stock Ban
The Supreme Court has turned down two bids to halt the Trump administration’s ban on bump stocks, an accessory that increases a semiautomatic rifle’s rate of fire. The new federal prohibition, prompted by the deadly Harvest music festival massacre in Las Vegas on Oct. 1, 2017, took effect Tuesday. Chief Justice John Roberts rejected one application to… -
opinion
Courts Should Stay Out of the ‘Political Thicket’ of Gerrymandering
The Supreme Court heard oral argument this week in two cases challenging congressional district lines drawn for partisan advantage. The question before the justices is whether state legislators violate the Constitution when they draw up district lines with politics in mind. Partisan politics has been part-and-parcel of the redistricting process since Gov. Elbridge Gerry gave… -
news
Attorney General Sees No Case for Obstruction as Mueller Finds No Collusion With Russia
It’s no longer only President Donald Trump and his allies saying “no collusion.” Special counsel Robert Mueller has reached the same conclusion that the Trump campaign did not conspire with Moscow to gain advantage in the 2016 election. Mueller also did not uncover actionable evidence in his 22-month probe that Trump sought to obstruct justice… -
news
Mueller Delivers Report on Russia Probe to Attorney General
Special counsel Robert Mueller delivered a report Friday on his investigation of Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election and allegations of collusion by the Trump campaign. Attorney General William Barr, who took office Feb. 14, informed the chairmen and ranking members of the House and Senate Judiciary committees that he had received Mueller’s report…. -
news
GOP Lawmaker to Introduce Bill to Keep Supreme Court Justices at 9
A lawmaker from Tennessee plans to introduce a bill in Congress to keep the Supreme Court at nine justices amid efforts by some Democrats to increase the number to as many as 15. “This Thursday, I will be introducing a constitutional amendment that would limit the number of Supreme Court justices to 9—the number of… -
opinion
Democrats Vote Against Trump’s Judicial Nominees Far More Than Republicans Did Against Obama’s
The Senate has confirmed Neomi Rao to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. She’s exactly the kind of impartial judge that we need across the judiciary. That makes 91 judges overall, and 36 to the federal appeals court, since President Donald Trump took office. Whatever those numbers mean on their own, the…