Utah v. Strieff

If You Can’t Beat ‘Em Block ‘Em: A Preface to a New Post-Scalia Court Strategy?

(images via supremecourt.gov) In the biggest cases this Supreme Court Term there was one common thread – the four Justices appointed by Democratic Presidents either voted together for the winning position or (likely) voted together to cause a 4-4 split (this was a potential strategy I discussed earlier). The numbers on the Court set up…

Odd Couples (and Trios)

With eight Justices voting on the majority of cases this Term, who are known to often split their votes along ideological lines, there were and are bound to be several unique repercussions. The Justices had and have the option of evenly splitting their votes and leaving lower court opinions as they stand. They also can seek…

Interruptions and References

Supreme Court oral arguments are traditionally thought of as a time for the Justices to interact with and ask question of attorneys in a case. One of the lesser thought of aspects of oral arguments has to do with the interaction among the Justices. Over the years several studies and articles have looked at this…